So far we have considered tasks and their attributes in some detail and set up a development calendar and a development resource pool.
In this unit we shall consider the resources required to carry out a project and how we assign them to tasks in Microsoft Project.
Finally, we shall see how to "level" resources when they have been over allocated. i.e. the resources are overloaded.
Different types of resources are required to carry out a project. If we consider the development of a new microelectronic based product for example, we shall require people to carry out the design, equipment to test the design and materials to manufacture the prototypes.
We shall also need time and money which are, in a sense, fundamental resources.
We shall adopt the resource types used in Microsoft Project, which are:
Both people and equipment are required to carry out work on the project and both have have costs associated with them. Materials are consumed as the project progresses and these also have costs associated with them.
People and equipment are given a "unit" value in MSP. For example, if a person is available to work on the project full time they are given a unit value of 1.00 or 100%. We shall use decimal notation for units in this module.
A group of 3 people available to work on the project full time are given a unit value of 3.00, whilst a single person available for only half of the working time is given a value of 0.5.
Equipment is treated just like people. If an item of equipment is only available for 20% of the working time, it is given a unit value of 0.2.
Materials do not have a unit value associated with them, but they do have a cost. Consequently MSP can calculate the cost associated with each task and the cost of the project overall.
Resources may be entered on a resource sheet and then assigned to project tasks or assigned from a resource pool, or a combination of both.
We shall use a common resource pool for the development staff and project-specific resources for product development projects. Hence we shall use a combination of resources from a pool and project specific resources.
We have already set up a development calendar which we shall use for several of the projects in this module.
The calendar, which is based on a standard calendar, takes into account company holidays, the number of hours worked/day and the number of days worked in a week.
It is possible to assign a calendar to each resource used on a project, so that an individual's holidays could be taken into account when planning the project. A similar situation applies to equipment and even external suppliers.
In this module we shall not use personal resource-based calendars and our project plans will use the development calendar we have already produced, where appropriate.
To set up the development calendar in MSP:
The task calendar icon should appear in the information column in task entry mode view. Move the mouse over the icon to the see the task calendar.
Resources, particularly human resources, are seldom available to work full time on a project. For example, the manager of R&D in an SME would probably be available for part of her time for design work, say system design, because she would need time to manage the department.
Similarly, the engineers in the department would not really be available for design work full time because they would be expected to assist production when problems occur with existing products, such a sourcing alternative components when specified components are not available.
It is also unreasonable to expect people to be available for 100% of the working time during a project. People need to answer the phone, answer emails and take a break periodically.
We shall assume that personnel in the development department are only available for 90% of the working week and that some individuals will be available for less than this for product development because of other duties they must carry out on a regular basis.
We shall modify the development resource pool to take into account human resource utilisation.
Open the development_resources.mpp file and set the resource max units to the values in the table below.
To enter these values, choose the write option on the menu that appears when you open the file. i.e. the second option.
| Table 3.1 Development Resource Utilisation |
||
|---|---|---|
| Person | Max Units | Comments |
| SWE1 | 0.9 | Software engineer 1 |
| SWE2 | 0.9 | Software engineer 2 |
| AHE1 | 0.8 | Analogue hardware engineer 1 |
| DHE1 | 0.8 | Digital hardware engineer 1 |
| DHE2 | 0.9 | Digital hardware engineer 2 |
| MDE1 | 0.8 | Mechanical design engineer 1 |
| TE1 | 0.9 | Technician engineer 1 |
| DM1 | 0.5 | Manager of Development Department |
Also, set the overtime rate for the technician, TE1, to £15/hour.
Save the file.
Note the following:
We shall use the resource pool development_resources.mpp with some projects throughout this module.
To assign resources to tasks within a specific project you should open the project file and open the resource pool at the same time.
You can now assign resources from the development resource pool to tasks in the project tasks_03.mpp. If there is a conflict between the use of resources, which is likely to occur when several projects share resources from the pool, MSP will give the pool top priority, i.e. it will give precedence to the resource pool.
Assign resources to the tasks, as listed in table 3.2.
Table 3.2 Resource Assignment Details |
||
|---|---|---|
| Task ID | Resources | Comments |
| S | None | Milestone |
| T2 | SWE1 | Single Resource |
| T3 | SWE2 | Single Resource |
| T4 | AHE1 | Single Resource |
| T5 | DHE1 | Single Resource |
| T6 | DHE2 | Single Resource |
| T7 | MDE1 | Single Resources |
| T8 | DHE1,DEH2 | Multiple Resource |
| T9 | AHE1,DHE1 | Multiple Resources |
| T10 | DHE1,SWE1 | Multiple Resources |
| T11 | DM1 | Single Resource |
| T12 | TE1 | Single Resource |
| F | none | Milestone |
Check the following:
To check your answers, download and run this file. Be careful not to overwrite your own version. Using right-click and then saving to a different directory is recommended. tasks_03.mpp
Note: you have to select "View" to display reports.
So far we have we have only allocated resources from the development resource pool. We shall now add some project specific resources from other departments.
We shall add a marketing resource and a quality resource to the project resource sheet without adding them to the development pool.
