Instructor and Teaching Assistant Information:

Course Information:

Semester: Spring 2000
Lecture Days: Tuesday and Thursday
Lecture Time: 3:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Lecture Location – SCOB 201

Laboratory Day: Saturday (selected Saturdays)
Laboratory Time: 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon
Laboratory Location: SCOB 205

Course web page: http://ceaspub.eas.asu.edu/con495
Administrative web page: http://www2.dlt.asu.edu/courses/20001CON495S/

Credit hours: 3.0

Instructor Office Hours:

Thursday 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Friday 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. and by appointment

TA Office Hours:

Tuesday 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. and by appointment

Course Prerequisites

Completion of STP 226, CON 383, & CON 389 (Co-requisite) or, in the case of some graduate students and industry professionals, consent of the instructor.

Catalog Description:

Various network methods of project scheduling, such as AOA, AON, PERT, bar charting, line-of-balance, and VPM techniques. Microcomputers used for scheduling, resource allocation, and time/cost analysis. Lecture, Lab. General Studies: N3.

Textbook

Hinze, Jimmie (1998) Construction Planning and Scheduling. Prentice-Hall, New Jersey

The instructor will provide class notes, handouts, technical papers, laboratory manual and other reading materials for the course.

References (Optional)

1.      Ahuja, Dozzi, and AbouRizk (1994) Project Management: Techniques in Planning and Controlling Construction Projects, John Wiley.

2.      Optional for those considering a scheduling career with Primavera: Marchman, David (1998) Construction Scheduling with Primavera Project Planner, Delmar Publishing, New York.

3.      Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK™), The Project Management Institute Standards Committee.

4.      Fisk (1992) Construction Project Administration, John Wiley

Software

Primavera Project Planner (P3) Student Version (limited to 60 activities). Optional $35 due at the end of second week of classes. This allows students to work on their home computers, in addition to working in the DEWSC computer laboratory

Supplemental material

Laboratory Manual—available for download for free from the course web site.

Course Objectives

The course is part of the core course requirements for the Bachelor of Science in Construction. The course will provide the students with a thorough understanding of the issues related to the application of planning and scheduling principles in the construction industry. It is intended to provide an in depth discussion of some of the important scheduling issues faced by various agencies involved in the construction industry.

The principal objectives of the course are to:

i)        Provide an overview of the construction project planning and scheduling process

ii)       Introduce various construction project scheduling techniques

iii)     Develop an understanding of time management, cost management, and resource management principles

iv)     Highlight issues related to schedule monitoring, schedule updating, and schedule compression

v)      Provide an overview of advanced concepts of construction planning and scheduling

Course Outcomes

At the conclusion of the course students should be able to:

i)        Describe construction projects and processes using bar charts, network diagrams, and linear schedules

ii)       Perform schedule computations to calculate project duration, activity early and late dates, and total and free floats

iii)     Identify the critical path(s)

iv)     Update and monitor project progress

v)      Recommend an appropriate course of action when the schedule must be shortened or crashed

vi)     Evaluate construction project progress

vii)   Compare and contrast the appropriateness of scheduling tools for varying construction operations and conditions

Course Topics

The course will focus on the following broad topics. These topics will be covered with the help of lectures, assigned readings, and scheduling project.

i)        Introduction of construction project planning and scheduling

ii)       Construction scheduling techniques

iii)     Preparation and usage of bar charts

iv)     Preparation and usage of the Critical Path Method (CPM)

v)      Preparation and usage of Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)

vi)     Preparation and usage of Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)

vii)   Preparation and usage of Linear Scheduling Method (LSM)

viii)  Issues relating to determination of activity duration

ix)     Contractual provisions relating to project schedules

x)      Resource leveling and constraining

xi)     Time cost tradeoff

xii)   Schedule monitoring and updating

xiii)  Integrating schedule and cost

xiv) Recent developments in planning and scheduling

Course Components and Requirements

This course will utilize a combination of lectures, tutorials, student presentations, class participation, homeworks, assigned readings, scheduling project, and four tests and a final examination. Students are expected to perform in a professional manner in regards to their attendance, completion of homework and assigned readings, and class presentations and participation. Students are expected to be present for every meeting of the course.

Student Tasks

Students will be required to perform the following tasks for the successful completion of the course:

1.      Homework Assignments and In-class exercises: Homework assignments will be regularly assigned by the instructor on various topics during the course. Specific instructions (i.e. due date, format, etc.) will be provided with individual homework assignments. Students are required to submit homework assignments in proper format to be described in class. In-class exercises should be submitted on engineering paper and contain the names of all participating respondents when group work is assigned. There will be a 20% reduction in grade per day for homework submitted late. Homework may be made available through the Construction Computer Network and/or e-mail. Each student MUST have an e-mail address.

2.      Scheduling project: Students are expected to complete a scheduling project by the end of the session. Students will be required to select an area of their interest and develop the scheduling project throughout the semester. Laboratory portion of this course will prepare the students for the scheduling project. The instructor envisions that most of the work for the scheduling project will be performed by the students in the laboratory. The instructor will establish a number of milestones to monitor the progress made by the students in regards to their scheduling project. More details and other logistical information is provided in the handout titled “Scheduling project for CON 495”.

3.      Tests: The course will have four tests. Specific details of each of these test (such as format of the exam—take-home, open book, date of exam, duration of the exam) will be decided in class after a discussion with the students

4.      Final Examination: A comprehensive final examination will be given at the conclusion of the course. Specific details of (such as format of the exam, etc.) will be provided in class. Students should consult the ASU Schedule of Classes Bulletin for more information on final examination. The university has scheduled the final examination for the course as follows: Tuesday, May 9 2000 from 2:40 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. (please check the final examination schedule published by the university)

Grading Scheme

The instructor will follow the following grading scheme:

The above grading scheme will be discussed in the classroom, in detail, and students will be allowed to provide their suggestions and recommendations. The objective of this scheme is to enhance your learning experience.

The scheduling project is an important component of this course. It is mandatory to complete this component. A student who fails to complete the scheduling project will receive an incomplete (I) grade as per university rules. The final letter grades will be assigned based on the score obtained by the student as per the above table.

The following scheme will be utilized in assigning the final grade:

Registration Requirements

To successfully register in the course you are required to have earned the prerequisites. Kindly contact the registrar’s office regarding class registration information.

Other Pertinent Information

Students can obtain more information regarding the following topics by visiting the web sites listed below.

i)        Examination Make-up Policy: http://www.asu.edu/aad/manuals/acd/acd304-02.html

ii)       Student Code of Conduct: http://www.asu.edu/aad/manuals/sta/sta104-01.html

iii)     Disability accommodation: http://www.asu.edu/drs/DRSg.htm