Project Management

Summer 2007

Meeting Students’ Educational Needs

Learning

Meeting the Community Organizations’ Needs

Progress

PurdueUniversity

Greater LafayetteCommunity

The EPICS Balance

Project Management Failure to plan is planning to fail

A good plan is one of the most important attributes of successful EPICS projects.

Going Slow

To Go Fast

EPICS SemesterWeek

1 Transition and Integrating New StudentsPlanning and setting expectations

2

3

4

5 Execute Semester PlansDeliver if AppropriateDocument As You Go

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13 Complete semester commitments Transition to next semesterCoordinate with Project Partner

Focus on Project Partner and Transition

14

15

Finals

Slow

Fast

Delivery Deadline

Project Plans Among the many questions that can be

addressed with a plan are:1. What do you and/or your team does first? 2. What should come next?3. How many people do you need to accomplish

your project?4. What resources do you need to accomplish your

project?5. How long will it take?6. What can you get completed by the end of the

semester or quarter?7. When will the project be finished?8. How will we know we are done with the project?

Creating a Project CharterFirst Phase of the Design ProcessThe elements of a charter include:

o Description Objectives o Outcomes or deliverables o Duration o Community Partners o Stakeholders.o Team membership and roleso Planning information

Revisit each semester during your semester plans

Accountability

Short tasks allow team members to be accountable

What is due this week?o Prevent delays that span several weekso Prompts students to seek help when

needed.

Project managers can track % tasks completed by the week.o Keeps projects moving and shifting

resources as needed

PERT Charts – Organizing Tasks

Attend lecture on project schedules - 1 day

Review web pages on project schedule, 1 day

Look at examples in MS Project, 2 days

Estimate time for each task, 1 day

Identify major component of project, 3 days

Identify Milestones, 1 day

Create PERT and Gantt charts, 1 day

Read about project schedules, 1 day

Start, receive assignment

PERT chart and timeline submitted

Critical path

Longest string of dependent task in the project.

Tasks on the critical path will hold up the completion of the overall project if they are delayed. o Example: mathematics sequence in an

engineering curriculum. • Delaying a semester of calculus class typically

delays graduation for one semester.

Milestones/Gates

Generate Ideas

Define Measurable Specifications

Implement

Test

Move on to Next Task

Timelines - The Gantt Chart

Project Tasks 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16Bring new team members up to speed on MagRacer (all)Solve FET prolem in demo track (Brad/Julie)Concept of MagRacer2 cabinet (Syed/Erin)Meet with IS people/ visit IS (all)Finalize track/coil assembly (Syed/Julie)AutoCAD drawings of MagRacer2 cabinet (Erin/Brad)Finalize display concept (Julie)Deliver working test track (Syed/Julie)Week 4 Demo (all)Milestone: Submit MR2 drawings to WP (Erin/Brad)Complete PCB layout (Syed/Julie)Milestone: Submit PCB layout for fabrication (Syed/Julie)Final order of all circuit material (Syed/Julie)Construct coils (Julie/Syed)Construct track mounting hardware (Erin/Brad)Construction of visual display (Julie)Week 8 Progress Report (Brad)Exected delivery of MG2 cabinet from WP (4wk) (WP - Erin)Expected delivery of PCBs (3wk) (Syed)Spring Break (all)Final assembly of MagRacer2 (all)Week 11 Design Review (all)Milestone: Delivery of completed MagRacer2 (all)

Troubleshoot MagRacer2 (Syed/Julie)

Prep documentation for MagRacer2 (Brad/Erin)Week 16 End of Semester reports due (Brad)

MagRacer 2.0 Timeline (weeks)

MS Project – Network Diagram

The Gantt Chart – MS Project

The Gantt Chart – MS Project

Calendar View – MS Project

Project Management Skills for Life

Failure to plan is planning to fail

A good plan is one of the most important attributes of successful EPICS projects.

Going Slow

To Go Fast