The marketing resource details are: MK1, max available units = 0.1, cost/hour £20, development calendar
The quality resource details are: QA1, max available units = 0.1, cost/hour £20, development calendar
Open tasks_03.mpp and, when asked, open the resource pool in read only mode.
Open the project resource sheet and add the above resources at the end of the list.
Go back to task entry view and add the marketing resource MK1 to task 11, so the resources for this task should read, MDE1, MK1. Add the quality resource to task 12.
You will see that both task durations have been modified by MSP. We shall explain this in a later section in this unit.
Now save the file. (i.e. tasks_03.mpp)
Important
When
asked if you wish to save results to the resource pool, click
cancel to say no. This ensures that only the project resource
sheet is saved, the resource pool is left unchanged.
The resources MK1 and QA1 are now specific to this project. We shall only change the development resource pool when something significant happens such as when an engineer leaves and/or another is employed.
Project specific resources may include external contractors such as ASIC design houses, PCB manufacturers etc.
Tip
Add resources to project
tasks using the resource drop-down list rather than by typing in the name. Otherwise, if you make a mistake, MSP will add the incorrect name to the resource sheet, which can cause a great deal of confusion.
Some of the resources in the project p3_1_tasks are over-allocated, that is they are over loaded. You can adjust the loading manually, by adding additional resources and/or increasing the task duration, or you can ask MSP to level resources for you.
Practical 4
Open the project file tasks_03 and the resource pool.
Look at the project resource sheet and you will see resources that are overloaded are shown in red. You may also look at the resources graph and the resource usage sheets. To only display the over-allocated resources, click the drop-down menu on the tool bar and select over-allocated resources.
Make a note of the over loaded engineers, the task they are involved with and the tasks durations, as well as the project completion dates, then level resources as follows:
You may find that some overloads cannot be levelled but others can. Check the durations of the tasks that used over-allocated resources. Some of them will have been increased. Also, check the completion date of the project, it will have been extended.
Also view the project resource sheet to see the remaining over-allocated resources.
We shall consider what to do with resource conflicts that can't be resolved by levelling at a later stage in the module.
Save the file taking care not to save to the resource pool.
Note.
Iif you select automatic, levelling occurs as the project data is being entered and as the project progresses. This can be confusing. If manual is selected, levelling occurs when the above levelling process is followed.
We shall get practice with levelling as we plan and monitor more complex projects.
We shall now consider how MSP calculates the work associated with a task and how resources assigned to the task affect such calculations.
So far we have not specified the task type when entering tasks. In the previous unit we pointed out that MSP defines three task types: fixed units, fixed duration and fixed work. If you don't define the task type, MSP assumes the default type, which is usually fixed units, but this can be customised.
Another factor we have not mentioned yet about tasks is that they can be specified as effort-driven or non effort-driven. MSP defaults to effort-driven tasks unless you specify otherwise.
In the previous unit we introduced the scheduling formula:
Task Duration * Units = Task Work
If you do not assign units to a task, MSP cannot calculate the work associated with a task. As soon as you assign units to a task, MSP calculates the work associated with it using the scheduling formula. From then on, MSP assumes this is the amount of work associated with the task.
For example if you set the task duration to 10 days without assigning units MSP does not calculate the work associated with the task.
If you then assign 2 units, say, to the task, MSP calculates the task work as 2 *10 = 20 days of actual work.
The practical exercises in this unit examine task types in detail.
Question1
Examination of Microsoft Project Task Types
Open a file called options_03.mpp and set up a simple
resource sheet with 2 engineers: eng1 and eng2.
Assign the unit cost for each engineer to $20/hour
and the maximum units to 1.00.
Use the MSP standard calendar for all the
tasks in the file. Then check the effect of the following:
a) Effort Driven Scheduling on
Assigning single and multiple resource units to
a fixed unit task, a fixed duration task and a fixed work
task.
Also check the effect of altering the task duration
after multiple resources have been assigned to each
task.
Finally, check the task cost for each situation you
have considered.
b) Effort Driven Scheduling off
Repeat the above exercises with effort
driven scheduling turned off.
Compare your answers
If you choose to download this file, be careful not to overwrite your own version. Using right-click and then saving to a different directory is recommended.
Download and open the file options_03.mpp
In this unit we have considered the following:
When planning a project it is important to use the correct task type for each task in the project. If you do not set the task type, MSP will use the default task type.
It is good practice to set up task details using the task information menu. This should ensure that you set the task details correctly at the planning stage.
You may also add task notes to each task using the task information menu. The use of task notes is illustrated in the solution to the exercise in this unit. When we come to producing realistic project plans the task notes facility will be used extensively.
It should be remembered that a project like the development of a new product is an important and expensive undertaking for any company, but especially so for an SME. The project should be planned professionally from the outset.
Microsoft Project allows rapid and intuitive task entry, but if tasks are entered using the wrong task type, or if you are unaware of the defaults, the resulting plan may be seriously flawed.
The situation is simple. You can go fast when you know what you are doing; until then be prepared to take extra time and progress carefully.
| Title | Author | ISBN | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Project 2003 Step by Step |
Chatfield C. | 0753619577 |
2003 |
| The Handbook of Project Management | Young T.L. | 0749428430 | 1998 |
| Project 2000 in easy steps | Carrol J. | 1840781149 | 2000 |
Updated 10.07.08 RA
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