Spiro N.

Pollalis

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A Visual
Representation System
for the Scheduling
and Management
of Projects

Architectural Knowledge Systems

Delft University of Technology
 Harvard University

Architectural Knowledge Systems Publications

The
Architectural Knowledge is a multidisciplinary group of researchers whose
objective is to improve archit(~ct\lTal joint investigations in design theory and
computers. The founded in 1985, has two directions towards this end:
1. Domain theories and in use. These are a series of investigations
in architectural under the name Architectural Domain Documentation and
Analysis (A.D.D.A)
2. Reconstruction of theories and methods in use into a cOlmputattio,nal theory of design
cognition. Development of design systems, a
product under the name Artificial (ALLA)
The aim of the AKS Publications is to research results carried out by
members or associates of the by: Prof. S.J. Doorman,
Prof. H. Koppelaar, and Prof. A.

Architectural Knlov.'lecLi!e
Delft University of TpI'hnln)r,rru
Faculty of Architecture, Room
BeI'lai!ew(~1l 1
2628
The Netherlands
tel (31-15) 78 33 62
fax (31-15) 783740

CIP Gegevens Konninklijke Bibliotheek Den Haag

Pollalis, Spiro N.
A Visual Representation for the Scheduling and ManaB;ement of Projects I Spiro N.
Pollalis. - [S.1. :s.n.]. - lIl. - lit. opg. - Met samenvatting in Nederlands.

ISBN 90-5269-102-9

Key words: visual scheduling I visual representation I project management Iconstruction

management

© Copyright 1992 Spiro N. Pollahs

Published Publikatieburo Bouwkunde, TU-Delft

Printed by: UllJlVelrsitlcitsdrulkklcrij
This work presents a new efficient and effective method for the control and
allocation of resources employed in the creation of a While most of the
ex;ampH~S in the text refer to of buildings, the method is general,
applicable to the of even such as research

The of the Pollalis system over traditional Research

and Scheduling, in an easier comprehensive view of the process
results from the choice
about actions. Visual descriptions of the
........ "'VH.lHF,

system cOlmp,rellerlded and "cost" less effort to be

used.

For the editors

Prof. A. Tzonis
ta Tatiana
LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................................................xiii
LIST OF TAB LES ............................................................................................... xvii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................xÎx
SUMMARY .......................................................................................................... 1

INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................. 5
1.1 THE BEHAVIORAL ASPECT OF PROJECT
MANAGEMENT ............................................................................. 5
1.2 WHO NEEDS SCHEDULlNG ..................................................... 6
1.3 DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS ..................................................... 7
1.4 ORGANIZATION OF CHAPTERS ............................................. 9

QUANTIFIED BARS ........................................................................................... 11

2.1 THE QUANTIFIED BAR ............................................................. 12
2.2 ALTERNATIVE DISPLAYS ........................................................ 16
2.3 MONITORING A TASK .............................................................. 20
2.4 UPDATING A TASK .................................................................... 21
2.5 VARIABLES OF THE QUANTIFIED BAR ............................... 24

QUANTIFIED BAR CHARTS '" ......................................................................... 27

3.1 THE QUANTIFIED BAR CHART .............................................. 28
3.2 INDEPENDENT AND DEPENDENT TASKS ......................... 29
3.3 QUANTIFIED BARS ON THE CHART .................................... 32
3.4 OPERATIONS ON QUANTIFIED BARS ................................. 37
3.5 CONSTRAINTS ON THE BARS .................... .48
3.6 DISPLAY OF CAPACITY ...........................................................48
TEMPLATES ....................................................................................................... 53
4.1 THE TEMPLATE .......................................................................... 53
4.2 INPUT AND OUTPUT ................................................................ 55
4.3 VISUAL LEVEUNG OF RESOURCES ................................... 59
4.4 MONITORING AND FORECASTING ..................................... 62

THE MATRIX-BALANCED CHART ................................................................. 67

5.1 REPEATING TASKS .................................................................. 67
5.2 THE MATRIX-BALANCED CHART ......................................... 69
5.3 UNE OF THE DIAGONALS ...................................................... 70
5.4 BALANCING THE MATRIX CHART ........................................ 74
5.5 CONSTITUENT MATRIX CHART ............................................ 81
5.6 MONITORING DIFFERENT LOCATIONS ............................. 83

HIERARCHICAL REPRESENTATION ........................................................... 87

6.1 FOLDING-UP .............................................................................. 88
6.2 DESCRIPTION OF THE HIERARCHICAL SYSTEM ............ 90
6.2.1 IIIn ........ Tnrnn',..,yo Schedules ~u .. u ~ 93
. . . . . . . . cc . . u ... u ...... u ... .......

6.2.2
6.2.3 Matrix-Balanced Schedules ......................................... 96
6.2.4 Master Schedule ........................................................... 101
6.2.5 Link with Other 104
6.3 CHANGES IN THE SCHEDULES ......................................... 104
6.3.1 Upward Changes ......................................................... 104
6.3.2 Downward 105
6.4 MONITORING AND UPDATING ........................................... 106
 09
110
7.2 10
7.3 GANTT 12
7.4 114
7.4.1 Network; .............................. 114
7.4.2 16
7.4.3 on the Arraws Networks ................................... 117
7.4.4 The Critical Path Method ............................................. 118

20
7.5 21
7.6
SOFTWARE ........................... ~ ....... ,~........................................... 123

COMPARISON WITH THE STATE-OF-PRACTICE ................................... 125

8.1 COMPARISON FOR .................................... 126
8.1.1 Visual of Work ................................................. 126
8.1.2 Visual of Resources ....................................... 128
8.1.3 Visual of Tasks ..................... 132
8.1.4 Hierarchical Structure .................................................. 133
8.1.5 Visual Identification of the Critical Path .................... 133
8.1.6 Studies......................................................... 134
8.2 COMPARISON FOR MANAGEMENT .................................. 135
8.2.1 Contral of the 36
8.2.2 the 38
8.2.3 Visual Recognition of Errors ....................................... 139
8.2.4 Communication ............................................................. 140

BIBLIOG RAPHY ...............................................................................................143

51
CREDITS ......................................................................................................155
INDEX ......................................................................................................157
 LIST OF FIGURES

2.1. The QuamIIH~a bar, displayed in two dimensions ................................... 12

2.2. Alternative scbledllllrlg of a task with quaLntItJed bars ............................. 13
Fig. 2.3. Relationship between duration and 1ntpn'~1hT ......................................... 13
2.4. The connoting bar.................................................................................. 14
2.5. I-'I~,nnln(f the brick laying either for 4 or for 6 ~~J' u ........." . . . . 14
Fig. 2.6. Scheduling a task with a variabie 1nt,pn<'1tu ............................................ 15
2.7. Relationships between work, a resource and the corresponding
cost, as related to the duration of the task ............................................... 17
2.8. Relatiom;hiJJs between work, personpower and wages .......................... 18
2.9. shown in alternative ri1(1nl<;l'llC of the qu:antl11e:d
bar with work, wages and cost of
materlals ................................................................................................. 19
2.9 at the of the 5th
'-! .... f.,UHJ-uv0 work, wages and cost of materials ............. 20
1. the planning of the task 2.9 with areas work,
personpower, wages and materiais ........................................................ 23

3.1. The rln'" ... r"ri<>ro bar chart.......................................................................... 28

Fig. 3.2. The connoting bar chart .......................................................................... 29
3.3. lndlep(~ndem tasks ................................................................................... 30
3.4. Continuous or serial tasks ...................................................................... 31
Fig. 3.5. Parallel tasks .......................................................................................... 31
Fig. 3.6. Common finish tasks ............................................................................. 31
3.7. Overh:l.pp,ing or forced vV'",J-U'I-'I-'J-HF, tasks ............................................... 31
3.8. Common start tasks ............................................................................... 32
Fig. 3.9. Related QU2mtiJtled bars ........................................................................... 33
 3.10. Quantified bar chart for the construction of a typical
intensity personpower. ........................................................................... 34
3.11. Horizontal shift of a task ........................................................................ 37
3.12. Expansion or contraction of a task ......................................................... 38
Fig.3.13. Addition of continuous tasks and .,."""1-11-,,,,,, to continuous tasks ............. 38
Fig.3.14. Addition tasks and tasks ......................... 39
3.15. Vertical shift of a task. ........................................................................... 39
Fig. 3.16. Quantified bars for the construction of a room;
transformed to app1y to the entire floor; intensity personpower.. ........... 41
3.17. Studies of float for the construction of a room; lrlt,PrlC'1hl

personpower. ............................................................................. ;........... 43

3.18. Quantified bar chart for the construction of a
intensity personpower............................................................................ 44
Fig. 3.19. bar dunt for the construction of a floor,
intensity personpower. Studies to introduce two crews at a
time ........................................................................................................ 45
3.20. bar chart for the construction of a floor with
two crews at a intensity personpower ........................................... 46
3.21. Final quantified bar chart for the construction of a
second crew always intensity personpower. .............................. 47
3.22. of Întens!tles of c1assrooms and
all students ............................................................................................. 50

4.1. ",",<IJ HA'" for the plannmg of the construction of a floor.. ........... 54
Fig. 4.2. Quantified bars without established precedences ................................... 58
Fig. 4.3. The de\lelc.prnlent of a software 60
Fig. 4.4. prepm'atltJns for an art exhibition ............................................... 61
4.5. Construction site daily report for the control of the company's
workers .................................................................................................. 63
4.6. Construction site report for the control of the
subcontractors ........................................................................................ 64
 4.7. Template of planning and monitoring the construction of a
typical floor ............................................................................................ 66

5.1. The concept of the matrix-balanced its

dimensions ............................................................................................. 69
5.2. The line of the diagonals for tasks with the same quantity in all
locations ................................................................................................. 71
Fig. 5.3. The line of the a curve from
location to location ................................................................................. 72
Fig. 5.4. Productivity and the qmmtJltle:d bar
Fig. 5.5. The scheduling of all floors as it would be optimal for a
floor, personpower. ................................................................ 76
Fig. 5.6. The matrix-balanced 1nt,ani01hl personpower. ................................ 77
5.7. Progression of repeating tasks from location to location,
1nt,<o>n<-1t" personpower. ........................................................................... 78

5.8. Studies of float time among the tasks, intensity personpower............... 79

Fig. 5.9. Translation of the tasks the vertical axis in order to
ae\relClTI the constituent intensity personpower. ................. 82
Fig.5.1O. Auxiliary rnn,n1t."\-rHHT chart. .................................................................... 85

6.1. of a n"u,'~.U"Ht'U.+".":",rl.... bar chart, intensity personpower. ................. 89

6.2. The hierarchical structure of the Visual Scheduling and
M,magerner1t System, application construction ...................................... 91
Fig. 6.3. The tor the forrnwork and bars,
intensity personpower............................................................................ 92
Fig. 6.4. The hierarchical structure of the Visual Scheduling and
Management for a project without repeating tasks .................... 95
6.5. The matrix-balanced schedule for the structural skeleton
composed of IOlael]'-UID intensity personpower. ......................... 101
Fig. 6.6. The matrix-balanced schedule for the structural skeleton
indicating the discrete tasks th at make the folded-up tasks,
intensity personpower. ......................................................................... 102
 6.7. Time and contraction ofthe matrix-balanced schedule
for the structural intensity personpower................................ 103
6.8. The oJv".,V'-4 .... u""h' """-JUH'J""L'h and up(jatmg process ............................... 107

7.1. The time scaled rnilestone chart........................................................... 112

7.2. The Gantt chart or bar chart................................................................. 113
Fig. 7.3. A combination Gantt chart with milestones ......................................... 113
7.4. The node and arrow notation ............................................................... 114
7.5. Nodes and arrows notation, tasks on the nodes network
115
7.6. Nodes and arrows notation, tasks on the arrows network. .................. 116
7.7. Nodes and arrows notation, tasks on the arrows network with
time dimension (time scaled network) ................................................. 117
Fig. 7.8. Network with text information ............................................................ 119
7.9. The line of balanee chart. ..................................................................... 120
Different rep'eatmg tasks reJ:)re~)ented on a line of balance chart ........... 122
Fig. 7.11. Alternative scheduling for tasks with the line of
balance................................................................................................. 123

8.1. Juxtaposition of a qu:mtltle:d bar chart to a Gantt chart and a

network UU'"E>LU.LH •• 127
8.2. Juxtaposition of quantified bars to a Gantt assumptions
on resources ......................................................................................... 129
8.3. Resource loading view for all the workers of the tasks shown in
Fig. 8.1 ................................................................................................ 131
8.4. Juxtaposition of a qu:antlile:d bar chart to a Gantt chart for the
control of the ........................................................................... 137
8.5. Juxtaposition of a bar chart to a Gantt chart for
updating the project. ............................................................................. 139
 LIST OF TABLES

Table 4.1. Data to generate the temp late shown in 4.1 .................................. 56

Table 6.1. Data for the various floors of the building, task concrete .................... 97
Table 6.2. Data for the various floors of the tasks formwork
and reinforcing bars ............................................................................. 98
Table 6.3. Data for the various floors of the UU'.lUlllF" task M&E
installations and calculation of total for all floors ................... 99

Table 7.1. The milestone chart. .......................................................................... lIl

 ACKNOWlEDGEMENTS

This work is the product of the research on Task since 1987 at the
Graduate School of Ha.rvard University. During the 1987-88 academic
year, Mr. Yasuo Ueda, co-inventor of the patent, project manager of Shimizu
',-,rnr.lr',h;An of Japan and graduate student at the Graduate School of
on this system. The following years, more graduate students
from Shimizu Corporation worked on this research: Mr. Katsumi
Mr. Kazuaki Shundo and Mr. Kominato. Prof. Daniel L. of
Harvard has a role in the of the concept since
1987 and has contributed more to this system and its after the inventors.
In 1991-92, my Visiting at Bouwkunde, Technische
Universiteit I summarized my research work and prepared this manuscript.
The Architectural Knowledge Systems provided the forum for discussions
and brain During this periad, I had many and challenging
discussions with Prof. SJ. Doorman, Prof. H. Koppelaar and Prof. A. Tzonis.
DI. A. Koutamanis has had comments and suggestions. Ms. S.T. Spinari
had a clear vision and critical observations on the structure of the baak.
Over a number of years, I had fruitful discussions on the ideas contained in this
baak with Prof. J. Seiler of Harvard Prof. S. Menheere and
Prof. A. Pols of Prof. J. Bakos of Prof. G. Bitran of
Prof. D. Halpin of Purdue Prof. R. Levitt of Stanford University,
Prof. C. Platsoucas of Texas Dr. H. of Beacon
Dr. D. of McDer1110tt Inc., Mr. J. Macomber of Macomber Construction,
Mr. F. Basius of Turner Construction, MI'. F. Mead of Mead ConsuIting,
Mr. R. Harding of Bechtel Construction, Mr. F. Diekstra and MI. M. Verwoert of
Starke Diekstra, DI. W. Clauss and Mr. H. Fiechter of Drees & Sommer, Dr. Ota of
the Shimizll Institute of Technology, MI. J. Yagi of S Technology Corporation and
Mr. D. Feigenbaum of Fish and Richardson.
Mr. G. Cos of the Pllblikatieburo, and Ms. C.E.C. Schoenmakers and
Ms. C. of the Architectural Knowledge Systems had a CHj::.l1iJLi ... ,:Ull

contribution in the administration and preparation of this baak.

