Exam 9: Project Scheduling: Networks, Duration Estimation, and Critical Path

At a merge point in a forward pass,the largest preceding early finish becomes the early start for that node.

Which of these statements about this network is BEST?

Project Test Bank is composed of activities we will refer to as A,B,C,and D for convenience (and lack of creativity).Durations and precedence requirements are shown in the table.Each of these activities can be conveniently laddered into two sub-activities of equal duration,so activity C in the original project becomes two activities,C1 and C2,each of which lasts 7 days.The first half of each activity serves as the predecessor to its second half and the first half of the original following activity.What is the difference in the late start time for activity C in the original project and activity C1 in the laddered project? Activity Length Predecessor A 10 -- B 18 A 14 A 20 B, C

In general,the better candidates for shortening are:

Use the information in the table to determine the early start time for Activity B. Early Early Late Late Task Predecessor Duration Start Firish Start Firish 14 , 6 ,

What is the late start time for Activity E given the activity times and precedence requirements shown in the table? Activity Time Predecessar A 5 -- B 7 -- 8 7 4 , , 7

The overall effect of laddering activities is to:

Activity float is the difference between the late finish and early finish for the activity in question.

An activity has an optimistic time estimate of 25 days,a most likely estimate of 29 days,and a pessimistic estimate of 34 days.What is the expected duration of the activity?

A sequence of activities defined by the project network logic is a(n):

An MBA student laboriously calculated the early and late start times and early and late finish times for all of the activities contained in this simple six activity project.Unfortunately,some of the information was washed away by lachrymal fluid.Kindly restore the table to its former glory by filling in the missing information. Early Early Late Late Task Predecessor Duration Start Finish Start Finish 8 14 23 8 6 23 26 32 32 38

The BEST candidate activities for shortening the overall project are:

-Use the network diagram and activity lengths in the nodes to determine the early finish time for activity G.

Ray's shipment of materials hit every red light and traffic jam on the way to the site.Upon arrival,half of the material was judged defective,necessitating a trip back to the supplier,and then the same arduous journey back to the site once the new materials were loaded.Traffic was a little better on the second round but the flat tire and subsequent repair caused as much if not more delay than the first trip.In the final analysis:

An activity has an optimistic time estimate of 12 days,a most likely estimate of 16 days,and a pessimistic estimate of 22 days.What is the expected standard deviation of the activity?

One of the defining points of a network,a junction point joined to some or all of the others by dependency lines,is called a(n):

There's an old saying,"The job is not finished until the paperwork is done." From an activity network standpoint,this does not necessarily mean that the paperwork can't begin until the last non-paperwork activity is completed.It might be possible to work on some paperwork as early activities are completed.In order to depict this in an activity network:

Phoebe B.Beebee is constructing a canal for the annual canoe races and has identified eleven activities that are required to complete this important project.She calculated early and late start times and early and late finish times but spilled coffee all over her printout.Use the remaining information to reconstruct the table for Phoebe B.Beebee and her new canoe canal. Early Late Activity Predecessor Length Early Start Late Start Finish Finish 12 -- 20 , 42 28 42 42 50 53 53 70 72 4 ,, 81 91

A gentleman farmer maniacally works on academic projects to raise funds for his true passion,farming.He has identified seven tasks and developed three time estimates (all in days)of the next big project on the farm,replacing the fence at the comedy pasture.Tasks,precedence requirements,and time estimates are shown in the table.What is the expected completion time of the project? Optimistic Most Likely Pessimistic Activity time time time Predecessor Corner Posts 4 5 6 - String Line 7 8 9 -- Dig Holes 10 12 14 Corner Posts Plant Posts 11 14 17 String Line Weld Top Bar 8 11 14 String Line Dig Holes, Plant Paint 9 11 13 Posts Tack Wire 9 12 16 Weld Top Bar

A project's duration can be reduced by: