TimeManagementbySteveBriggs,

VicePresident&ManagingDirectorHillInternational,Inc

04March2013

TimeManagement

Copyright2013SteveBriggs Page2of10VicePresident&ManagingDirectorHillInternationalInc

TableofContentsUnderstandingandManagingTime 3PreparingandUnderstandingContractProgrammes 3AnalysingandUpdatingProgrammes 8AbouttheWriter 10

TimeManagement

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UnderstandingandManagingTime

Without effective time management there can be no effective resource management, costmanagement,norallocationofliabilityforslippage,itsrecovery,oraccountability.SosaystheCIOBGuidetoGoodPracticeintheManagementofTimeinComplexProjects(publishedbyWiley Blackwell 2011 Edition). Butwhy is time so important to those of uswhomake our living inconstruction?Allconstructioncontractshavestartandenddates,usuallyintheformofaDateofCommencementandaDate (ordates, ifmore thanone section) forCompletion. That isbecause adegreeof certainty isrequiredbybothparties.Forthepurchaseriftheprojectisahotel,officeorresidentialdevelopmentwhencan itopen,andwhencanadvancepublicitybegin? If it isaroadorrailprojectwhencantheowner/operatorexpecttobeginearningrevenue?Whenwillashipbereadyforitsfirstcharteroranoilrefinery for its first product export? For the Contractor how quickly can he begin submittingapplicationsforpayment?Howmuchwillhislabour,plant,overheadsandprelimscostbe?Youcanseewherethisisleadingtimeisalwaysmoney,andmoneyiswhyweareallinbusiness!It is an unfortunate consequence of this that construction disputes, albeit nominally about money,invariably involve issues to dowith time. Extension of time claims selfevidently involve time, as doclaims for liquidated damages. Similarly, prolongation costs claims, Loss and Expense claims anddisruptionclaimsareallfundamentallyabouttime.Evenclaimsseeminglyunconnectedwithtime,suchas professional negligence or certain types of insurance claim have a time element. The effectivemanagementof time is thereforeapartofeverythingwedo inconstructionand it isat theheartofmostconstructioncontracts.PreparingandUnderstandingContractProgrammes

WhenwetalkaboutContractProgrammesitissafetosaythatwedontreallymeanit!Undermostofthe standard forms of contract the programme itself is not a contract document, although itsincorporationisanoptionundersomeoftheUKforms(forexampleGC/Works,ECCorNEC3).However,mostofthosesamestandard formscall foraprogramme insomeshapeor form.Wellcomebacktothatpoint,butwhyisitnotagoodideatomaketheprogrammeaContractDocument?MycolleagueKeithPickavance1 says anyattempt to render thecontentofa schedule [programme]contractuallybinding,atanystage, is likelytoprovetobeatbestmeaninglessand,atworst,aseriousinhibitiontoeffectivetimemanagement.Keith says that the programme should not be a onestep preparation at every part of which theContractoristoaim,andagainstwhichthefailuretohiteverypartofitcanbemeasured(andpenaltiesapplied!). Infact,theprogrammeshouldbedynamicforthepurposesofmanagingtime.When inthefutureand inwhatsequencetheplannedwork istobeperformed,sothatthe intendedworkandtheconsequencesofany changes canbepredictedandmanaged.Theprogramme shouldbeallowed toevolveasknowledgegrowsandasthedetailoftheprojectevolves. 1KeithPickavance,DelayandDisruptioninConstructionContracts,London,Sweet&Maxwell,4thEdition,2010

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Astotheformandcontentoftheprogrammealmosteverystandardformofcontract issilentonthesubject.Thisislargelybecausethereareasmanydifferentapproachestoprogrammingastherearetowallpaperdesign,not tomention theplethoraof softwarepackages around, andemployers see theprogramme as something that the contractor shouldproduce.Theparties are therefore reluctant tocommittospecificsabouttheprogramme.However,thereisnogoodreasonwhyacontractshouldnotstipulate:

Thetypeofprogrammeshoulditbeafullcriticalpathnetworkwithresourcesorjustasimplebarchart?

Whoshouldprepareitisittobetheemployer,thecontractororboth? Itspurposeisitjustanindicationofwhenthejobmightbefinishedorisitadetailedmethod

statementshowingwhenthingsaretobeprocured,drawingsaretobeproduced,approvedandissued,andworkcarriedout?

Whatelsedoes it relate to (e.g.other schedules, IRSetc.) is therean InformationRequiredSchedule, is thereanoverarchingMasterSchedule,are thereother contractors schedules toconsider?

Mannerandtimingofpreparationhowisittobepresented(inhardorsoftcopy,orboth,andinhowmuchdetail)andwhen,inthecontextofthecontracttimescale?

Howitshouldberevisedandupdatedbywhatmechanismshouldtheprogrammeberevised(see for example the NEC3 procedure) and how should progress be both measured andrecorded?

HowitshouldbeusedinrelationtoEOTandCostsissues?Theseare justsomeof the factors thatcouldbereadilyspelledout inacontractwithout tyingeitherpartytoanyparticularprogrammingmethodorsoftwarepackage. It isnotunknownhowever (and infactinthepetrochemicalindustryitiscommonpractice)forthecontracttostipulatethesoftwaretobeused, the typeofprogrammeandeven theminimum levelofdetail (numberofactivities,maximumactivitydurationetc.).Whenitcomestowhatthecontractssayabouttheprogrammetheshockingtruthisnotverymuch!The JCT forms (1980, 1998 and 2005) say next to nothing and only call for a programme to besubmitted.Nothingisstipulatedabouttheform,contentorpurposeoftheprogramme.TheFIDIC1999(redbook)isalittlemorehelpfulinthatitsays2that:TheContractorshallsubmitadetailedtimeprogrammetotheEngineerwithin28daysafterreceivingthenoticeunderSubClause8.1[CommencementofWorks].TheContractorshallalsosubmitarevisedprogramme whenever the previous programme is inconsistent with actual progress or with theContractorsobligations.Eachprogrammeshallinclude:

a) the order in which the Contractor intends to carry out the Works, including the anticipatedtimingofeachstageofdesign (ifany),ContractorsDocuments,procurement,manufactureofPlant,deliverytoSite,construction,erectionandtesting,

b) each of these stages for work by each nominated Subcontractor (as defined in Clause 5[NominatedSubcontractors]),

c) thesequenceandtimingofinspectionsandtestsspecifiedintheContract,andd) asupportingreportwhichincludes:

i. a general description of themethodswhich the Contractor intends to adopt, and of themajorstages,intheexecutionoftheWorks,and

2FIDICConditionsofContractforConstruction,FirstEdition1999atClause8.3

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ii. details showing the Contractors reasonable estimate of the number of each class ofContractorsPersonnelandofeachtypeofContractorsEquipment,requiredontheSiteforeachmajorstage.

That ishelpfultoapoint,butasIhavealreadystated,thestandardformsareprettymuchuniversallysilentonthespecificationfortheprogramme.Sowheretolook?TheSocietyofConstructionLaws DelayandDisruptionProtocol,published inOctober2002(butnotupdated since!) has the stated aims of providing guidance to all parties to the construction processwhendealingwith time/delaymatters andproviding thematerialnecessary for theparties to avoidunnecessarydisputes.Allverynoble,and itcontains,atAppendixB,amodelprogrammespecificationclausedealingwithsuch issuesas thesubmissionof theprogramme, thepreparationof thedifferentevolutions of the programme, methods of construction, cash flow and revising and updating theprogrammewhileAppendixCcontainsamodelrecordsclausesuggestingwhatrecordsshouldbekeptand inwhatdetail.However, inmyview,theProtocoldoesnotgo farenough. Itdoesntaddressthedetailof theprogrammeor themechanicsof itsuse.AsKeith Pickavanceobserves,whilst theCIOBGuideisnotacontractdocumentitgivesdetailedadviceinrelationtosubjectssuchas:

Programmetypes Schedulingtechniques Resourceplanningandscheduling Softwareconsiderations Programmedesign Programmepreparation WorkBreakdownStructure Activityidentification Activitydescriptions Activitydurations Ascertainingactivitydurations Calendars Activitycontentcodes Costcodes Logic Constraints Float Riskandcontingencies Criticalpath Planningmethodstatement Qualityassurance

AndhepointsoutthatalthoughanapproachusingthedetailoftheGuidemightbecriticisedasoverlyprescriptive,thisistheminimuminformationnecessaryforacompetentprogrammespecificationtobeusedforthepurposesofmanagingtime.WithoutsuchadetailedspecificationofwhattheContractoristoprovideitisnotpossibletodetermine(objectively)whetherwhatisactuallyprovidedcomplieswiththeContract.Letsassumethatwearepreparingaprogrammefora largescale, longdurationconstructionproject.TheContract is silenton the formof theprogrammeand simplycalls for it tobe submittedat somepoint after the effective date of the contract. In preparing a Programme for such a contract it isimportanttofollowastrategy.StartyourplanningwiththeDesignStageandbeginbydraftingamethodstatement.Thisshouldclearlyidentifyanyconstraintsorpotentialbarriers,andwhatassumptionshave

TimeManagement

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beenmade.Itisimportanttosortoutwhatrecordsaretobekeptandwhoistokeepthem.Thiswillbefundamental to updating and reviewing the programme in the event of change. Establish thecommunicationprocess for theproject such thatall interestedpartieshave timelypossessionof theprojectscopeandobjectives,theplanningmethodstatement,theprogramme itself,periodicprogressrecordsandupdatesandaregisteroftherisksthatmightaffecttheproject.Thenextstage intheprocess isthedevelopmentoftheprogramme itself.Never losesightofthefactthat the purpose of the programme is: to indicatewhen in the future and inwhat sequence theplannedwork istobeperformed,sothatthe intendedworkandtheconsequencesofanychanges,ordeparturesfromthatintentioncanbepredicted,communicatedandmanagedefficiently.(CIOBGuide,Section3at3.1.2).Thentherearetheconsiderationsthatneedtobetakenintoaccount:

Timeforcompletion Sectionalandkeycompletiondates Unspecifiedmilestones Access,egressandpossessions Informationreleasedates Submittalsandapprovals Procurementstrategy Procurementschedule Materialsdeliveryandstorage Temporaryworks Temporarytrafficarrangements Workinghoursandholidays Designresponsibility Complexityofdesign Adjoiningowners Riskallocation Subcontractorsandsuppliers SeparateContractors EmployersContractors Employersgoodsandmaterials Nominatedsubcontractors Utilitiesandstatutoryundertakings Thirdpartyissues

Licencesandpermissions Provisionalandprimecostsums Specifications Billsofquantities Localregulations Environmentalconditions Healthandsafety Noiserestrictions Labourandplantresources Logistics Constructionphilosophy Methodofconstruction Sequenceofconstruction Schedulerequirements Updatingrequirements Noticerequirements Reportingrequirements Enduserrequirements Testingandcommissioning Furnitureandfittings Phasedoccupation Occupationandhandover Partialpossessions

Therearemanyfactors listedhereandalthough itmightappearabitdauntingtheyareallthingsthatshouldbeconsideredwhendevelopingaprogrammeforacomplexconstructionproject.Once all the relevant factors have been considered and the necessary information gathered it isappropriatetoconsidertheprogrammetechniquetobeused.Therearemanydifferentapproachesbuttheycanbegroupedunderthesefivebasicheads:

BarCharto Thebar chartwas firstused in the1930sby anAmericanengineernamedHenry LGantt

(whichiswhyitsometimescalledaGanttchart)anditservesasastaticillustrationofintent.It does not allow the effect of change to be easily measured and does not allow theimplicationsofnecessarylinksbetweenactivitiestobedetermined.

LineofBalance

o The Line of Balance diagram is commonly used to indicate the progression of resourcesthrough a multiplicity of areas, and is a useful technique for coming to grips with the

TimeManagement

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underlyingphilosophyofresource logic.It lends itselftothemanagementof linearprojectssuchasrailways,roadsandpipelines.

Time/Chainage

o Time/chainagechartsarealsoused inwork that is linear innatureandprovideagraphicalindicationofboth the time requiredand location foreachworkfront.Widelyused incivilengineeringworksitisoflimiteduseincomplexbuildingprojects.

Arrow/Precedencenetwork

o Thesetwomethodsaretheoriginalcriticalpathnetworktechniques.Thearrowmethodhasits roots in a number of parallel developments. In 1955 the CEGB Operational ResearchSectiondevelopedabasicmethod forplanningwork topowerplant shutdown. In1957 itwasdescribedasdefiningthelongestirreduciblesequenceofeventsandby1960thathadbecome the major sequence and the Keadby power station shutdown time had beenreducedto32%ofpreviousaveragetime.Atthesametimein1958(February)theUSNavySpecial Projects Office began a programme called PERT, which was an acronym forProgrammeEvaluationResearchTask.By Julyofthesameyearthenamehadchanged toProgrammeEvaluationReviewTechniqueandinOctoberitwasappliedtotheFleetBallisticMissileprogramme. Itwas creditedwith saving2 years in thedevelopmentof thePolarismissile.Followingtheadventofaffordablecomputingthemethodwaschangedtobecomemorecomputerfriendlyandbecameknownastheprecedencemethod,which isstill inusetodaybehindsomeofthe industrystandardpackagessuchasPrimavera.Botharemethodsfordeterminingbycalculationthecriticalpath(orpaths)throughasequenceoflogic.

LinkedBarchart

o This method will be familiar because it is that which is offered by most of the modernschedulingsoftwarepackages.Itisalsothenetworkillustrationmethodofchoiceforprojectreportingbutdoeshaveashortcominginthatthewayinwhichtheprogrammeisdevelopedencouragestheusetopaintapictureratherthanthinkintermsoflogicandsequenceandthenallowthesoftwaretocalculatetheschedule.

Havingdecidedontheappropriatetechniqueitisthennecessarytoconsiderthepointsofdetailthatgoin tomakingup theprogramme.On theassumption thatwearepreparinga linkedbarchartusingaproprietary software package (e.g. Primavera)we need to consider things like the appropriate timeunits.Thetimeunitsareusedtoexpressthedurationofeachactivityandthoughtshouldbegiventowhatismanageable.Itwouldbepointlessexpressingdurationsinhoursiftheprojectislargeandhasalongduration. In that case, days would be appropriate. On the other hand, if your project is thereplacementofagearboxonaFormula1racingcarthenyouneedtothink intermsofminutes!Nonworkingperiodssuchasweekendsandholidaysshouldbeidentifiedsothatworkisnotprogrammedtooccurwhenthereisnochanceofitbeingcarriedout.The Work Breakdown Structure, which is the means by which the full project scope is set out inmanageablecomponentparts,alsoneeds tobeconsidered. Itneeds to take the formofastructuredhierarchywith,atitshighestlevel,theprojectasawhole,andatitslowestlevelidentifyingeachtaskorgroupoftaskstobeaccomplished.ItisacomplexsubjectandiscoveredindetailatSection3.8oftheCIOBGuide.Thenumbersorcodesusedtouniquelyidentifyindividualactivitiesneedtobedefined.Thesecanalsobeusedtoidentifyprojectzones,buildinglevels,natureofactivitiesetc.

TimeManagement

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Itisalsosensibletoconsiderwhethertheactivitiesintheprogrammeshouldcarryresourceallocations.Mostsoftwarepackageshavethecapabilitytoallowmultipleresourcestobeallocatedtoeachactivityandtheresourcesarenotlimitedtolabour.Theallocationscanbeplant,materialsevenmoney!Fundamentally, the programme consists of activities (i.e. the tasks to be carried out) and logic (therelationships between those activities). Only after sorting out the levels of detail, WBS, Codes andresourcetypesanddeterminingthedurationofeachtaskcanwethenbegintodeveloptheprogrammeitselfandthemosttimeconsumingpart isthendeterminingthe logic.Themostcommonlyused logicrelationshipsareFinishtostart,usedtomakethestartofthesucceedingactivitydependentuponthefinish of the preceding activity, Starttostart, used to make the start of the succeeding activitydependentuponthestartoftheprecedingactivityandFinishtofinish,usedtomakethefinishofthesucceedingactivitydependentupon the finishof theprecedingactivity.There isa fourth relationshiptype(Starttofinish)butitisnotwidelyused.AnalysingandUpdatingProgrammesOneofthebenefitsofmodernsoftwarepackages isthecomparativeeasewithwhichtheprogrammecannowbedeveloped.Insimplesteps,logiclinkscanbeaddedwithafewclicksofthemouseandtheprogrammecanbescheduled,ortimeanalysedwithafewmore.Itisatthisstagethatthecriticalpath(orpaths)canbedeterminedandfloatcanbeidentified.Theconceptoffloatisonethatisoftenmisunderstood.Insimpleterms,floatisthetimeavailabletoanactivityinadditiontoitsduration,butwhatshouldberememberedisthatthereisadistinctionbetweenTotal Float and Free Float.Thedifference is thatTF is the timebywhich an activity canbedelayedwithoutaffectingProjectCompletion(butwithaninevitableeffectonsucceedingactivities)whereasFFisthetimebywhichanactivitycanbedelayedwithoutaffectingotheractivities.Thedistinctioncanbeillustratedlikethis.

The redbar at the top is criticalbecause it fills the time available for it. Ithasno float.The secondsequenceofactivitiesallhaveasmallamountofTFwhich,iferodedbydelayorprolongationtothefirstactivity,would erode by the same amount and the activitieswould allbedelayed. The fifth activityhowever,hasanamountof FFwhichwouldallow it tobedelayedorprolongedbya certainperiodwithoutaffecting the succeedingactivity.Thebenefitofusing softwarepackages is thatallof this isaccuratelycalculated inmillisecondsprovidedofcoursethat the logic iscorrect inthe firstplace. It is

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possibletocalculatecriticalityandfloatmanuallyandIcouldshowyouhowtodo itbut itwouldtakemoretimethanwehaveavailable.Oncetheprogrammehasbeentimeanalysedthecriticalpathcaneasilybeidentified.Itisthepathwithleastfloatandinthiscaseitisthepathwithnofloatindicatedbytheredbarsandredlogiclinks.