Spiro N. Pollalis
Delft, 1992
 A VISUAL SCHEDUUNG AND MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

This work proposes a new system for the visual of that

the of work, resources and cost. This new system, called Visual
~CJ'leGtUll~nR and Management has a built-in hierarchical system to n,.r""r,,,,
different levels of superimposes planned and actual data to
become a con trol device. It is also to schedule and manage projects with
repeating tasks at various locations. The system's visual identity makes it powerful
for communication.
The building block of the Visual and lVl,magernellt
U ..... JLl ..... LLULLHp;; is the
'-!" •. bar that represents a single task of a project. The quantified bar is defined
U H . U .......'U.

in Chapter 2 as an object that displays a task with an associated quantity in time.

This can be the work of the task, a resource for the task, the cost associated
to that resource or the total co st of the task. These alternative allow the user
to see the task from different of view. The actual execution of a task is
monitored by superimposing two quantified bars: the bar for the original
sclllec11111rlg of the task and its mate quantified bar that dep iets the actual data from the
field. Based on the actual data, the schedule for the still non-executed part of the task
is updated, using the of the quantified bar.
The quantified bar chart is introduced in 3 as the first qu:antlt1e~c1 chart of
the Visual Scheduling and Management A quantified bar chart displays a
group of tasks, where each task is by a quantified bar. The pe]~ml.ss1ble
types of are defined and the time interdependency of tasks is explicitly
defined by their relative position on the chart. The quantified bar chart schedules
tasks with well-defined pn~cec1enc(~s as weU as projects COlnpC)Sea of tasks with
loose time interdependencies. The allowable operations on the quantified bars are
described as shift, expansion or addition of continuous tasks and
addition of parallel tasks. Finally, the introduction of constraints
Op(~ra1t:l011s is ",,,,..,1,,, ·"",rl

The LviJ.ljJJ.<UV '--'H''''OJ''V~ 4 as the next level of the

Visual A template embodies a dual
presentation of the information, both in and forms. So, the
input and output of information are either through text or through
A is employed to level the resources visually, constraints
on the summation of the intensities of the group of displayed tasks. a
Lv"'F' ..... ...., is to monitor the actual execution of the tasks by superimposing
scheduled and actual data with mate quantified bars.
The matrix-balanced chart, the higher level of rq:lre~;entatlon in the Visual
and Management System, is introduced in Chapter 5. The matrix-
balanced chart includes the additional dimension of location in a project, necessary
for the scheduling of tasks. It can also display the effect of the AV<U.HH.LF.

curve from location to location. A re-arrangement of the tasks the vertical axis
allows the user to the scheduling according to the COllS(]lm(~nc:y of the tasks
rather than their location. a suppression of the intensity of the quantified
tra.nstorrmulg them to COl:mCHlfU:!, produces a Gantt chart from this re-

6 concludes the presentation of the new system. The components,

presented in the previous chapters, are linked to assembie the Visual Scheduling and
for the scheduling and management of entire nr{"\1Pf't',,

Folding-up the link of the different charts by aggregating visually a group

of tasks to a task. ml lcrotennplate schedules, LVU."jJ"""'"' schedules,
matrix-balanced schedules and the master schedule are linked tOE~eUler with folded-
up tasks to make a rigorous hierarchical structure. are permitted at the
different levels of this hierarchical structure. These vU""UFo,,,,,) can be introduced both
'1r"'""'rri" and downwards in the The entire system is used for ffiC)Ill1tonmg
the execution of by coordinating the display of the filed data on the various
charts.
Chapter 7 presents the techniques for
scheduling and project management: the Milestone chart, the simplest and most
widely used form of the Cantt acknowledged as the most
easily understood representation of project scheduling; and the network diagrams
incorporating the concept of the critical path. The line of balance method is also
"""'''''('''''11,!-''''11 for scn.eUllllrlg n~pelltmlg tasks at different locations. the state-of-
evaluated, to observe th at no advancement
has occurred in the rel=)re~;entatlon of scheduling, the proliferation of

~CIt1e(lulllllg and Management is compared to the

state-of-practice the comparison focuses on the of
the initial schedule and addresses the advantages of the proposed system. At this
level the comparison refers to the visual of the the visual of the
resources; the visual display of the repeating the hierarchical sttucture; the
visual identification of the critical path; and finally the interactive feasibility studies
during Then, the shifts tQ the fields of con trol and
management. At this level the focuses on the visual monitoring and
tOr'ecllstllllg of each system and their
vUIJUL....Hl.i'-''' as a communication device.
While the system excellent quantitative and has built-in
mcmil:on,ng and the Gantt the network and
the line-of-balance chart have a deficiency to graphically the planned and
the actual data.

The concepts of the new system have been patented to Professor Spiro N. Pollalis
and Mr. Yasuo Ueda with the U.S. Patent No. 5,016,170 of May 1991. This is
the first patent granted to research carried at the Graduate School of Design, Harvard
University, as well as the first patent awarded at Harvard on a computer
software related subject.
 1
*

1.1 THE BEHAVIORAL ASPECT OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT

management is a highly behavioral field. The tasks are planned

and executed by other Usually the tasks a team effort and "'. . .u ........U.tUIJlJ:;
assumes a team harmony the execution of the The tasks are also
highly mte~rde.perldeI1t. are progressing as long as other tasks are either
vVli.qJJ..... <v·U or progressing at a certain rate. Different ob'lecltivé~S within a are
common and it is hard to have a congruence of all the involved in what
expect from the execution (or of a In extemal relations affect
the planning and execution of projects, as a result of power games and conflicts of
interests.
the and the project executer need handle human resources
with the greatest care and have to extern al interferences during the
execution of the These aspects often lead to calculated inefficiencies in the
planning or the execution of the while decisions may seem
C0I1ITélillC;tOI'Y or even wrong.

* The concepts of the described system and its features have been by the
U.S. Patent No. of May 14, 1991, to Prof. Spiro N. Pollalis and
Mr. Yasuo Ueda. The awarded patent is entitled Task Management.
 So, wh at is the scope of a new system for the rq)re~)entatlOn of projects?
it is not to solve the behavioral management
and make projects start on finish on time, cost as planned, with the desirabIe
quality and with the required Such would be unfounded and
unreal since deterministic t001s do not address and cannot resolve behavioral issues.
However, a new system for the of projects the
with the means to plan better under the circumstances using data, to
communicate better with the and to monitor the execution of the
with less effort.
and management systems are necessary tools for the scheduling and
UVJlH",,",U"','''!'',

management of well-executed but their use is not sufficient itself to make

well-executed projects. The planner and executer with their
domain knowledge cannot be substituted. this system is handed out as a
decision support system to facilitate the and execution of and
improve communication.

1.2 WHO NEEDS SCHEDUUNG

A task is a set of actions toward lmpOSln,g ITleamnlgIlllJ order. An individual, an

lSu."aL,u.UVH or a machine capable of performing a certain task is a processor and

constitutes a resource task. A task carried out by a single independent

processor is a pure task. Since a pure task involves a processor, it inherits a
nature., A task into several constituent pure each
processor, is a task. 1 Time and
e12ltlcmShl1JS are central to nontrivial composite tasks. are
composite tasks and deals with the constraints of projects
and processors or resources.

Fn~(JlHèntlv
the distinetion between pure and composite tasks depends on the employed
of since what may appear as a pure task at a certain level of analysis,
ean often be deeomposed into a number of subordinate pure tasks at a finer level of detail.
 I-'rn.H"f't" from the construction 1nrln"tru have been the pioneers in the field of
project sctledul1ng and most project computer were developed
with construction in mind. The complexity and uniqueness of most in
the construction industry provide a to
u.Au'u .... .<u.'"'~'.." . .<ui'" aerospace and the shipbuilding industries have also been prime users

of project scheduling and the Critical Path Method was invented to be for the
OUl,lUlIlg of the Polaris nuclear submarines in the late 1950s.

The proliferation of personal computers and the development of easy to use

inexpensive software has augmented the users of project and ch:m~~ed
their There is a shift towards the services industry, where the are
smaller, scheduled by non-experts and communication among pr(>te~;sl(mals is a
central part to the The use of is also eXT)anUlnlg
facilities management.
are scheduled with the aid of computers. Computers handle a large
number of tasks and their resources, calculate the critical path of a fast and
interact with the user with informative graphics. Any project that .,."""",.,.,,,<'
a simple milestone chart should be and scheduled with the aid of
computers. However, the state-ot-PrllctLce computer applications are bounded to
those of that are well-understood and could have been
executed manually, if time allowed. those operations are well-programmed
and reliable results. Current research focuses on developing the in
the computer applications to supplement the planner's expertise the process of
The final is to closed loop th at schedule
automatically without the intervention of the user.

1.3 DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS

The invention and the de'/elcJprnellt of the Visual ScheduHng and Management
originated from the need to use better scheduling and management too1s at
the construction sites. It is commonly that the methods are not
8

sufficient and thus underutilized. A critical review unveils that their weak
ret)re:sertta1J0l1S is a central reason for their underutilization.
The goal was set to create a decision support system to aid the planner and
the project executer to schedule and manage their The system shouid
augment the creativity of the user, rather than substitute the user's experience. So, a
Hl1l5U'''-5v was needed for the user to employ as a tooI for the
""-'llvU.UH.U,", operations. Such a A"''''b'''''b''''', with its own concepts, and ruies
for the manipulation of those to simulate should be visual for a
better interaction between the user and the computer and for a better communication
among the participants.
The consistence and of the symbols and the in the domain of
the foreseen were the targets the process.
these and rules were designed to describe real situations and the actual
conditions at a construction project site. they were enhanced to handle the
paItlclllaI'ltit~S of in other fields. The flexibility of the new visual to
projects with a profound easiness was a must.
vAl~ll1.L/::. systems was also desirable. At the request of the
user, the scheduling should be able to start from systems, be converted to
vA.L0UUj:::. systems or the way of thinking of other systems, while its
identity and V'U'bUl.'-""L)

The visuallanguage as a computer was an issue from

the very earIy stages. Tasks were treated as with and a computer
display was always in mind when a chart was drawn. Procedures like the folding-up
are conceived to function with a device. However, the design for the
computer is not included in this of w01k There is a conscious
decision to separate the of the and the presentation of the new
system from its computer implementation.
1.4 ORGANIZATION OF CHAPTERS

The basic concepts, symbols and the associated ruies for the manipulation of these
""",h,..,l,, that make the Visual and System are introduced
gradually with illustrative exampies in 2,3,4,5 and 6.
Chapter 2 introduces the '-ju .... ""'"L"'-'... bar object, its properties and the mIes that
govern its alternative The concept of the mate "l bars is also
U'Cl.IHl.l.1'-'U

presented for monit()rirlg and updating the of tasks.

3 introduces the qu:antitie~d bar chart as an individual schedule for a group
of establishes the ruies for the pre~celderlce relaUc)ns:hll)S among tasks and
introduces the ruies that govern the operations on the assembly of the quantified
bars.
4 introduces the template and its prcmelmes, 'u""''''''''''-''''''5 the and output
the visual resource leveling and the built-in .-.-.r,."irr...-,'n and toreca.stnlg

Chapter 5 introduces the dimension of the location in a and proposes the

matrix-balance as the appropriate chart for the scheduling of
repeating tasks. Transformations of the matrix-balanced chart are also discussed.
Chapter 6 links the charts to assembie the hierarchical system for the
':>VllvUlUH,HF, and management of entire Folding-up is as the link
among the different quantified charts. The use of the system to monitor the
execution of a is also discussed.
Chapter 7 reviews the stalte-()t-r)ra(::t1c:e n~pr,esentaLtlOn methods and the
state-of-art computer graphics for project scheduling and management.
Chapter 8 compares the with the n-rr,nA"""/'i system. This
comparison focuses first on the scheduling of . . ..,.",.,,,,,,1',, and then it continues on the
management during their execution.
 2

The UU'l~U'lU"- block of the Visual IJ"",,,""........'",,,'" is the

qWilltLtle:d bar that represents a single task of a
In this Chapter, the quantified bar is introduced and its lu ...,f/V....... 'h' and proposed
usages are discussed in In Section the quantified bar is defined in a more
abstract form as an indicator of quantity. The next Section 2.2 the
alternative of the quantified bar th at represent work, resources and cost.
These rlH~lnl!'l',T" are interchangeable transformations and allow the user to see the task
from different points of view. The monitoring of the execution of a task
quantified bars is presented in Section 2.3. Monitoring is achieved by
'iUI.HUH"''''''' bar for the of
the actual data from the field. Section 2.4
presents the of the schedule for the non-executed part of the task. Updating
is achieved by extrapolating graphically the information from the field, using the
nrr\nprt1f~" of the bar. Section 2.5 presents the mCLepen_jerlt
variables that define the various transformations of a bar that represents a
task. throughout this chapter demonstrate the visual of
the quantified bar, its properties and its usages.
12 Bars

2.1 THE QUANTIFIED BAR

Each task of a is rer)re~~ented a quantifïed bar, an displayed in

two dimensions. The of the object along the horizont al axis indicates the
duration of the task and the height or width of the object the vertical axis
indicates intensity. The area of the object indicates quantity, as the product
of and time

DURATION OF ACTIVITY

1 + - - - - LENGTH - - - - + 1

STARTING FINISHING
TIME TIME

2.1. The quantified bar, displayed in Mo dimensions.

If the is constant, then there is a relation between the and

the duration of a task. as shown in the same task could be planned in
several intensities and durations, three of which are shown among the much
selection. the areas of objects S2 and S3 that represent alternative planning
for the same task are as they depict the same quantity of the task.
the quantity of a task
UVJlH"""U"''''',-" on its duration. Both a very short
duration and a very long duration may be inefficient and could lead to an increased
quantity for the same task. the quantified bars that correspond to alternative
plannings of the same task may not have the same area. In such a case, the
minimum duration and the maximum duration th at maintain the same ,.,_.+••••.• , must
 The

be specified. Information on the relation between quantity and duration must be

n~r\u1f1pr1 for durations these limits. This is either in a closed
form or is described with discreet data. 2.3 shows the hyperbolic
n~,,·...
,C'hH", between .... and duration that assumes a constant
H'-'<> •.> ... , t·.;j-"
r l n ......

regardless of the duration.

