Question

1. To minimize the chance of losses, what process should a contractor use for updating the schedule, if litigation is expected?

2. Explain how prefabrication can change the critical path of a schedule.

3. For the ISU Chiller Plant, how did craft workers lift heavy items inside the plant?

Answer 1

Answer 1)

Contractors often use completion date, bar chart and percentage of completion schedules to track progress, coordinate subcontractors and monitor delays but the law may require more sophisticated scheduling methods, such as Critical Path Method, Program Evaluation and Review Technique, or Precedent Diagramming Method, as a part of the contractor’s obligations in case of litigation.

For example, the contractor can add the amount of hours actually worked on a task to date, or change the percent complete. He can mark completed tasks as completed. He can carry out resource levelling if the reports show that there are people on the team who are taking on too much. This part of the update is all about the daily housekeeping and tracking.

There’s another part to updating the schedule, though. This relates to dealing with changes. As part of the update, he may have to add in new tasks. If a change has been approved, for example, there will be activities to enter related to the new work. Or the change might involve taking tasks out of the plan.

Such type of daily practices can help the contractor overcome losses in case of litigations.

Answer 2)

Prefabrication is the process of making buildings, or components of buildings, in a different location than the job site itself. Construction companies will transport the completed unit to the final site, where they will also complete the setup and handover buildings to their new owners. This process eliminates the need for traditionally sourced construction materials because off-site assembled parts result in less waste. As the raw materials are built off-site and shipped partially assembled, prefabrication reduces the cost of labor and the cost of materials.

This in turn, leads to a shorter schedule, no need of resource levelling, resource smoothening, on time schedule and also shortening of critical path. As critical path is shortened, float is minimized and due to availability of adequate labour, they can be more efficiently used to get better productivity and timely delivery of the project.

Answer 3)

In the ISU chiller plant, there is a skate-like board on which the heavy equipments are mounted and their wheels are offsetted and locked in the desired direction so that the board moves in no other direction. The workers just put the machine on the board and move it to the desired location. They call it as riding on air.