Identifyingthecriticalpathisanimportantpartofmanagingtheprogrammebecauseitisgenerallyonlycriticaldelay,ordelaytoactivitiesonthecriticalpaththatwillgiveentitlementtoextensionsoftime.Thenextmost important stage inmanaging time is inupdating theprogramme. It isessential to themanagement of time becausewithout it the programme ismerely a target againstwhich historicalfailure isplotter.Byupdatingwithprogress theprogrammebecomesadynamicmodelagainstwhichpredictionscanbemade,problemscanbeidentifiedandremediestestedandimplemented. Note that it isnotprogressmonitoring,nor is it revisingorchanging theprogramme; it ismerely theaddition of asbuilt data in the form of actual starts, remaining durations and actual finishes to theprogrammeandthesubsequentrecalculationofthecriticalpath.ProgresscanberecordedusingActualStartandActualFinishdates,recordingtheRemainingDurationandPercentComplete.Mostsoftwarepackageslinktheremainingdurationandpercentcomplete(e.g.iftheoriginalduration=50 days and remaining duration is entered as 25 days the softwarewill calculate progress at 50%.Similarly,ifOD=50daysand50%progressisenteredthesoftwarewillcalculateRDat25days.)Thoselinkscanbebrokenbutthescheduleisalwaysrecalculatedusingtheremainingduration.EnteringActual Start does not normally cause either remaining duration or percent complete to becalculatedandenteringActualFinishcausesremainingdurationtobezeroedandpercentcompletetobechangedto100%.Thefirstactionintheupdateprocessistoenterthedatetowhichtheprogrammeisbeingupdated(i.e.thedateonwhichtheprogresswasrecorded).Theactualstartdateofactivitiesthatareinprogressisrecorded togetherwith the estimated remaining duration. Any activities that have been completedsince the last update would also have their actual finish date entered. The software automatically

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calculatesthepercentcompleteand,on instructionfromtheuser,thebalanceoftheprogramme(i.e.theunstartedandincompletepart)isrecalculated.Theadvantagesofupdating theprogramme shouldbeprettyobvious.They include the fact that theimpactofchangecanbeaccuratelypredicted(irrespectiveofwhetherthechange is in logic,resourceavailability or activity detail), labour resource planning ismademore accurate and reliable becauseachieved rates of productivity can be calculated and used to adjust future requirements. Theprogrammecanalsobeusedtomodelwhatifscenariose.g.whathappensifwechangethesequencebecauseapieceofplantlookslikeitmightbelate,orwhatwouldbetheimpactofinstructingachangetothedesign?Theprogressupdatealsoallowstheearlyidentificationofproblemstherebyallowingthemaximumopportunitytousetheprogrammetofindsolutions(perhaps intheformofaccelerationorothermitigatorymeasures.Finally, theuseofprogressupdatesallows the ready identificationof thecauses and effects of disruption, which means that its consequences can be more costeffectivelymanaged.Fundamentally, theuseofaccurateandregularprogressupdatesmeans thatregularandhighqualitymanagementinformationcanbederivedandtheexperienceisthatthiscanonlyencouragetheprojectteamtouseit.Thebenefitsofthatshouldbeobvious.It is to be hoped that this presentation has given an overview of the importance of good TimeManagement andof the importance to thatof theprogramme andprogressupdates. Ihavedrawnheavilyon theCIOB Guide toGoodPractice in theManagementofTime inComplexProjectsand itshould be noted that, in addition to the topics covered by this presentation the Guide also givesguidanceonsubjectssuchasProgressMonitoring,theuseofTargetProgrammes,ResourceMonitoring,Cash flow reporting and forecasting, and theuseofprogrammes in acceleration andother recoverymeasures. It should not be forgotten though that of fundamental importance to successful TimeManagementistheprocessofcommunicationandreporting,andthesearealsocoveredbytheGuide.AbouttheWriter

SteveBriggsVicePresident&ManagingDirector,HillInternationalIncTel:+442076181200|E:London@hillintl.comSteve has more than 30 years of consulting experience including construction, processengineering, shipbuilding, ship conversion, petrochemical and strategic planning ofinfrastructureandfacilitiesprojects.Hehashadover200appointmentsasexpertwitnessondelayrelated issues inboth arbitration and litigation.Hehas givenbothwritten andoralevidenceonanumberofoccasions.In2008StevegainedaccreditedmediatorstatuswiththeInstituteofArbitrators.Stevehaswrittenandpresentedanumberofarticlesonprogrammingmatterssuchastheownershipof float, thepreparationof standardmethodsofprogramming, and theuseof ICT in thepreparationof claims.Stevewasalsooneof theprotagonists in the GreatDelayAnalysisDebateheldatKingsCollege inLondonundertheauspicesoftheSocietyofConstructionLaw.