TIME

2.2. Alternative scheduling task with qw.1mITu'~a bars.

TIME

2.3. Relationship between duration and intensity.

1

If the intensity is su(:,pn:~sse:d from the display of a QUimtl!1é:a .....,.., u.u ...... "" bar
is a bar. A connoting bar has a constant width and the
identity of a task and its duration

DURATION OF ACTIVITY

STARTING FINISHING
TIME TIME

2.4. The connoting bar.

2 4 5 6 7 DAYS

2.5. Planning the brick 4 6 days.

Example: The building of a 300 ft 2 brick wall is shown as a task

ex,tmIHe, the the work of the task and the
1ni"," .... "'1hr depicts daily production. The task can be scheduled either to last 6 days
with a production of 50 daily or 4 with a of 75 (7
The quantified bars shows the production of each
 The Quantified Bar 15

alternative with its estimated duration. Both qmmtltH~d

the same area since they represent the same quantity of work: 300
If the is constant the duration of a as it has been
in the examples that have been then the of the
quantified bar is Often the lnt,p-nc'lhr
c01Te~;polnding qUlmtLtle:d bar has a polygonal of a series of
rectangles, with each rectangle corresponding to each So, the brick
task that was 2.5 could be scheduled with a variabIe intensity, as
shown in to th at schedule the production the first is 25
the second day and third is 50 (4.6 the fourth is 75 (7
33 ft2 (3 m2) each following day until the completion of the task. According to this
planmng, the task willlast 7

2 6 7 DAYS

2.6. :Jc,f1eCZUlirnJ.Ç a ta.",k with a varia bIe ,,,,t,oMc',n>

2.2 ALTERNATIVE DISPLAYS

The area of a quantified bar quantity. That quantity can be the work ofthe
each of the resources for the or the associated cost of each
resource. A task can several resources, including labor, materials and

If a resource produces work (such as labor or eqlJlpmeut) then the required

resource is calculated as:

REQUIRED RESOURCE == WORK OF THE TASK

PRODUCTIVITY

If a resource is an eXlparloaOle malterlal, then the reclUl]~eO resource is:

(2.2)

The cost of a resource is derived from the eX1Jl'eSSlon:

COST OF A RESOURCE == REQUIRED RESOURCE x UNIT COST OF RESOURCE

(2.3)

w hen a task is at a higher level of abstraction (less

information), the total cost of a task is useful to be nresented a qmmtllIleO
bar. In such a case the total cost of the task is the summation of the costs of the
various resources dedicated for the task.

TOTAL COST OF THE TASK == SUMMATION OF THE COSTS OF ALL RESOURCES

Hf'\H1P'Upr there are cases th at the total co st may be entered approximately without
a specific breakdown into the costs of the resources and the total cost of the task is
derived from:

TOTAL COST OF THE TASK WORK OF THE TASK x UNIT COST OF THE WORK

The alternative displays of rlll~irlh,t" indicate:

• the work of the
each resource,
 .. the co st of each resource, or
.. the total cost of the task.

2.7. Relationships between a resource and the

corresponding cost, as related to the duration task.

These alternative displays provide multiple views of the same task

during the planning or execution of the project, on the needs of the user.
The linear of the alternative displays of a task are shown in 2.7.
Labor is the most common resource to be associated with a task, and it is the
most resource to plan and control. 2.8 shows the linear
'Clationsblips of the alternative of a when labor is the resource on
focus.
The resources and the cast are almast always measurable in units of persons,
materiais, equipment, machinery and money. In most cases, the quantity of work is
also measurable in units of volume, numbers of Vf()dllctS. lines of code etc.
a quantity of work can be measured in the units of a dominant resource, if
that measure is more In the services industry, the quantity of work is
1 1!:!Ilnltifiiori Bars

neI'SOll-ume dedicated to execute the task. This is part of

the features of the visual system and it does not introduce any undue
cornpJlex:tties, as it will be explained in 6.

2.8. 1\.t:lUll(Jrt.:J1U{J.:J personpower and wages.

The significance of the "~""~~"'} of a qwmtlt1e~d bar derJen<1S on the slgmtllCaJlce of

the nn.C\",t-.h1'
INTENSITY
.. work production or work per time unit
resource required resource per time unit
• cost of a resource co st of a resource per time unit
tota1 cost co st per time unit.

LÁ/MHlnt:.· The of a task and the altemative of

the quantified bar are shown in Fig. 2.9. The task of pIacing tiIes on a 2,800 area
(260 is based on an estimated of 50 (4.6 m 2 ) per
person-day. Thus, 2800 -;- 50 = 56 is the initial estimate for the labor
The available crew of 4 workers would need 56 -;- 4 = 14 to
cornpl,ete the task, a 200 (18.6 area per day. The second display of
the qmmtlJtled in 2.9 shows the quantity of nel~SOlrlS-l[1me. The third
shows $1,000 labor cast per based on a $250 daily compensation for each'
worker. Finally, the daily use of tiles is to the area that is covered and the cast
of the tiles is per ft 2 per m2) or $2,500 per day, as shown on the last
in 2.9. The total cast of the task is u;-r./.vvv. 111{;luidJlD,F, materials and
labor.

DAYS

2.9. Planning a shown in alternative the

quantified bar with quantities persontime, wages and cost
materiaIs.
2.3 MONITORING A TASK

A superposition of two bars for the same the first cOlTe~;pondllllg

to the of the task and the second to the actual execution of
the task, provides a visual between the two. The quantified bar th at
r-r.r'rpcnnlC1r1c to the actual execution of the task is the mate bar of the bar
COlTes:pOlnds to the of the task.

DAYS

2.10. Monitoring the task of Fig, 2.9 at the ofthe 5th

day with quantities persontime, wages and cast of materiais.

In an ideal case, the two quantified bars should be identical: the task should be
executed as it was if the execution of the task is different than the
way it was planned, the two quantified bars will have a different By
SU1JerlmpoSlnlg the two bars with different colors or the
u w..... u . . . !;"

information is Monitoring will confirm that the of

the original planning were accurate, or it will detect the wrong early in
the process.

The that was to introduce the concept of the

UU1HU.~'-'U bar chart, will be further used to demonstrate the of the
execution of th at task. A superposition of the and the execution of the
p.LUCHU.U'E,

work, as it has occurred until the 5th 2.10. The bar

at the top of the figure shows that the work started on the second scheduled day. The
qUiantltlé:d bar that production shows that the first working day 100 ft 2 (9.3
were completed, instead of 200 (18.6 The following days 150
m2 ) were Thus the actual productivity is 150+4:::: 37.5 ft 2 (3.5 m2) per
instead of the planned productivity of 50
nAT·"',",TL.'''H) (4.6 m 2) per neI'SOll-Gli\l
superposition, the differences between the planm:d versus the actual events are
represented graphically. As a result of the reduced the bars
that show use of materials and cost paid for labor and materials are not as
planned. The superposition of the planned versus the actual of the
~n'~~",+,c,rI bar are shown in the same

2.4 UPDATING A TASK

If the project executer monitors the execution of the tasks and detects that the
assumptions were not accurate he should like to correct them in order to
V",!"."'''«'''

avoid scheduling problems in the fnture execution of the In such a case, the
part of the task that has been executed to the time of updating) is
represented by the two objects as described in the monitoring section above. An
extrapolation the of the mate quantified bar will serve to correct the
plamnmg for the remainder of the task, to the right of the velticalline that defines the
time of and the time of the corrective action.
IUV·HH'JiHIj;:,
 If the quantity of the work had been estimated correctly, the emph,tSlS should be
based on the daily productivity of the available resources. the productivity
wW determine the reCIUIlred modification of the resources and the duration of the task
and thus, the ending date. If a deadline exists, a modification of the work crew could
all ow the to meet that deadline.

Example: the eXlim-ple of mc~mtonng, this eXllmlPle demonstrates how

'-'HV VV.lH"'-

to a schedule using bars to represent different alternative scenaria.

Based on the remaining work to be (2,100 195 m 2) and the rernaininlg
time (8 days) it is calculated that 233 ft 2 need be each following
rer,re~;ented by the bar in 2.11, to the
'--" ':,,"'LU quarltlIlea bar. Based on the actual productivity of 37.5 ft2 m 2 ) per
the remaining work 2,100+37.5 == 56 Sa, a crew
of 6 workers will the remaining part of the task in 8.5 days while a crew of
7 workers wil1 need 7.5 days, which will be ahead of time. The of
the of the work force, of the use of materials and of the cast are
SU1)erlmpO!~ed to the original planning for the same and are shown in
2.11. The wrong estimate of the worker's productivity resulted to an additional
labor cast of $4,000, which is also with the bars.
The monitoring of execution and the updated of schedules can be aC(~OrnpJllstLed
aften as there are data available and it is LU ....'LULU.b,LU. for the project executer to
the
The above updating of the task was based on the assumpUC)Il that the total
of work of the task had been correctly estimated at the Variations of the
quantity of work are aften in projects and they can be treated in a similar mannel'.
However, the best way to deal with of work the execution
of a task is to add a new task that is parallel to the remaining of the task, if a certain
deadline must be If the deadline is then the of the quantity of
the work can be represented as a continuous task to the task executed. In such
a case, the size of the crew stays the same. Parallel tasks and continuous tasks are
defined in Section 3.2.
 DAYS
15 16 17118119
I I
I I
I I
I I
I I
I I

I
71
61
J3 MITtmtrrrbJtJIN
2
11-~~;;;;;;;;;;;;.:;=

:
....... ••....••......•. :••••:•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••:••••:•••••••:•••••••••:•••••••••:••••••
:::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::.::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::>:::

2.11. the planning the task of Fig. 2.9 with areas

personpower, wages and materiaIs.
2.5 VARIABLES OF THE QUANTIFIED BAR

As described before, the nrnnp,'Npc of a quantified bar are:

quantity, Q
lnT""~"1T" l(t)

These properues are int(:;rd1epend(:;nt, crr",pr""r! by the two relationships:

T=Te - (2.6)

Te
Q= f dt (2.7)
Ts

For the appropriate selection of the time the intensity is constant within each
time unit. If the task is planned to last n time units t (i.e.,
then the quantified bar has the following
.. quantity, Q
" intensity, Ii
" starting time, k \.uH.VF."''',in time units)
in time units)
, .....u."U~U, n (integer, in time

.. time units t.
These properties are governed by the following relationships:

n =m-k

k+n
(2.9)

A task must be extended a fraction of a time unit, when it cannot be interrupted.

An of such a task is the of concrete on a slab. The additional
fraction of the time unit is added at the end of the qmmLlIle:a bar and it is treated
ser>ar:lteJly as follows:
 Varia bles of the 1!:Ir1,'tï'fiiol'll Bar 25

,nt,,,,,, <'itu If (at the fraction of the

,. additional fraction of the time f (in time
the of the corresponding quantified bar are crr'\UPlrnF'" by the
following relationships:

n+f= + f) - k

k+n
Q= (2.11)
i=k

Since there are two governing eq uations, two variables can be dependent.
there are 2+n+f variables and 2 variables to describe a
single quantified bar for a quantity, that represents a task th at lasts n+f time
units.
as it was explained in section a quantified bar is transformed to
resources and the costs. In each transformation will
introduce n+f additional variables. a task with its
resources, and j costs will have 2 + (2 x j + 1) x (n + f) independent variables. An
array of 2 values time, and a matrix of 2 x j + 1 rows and n + f
columns contain these variables. Each column of the matrix refers to a time unit and
the corresponding row contains the intensities of that time unit.
In most cases the size of the matrix can be reduced if the nrr"\rhlf't11"'1iru for a
resource or the unit cost for a resource is constant throughout the duration of the
task. In such a case, the transformed quantified bar is the product of the original
quantified bar multiplied by a conversion as shown in 2.9. there is
only 1 more independent variabie for each additional resource and 1 more
InC1er,enC1elnt variabie for each additional cost of resource. So, a task with ,..,...,..". . ",...t,,><,
its j resources, and j costs for these resources will have 2 + (n + f) + 2 x j
independent variables. An array of 2 values contains the time and the
time, and array of n + f values contain the work for each time unit and an array of
2 x j contains the conversion factors.
 3

Following the definition of the quantified the quantified bar chart is

introduced as the first chart of the Visual IJVJ."..,,'-...UJ.,,!=> and A
qmmtltle:d bar chart represents a segment of a project that is cOlnp1ose:d of a group of
tasks.
The definition of the quantified bar chart is presented in Section 3.1. The
resource and location of tasks are discussed in Section which
lead to the of the different types of among tasks that are
part of the system. In Section 3.3, the of the bars on
the chart and the indication of the tasks on the bar chart are
pn~seJl1teld. The ruies on how to construct a quantified bar chart and how to
follow in Section 3.4. Two of bar charts are presented in
The first refers to a project with well-defined of tasks. The second
includes tasks with loose pn~cedellce~s. Section 3.5 discusses the difference between
temporary operations and that introduce constraints for future
modifications. Section 3.6 describes the employment of the bar
chart to schedule tasks depending on the of the available facilitÎes.
28 BarCharts

3.1 THE QUANTIFIED BAR CHART

Tasks related by job code, at a level of a are O'T'All1",'rl together in

order to define their time d.et)end.erlcH~S and facilitate the allocation of resources.
Those tasks are represented bars displayed in a quantified bar chart.
The position of the bars on the chart represents their time UelJerIUenC].es,
. . . .U H U ...........

intensity and duration

qwmtlt1e:d bar chart is U'-'<UF,'l'-'U the intensities of its
quantified bars in order to

TIME

3.1. The quantified bar chart.

~V,"iU.VH of the qwmtJltled bars along the horizontal axis shows the time

The bars are along the vertical axis of a bar chart

according to the following rules, in order to make the chart easier to read:
.. The bars tasks of the same crew or of similar
constituency (i.e., placing concrete) are located on the same level.
 The Quantified Bar Chart 29

.. The qUillltltle~d bars are placed so that they show progression in the execution of
the tasks.
Most often, earlier tasks are lower and later tasks are place at the same level
or higher on the vertical axis. So, combined with the time tasks that are
executed earlier are located at the lower left corner of the chart and tasks
are towards the upper right corner of the chart. However, the user can
override this convention as long as a is followed.
The suppression of the quantity from the quantified bars in a bar chart
nrr, rl a
11 f'A t' bar which is a Gantt chart (Fig. 3.2). However, a
connoting bar chart inherits all the of the bar including the
visual identification of the tasks and the ruies for the bars aiong the
vertical axis and it can be converted to a qUlllltLtle:d bar chart at any time.

TIME

Fig. 3.2. The COf,llWlrlnf.1 bar chart.

