AACE International PSP - Planning & Scheduling Professional (PSP) Exam

ï‚· Early Finish Date Calculation:

Duration of Activity 10002: 7 days.

Assuming the start date aligns with project calendars, calculate the early finish by adding the duration to the early start, considering working days.

Early finish date: 12-17-03.

ï‚· Float Calculation:

Total float is the difference between the late finish and early finish dates or derived by backward pass calculations.

Total float: 4 days.

ï‚· Verification with PSP Guidelines:Float and early finish calculations are foundational in the PSP framework and involve analyzing forward and backward pass data (Ref: PSP Study Guide, Chapter 2A: Calculations and Float Analysis).

Activity Overview and Dependencies:

From the provided schedule data, Activity 3001 (Excavation, Dam Site) starts with multiple logical relationships:

Successor activities include SS (Start-to-Start) and FS (Finish-to-Start) dependencies with other tasks.

Specifically, these relationships link 3001 to 4001 (Excavation, Spillway) and 5001 (Drill and Grout, Dam Site).

Normal Schedule Context:

Excluding Activity 1000, we focus on Activity 3001's logical relationships to determine which activities are concurrent.

In the "Normal Schedule", Activity 3001 has a duration of 152 days and overlaps with Activities 4001 (152 days) and 5001 (102 days). Both activities share similar dependencies and durations with Activity 3001, making them concurrent.

Schedule Dependency Analysis:

Concurrent activities are identified by overlapping durations and logical relationships that align their schedules.

Activity 4001 is linked via SS and FF dependencies, ensuring simultaneous start and finish points.

Activity 5001 starts as 3001 progresses (SS and FS dependencies).

Final Answer Validation:

Other listed activities, such as 2003 and 7001 (Answer A) or 2004 (Answer B), are not logically or temporally concurrent based on their dependencies and durations.

Only 4001 and 5001 have concurrent schedules aligning with Activity 3001.

Study Guide Reference:

Planning and Scheduling Professional Certification Study Guide, Chapter 2 – Scheduling, sections on "Dependencies and Constraints" (p. 157) and "Sequencing Activities" (p. 151).

For further insights into identifying concurrency using logical relationships, refer to AACE's Recommended Practice 10S-90: Cost Engineering Terminology.

This structured approach ensures alignment with PSP standards and principles in evaluating concurrent activities in complex schedules.

An earned value management (EVM) system can base its calculations on labor hours or monetary values, depending on the nature of the project. Both methods are valid for tracking performance and forecasting outcomes.

Option B (direct or indirect cost) does not align with EVM's focus on performance metrics.

Option C confuses timeframes with budgeting principles.

Option D (linear feet or dollars) applies to physical progress tracking but not directly to EVM systems.

This is consistent with EVM principles as outlined in project control methodologies within the PSP materials​.

Analyze Activity 2001 in the "Normal" Schedule:

Activity 2001 ("River Diversion Stage 1") has a duration of 92 days under the "Normal" schedule.

The logic column shows it has a Successor ID of 2002, and a Finish-to-Start (FS) relationship with no lag. This indicates that Activity 2002 will begin immediately after Activity 2001 finishes.

Identify Concurrent Activities Using the Schedule Logic:To determine concurrency, we need to look for activities that overlap in time with Activity 2001 during its duration. Concurrent activities must either:

Start before Activity 2001 finishes, or

Finish after Activity 2001 starts.

Review Activities in the Normal Schedule:

Activity 1001 ("Preliminary Civil Work"):

Has a duration of 85 days, starts before Activity 2001, and overlaps with it.

Logic: Its successor is Activity 2001 (Start-to-Start [SS] relationship), confirming the overlap.

Activity 1000 ("General Conditions"):

Duration is 1072 days. However, this is an overarching activity, and its inclusion is not specific to being concurrent with Activity 2001.

Activity 7001 ("Permanent Roads"):

Starts much later, after Activity 2001 ends, and thus is not concurrent.

Activity 2003 ("River Diversion Dam"):

Starts after Activity 2001 completes (FS relationship), so it is not concurrent.

Conclusion:The only activity that overlaps and runs concurrently with Activity 2001 in the "Normal" schedule is Activity 1001.

References:

PSP Study Guide (2019), Chapter on Schedule Development, Section 2.2.4 – Relationships: Discusses how Start-to-Start (SS) and other dependencies impact concurrency.

AACE Recommended Practice 10S-90: "Cost Engineering Terminology" for definitions of concurrent activities.

ï‚· Definition of a Summary Activity (Hammock):A summary activity, also referred to as a hammock activity, spans multiple detailed tasks and is governed by the earliest start (ES) of the first task and the latest finish (LF) of the last task.

ï‚· Activities 6001 through 6003 Overview:

6001: Starts after 5001 (Drill and Grout Dam Site).

6003: Ends before 8001 (Rock Fill to elevation 50).

ï‚· Identifying Predecessor and Successor:

Predecessor: Activity 5001 (Drill and Grout Dam Site).

Successor: Activity 8001 (Rock Fill to elevation 50).

ï‚· Cross-Verification:

Logical and temporal dependencies confirm that Activity 5001 must precede the hammock, and Activity 8001 must succeed it (Ref: PSP Study Guide, Chapter 2A: Logical Sequencing and Activity Relationships

To maintain the product availability date while accommodating a 15-day delay in proofing corrections, the best course of action is to expedite another activity on the critical path. The PSP Study Guide outlines methods for schedule recovery and acceleration (Section 2.3.5, "Acceleration"). Expediting the Draft Product Manual by 5 days helps redistribute the time lost, aligning subsequent tasks to achieve the original completion milestone without delaying the overall schedule.

ï‚· Crashed Schedule Predecessors to Activity 2004:

Activity 2004 (River Diversion to Pipeline) depends on completion of:

1001 (Preliminary Civil Work).

2001 (River Diversion Stage 1).

2002 (River Diversion Stage 2).

2003 (River Diversion Dam).

ï‚· Exclusion of Other Activities:

Activity 2007 is not part of the crashed schedule's direct predecessor chain.

Other options include duplicated or incorrect entries.

ï‚· PSP Study Guide Reference:Logical sequence analysis confirms these predecessors (Ref: PSP Study Guide, Chapter 2A: Activity Sequencing and Critical Path Analysis).

ï‚· Activity 2002 in the Crashed Schedule:

Activity 2002 duration in the crashed schedule is 28 days.

Start Date: 12 August 2021.

Finish Date = Start Date + Duration (excluding non-working days).

ï‚· Calculation:

12 August + 28 days = 09 September 2021 (excluding weekends or non-working days based on typical calendars).

ï‚· Verification with PSP Guidelines:Accurate calculation of start and finish dates aligns with scheduling best practices (Ref: PSP Study Guide, Chapter 2A: Schedule Development).