Construction Planning and Scheduling

Planning and scheduling construction work: levels of schedule, work breakdown structures and activity definition, durations from quantities and productivity with calendars and weather, logic and constraints, the critical path method and float, PERT and Monte Carlo risk, resource levelling and cost curves, crashing and fast-tracking, line of balance and takt planning, CCDC 2-2020 and Division 01 scheduling requirements, schedule quality metrics and float ownership, updates, time impact analysis and recovery, software, 4D BIM and a capstone CPM schedule.

CON-210 Year 2 3 credits 12 lessons · 6 h 18 min

Offered by HSM University · Construction Management

This is the Canadian version of this course. See the American version.

What you'll learn

  • Distinguish planning from scheduling, explain why construction needs formal schedules, and describe the levels of schedule from milestone summary to weekly work plan
  • Build a work breakdown structure that meets the 100 % rule, write a WBS dictionary, and define, name and code activities at a level of detail suited to control
  • Estimate activity durations from quantities, productivity and crew size, apply calendars, holidays and weather allowances, and chain procurement activities for long-lead items
  • Sequence activities with finish-to-start, start-to-start, finish-to-finish and start-to-finish relationships, use lags correctly, and avoid hard constraints, leads and open ends
  • Perform forward and backward passes by hand, calculate total and free float, and identify critical and near-critical paths
  • Apply PERT three-point estimates to estimate the probability of meeting a date, interpret Monte Carlo results, and size visible schedule contingency
  • Load resources onto a schedule, draw resource histograms and cost curves, and smooth or level resources within float or within hard limits
  • Compress a schedule by crashing critical activities in order of cost slope and by fast-tracking, and find the duration with the lowest total cost
  • Plan repetitive work with time-location charts, line of balance and takt planning so that crews work continuously, and calculate durations for balanced rates
  • Interpret the scheduling requirements of CCDC 2-2020 and Division 01 specifications, review a baseline submittal, apply schedule quality metrics and explain float ownership
  • Update a schedule from a data date, measure progress, calculate earned schedule indices, analyse delays with time impact analysis, and plan a credible recovery
  • Use scheduling software and 4D models critically, and build, analyse, update and recover a complete CPM schedule for a small building

Course content

12 lessons · 6 h 18 min total · final exam

  1. 1 Why planning matters and the planning process 29 min · quiz
  2. 2 Work breakdown structures and activity definition 30 min · quiz
  3. 3 Estimating activity durations 33 min · quiz
  4. 4 Sequencing and logic: dependencies, constraints and lags 30 min · quiz
  5. 5 The critical path method 30 min · quiz
  6. 6 Probabilistic scheduling and schedule risk 32 min · quiz
  7. 7 Resource loading and levelling 33 min · quiz
  8. 8 Schedule compression: crashing and fast-tracking 28 min · quiz
  9. 9 Linear and location-based scheduling 34 min · quiz
  10. 10 Scheduling specifications, contract requirements and schedule quality 32 min · quiz
  11. 11 Schedule updates, progress measurement and recovery 34 min · quiz
  12. 12 Scheduling software, 4D BIM and capstone: a CPM schedule for a small building 33 min · quiz
  13. E Final exam 20 questions

Requirements

Recommended background. You can start any course at any time.

Description

Planning and scheduling construction work: levels of schedule, work breakdown structures and activity definition, durations from quantities and productivity with calendars and weather, logic and constraints, the critical path method and float, PERT and Monte Carlo risk, resource levelling and cost curves, crashing and fast-tracking, line of balance and takt planning, CCDC 2-2020 and Division 01 scheduling requirements, schedule quality metrics and float ownership, updates, time impact analysis and recovery, software, 4D BIM and a capstone CPM schedule.

Part of the Construction Management stream, typically taken in year 2.