3.2 INDEPENDENT AND DEPENDENT TASKS

The tasks on a quantified bar chart can be either maepé~naent or det)enderlt. Two
tasks are tasks when the execution of the first task does not have any
relationship to the execution of the second task (Fig. 3.3). Two tasks are
30 '~II4,i'ifiiori Bar Charts

3.3. Independent tasks.

dependent tasks when the execution of the one task on the execution of the
other task. The among tasks result from time dependencies, of
common resources or execution in the same location. The among the
tasks are treated as constraints among the a process
that is in Section 3.5. Precedences are described in the form of continuous
common start tasks, common finish tasks
OVi~r12lppmg tasks.

Two tasks are continuous or serial tasks when the one task must completed
before the other starts Two tasks are parallel tasks, when the two tasks
must start and finish simultaneously Two tasks are cOJn17.ton tasks
when they finish to~~et11er Two tasks are overlapping
the one task cannot start before the other task has been
Overlapping tasks can also overlapping tasks when the second task must
start at a certain percentage of completion of the first task. 1 The level of
COlnpletJ.on of the task that another task is either established at a breakdown
to or approximately, based on data and Two tasks are
common start tasks when they must start simultaneously. However, this is a
case of forced overlapping tasks: the level of completion of the first task is
0% and the second task must start at that time (Fig. 3.8).

The seeond task of two foreed overlapping tasks ean be separated into two parts. The first
part is a parallel task to a portion of the first task and the seeond part is a eontinuous task
to its first part.
2 This is performed with the use of microtemplates and IOHllTIll-IIO. defined in Chapter 6 as
part of the hierarehical structure of the Visual Scheduling System.
3.4. Continuous or serial tasks.

3.5. Parallel tasks.

3.6. tasks.

3.7. Overlapping tasks.

specified level of and the float is zero. The latest possible starting time
for the second task, is defined only if a deadline for the second task (or the
has been set. If the tasks have been scheduled with no float time, a
vertical arrow can show their inter-dependency. If a float a horizontal
arrow can show visually the float.
Often, the tasks displayed on the same qUllntLtle:d
J.'-'J.'~U'-Jli.:l_'HiJ with one or more tasks th at are executed a Those
foreign tasks should be included on the chart to define the precedences and
certain scheduling decisions, hA'.~IP',IP'" their nature should be maintained.
The tasks are rer:)re~;ented with connoting bars drawn with a dotted line,
showing the relationships with the other tasks of the chart but omitting
the display of .,--------J Alternatively, the nl1'lTlt-Hu of work may be shown but the
resources should be displayed with COIlllCltmg bars, since are the control
ofthe

CLEANING & COLUMN

INSPECTION CONCRETE

FORMWORK

TIME

3.10. Quantified bar the construction typical j1oor,

intensity personpower.
 Chart 35

Example: Fig. 3.10 shows the construction of the structural skeleton of a typical
floor in a \A.L·'L-~.rLJH"A-, concrete building. The following eight tasks compose the
construction of the skeleton of the typical floor:
the formwork,
e re-bar columns: ben ding and pmancmulg the relntclrclng steel for the columns,

cleaning and of the formwork and the steel

of the COlumlns,
column concrete: placing concrete for the cOlumms,
" beamslslab re-bar: bending and positioning the steel for the beams
and the slab,
.. M &E: preparation for mechanical and electrical installations,
L-tCLH.,.n~ and and of the formwork and the steel
of the beams and the
.. beamslslab concrete: concrete for the beams and the slab.
Labor has been chosen as the quantity of and the intensity
personpower per day. The labor intensive tasks are clearly identified the
relative size of the bars. The of the bars
the time axis indicates the of each task. The timing has resulted from the
int(~rd,epe:nden(;ies of the tasks:

Tasks to the construction of the columns:

.. The making of formwork is the largest and first task to start. It incIudes the
formwork for the columns, beams and slabs .
.. The bending and positioning of the relnt()rc:mg steel for the columns can start at
the same time as the formwork for the columns .
.. The placing of concrete for the columns should start HHU.lvU.U.'V.l after the
rp1ntrWf'1,nn steel is so the columns reach their strength to provide
partial support to fut ure construction.
.. Prior to the concrete, the formwork and the relntC)rCJmg steel should be
cleaned and inspected by the contractor.
Tasks to the construction of the beams and the slab:
.. At a certain level of completion of the formwork, the bellldlng and positioning of
the steel for the beams and the slab can start. 4

4 As it wiU be exr,laIlrled in Chapter 6, the level of cornpletion of the formwork before the
work on the bars starts is given by the microtemplate shown in Fig. 6.3.
 " The of concrete for the beams and the slab should start immediately
after the steel is so the floor reaches a certain as soon
as possible to support partially the next floor to be constructed.
e Prior to the concrete, for the mechanical and electrical
installations should have been completed.
.. Prior to the concrete, the formwork and the rein!c)rc-jn steel should be
cleaned and inspected the contractor.
The above tasks are executed specialized except for v.lv'''".L";;
and that is executed by the contractor's personnel. there are no
mterclepen(:1erlCl\;S of shared resources. Furthermore, there are not mterdlepen(ierlCH;s
result:lil!:! from a common <'-'v .......v«, as each task has its area of work.
According to the above the precedences among the tasks are
defined. Some of these pn~CeC1enC{;S are derivatives of others:
F ormwork and re-bar columns have a common start.
e Re-bar columns and columns are overlapped completion
" Re-bar columns and concrete columns are continuous.
Concrete columns and re-bar beamslslab are continuous.
Cleaning columns and concrete columns are continuous .
.. Formwork and re-bar beams/slab are overlapped completion
Re-bar beams/slab and M &E beamslslab are overlapped completion

Re-bar beams/slab and LH,UIL,LI'''' beams/slab are overlapped

o Re-bar beams/slab and concrete bearns/slab are continuous .

.. Cleaning beams/slab and concrete beams/slab are continuous.
M&E beams/slab and cleaning beamslslab are overlapped completion

M&E beams/slab and concrete beams/slab are continuous.

The schedule shown in 3.10 represents the earliest pOSSliOle starting time for
each The development of
the schedule was visual, on the bar chart. Alternative schedules
could be developed by the personpower and the duration of the tasks.
3.4 OPERATIONS ON QUANTIFIED BARS

Often the tasks of a project have well-defined precedences as in the example that
was in the Section 3.3. In such cases, the . based on
pre:cec1ences is meaningful. However, the planner can modify the schedule that has
been according to the constraints of duration and in order to
take into account other constraints. The of the tasks by bars
allows the to move or alter the of the bars on the bar chart
as long as these moves do not violate the of the tasks.
For the of tasks that do not have wel1-defined the
moves and alters the quantified bars on the chart with more freedom in order to
achieve a me~anmj2:1Ul execution of the
FoUT basic are on a quantified bar chart for the purpose of
changing the scheduling of tasks:
" Horizontal The time of a task can be This operation will
cause a horizontal shift of the task (Fig. 3.11), assuming that all the other
uallLUlv,~ associated with that task stay the same. Such a shift should be
compatible with the interdependencies among the tasks displayed on the
qmWLJlIlea bar chart. The float of the task defines the range th at the task is
allowed to be shifted, without the established precedences.

START START
EARLIER LATER

TIME

3.11. Horizontal shift of a task.

5 This provides the basis [or developing the matrix-balanced chart which is presented in
Chapter 5.
38 .~II"l,1'ï1'iioli Bar Charts

.. Expansionlcontraction. The duration or the intensity of a task can be eX1PaIlde:d

or eontraeted. in the of a task will cause an immediate
change in the duration and vice versa

TIME
CONTRACTION
y ------ï
I
I
I
I
I
I
TIME
EXPANSION

TIME

.. Addition continuous tasks. Two continuous tasks ean be added to form a

task The quantity of the task is equal to the addition of
the quantities of the two continuous tasks. Similarly, a task ean be in
two continuous tasks

TIME

3.13. Addition continuous tasks and nnl.. ""f,., to continuous

tasks.

.. Addition nnrnJ'lol tasks: Two tasks ean be added to form a

task The quantity of the single task is equal to the addition of the
 quantities of the two parallel tasks. Similarly, a task ean be partitioned in two
tasks.

TIME

3.14. Additian afparallel tasks and partitian ta parallel tasks.

A task ean be nr~rht·,n.rH'r1 to any number of continuous, parallel or overlapping

tasks following a proper sequenee of operations from the above four basic
operations.
* Vertical A shift along the vertical axis (Fig. 3.15) is also on a
quantified bar chart for the purpose of developing an easier to read chart.
However, such an operation does not change any of the of the task.

MOVE
LOWER

TIME

3.15. Vertical task.

Example: The development of the bar chart for the

finishing tasks of a hotel is presented. The scheduling is based on the
assumption that the structural skeleton has been and the schedule of
should be optimal by itself, without
l.Hi.l':>HiU,!; into eonsideration the rep1eatmg
tasks on the different floors 6 . For a more treatment, the tasks are
identified to their location in a typical room of the hotel:

6 Thc scheduling of repeating tasks in different locations of the building is presented in

Chapter 5.
Tasks on the floor and between the floor and the walls:
VAVUUJlUF,of the structural floor,
main vertical mechanical and electrical installarions (floor),

floor scn~edlmg,

and
nnls11mg of the floor.
Tasks on the walls and between the walls and the ceiling:
installation of external precast
mechanical and electrical works on the walls (rough-in),
.. installation of studs for the dry walls,
.. installation of door
" installation of
.. installation of gypsum boards for the dry walls,
• mill work (curtain
wall joints (painting
.. painting of
1st coat,
I-''''''''U''h

iJ"UJlHH'F,2nd coat,
.. installation of door
.. installation of door and window hardware (iron mongery),
.. fixtures/outlets (fitting),
• final coat of painting, and
• fumiture.
Tasks on the
mechanical and electrical main horizontal
and ducts for the room (rough-in),
.. construction of the
.. electrical and
" positioning of the ceiling boards.
 WALL

FLOOR

PAINTING lST COAT

FLOOR SCREEDING
REPARATION
M&E (VERTICAL MAIN)
OOR CLEANING

3.16. the construction a typical room; Tr/lrJ'l{,'T/)Y'J'>1~>n to apply to the entire

personpower.
 .~rn,"ii'iialf'll Bar Charts

The 28 tasks have precedlem;es. ~AUJP'"pr these precedences are more loose than
the construction of the structural floor.
The first working quantified bar chart addresses the finishing of a single room.
The tasks are by quantified bars with a certain sequence along the time
axis 3.16). For the convenience of the the three of the room are
included on the chart: the floor, the wall and the The of the
quantified bars in any of these or in the overlapping area between two
indicates the actuallocation of the work. Arrows indicate the of
the tasks 7. The chart of 3.16, with represents also the
finishing of the entire floor that includes many rooms.
Then, the planner a series of on the bar chart of
Fig. 3.16, illustrated in 3.17 to to produce a meaningful and desirabie
schedule. All these Opt;rall10I1S are based on the four basic operations that were
introduced earlier in this Section 3.4.
In 3.17, the examines the float time for each task and to the
working schedule shown in 3.18, where the three layers have been omitted.
the bars have been so that maintain their
precedences while similar types of tasks are shown one next to another. This is a
qWllltLtle:C1 bar chart that could he used for actual the planner starts
a to the constraint that up to two crews should
work simultaneouslyon the same floor 3.19). This is a
reclutrenneIlt based on the planner's A constraint of one crew or
any number of crews on the floor would be implemented in
a similar way. Fig. 3.20 shows the bar chart that is derived from that
con s traint. 3.21 shows the final bar chart for an even
clearer schedule, the second crew is always mechanical and e1ectrical
work. The of certain tasks was changed in the process of in
order to compress or extend their duration and make a better scheduling. The
sequence of 3.16 to 3.21 demonstrates the of the visual development
of the quantified bar chart.

7 This is a working quantified bar chart and should not be used for scheduling yet.
 XTERNAL PRECAST PANELS M&E (ROUGH-IN)
ll..ING

CEILING

WALL

-- FRAME PAINTING
FLOOR DRYWALL (JOINTS)
DRYWALL 1."''--'''''-L''->1
WINDOW GLASS

I DOOR FRAMES
RY W ALL (STUDS)
)MARKING 2ND COAT
FLOOR SCREEDING PAINTING lST COAT
REPARATION
(VERTICAL MAIN)

3.17. Studies off/oatfor the construction room; intensity personpower.

 M&E (ROUGH-IN/CEILING)
FLOOR CLEANING M&E (ROUGH-IN/WALL)
CEILING (GRID) CEILING (BOARDS)
M&E (FIXTURES & OUTLETS)
COAT

DOOR FRAMES
DRY WALL (STUDS)
MARKING
FLOOR SCREEDING
PREPARATION

PAINTING 2ND COAT

PAINTING lST COAT

3.18. Quantified bar chartfor the construction of a typicalfloor; .,."".~.'.,

 FLOOR CLEANING M&E (ROUGH-IN/CEILING)
\ CEILING (GRill)
M&E (HO'RIZON1fAL
(ROUGH-IN/WALL)

FRAME PAIN1rING
DRY W ALL (JOIN1rS)
MILLWORKS (MISC) \ \
DRY WALL (BOARDS)
EXTERNAL PRECAST PANELS PAIN1rING 2ND COAT
PAIN1rING lST COAT

3.19. (}Uanl:ITu~a bar chartfor the construcÛon typical floor; personpower. Studies to introduce two
crews at a time.
 MILLWORKS (MISC)
FRAME PAINTING
DRY W ALL (JOINTS)
DRY W ALL (BOARDS) \
XTERNAL PRECAST PANELS 2ND COAT
PAINTING lST COAT

3.20. J'lHJ.rHUU~{j bar chartfor the construction typicalfloor with two crews at a time; I Y1fPYI In f'li personpower.
 PAINTING lST COAT
MILLWORKS (MISC)
FRAME PAINTING
DRY W ALL (JOINTS)

WINDOW GLASS

3.21. Final quantified bar chart the construction of a typical . second crew M&E;
personpower.
3.5 CONSTRAINTS ON THE QUANTIFIED BARS

As shown in the TU·<><'O"T".rI ""'''''"~UP'''''''' a series of operations alter the and

the relative qua.ntltled bars for the purpose of making a qua.nmleu
bar chart suitable for scheduling. Some of these are temporary
operations: are executed in a temporary manner, without establishing
permanent constraints either on a task or between any of tasks. A
translation of a bar the time axis within its or a in the
1r1t,,,.r1(,,t,, and duration are of temporary operations. Most of the feasibility
studies inc1ude a series of temporary, reversal operations.
However, on the bar can be executed with a simultaneous
introduction of constraints. Precedences establish constraints as discussed in
Section 3.2. Parallel and fOl'ced tasks introduce very spe:Cltlc
constraints that can be relationships between the delJendeIlt
tasks. Continuous tasks and '"''"'"''+'!-','UF. tasks introduce boundary constraints that
v y

can be exrlresseci by on the dependent tasks. Similarly, the definition of

a specific range for the duration or a range for the resources of a task; an
defined starting or an explicitly defined time introduce
constraints. After the the constraints become part of the
prc)pertlé~s of the bars and future should be compatible with those
constraints. If a future operation violates an defined the user
should decide which is stronger to be a permanent part of the system and which
should be dropped.

