Construction Scheduling

Construction scheduling determines the timing and sequence of project operations and estimates their intended design, fabrication and assembly times to provide the overall project completion period. The schedule reflects the project plan which should be produced first.

A schedule consists of activities or tasks representing a project plan in a logical order with intended start and finish dates. (In the UK a construction schedule is often referred to as a construction programme). The construction schedule is a means to communicate a project plan to the team, to control the project and to provide the information required for effective decision making. The most widely used methods of schedule development are the Critical Path Method (CPM) and the Programme Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) As the plans for a project become more complex the need for using CPM increases.

A schedule can be regarded as a tool which enables work to be organised, sequenced and controlled. Over recent years software has been developed which allows complex networks to be produced. A network shows the sequence of work interrelationships and interdependencies between activities. Scheduling software also allows material, plant and labour resources to be assigned to each activity. This allows managers to predict completion, based on the resources available, and allows the adjustment of crew sizes, shifts or equipment to accelerate or slow down progress depending on project performance.

Properly structured schedules should consist of a work breakdown structure (WBS). This defines and organises the total scope of a project, using a hierarchical tree structure. The estimated effort for each task also needs to be identified, as well as the resources required for each task and their availability. If this information is not carefully prepared using trustworthy sources of information, the schedule may be too inaccurate to be used to accurately measure and monitor project progress. The importance in obtaining buy-in from those who will undertake the works and in liaising with people experienced in the particular method of construction cannot be underestimated.

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