A Primavera P6 schedule is a schedule or project plan created using the Primavera P6 project management software. Primavera P6 is a Critical Path Method scheduling tool that emphasizes the use of building logical relationships between activities, tasks, resources, and milestones to complete a project. The primary purpose of a schedule is to manage the time, effort, and cost it takes to complete the project. P6 is one of the most widely used scheduling tools to create CPM schedules for complex, long-term construction projects many large-scale construction companies, construction management firms, and public agencies use in California.
The Elements of Primavera P6 Schedules
Work Breakdown Structure
Before creating a Primavera P6 schedule, develop a Work Breakdown Structure or WBS. The WBS summarizes the work stages. It is a hierarchical blueprint of the schedule. A WBS includes information related to all the project activities. However, it does not specify the order in which project tasks are to be carried out.
The WBS serves as a tool that the project management team can use to define project scope and visualize the tasks that need to be carried out. A WBS should contain enough primary elements or layers to represent a hierarchical representation of the major components of a project. In addition, every primary layer typically has a number of sub-layers that represent the smaller and more defined sequences of the project.
Primavera P6 Calendars
Project management teams across California are using Primavera P6 to specify available workdays and work hours. You can assign public holidays and work/non-work days for your project using Primavera P6 defined calendars. Primavera does not limit the number of calendars you can create. Calendars are used to define a project’s work hours, working days, and non-working days within a specified time period for a project.
There are three types of calendars used in Primavera P6 software: resource calendar, global calendar, and project calendar. A global calendar can be assigned to any resource, project, or activity in the database. On the other hand, a project calendar can only be assigned to a project, not a resource. Therefore, if you link your project calendars to your global calendars, any changes made will reflect in project calendars, but not the other way around. A resource calendar controls, monitors, and coordinates manpower and material resources.
Activities
Activities are the fundamental work element of a project, and they are the lowest level of a WBS. The scheduler can assign resources to activities at a later stage. Every activity should be assigned a predecessor and successor. A predecessor activity must begin or end before a successor task or activity can proceed. Primavera P6 allows users to assign codes to project activities. You can use activity codes to identify, categorize, and arrange project activities based on reporting requirements.
Activity Relationships
The purpose of defining relationships between activities is to determine the order in which they should occur. In Primavera P6, there are four types of activity relationships:
• Finish to Start: The FS relationship implies that the successor task won’t begin until the predecessor activity is completed.
• Start to Start: In the SS relationship, both activities can start simultaneously.
• Finish to Finish: The FF relationship implies that both the predecessor and successor task can finish at the same time.
• Start to Finish: The SF relationship implies that the successor task will be completed after the predecessor activity has started. This relationship type is rarely used in a CPM schedule.
The Swaney Corporation-Crowe Construction Inc. offers a range of Primavera P6 scheduling services in California. Our experts have an in-depth understanding of scheduling techniques. To schedule an appointment, call (707) 665-9668.