3.6 DISPLAY OF CAPACITY

This section portrays the display of the tasks to~~enler with the COITe5;POnUJll1g
of the facilities dedicated to execute the tasks. The facility for each task is a
r><l'tVlf"HH

resource for that task and the of the capacity of the facility is an alternative
display of a resource. it is useful to provide a simultaneous display
of the capacity with the other resources of the task. The visual scheduling of classes
in a school is presented as an example to demonstrate the multiple of
intensities. The should utilize the available classrooms in a best way and
should avoid conflicts of classes that address the same groups of students. For
economy of space, the schledlllirig for a of the week is presented.
""n,",...11." are shown in Fig. 3.22 with qUimtltle:d
bars. Classrooms are so the duration of the COITel;POndmg
qwmtllIe~d bars extends to the whole day. The of the quantified bar that
represents eaeh classroom is equal to the seating of that which is
also written at the part of each bar. The name of the classroom appears on the
left of each bar. Alternative intensities for the classrooms ean be carJaCltH~S for other
usages, sueh as L"W'o..U'VL', laboratories for SCl(~nc:es, or hands-on computer

laboratories.
Each class is also rel=lre~;ented by a qUiillLLIle:u bar, with a duration equal to the time
that the class meets. The students are the resources of each class. Distinctions are
made among the students of each prof,Tfam of the school as weIl as among the
students of each year of studies. The students from each program who take that
class are treated as a different resource. Sinrilarly, the students from each year of
studies that take that class are treated as a different resource. The total number of
students in a class is equal to the number of students from all the programs who take
that class which is also to the number of students of all the years of study who
take that class. So, each class can be several intensities. Assuming
that there are 3 programs and 3 years in the school, there are 9 independent
intensities for each class. A lOth indicates the total number of students in
the class. most of the classes interest specific groups of students and it is
more that some of these alternative intensities are zero.
9am lOam llam 12noon Ipm 2pm 3 pIn 4pm 5pm 6prn

3.22. Scheduling of classes; intensities cazJa(:ltl<~s of classrooms and

students.
 3.22 shows a sut)en)OsLtlon qmlntLtle:d bars of the classrooms and the
quantified bars of the OlS:UHtveQ with the intensity of all students taking each
class. The chart shows visually the overall utilization of the available facilities in the
school. Some such as Room 521, have been scheduled over their
capacity, assuming that chairs will be moved in and out. problems of
classes are also visible. The two large st classes
11 am, while there is no major class scheduled between 12 no on and 1 pm.
is suggested that the 10 to 12 class is moved to meet from 11 am to 1 pm.
this chart could schedule the ,.",r,,,,,.,,,'; daily preparation and maintenance of the
classrooms between classes.
Alternative displays of the 1nt,F'nC'1tu of the classes could provide information on
how the classes are po-pUl.ate:Q by the students from the different programs and from
each year of charts could show the students from a particular year or
program to classes and the conflicts. Some of these charts will
contain classes with zero those classes should be shown with connoting
bars. Multiple intensities could be in the same chart. A visual
identification should be used in the form of color or hatching for the intensities
relJreSerLtlnlg students from the different years of or for the different programs.
 4

Following the definition of the quantified bar eh art, the temp late is introdueed as
the next level of the Visual Scheduling and A
'''''''V ... u, . . . includes a quantified bar chart and al.1=,hanume:ne data and has special
provisions for aggregating the discrete tasks and for monitoring the project.
The defïnition ofthe template is presented in Section 4.1. The dual of
the information, both in and alphanumeric forms is discussed in Section 4.2
and the process of input and output of data is In the same section, a
detailed demonstrates the process of developing a template. Section 4.3
presents the use of for studying resource and it is
acc:onlpa.nie:d by two examples from the services industry.
the use of templates for monitoring the actual execution of a is pre:sel1tecj,
acc:onlpallllé:d by an'.m,LUBI"-'-V'

4.1 THE TEMPLATE

A temp/ate is eomposed of a quantified bar ehart, its folded-up task1 and

<-<-'V""""'''''''''-'-''''' data in a spreadsheet format. A temp late inherits all the p·rlH'"
n·t'f-,.....

The folded-up task is dcfined in 6, as part of thc hierarchical structure of the

Visual Scheduling and Management
 TASKS QUANTIFlED BARS

CONCRETE

9 9 1 DAY
M&EWORK N/A N/A

60,000 LB I 1,250 LB 48 12 6 4DAYS

RE-BAR

10,OOOFf21 l00Ff2 100 17 6 6DAYS

176 17 10+ I 10A DA

DURATION (DA YS)

4.1. construction of a
of the qmmtltle:d bar chart, while the simultaneous pn~sentaltlOn of graphics and text
allows a of infonnation.

. The in 4.1 contains a quantified bar chart for the

construction of the reinforced concrete skeleton of a fioor of a This
bar chart is a
4U,;LllL1.L.1\,A.1 version of Fig. 3.10. The cleaning and inspection
operations are not shown, as they are executed by the contractor, and the
concrete is at the same time for the columns and the slab. The first column of
the template in 4.1 contains the name of each task. The second column contains
the quantified bars that make the quantified bar chart. The quantity of the work is in
column 3, while productivity, necessary person-qays, and the number of workers in
the crews are in columns 4, 5 and 6. Columns 7 and 8 show the and
and column 9 shows the duration of each task. The first row is the
title row, while each subsequent row contains a task. For each task there are two
subrows in the part of the The top su brow contains the
information during the planning stage and the bottom subrow will eontain the
information of the mate quantified for monitoring and the task.
during planning, the bottom subrow is Ieft blank. The last row of the
template includes the task that aggregates the individual tasks shown on
the The folded-up task is in detail in 6, as part of the
hierarchical structure of the Visual Scheduling and Management

4.2 INPUT AND OUTPUT

Each eel1 in the alphanumeric part of the serves both as and output
of informatÎon. The data in the columns are related as shown in 2.8 or by the
eXIJre:SSl(Jns 2.1 to 2.5. empty cells can be filled with information until there are
data to generate the data in the other eells. Overwriting data in any cell will
cause the changing of the data in the cells with direct rel;atlc)llshlpS.
Jl~V',V"''''JlHE> to the template of Fig. 4.1, the data in columns 3, 4 and 5 are inter-
related: productivity is the ratio of the of the work of the task) divided
 Table 4.1. Data ta generate the tem:mute shawn in 4.1.

A B C D E F G
1 TASK QUANTITY CONTRACT QTY*UNIT WAGE
OFWORK UNITCOST COST RATE
CONTRACT
COST
2 CONCRETE 8,000 FT3 $0.50 /FT3 $4,000 $180
3 FORMWORK 10,000 FT2 $2.00 /FT2 $20,000 $220
4 RE-BARS 60,000 LB $0.17 ILB $10,000 $200
5 M&E - - $1,600 $200
6 TOTAL - - $35,600 -

A H J
TASK CALCULATED EXPERIENCED ADOPTED
MANPOWER PRODUCTIVITY PRODUCT.
FROMWAGE FROM
RATE PRODUCTIVITY RECORDS
FROMWAGE
MANDAYS RATE
2 CONCRETE 22 360 500 ft3 400 ft3
3 FORMWORK 91 llO 90 ft2 100 ft2
4 RE-BARS 50 1,200 1,200 lb 1,250 lb
5 M&E 8
6 TOTAL 171

A L M N
1 TASK ADOPTED ACTUAL WORKING NO. IN CREW FOR
MANPOWER DAYS FOR AlO lODAYS
MANDAYS DAYSCHEDULE SCHEDULE MEN
DAYS
2 CONCRETE 20 1 + OVER TIME 14
3 FORMWORK 100 6 17
4 RE-BARS 48 4 12
5 M&E 8 1 8
6 TOTAL 176 10 AVERAGE18

by the neeessary personpower. any two of these data ean generate the third.
After the data have been entered or ealculated, a change in any of those will eause a
change in the others. Unless overwritten by the user, the productivity is the most
volatile, with the necessary personpower being second. if the necessary
personpower is the productivity will be changed while the quantity of the
work will stay the same.
The bars serve for input and output of information as wen. As output
the information of the As are
gel1erate:d or modified with the of a pointer. The modifications should result
from the fOUT basic on qmmtLtle:d bars, as defined in Section 3.4. The
C01Te~;pond:mg data in the change to reflect the changes applied
on the quantified bars .

... Y,,-,""'·.... ,'O· There are many different ways to develop the template of Fig. 4.1. The

approach of the then produce the bars and finally

assembie the 'V""Y~"""' wil1 be demonstrated as an eX,tmlJle.
The project on focus is the scheduling of labor for the construction of a floor in a
concrete building. The four tasks are defined in column A of Table 4.1. The
quantity of work and the contracted unit cost for labor are known to the project
planner and entered in columns B, and E. The total contracted cost is
calculated in column F. The wages, known to the project manager as are
entered in column G. The calculated personpower is shown in column Hand the
calculated in column 1. to the data available the
the productivity in similar sites in the past has been recorded as entered in
column 1. The project adjusts that productivity to reflect the "I-''"''v ........ ....
conditions of this project and enters the productivity in column which is
used to calculate the personpower in column L. Then the planner defines the
duration of the as 10 days, so the duration of each task is estimated as shown
in column M. the sizes of the work crews are calculated in column N.
pn~paratlOn for mechanical and electrical does not
.Hli),LU.i.1U.U.Vl1i),

have a rf11,,,.,t,j-,, however, does not affect the process, since the
person-time is estimated

2 The folded-up task that is described in row 15 is not homogeneous, since it aggregates
tasks of different constituencies. However, the total cost and the manpower are
me;anillgtllli for the folded-up task. The constituency of the folded-up task will be discussed
in Chapter 6.
 The above process is one of the several alternatives to plan the Other
may choose to start with other
1-'1.<.1.1111'''-'.1':> such as the productivity from other
then calculate the size of the work crews and the duration of the tasks and
determine the necessary contracted cost.
At this stage the starting and times for the 4 tasks have not been defined
yet The quantified bar chart shown in 4.2 shows the qUimtltle:d bars for the 4
tasks and the task pIior to After the pre:ce<lences
among the tasks are defined, the qucmtltle:d bars are positioned the time axis
and the shown in 4.1 is which shows selected data on its
sprl:;adsheet part.

4.2. uuanz'lTle:Q bars without established precedences.

4.3 VISUAllEVEUNG OF RESOURCES

In the it has been assumed that the tasks do not need resource
leveling. This is a realistic in construction, where most of the tasks are
subcontracted. However, a can be used to monitor the use of resources for
a group of tasks and the framework for a visual resource
Furthermore, it can accept a certain resource ceiling as a constraint in the visua1
scheduling, in a form consistent with Section 3.5.
The last row of a is reserved for the task, which is defined in
Section 6.1. In the same last row can contain a quantified bar with the
cumulative intensity of all the quantified bars that are on the template. If
the on the is personpower, then the cumulative 1ntpt''''1tu
is also personpower for the time covered the the last row
can be utilized to level a resource by and bars
in the This assumes that the tasks shown on the template the
resource, which can be achieved with a proper hierarchical structure, as it is
discussed in Chapter 6.
Two are to demonstrate the cumulative resource QU/1nlmf;~a
bar and resource leveling. The first example refers to a software that
requires resource leveling. A second where the tasks that do not
the same resource are shown with connoting bars and information on the
cumulative resources is needed.
The for planning the software development a small firm is shown in
4.3, with the cumulative at the bottom row of the template, aelJlCrea
ltaI1eO USJ,y with the folded-up task. The
I is to be developed
without any subcontracting at any time, the allocation of the personnel on the
various tasks should be to the total number of the of the firm. As a
result, the summation of the personpower intensities of all the quantified bars should
he smooth and should represent the members of the team at each c01Te~;pondJmg; time
unit.
 DURATION (MONTHS)

4.3. The development

 DURATION (DAYS)

4.4. Prpnnrntinn" an art gallery exhibition.

 During scheduling, the visual modifications of the bars are reflected
on the cumulative resource bar. the process of the
resources is assisted A constraint, to Section can be also
established for the cumulative of all the tasks shown on the template. As a
result of such a constraint, any modifications that violate the maximum allowable
resources are either rejected or tenlPClrarll sustained until a next move will balance

1-"",1111.1115 for the preparations of an art

exhibition at a
to be selected from aPl)roxm1at~:!1
vA.LLI.L.....J.'VH,

collectors. The displayed personpower and the last row of

the contains the accumulated personpower which has several and
valleys. There is a time following the task that none of the
peJrsonn~el is scheduled to work for the exhibition for two This is due
to the six days that the to frame the works of art, shown with
a bar because its resources are to the Graduate students
staff the art as a work and their hours are flexible. Thus, the peaks
and valleys in the cumulative resource quantified bar are acceptable.

4.4 MONITORING AND FORECASTING

A template displays information as it becomes available by employing a

mate quantified bar for each quantified bar that is defined the stage.
The display of actual data on the requires an mechanism for
COllect:mg these data from the field.
In the construction industry, most of the standard forms for daily site report do
not have a n1"''\UIQ1n,n to include the amount of completed work. Two forms
have been developed for monitoring the construction site daily as part of the
system. The first form reports the activities of the employees of the
construction firm and it is shown in 4.5. The second form is designed for the
contral of the activities of the subcontractors and it is shown in 4.6. Both forms
DAILY FIELD NAME DATE WeatIJer T....p.8:ooA.M. 4::lGP.M.

Site Slal'l' NAME I.o. A.M. P.M, IlJesC:nptlon ui "ori<

5:00 6:00 7:00 8:00 9:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 1:00 3"" 4:00 s,'"
Superinltt>d"'"
Engu-n
~u-n
ACCOW11&nt

Corpe>tle<ForemMl
~te...
Cmrpmten
_ QlrJ>enten

MeOl1 Forenw1

Ironworlte:r Forcmsn
lronworlu:r
lronworker

Cement Fmi,h Foremm

Cement Fmisber.
Cement Fmishen
Cement Fani"ben

Labor Foranan
Labors
Labo...
Labo"
Labo",
Labo..
Labo...
Labo..
Labo...
Labo"

: RENT AL EQUIPMENT
C=lenl
~lIIte Con""",,
BacldillSoil

4.5. Construction site the control workers.

DAll.Y FIELD NAME DATE

SUB CONTTRACTORS ~ j. COMMENTS

Q

Excavation

Plwnber

HeoWn...E..

EJedrician
:
Roofer

MeulWoricer

Mm-ble. Cement TUe :

Terraz.ro

Lalh...

