The Importance of Scheduling Updates

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The Importance of Scheduling Updates

Schedule updates are an integral part of the project management process. When updating schedules, project managers record, estimate, and compile data that enables them to track progress while comparing against planned estimations. It is industry standard for CPM scheduling to be an ongoing process and to constantly look for ways to improve your project.

Many experts recommend updating project schedules monthly, at a minimum, as this offers the best opportunity for early identification of slippages. When deciding how often you should update the project schedule, consider the nature of your project. If you have a dynamic, complex, and fast-moving project, you may want to update the schedule in shorter intervals.

A designated project team member is usually responsible for maintaining the contract schedule. Many construction companies have dedicated schedulers for large-scale, complex projects. It is the scheduler’s sole responsibility to update the schedule to make sure it is up-to-date to help guide further decisions related to the project.  

Prior to beginning the update process, establish the frequency of reporting and report requirements. You will need these key pieces of information for each activity in order to properly update the schedule:

• The as-of date or data date that the project needs to be updated to (this is usually specified in the contract documents)

• The actual start date for each activity started

• The actual finish date for each activity completed

• The percentage of work completed for each activity

• The estimated completion date for each activity underway.

These crucial pieces of information will allow you to produce an updated schedule with new calculated start and finish dates for all remaining work based on the relationships you assigned during the CPM baseline development process. 

There are several compelling reasons to update the schedule. An up to date as-built schedule guarantees accuracy. Updating the schedule for your active project can save you time and money.

Revisiting and updating your schedule regularly can help reduce operational overhead. When you regularly update your schedule, you are able to identify and resolve issues that are causing delay to improve overall efficiencies.

When updating the schedule, document and analyze delays to understand what areas need improvement. If you are running behind schedule, this is a great time to consider any corrective action necessary to get back on schedule.

Prior to this, check if you have executed any work out-of-sequence to the plan. Maybe you completed an activity prior to the completion of its predecessors. Make any schedule revisions to correct out-of-sequence logic.

After you have updated the schedule, conduct a team meeting. Let your team know what is left to accomplish. Create a road map and communicate your expectations. 

The Swaney Corporation- Crowe Construction Inc. offers top notch CPM Schedule Analysis for contractors in California. We are committed to promoting efficiency. Our team helps project managers and project owners keep their projects on track. To talk to one of our consultants, call (707) 665-9668.

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