(1) Explain your problem, don't simply post "This isn't working". What were you doing when you faced the problem? What have you tried to resolve - did you look for a solution using "Search" ? Has it happened just once or several times?
(2) It's also good to get feedback when a solution is found, return to the original post to explain how it was resolved so that more people can also use the results.
Dear,
I have a project with 6 phases each has different contractual completion dates and liquidated damages. But all phases are inter-related. I consider they should have their own critical path.
It means the programme should have 6 critical paths.
What should I do?
I use subprojects to link them together in a separate project then it will show 6 critical paths?
Regards,
Gary Lo
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Mike, Asta Power Project can definitely do some things that MSP cannot, and forcing the buffers critical seems intriguing. Still,a few inter-phase relationships can cause a single task to participate in the driving/critical paths for several phases.
If your only intention is to identify critical tasks - not paths - then using simultaneous trailing buffers or late constraints/deadlines on all the phase completion milestones is straightforward. Identifying which tasks are critical for which phase seems not so simple, however, when your Gantt chart is a sea of red.
Hi Lo - Tom
In Asta Powerproject it is easy to show all the sections with their individual paths.
Link each sections end date to the final end date with a "Buffer" task and ensure that the Buffer is showing critical.
Best regards
Mike T.
Gary,
Yes you may have 6 critical/driving paths. You need to identify and mark each one. You do this by temporarily constraining (or deadlining) one phase at a time. Then you have to mark them using custom flags.
Microsoft Project will not do this dynamically. Total Slack and the red bars will not tell you everything you want at the same time.
I wrote up a blog entry with some charts: http://wp.me/p6CCB4-cA
Dear,
I want to have each phase with its own critical paths i.e. 6 critical paths, but at the same time each phase are linked becasuse they have some contractual or technical constraint linling them.
Do you mean use milestone constraint to set the completion date of each phase, then it will create 6 critical paths?
Regards,
Gary Lo
Gary,
Repeating myself (in writing) is kind of pointless, don't you think. Please read it again and ask again. What specifically don't you understand?
(I'm sorry if English is not your first language. I do not write well in another.)
Dear,
I didn't really understand your answer. could you explain more detail.
Thank
Gary
Hi Gary,
1. As long as the schedules of all six phases are being managed by a single person, then there is no need for linked subprojects (and lots of arguments against.)
2. MSP does not have a built-in routine (like multiple float path analysis in P6) to give you the driving path and near-driving paths to each of your 6 completion milestones. You may use a traditional approaches like this:
3. If you use different calendars or resource leveling, total slack will become unreliable as an indicator of driving logic. Then the constraint method above won't work well. I use BPC Logic Filter (an add-in for logic tracing and other things) instead. Here's a link to a blog entry called "Video - Find the Driving Path for Key Milestones in Microsoft Project using BPC Logic Filter": http://wp.me/p6CCB4-6R.
Remember, logical driving/critical paths can change from update to update as the project progresses. You'll need to update these as you go.
Good luck, tom
Email: PPadmin@planningplanet.com
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