Plll5terer

Painter

Steel EreclOf

Omrunent Ir""

Glu!

~""
Flool"Î!!.&..

TOTA!. C C : CONTRACT WORK

TOTA!. D D:DAYWORK
GRA.'1D TOTAL

4.6. Construction site the control subcontractors.

should be used to collect the data to describe the quantified bars that represent the
tasks of the
A percentage of the work of each task can describe approximately the vV~HpJ'VL""U
work per time unit. This is the time of collecting
data in the field. However, a measure of the completed work should be used
at certain time intervals to adjust the percentage estimates.
4.7 shows the of the planned tasks as shown in 4.1 and
their actual execution. This template was n-rp'nQ'rpr! after the COlmpletlon of all the
tasks.
In addition to superimposing the actual bars on the originally planm:d
quantified 4.7 inc1udes the alphanumeric information on the actual
execution of each task. This information has been inserted in the spreadsheet part of
the in the lower subrow of each task.
Useful comments for the pr()gr(~SS:lon of a can be made by observing the
4.7. A visual of the p ......
UUjC",E,

qmmtLIle:Q bars shows that both the formwork and the relnlc)rcmg bars were
advancing in a slower than pace at the In addition, the
completion of the formwork was during the last This delay created a
in the concrete and as a result a of the project. So,
the delay in the of the project is visually presented and the cause is
visually identifiable3.
A series of intermediate stage templates the process could have been
The original schedule, the actual execution until the date and
the for the rest of the would have been superimposed on the
intermediate stage templates, to as in 2.11.

3 The microtemplate of Fig. 6.3 displays the detailed schedule for

included in the template of Fig. 4.7. An explanation can be given on
of the formwork did not proceed according to the plan. The actual exe;cution was to
the detailed bars of tbe microtemplate. Assuming that the project planner had
worked data at the he made an effort to shorten the project by
_ --------J shortening the duration of formwork. Apparently that was ambitious to
achieve.
 TASKS

400Ff3
CONCRETE
333Ff3 1.3DAYS

1 DAY
M&EWORK N/A N/A

4DAYS
RE-BAR

6DAYS

108 17 10 lODAYS

176 17+ 10+ 10DAYS

192 16+ 11+2h 11.3

DURATION (DA YS)

4.7. Template ofplanning »1rlln1T·nrl'na ofthe construction

 5

The matrix-balance chart follows the presentation of the qmmtitle:d bar chart and
the template. The matrix-balance chart is at the level of the charts
in the Visual and System.
Section 5.1 presents the issue of rep,eatmg tasks and introduces the additional
dimension of location in project scheduling. The introduction of location sets the
for the concept of the matrix-balanced chart to schedule tasks
with Section 5.2 presents the definition of
the matrix-balanced chart and its The of the line of the of
the quantified that compose the matrix-balance chart, is discussed in Section
5.3. The of the curve is presented with the line of the in
the same section. The use of the matrix-balanced chart is presented in Section 5.4
together with a detailed example that shows the balancing process in a sequence of
steps. a re-arrangement of the tasks along the vertical axis is in
Section 5.5. That re-arrangement allows the user to study the of the tasks
accordmg to the constitution of the tasks rather than their location.

5.1 REPEATING TASKS

A task that is repeated at different physical locations of a and rp("1111 ..,,.,,

similar resources is a task. The finishing of a typical floor of a multi-

 Matrix-Balanced Chart

storey is a task at the different floors of the The

installation of the door panels in a typical room of a hotel building is a repeated task
in the different rooms.
The introduction of location as an additional dimension to scheduling has a
on In most cases, can be established for the tasks
to be executed for the same at a location. If these tasks should be
repeated in many locations, the same could for each location
If the resources are unlimited for each task of the then the
dimension of location should not alter the "'-'ll'-'UlUU.HJ; at each location.
since the same tasks are from location to location, it is reasonable to be
executed by the same resources in a procedure. The of many
locations simultaneously for the same resources diminishes the effect of pre:ceclences
among the tasks. The scheduling becomes more complex and should an
answer to the what task to execute at what location, the need to
schedule tasks that can be executed in anyorder.
U sing the of finishing a multi-storey hotel, there are for the
tasks in each room. if many rooms are available to be a decision
has to be made on the order that the different tasks will be executed in each room on
every floor. the should focus on which rooms to do first which
crews. The is then based less on time precedences and more on issues
like the total number of crews in the same space and the reduction of float
time for specialty workers.
A task mayalso occur at the same location at different time intervals or
for different In the services industry, a meeting is a task
that occurs at time intervals. In manufacturing, tasks on the line
are repeating tasks that occur in For simplicity , in the rest of
the of the Visual and System, the term
location will mean either physical location at the spe:c111c time
interval.
Tasks with a common location within a make a cluster of tasks. Each
cluster of tasks is rer:)re~;entea by a qUlm[lIle~Q bar chart th at to the
location. Such a bar chart is a location-specific quantified chart.
The bar chart that shows the construction of a floor of a building is
a location-specific '1 ................., .... bar chart (Fig. A lOc:all:on-SL'ec.mc ten'lVl,Ute is a
template that includes a location-specific qwantitie:d bar chart and the cOlTe~;pond:ing
data in a spr'ea<lSheet fonnat.

TIME

5.1. The concept of the matrix-balanced

dimensions.

5.2 THE MATRIX-BAlANCED CHART

The matrix-balanced chart is used to schedule projects with repeating tasks.

Thus, the matrix-balanced chart includes the dimension of location, in addition to
the dimensions of time and intensity of a simple quantified bar chart (Fig. 5.1). In a
matrix-balanced chart:
.. there are as many lOC~at10n-Sp,eCllI1C quantified eh arts as the number of identified

.. the 10c:atIon-specltlc quantified charts are along the time so they

share a common time coordinate,
70

,. there is a meaningful progression in horizontal of the 10CaW)n-Spt~CnlC

quantified charts along the vertical
,. if more than one repeating tasks are on the same matrix-balanced
the task with the maximum intensity at any location will determine the
positioning of the tasks the vertical a repeating task can be
detached from location to location,
.. the bars that represent each task have a common visual
identification in alliocations,
the relative times and dependencies of the discrete tasks are displayed
simultaneously for all and the matrix-balanced schedule is optimal for
alllocations considered i-r.rr",i-h.",.,.
The tasks are reT:)re~;ented qmllltitie~d bars in the matrix-balanced chart. the
vertical axis has a dimension: at the quantified bar level it indicates the lnt,pnç~ihr

of the tasks; at the level it indicates the location of the tasks, and at the chart
level it indicates the identity of the tasks. Thus, the matrix-balanced chart is a two-
dimensional of multi-dimensional information of tasks: their
magnitudes, resources, cost, location and time of execution.

5.3 UNE OF THE DIAGONALS

If the quantified bars of the tasks are displayed with a common corner,
the line of the diagonals of the quantified bars represents the slope of the intensity of
the task from location to location 5.2). If both the quantity and the
lnt,,,,n(~lt,, of a repeated task are the same for alliocations, then the of the
qmllltlIle:Q bars are a line. the matrix-balaneed ehart
is of quantified bars with eaeh and
duration whieh, even for the same task, ean vary from loeation to location.
in general, the diagonals of the quantified bars wiU not be a
line.
 y

INCREASING
PRODUCTION RATE
(I'IME CONTRACTION) (TIME EXPANSION)

LOCATION 4

LOCATION3
LOCATION2

LOCATION 1

TIME

5.2. The line of the azaf!Ofi~ats tasks with the same nnn""rJt" in

The line of the I..HI:JLMV'lIU.l" is meaningful to the planner only for repeatmg
tasks that have:
.. the same quantity at the considered locations Fig. 5.2) or
.. the same duration at the considered locations or
.. the same at the considered locations.
If the same quantity is scheduled with different mt ens:1ty (and thus different
1

duration) from location to then the line of the diagonals will be curved. An
increasing slope line will depict an intensity while a line
will a mx;re,LSlIll,g lrltptH~11'"
If tasks of different quantity are scheduled to have the same duration, then the line
of the will be curved. An slope line will an mc:realSInlg
while a line win depict a work.
Finally, iftasks of different quantity are scheduled to have the same intensity, then
the line of the diagonals will be curved as wen. An line will a
while a decreasing slope line will mc:re,lSlIJlg work.
74 Matrix-Balanced Chart

5.4 BAlANCING THE MATRIX CHART

The construction of a matrix-balanced chart starts with the of the

most quantified chart. The other location-specific
charts are developed as of the
typical chart. In of work for the same
repeating task could be different at each location. In addition, changes in the amount
of resources could occur even for tasks with the same of work at
each location. Fewer resources may be needed at later stages due to or
more resources may be needed to compensate for environmental conditions or other
causes. So, variations among the charts are and
are handled by quantified bars of different sizes.
The initial assembly of the charts is a matrix of
quantified bars. The time and location among the tasks in the
various locations a series of for a proper These
operations constitute the balancing of the matrix of quantified bars to become a
matrix-balanced chart and they are based on the four basic operations described in
Section 3.4. First, as an intermediate step, each task is scheduled to
continue at the next location after it is executed in the previous location. This step
leads to physical of tasks and temporary violations of at
certain locations. To resolve those the tasks are on the chart:
moving the tasks along the time within their
" by the of tasks,
adjustmg the duration, and thus the intensity, from location to locaU1on,
• by tasks to tasks and then performing any of the
above three operations.
As a tasks have a priority over the smaller tasks and they
should be subject to fewer interventions. The breaking of the continuity of tasks can
be achieved in two ways: either as a temporary of a task or as a
to a location other than the next.
The matrix-balanced chart is me:ammg;!Ul and can be used for the scheduling of the
tasks, only after it is balanced, i.e., after the necessary time and location re-
arrangements of the tasks are executed and there are no more physical OVt~rH:llpplmg; of
tasks or violations

Example: The scheduling of the finishing of a mUlil-srorev hotel is presenlted as

an the matrix-balanced based on the followlng assumptions:
the construction of the building skeleton does not interfere with the
Cl of
the building1
• the floors from the 3rd to the 12th are . . . . and
VH .... ' " ' ' ' ' ' ,

.. each floor contains typical rooms only.

The chart was developed as an of a
quantified bar chart with loose in Section shown in
to the constraints and the criteria presented in Section 3.4, that location-
" " ,..'VJ.'..U,Ut;

quantified chart presents a best schedule for the of a floor.

However, that schedule cannot be applied for the of the complete building.
This is demonstrated in Fig. 5.5, where the scheduling of the 3rd to the 12th floors
of the building is pn~sente<1 in a similar manner as the SCn,e<1l1i1I1lg; of the typical floor.
The delay in the starting of each floor above the 3rd serves a dual purpose.
to the in the upper assuming that the skeleton is still in
progress. to move the crew that installs the mechanical and electrical main
ducts from one floor to the other. If the of the building would
follow the chart of then only the crew th at installs the mechanical and
electrical main ducts would have a transition from floor to floor. The
seCjuencJmg of all other tasks would be incorrect. The tasks that take a shorter time to
execute than the installation of the main ducts would have a consistent time lag from
floor to floor. Even more the tasks that take longer time to execute
than the installation of the main ducts would an increase of resources from
floor to up to a certain floor. they would require a decrease of
resources for the rest of the floors. These tasks would not be leveled and there
would be times that several crews of the same trade would be needed to work in the
building for the same type of task. Thus, the into consideration the
mt(~rd!epe~ndenc:les of the tasks, must correct the of the chart
shown in Fig. 5.5. After a series of operations, the result is a meaningful

An auxiliary chart th at information on the tasks that have been executed is part of
the new system and be presented in Section 5.6.
 .~

<:u
~
..... tri
..... :=: 0\ \0 Ir) "<I'
tri
 M&E (WIRING) M&E (FIXTURES & OUTLErS)

l2F 12F
___________________ ~ __=-~-~~b~~~,~~U-------~~~~~---,--._~~~
lIF HF

lOF lOF

9F 9F

SF SF

1F 1F

6F 6F

SF SF

4F 4F

3F 3F

DRY WALL (STUDS)

CEILING (GRill)
MARKlNG DOOR FRAMES
EXTERNAL PRECAST PANELS \ (BOARDS)
FLooR CLEANING GLASS

5.6. The matrix-balanced chart; intlen:iüv Del'SO.nT)()WI~r

80

and optimal distribution of tasks in the various that systenJatizes the time float
and avoids and valleys in the demand for the resources, as shown in
5.6 is constructed by balancing the matrix of Fig. the
pf()cedm:e that was described earlier in this section. each ret)eatmg
scheduled to continue to the higher floor after it finishes in the as
shown in 2
5.7. In the following step, the vertical dimension of location is re-
established by the tasks on the and the float between
.I.v~'vClL.lliJ;; tasks is as shown in 5.8. the physical oVI~r12lPping
of tasks and the violations are balanced (Fig. 5.6):
.. Translation of the tasks the time axis. The of the dry the
milling works and the (except for the final painting) are gf()Urled
together and they are scheduled wilh the criterion to continue .I.ll1.H1V'U-.I.ClLv.l.)

the gypsum boards are installed on the 12th floor. Their rate of pf()grl~SSlOn
from floor to floor determines their time on the first floor. Since these
tasks progress faster than the installation of the gypsum boards there is a float
between these tasks on the first floor. The float shortens from floor to floor and
vanishes on the 12th floor.
of the installation of the boards follows the
cOlnpletllon of
IJUl.llUlll;:. on the first floor. the rate of of
the installation of ceiling boards from floor to floor is slower than and
that creates an float on the with the float on the 12th
floor. the translation of all the tasks along the time axis of

the COI'lU!lUl,rv of tasks. The installation of mechanical and e1ectrical

floor ducts jumps from the 6th floor to the 9th floor in order not to coincide
with the crew that installs the main vertical mechanical and electrical ducts on
the 7th floor. Then it continu es to the 8th, 1 lOth and l2th floors.
After the installation of window glasses in the 5th floor, this short task
is 1nt-porr'ln... t<,rl The installation of the window at the 6th floor continues
much after the crew is inactive at this project for a certain time

2 5.6 demonstrates the need for kccping the location weIl defined along thc vcrtical
In 5.6 the tasks were positioned to have a common corner, in order
to define to floor. However, after this usage, the
representation of the location should be in order to create a
 This of inactivity is part of the plan and it does not generate a problem
because the crew is a "fJ ....
'ViUU.L."Ai subcontractor.
" Adjustments in personpower, and thus in duration, from location to location.
This was not followed in the although it could be effective.
An increase in the of the installation of the boards or a decrease
in the 1st and 2nd coat) eould have shorten the total
duration of the !-Ir.'UP'tlP'" such ehamgc~s were not on
the chart due to a av~u13Lblllty of resources.

