METHODOLOGY

For our research, first a baseline project shall be developed with scope quantities, cost, and schedule on Primavera Project Management (P6) with certain preconditions pertaining to price escalations and constraints.

After the baseline has been developed, two alternative ending simulations for the same project will be developed. Then a comparison of the alternatives and the baselines will be made, analyzing cost and time variables, which will allow conclusions to be developed.

3.1 Baseline Project

It is relevant to understand the following contract information for our project that is applicable to both the baseline and the alternative ending simulations.

Preconditions imposed for baseline project for purpose of research:

1. The baseline project is completed exactly on schedule and on budget.
2. Price escalation on permissible materials was not encountered during currency of project.
3. Monthly payments were made on time for work done invoices.
4. Constraints (of any nature) were not encountered during the project.
5. Resources employed are moderate in nature—in other words, those normally employed for such constructions; these would include input of machinery and manpower, both employed moderately.

3.2 Bill of Quantities (BOQ)

A BOQ is required for generation of a Primavera schedule. Table 3.1 shows a sample BOQ that is tailor-made with assumed quantities, rates, and amounts to reflect the scope of work under study and comparison with alternatives for the purpose of this research.

The summary of the scope of work shown in Table 3.1 is broken down and presented in detail on a line item basis in Table 3.2.

3.3 Project Schedule

The schedule shown in Figure 3.1 has been developed using Primavera Project Management (P6). It is an international standard for project scheduling and control simulation and it is capable of managing highly sophisticated and complex projects. All that has been discussed in this study can and is implemented in P6 and presented below. The primary target is to see start and end dates of the project, individual activities with their interrelationships, the critical path, and resources.

3.4 S-Curve Of Baseline Project

Using output from the developed Primavera schedule for weekly and cumulative man hours, the S-curve shown in Figure 3.2 has been developed for the project.

3.5 Cost/Earned Value Management For Baseline Project

At the 100% stage, that is, at the completion of the project:

Budget at Completion (BAC) = Planned Value at End of Project (PV) = 363,014,661

Earned Value (EV) = 363,014,661 (as project is assumed to be 100% complete)

Actual Cost (AC) = 363,014,661

Schedule Performance Index (SPI) = EV/PV = 1.0

Cost Performance Index (CPI) = EV/AC = 1.0

Thus, as expected for the baseline project, both indexes are at 1.0.

The model thus obtained in this chapter serves as a basis of comparison for the alternative ending simulations that we will prepare in the next chapter for analysis purposes.