5.5 CONSTITUENT MATRIX CHART

C1el:lmtlOn, the vertical axis of a matrix-balaneed chart indicates location. All the
tasks on the same loeation are C11S'Dl.we:C1 on the same horizontal zone within the
COlTe~;pond:mg to the quantified ehart. Eaeh lOCamJn-:speClIlle

visual such as hatehing, color or text. A reversal of order between

constituency and location along the vertical axis ean produce a useful chart, after the
UCUUl1'''-'HJ;:'' of the matrix ehart. Such a reversal is aehieved by vertical translations of

the quantified bars so that each task is and it appears on the same
horizontal zone. these translations, the vertical axis indicates the
of eaeh task and the tasks at each location should be identified visual
codes. The of the bars and their along the time axis
remain the same after the transformation. 5.9 presents the process of the
transfonnation of the matrix-balanced chart 5.6 to ereate a constituent matrix
chart. The left part of the shows the bars in their new pO:~lnon,
while their positions are indicated by images. Vertical arrows eonnect
the ghost with the final position, to indicate the The part of
the is not transformed yet.
 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

M&E (WIRING)

PREPARATION

5.9. Translation the tasks along the vertical axis in order to develop the constituent matrix chart;
personpower.
 The transformed re1=)re:~enltatlOn nr,.nl1,rl",c the schedule of each repeating
which is useful for communication and However, it is a derivative chart
that does not have the power to a schedule, as the matrix-balanced chart. A
conversion of the quantified bars to bars, a visual of their
......·r'rlnr'''''' a Gantt chart. However, this Gantt chart does not contain
visually the information on why the """,'L"""'LULJ."!'. has been done in the way that it is

5.6 MONITORING DIFFERENT lOCATIONS

The of the actual execution of the tasks on a matrix-balanced chart

follows the same concept of the mate as discussed in Section 2.3 for
mC)D11tonmg with the bars and Section 4.4 for with templates.
However, additional contral is needed for the matrix-balanced both for
pla.nnmg and for monitoring.
The matrix-balanced chart is built on the that resources can move to
different locations to execute a task. However, the infrastructure for the
tasks may not be ready at all the available locations. an auxiliary chart that
monitors the progress of the various tasks should accompany the matrix-balanced
especially wh en to tasks with loose This chart, shown
5.10, visual information on the availability at the various locations to
host the execution of tasks.
In the auxiliary monitoring the horizontal axis indicates the location, while
the vertical axis lists the tasks to be executed at each location. The tasks are sorted
aC(;Ordlflg to even if are loosely defined. The first task to be
executed at each location is listed at the top, while the last task to be executed is at the
bottom of the list. The bold line in the chart indicates the boundary of eligibility.
Only the locations left of the bold line are for the execution of each task.
This is defined by the execution of the top task in the list and the
pn~cedenc(~s among the tasks. The gray coloring of the squares of the matrix
indicates that the task at the specific location has been executed. in the
example the structure work has been cornpj,ete:o up to the 10th floor. A
space between the vertical bold line and the gray colored square, indicates that the
task can be executed at those floors. As an the grid can he
constructed on the lst floor and the door and window frames can be installed in the
3rd and 4th floors. On the contrary, the fioor to fioor mechanical and engineering
work and the studs for the dry wall cannot be executed and should wait.
The chart of 5.10 depiets the condition on a date and should be updated
 lIF i 12F i RF

5.10. YYlnnitnrino chart.

 This is last that describes the Visual ,-,,,,.,vu •.uU'I; and Management System.
The components of the system that were presented in the '-'" . . . 2, 3, 4 and 5 are
IJ • ...,""

related together to assembie the new system for the and management of
an entire
In Section 6.1, the that connects the different qmmtlltlec1
charts of the system is defined. Particular is on the folding-up of
tasks of a different constituency that similar resources. Such a folding-up is
necessary for the hierarchical structure of the system at the higher levels. In
Section the hierarchical structure is presented in detail, with the
definitions of the the schedules, the matrix-
balanced schedules and the master schedule. An ex:ample th at drives the reader
.......,,"1", .. the of a a schedule and a
matrix-balanced schedule, all inter-related, is in the same section. Section
6.3 presents the mechanism for chamg~es in the SChec1tllmlg of the and how
these can be introduced at the different levels of the structure.
Section 6.4 describes the use of the system for the execution of a
the collection of data from the field and the of these data on the
various charts.
6.1 FOLDING-UP

A group of tasks on a bar chart can be to fOnTI a

folded-up task. The task is used to that group of tasks in another
qU3LnU1:1ea chart at a level. The folded-up task has the following nrr,np1rnp,,'
• The folded-up task is a bar.
o The time of the task is the time of the first (in tenTIS
of time) task among the tasks that they are aggregated; the time of the
aggregate task is the time of the last task among the tasks that
they are aggregated.
The work of the task is the summation of the work of all the tasks
that have been aggregated to fOnTI the folded-up task.
The folded-up task includes all the types of resources found in all the tasks that
have been to fOnTI the folded-up task.
• Each resource of the task is the summation of that type of resources
from all the tasks that have been aggregated to fOnTI the task.
The task includes all the types of costs of resources found in all the
tasks that have been to fOlm the folded-up task.
Each co st per resource of the task is the summation of the costs of
that type of resource from all the tasks that have been aggregated to form the
rOHleo-un task.
• The total cost of the rOHleo-un task is the summation of the total cost of all the
tasks that have been agÉ7e!~ate;d to fOnTI the folded-up task.
A group of tasks that represent different types of work can be ag~~e~~ate;d as well.
In that case, the work of the Hmlen-llD task is hp.t,p.r(JI(Jp.J'lP'(JllS - cOlnplose:d of works of
different constituency, which is not as meaningful as a homogeneous task.
However, the main purpose of such a is the resources
and the associated costs. As it is shown in the for the construction of a
typical fIoor are included in the same
The intensity is personpower, which is common to all the tasks
in the template. task in that with the intensity
of personpower. This folded-up task can be used as a bar to make
charts at a higher level. a common den ominator for all tasks is cost
and all tasks can be on the basis of cost.
Most the aggregate task will have a variabIe corresponding to the
summation of the intensities of the discrete tasks. However, the aggregate task is
more to be presented with a constant intensity, so the quantified bar of
the folded-up task is of the bar charts at the
level is one reason for such a recommendation. The second reason is to avoid details
at the higher levels that may be The choice to represent a task
as a constant task introduces a certain level of abstraction. Although every
effort should be made to estimate each as the
elimination of the details of the discrete tasks at a
acknowledges the volatile nature In any case, the information
on the tasks th at make the rOllOeO-lltJ task is an inherited property of the lUJ.UI:;U-lHJ
task and it is accessible to the user.

CLEANING & COLUMN

INSPECTlON CONCRETE

FOLDED-UP
TASK

TIME

6.1. Folding-up quantified bar chart,

 Example: The folded-up task of the tasks of the quantified bar chart 3.10
is shown in 6.1. This new task of constant can be used as a single task
in a bar chart at a higher or in a matrix-balanced chart.

6.2 DESCRIPTION OF THE HIERARCHICAL SYSTEM

qu:antltle:C1 bar chart, a template and a matrix-balance chart are fl1J/7I1flilP'fl charts.
Vuantltle~à charts can contain a number of tasks. However, it is lm"pra.cucal
to include many tasks in a single qwantltH~d chart. The system mtegl:aH~S
the schedule in a hierarchical structure, as shown in Fig. 6.2, in order to make the
pn~sentaLtlom at each level as as possible by the necessary
information. Folding-up allows the link of a series of charts to schedule
the same project. Same of the charts will be at a lower level specific
such as microtemplate schedules. Fewer charts will show an aggregate
picture of the project, such as schedules and matrix-balanced schedules.
Finally, a master schedule at the higher level of the hierarchy will include all the tasks
of the in a compact with less information on details.
Each chart serves a scope such as a job "vl1vU~Uv, a
scn,e01.l1e, a monthly schedule or a master schedule. on the cornplexlty of
the project, the number of the required microtemplates, templates and matrix-
balanced charts varies. that do not include tasks
should not include matrix-balanced charts. Finally, a single template schedule can
represent an entire if that is of a few tasks.
 MATRIX-BALANCED MASTER SCHEDULE

MATRIX-BALANCED
SCHEDULE FOR
STRUCTURE WORK

TEMPLATE TEMPLATE TEMPLATE

TEMPLATE SCHEDULING CHEDULING FOR SCHEDULING TEMPLATE
SCHEDULING FORTYPICAL MISCALLENEOUS FOR SCHEDULING
INDOOR WORK INDOOR WORK XTERNAL WORK

MICRO-TEMPLATE

6.2. The hierarchical structure of the :'!JCJ'1eû!UL1:ng and Management System; application construction.
 A B C DQ E
PLANNED DURATION (DAYS
~
LOCATION
>;;j<
~ b~
E-<~

12

32 180 1.80

8
16 36 0.36

18

28 72 0.72

12

4
COLUMN
FORM 675 84

SEITING FORM 0 4 0
OUT

50

TOTAL

FORM 10000 100 100

6.3. The the and reinforcing bars;

intensity personpower.
6.2.1 IHIIU"'I't'\'tol"llrU'\I,!:lIto Schedules

A schedule consists of a with tasks of the same type of

work. As aresult, the task of a is a task.
The microtemplate is at the lowest levels of the hierarchy and serves a dual purpose.
job.
IJ""""Vll'U., to a together with discrete tasks or other
folded-up tasks from other mi<~rot:emplates, will make a chart at a
level. Such achart could be another rnicrotemplate, a quantified bar a tenlplate
or a matrix-balanced chart.

LJ-""Cf,fH.I.JP"-· In chapter 3, it was shown in detail and for demonstration purposes

how to construct the of 4.1 with direct entries
HC\UJP'\JPT it is more accurate to accept that the 4 tasks shown in that are
folded-up tasks from ml(;r01temlplates.
6.3 shows the microtemplate for two of the four tasks: the positioning of the
reinforcement and the making of the formwork for the various components of the
skeleton of a floor. Both tasks are shown together because of their
interdependencies, thus a combined microtemplate. The tasks for each task
for the slab: the stairways, the beams, the walls, the and (setting
out) are shown 1>'\n,n11rt11'>1 The first two columns contain the names of the tasks.
Column A contains the quantity of work for each task. Column B contains the total
required Columns C and D show the available crew and the .,.,....
r ' r l l 1 f ' t " .. t n

that can be different for each task. The following column E contains the quantified
bars and finally the last two columns contain the co st for each task. Detailed
planning and in to these low level tasks are
necessary to prepare this the of the
mlCrC)telmp,late, an effort is made to level the resources. The last row contains the
folded-up tasks for both the of reinforcement and the of the
formwork. The folded-up tasks are shown in a dark line outline with variabie
intensities. the presented in Section 6.1 the tasks
are converted to constant ',.,t,pnc·-it" quantified bars. These tasks contain sufficient
information, the uncertainty of the whole process and become the target to
reach. deviations from these quantified bars are to occur during
execution. The folded-up quantified bars are then imported as two
discrete tasks in the template shown in Fig. 4.1.

6.2.2 Oll4l"lnl!~1'O Schedules

A schedule consists of a quantified bar chart or a template with tasks of

different type of work. The tasks shown on a are either single tasks or
IOlae(:l-UlD tasks from microtemplates and other templates. The aggregation of the

discrete tasks to a folded-up task focuses on specific resources and cost. Often, the
---"'--~-'J of the tasks in a shows the personpower, which is
the most critical resource for and control. If the intensity shows
personpower, then the of the task represents the total personpower
necessary to complete the which is an alternative measure of the quantity of
work for a task.
There can be several levels of in a branch of the hierarchical
structure of the system. The folded-up tasks from the level
compose the bars for the matrix-balanced chart for projects with repeating
tasks. If the project does not include the tasks of the
level make the master schedule template (Fig. 6.4).
building construction project with reoeatmg such as shown in
there are six level schedules:
• Template schedule for temporary work.
'1·=.~~lln~~ schedule for the structural skeleton.

schedule for the skin of the building.

schedule for
vHil.HULv inside work.
Template schedule for extern al work.
• Template schedule for miscellaneous inside work.
 TEMPLATE MASTER SCHEDULE

TE"MPLATE TEMPLATE TEMPLATE

SCHEDULE FOR SCHEDULE FOR SCHEDULE FOR
STRUCTURE WORK FINISHING WORK EXTERNAL WORK

TEMPLATE TEMPLATE TEMPLATE

SCHEDULING CHEDULING FOR SCHEDULING
FOR TYPICAL MISCALLENEOUS FOR
INDOOR WORK INDOOR WORK XTERNAL WORK

MICRO-TEMPLATE MICRO-TEMPLATE

MICRO-TEMPLATE

6.4. The hierarchical structure the Visual 0c,rzeclUl,~nx and Mllnllf?(;~mt.mt a without relJea:tzn.Q
 The temp late scheduling for the structural skeleton of a floor has been
shown in Fig. 4.1 and the of making it from microtemplates was presented
in Section 6.2.1. The template scheduling for the inside work for a
rer)re~~entatlve floor has been in detail in Section 3.4 and it is shown in
3.16 to in the farm of quantified bar charts.

6.2.3 Matrix=Balanced Schedules

projects with repeating tasks need matrix-balanced sctJleUUles, which are

cOlnpose~d by charts from the level For
a typical construction project, such as shown in there are four
matrix-balanced schedules:
.. Matdx-balanced schedule for the temporary work.
Matrix-balanced schedule for the structural skeleton .
.. Matrix-balanced schedule for the finishing work.
" Matrix-balanced schedule for the external work.

The process of making the matrix-balanced schedule for the structural

skeleton of a reinforced concrete is This matrix-
balanced schedule is based on the temp late schedule for the construction of the
typical floor, shown in 4.1.
For the purpose of demonstrating the process, the four tasks for DUlllUlng
each floor will be considered:
.. the making of the t't-.r"tYIyurn-tr
.. the po:SltlOlllmg of the reinforcing
" the for the mechanical and electrical installations, and
the of concrete.
The data shown in Table 6.1 compare the various floors of the building with the
typical floor. The top rows include the ritles and the units of each column. Columns
A and B include the identification of each floor and its area. Column
C shows the ratio of the area of each floor over the typical floor. The 7th floor, with
ft 2 has been chosen as the typical floor and the corresponding row is shown in
bold characters.
Columns D, E, F, G and H refer to the task of placing concrete:
.. Column D shows the quantity of work for each fIoor .
.. Column E shows the ratio of column D over column Band represents an
average thickness of concrete per fIoor area!
.. Column F shows the estimated for each floor. This is
nrr,,,uipr! by the project it is subjective and it will be monitored during
the execution of the stated in the last two rows).
.. Column G shows the required manpower, for the work shown in column D
and the of column F.
.. Column H shows the ratio of the rpn1l1r,~r! manpower for each floor over the
typical floor.

Table 6.1. Datafor the various floors of the building, task concrete.

FLOORDATA CONCRETE WORK

A B C D E F G H
FLOOR AREA RATIO CONCRE CIA PRODU- PERSON RATIO
-TE CTION POWER
FT2 AfTYP FT3 FT FT3/MD MEN MPfTYP
ROOF 2,000 0.4 2,000 1 330 6 0.30
12F 5,000 1 8,000 1.6 400 20 1.00
lIF 5,000 1 8,000 1.6 400 20 1.00
lOF 5,000 1 8,000 1.6 400 20 1.00
9F 5,000 1 8,000 1.6 400 20 1.00
8F 5,000 1 8,000 1.6 400 20 1.00
7F 5,000 1 8,000 1.6 400 20 1.00
6F 5,000 1 8,000 1.6 400 20 1.00
SF 5,000 1 8,000 1.6 400 20 1.00
4F 5,000 1 8,000 1.6 400 20 1.00
3F 5,000 1 8,000 1.6 400 20 1.00
2F 10,000 2 18,000 1.8 467 39 1.93
1F 10,000 2 18,000 1.8 467 39 1.93
B1F 10,000 2 20,000 2 467 43 2.14
B2F 10,000 2 20,000 2 467 43 2.14
FOUND. 10,000 2 26,000 2.6 667 39 1.95

TOTAL 102,000 20.4 184,000 1.80 451 408 20.39

ASSUME ASSUME
MONITOR MONITOR
 The row TOT AL shows the summation or the average value of the data in the
rows above. Sa, reading from column B to column H:
.. the total area of the is 102,000 ft2,
the building is 20.4 times than the
e 3
it will need 184,000 ft of concrete,
Cl with an average thickness of 1. 8 ft of concrete per square fa ot of area,
e the productivity is estimated to be 451 ft 3 per uerSOfl-mlV
.. 408 of work are required,
• which represents 20.4 times the required work for construction of the typical
fIoor.

the various floors of the building, tasks formwork

FORMWORK REINFORCING BARS

A I J K L M N 0 p Q R
FLR FORM F/C PROD MAN RATIO RE-BAR R/C PROD. MAN RATIO
POW- POW-
ER ER
FT2 FT2 MP LB LB/FT LB/MD
/MD /TYP 3
RF 3,000 1.50 90 33 0.33 10,000 5.0 1,000 10 0.21
12F 10,000 1.25 100 100 1.00 60,000 7.5 1,250 48 1.00
UF 10,000 1.25 100 100 1.00 60,000 7.5 1,250 48 1.00
lOF 10,000 1.25 100 100 1.00 60,000 7.5 1,250 48 1.00
9F 10,000 1.25 100 100 1.00 60,000 7.5 1,250 48 1.00
8F 10,000 1.25 100 100 1.00 60,000 7.5 48 1.00
71<' 10,000 1.25 100 100 1.00 60,000 7.5 48 1.00
6F 10,000 1.25 100 100 1.00 60,000 7.5 48 1.00
5F 10,000 1.25 100 100 1.00 60,000 7.5 48 1.00
4F 10,000 1.25 100 100 1.00 60,000 7.5 48 1.00
3F 10,000 1.25 100 100 1.00 60,000 7.5 1,250 48 1.00
2F 18,000 1.00 80 225 2.25 144,000 8.0 1,000 144 3.00
lF 18,000 1.00 80 225 2.25 144,000 8.0 1,000 144 3.00
BIF 15,000 0.75 100 150 1.50 160,000 8.0 1,100 145 3.03
B2F 16,000 0.80 100 160 1.60 160,000 8.0 1,100 145 3.03
FND 12,000 0.46 90 133 1.33 208,000 8.0 1,400 149 3.10

TIL 182,000 0.99 94.5 1,927 19.27 1,426,000 7.8 1,171 1,217 25.36

ASSU- ASSU- ASSU- ASSU-

ME ME ME ME
MONI- MONI- MONI- MONI-
TOR TOR TOR TOR
 in Table columns I, J, K, Land M refer to the making of the
formwork; columns N, 0, P, Q and R refer to the positioning of the reinforcing
and columns S and T in Table 6.3 refer to the mechanical and electrical
preparations. The quantity of work of the mechanical and electrical is
omitted intentionally, since it is not Since the of the work
cannot be established, a cannot be established either. So, the
estimates the manpower, shown in column S and derives
the ratio over the typical floor in column T.

Table 6.3. Data for the various floors of the building, task M&E
installations and calculation oftotal durationfor allfloors.

M&E TOTAL DURATION ADOPIED DECIDED ROUNDED

A S T U V W X Y Z AA AB
MAN MAN RATIO BY RATIO DAYS FOR
POWE POWE RATIO PER
R R
MAN MAN AREA FORM TOTAL TOTAL FLOOR SCHE-
DAYS DAYS DULE
RF 3 0.4 53 0.30 4 3 3 0.30 2.83 3
12F 8 1 176 1.00 10 10 10 1.00 9.47 10
llF 8 1 176 1.00 10 10 10 1.00 9.47 10
lOF 8 1 176 1.00 10 10 10 1.00 9.47 10
9F 8 1 176 1.00 10 10 10 1.00 9.47 10
8F 8 1 176 1.00 10 10 10 1.00 9.47 10
7F 8 1 176 1.00 10 10 10 1.00 9.47 10
6F 8 1 176 1.00 10 10 10 1.00 9.47 10
SF 8 1 176 1.00 10 10 10 1.00 9.47 10
4F 8 1 176 1.00 10 10 10 1.00 9.47 10
3F 8 1 176 1.00 10 10 10 1.00 9.47 10
2F 16 2 424 2.41 20 23 24 2.41 22.80 23
1F 16 2 424 2.41 20 23 24 2.41 22.80 23
B1F 16 2 354 2.01 20 15 20 2.01 19.07 19
B2F 16 2 364 2.07 20 16 21 2.07 19.61 20
PND 16 2 337 1.91 20 13 19 1.91 18.14 18
TIL 163 20 3,715 21.11 204 193 211 21.11 200.0 206
iASSUME SELECT SELECT ADJUST
SELECT DECIDE FINAL
[MONITOR

Columns U, V, W, Y, Z, AA and AB present aggregate data:

• Column U shows the total person-days required for all four tasks
 .. Column V shows an average ratio of rprl111 ,"",rl De]'SOlllS-,Gmrs of each floor over
the of the floor
" In column W the project decides that the overall work on the typical
floor should be 10 days. This decision is based on the more detailed study of
the for the construction of the typical floor (Fig. 4.1).
Based on the ratios of the floor area C), the rest of the ceUs of column
W are filled. The tot al duration of the is calculated at the bottom of
column W to be 204 working
.. In column X, a similar op era.t1C1n as in column W is
1
based on the
making of formwork of column
.. In column Y, the of column W is based on the average
ratios of column V.
Column Z shows the adopted ratios of each floor over the typical which
are the same as the calculated ratios of column V.
" Column AA shows the duration for the construction of each floor, based on the
duration of 200
UU:lIU""',""U VVVJU'UAl<:'

.. Column AB shows the final time estimate for the construction of each
which are the values of column AA, rounded. The total duration of the
construction of the skeleton of the building is scheduled to be 206 days.
The above aggregate data for each floor are shown in 6.5 in the form of a
matrix-balanced with the intensity of the bars rel>re:senltmg
personpower and the vertical axis the floors of the building. The quantified
bars in 6.5 are the tasks for each floor of the building. 6.6 shows
the matrix-balanced chart of the discrete tasks for the construction of
every floor. After the initial setting, each of those quantified bars can be modified
accordingly to reflect specific conditions.
The process of calculating the duration of the construction was based on the
assumption that, on average, 17 workers will work on each floor. In an alternative
planmng, the construction could be scheduled to last the size of
the crew. Fig. 6.7 indicates such a schedule with a nrr\"t"\n,rt"-'"<:l time extension tor
the construction of all the floors.
A to construct the skeleton in less than 200 days should be treated in a
different way. According to the information in the tennplate shown in lt IS
difficult to compress the schedule of floors 3 to or the roof. However,
floors 1 and 2 as weU as the two basements are better candidates for reomCJmg
duration because of the low slenderness ratio of the relJre:seI1ltmlg qUaIlUtlea
if the duration of these tasks is the duration of the
be as wen 6.7).

6.5. The matrix-balanced schedule tor the structural skeleton

intensity personpower.

6.2.4 Master Schedule

The master schedule cOIltal.ns, in the form of folded-up all the tasks that
compose a project. It shows the master planning for purposes of communication at
the higher level and it is used for the The master schedule does
not contain the details for the discrete as these details can be seen in the
schedules at the lower levels of the hipr!'lrl'h"
For projeets with tasks, the master sehedule is a matrix-balanced eh art
that indicates the locations of the For without repeating the
master schedule is a temp late.
 LEGEND

I CONCRETE
ES M&E
RE-BARS

FORMWORK

FOLDED-UP

6.7. The matrix-balanced schedule for the structural skeleton indicating the discrete tasks that make
tasks; intensity personpower.
 2F

1F

BlI

6.7. Time expansion and contraction the matrix-balanced

schedule for the structural skeleton, intensity personpower
6.2.5 Link with Other sv~stems

Further integration is by links of the resources to the labor

management, the cost and the systems. In a
systenaatLc collection of site data on resources and productivity, through cost centers,
can serve for a better in the future. the system
can be employed to schedule and control several projects simultaneously after
establishing the hierarchical structure for the schedules of those pf()le(:;ts.

6.3 11""\1'......l1li... "'" IN THE SCHEDUlES

The folded-up task inherits all the .".,..'''..,.<>,rh,,,<, of the discrete tasks that have been
aglrregated. This includes preeedenees, intensities and COllstllaults.
Modifieations on any of these properties are even after the link of several
charts with tasks. These modifications ean be applied on the
discrete tasks that have been or on the and propagate both
nr\\'l1<'1r/1" and downwards in the hierarehieal system.

6.3.1

The discrete tasks are modified on the quantified bar chart that are mSPlaLVÖa.
These modifieations are translated to the task the same rules and
constraints that the folded-up task. The modified folded-up task is
linked to change automatieally the folded-up task on the level
ehart. This ean result to further in the timing or the intensity of the
other tasks on the latter ehart. These eni:llng(~S
that had been already established. For cmnpleX Cle(:;lSllons, it is left to the user to
intervene and decide how to handle the at the higher level.
 ,""U,"'UFo',Mthat do not affect the time of the first terms of task
time of the last (in terms of time) task will have no effect on the
starting or ending time of the task. any modifications that
do not the summation of the quantities of the discrete tasks will have no
effect on the of the folded-up task. if the task is displayed
with a constant any modifications that do not the summation of the
quantities of the discrete tasks will not even affect the constant of the
rr""'Prl_lln task.

6.3.2 Downward

The direct modifications of a IOl.aelll-UlD task in a level qua.nW:1ea eh art will

cause modifications to the discrete tasks in the lower level charts that
compose that task. Unlike the changes upward in the hierarchy,
downward changes cannot be because a in the task can be
l,.,tp.".,,..ptp"'; in an infinite number of combinations of changes among the discrete

tasks. So, the user should intervene to those and in

attempt to avoid extensive a standru'd procedure could carry the VHU.HF.'_0

at the lower unless the user intervenes. The rules constitute this
standard for the modifications from a folded-up task to the
discrete tasks at the lower levels:
.. If the task is shifted along the time then the absolute times of the
discrete tasks will change but not their relative times.
" If the folded-up task is shifted along the vertical then the discrete tasks will
not be affected.
" If the duration of the folded-up task is forced to change, then the discrete tasks
will be forced to change their duration An will apply
if specific constraints on minimum and maximum durations (or, equivalently,
mten:SltIeS) had been introduced for some of the affected tasks. In such a case
these tasks will be extended or until they reach their allowable
limits and the other tasks on the chart will share the excessive time
proportionally. Any in the duration will be accompanied by changes in
 the COITe~;pond:ing intensities. Often the 1nt<>nc'-it" has to be moclified in steps, to
maintain a meaningful reading for resources such as personpower.
EI If the task is forced to its then the will be
handled as des cribed since a change in intensity to a change
in duration.

6.4 MONITORING AND UPDATING

The hierarchical structure of the system a framework for

monitoring the execution of the project (Fig. 6.8). The quantified bars a best
estimate of how a task or a group of tasks will be executed. At the same
each quantified bar in every quantified chart is paired with a mate qUlllltltIe:u
to display the task as it was executed. for
every estimation there is a of information on how the task
was actually executed. The same links that connect the bars for
sctleUU1l'ng, connect their mates of the actual execution. Thus, the folding-up links
between the various quantified charts in the hierarehieal system need not be re}:leated
for the mate quantified bars.
Normally, the aetual execution data are entered for discrete tasks and the
information propagates to the quantified charts at the higher levels. Folded-up tasks
ean also be with actual exeeution without referencing the discrete tasks
that make the folded-up task. these data will propagate the
hierarchical system. So, the eh arts ean receive information
level on the aetual depending on the needs of the user.
M()llltOfJlllg the aetual information most will result to an updating of the
VUIU.l11HI
Ó of the sehedule, as described in Section 2.4. The updating is treated as
part of Up to the date of the mate quantified bars show the
aetual information from the exeeution of the After the date of "",,-,,-,,i',-,""'r\lT
the mate bars show the sehedule. As the work progresses, mate
quantified bars are to eonverge, since the sehedule should he closer
and closer to the actual execution. Factors can be established to express
qUanl:itatively the eonvergenee at the various sehedules. the ... IJ',. ......",.
sehedules ean the original sehedules at any time for the eonvenienee of
further mC)ll1tonng,
In addition to the monitoring based on the an auxiliary monitoring
ehart the eharts of the hierarehical system, as was diseussed in Seetion
5.6. That ehart, shown in Fig, 5.10, provides visual information on the exeeution of
the tasks at the various loeations and serves to control further the matrix-balanced
charts.

6.8. The scfzedull.nJl, monitoring and uVlwtinJlprocess.

 7

The Visual ~CJneC1Ullmg and lVumagelnell1 System was presenlted in '-'Hul.......... " 2, 3,
4, 5 and 6 without references or to other systems. In
stale-ot-·nfllctlce rer)re~;entatlon techniques for project and management
are reviewed in order to proceed to COlmpanSOllS in the next chapter.
In Section the concept of a breakdown to discrete tasks is presented,
which is common to all the rer)re~;entatlon methods for In
Section the Milestone and most used form of
scheduling, is described. The Gantt chart is 1"W'P(,Pr1,tprl in Section 7.3, acknowledged
to be the most understood reT>re:senltatlOn ".U.J,HE> but limited
ClV."V ....

because of its simplicity . The network diagrams, their alternative and

the concept of the cri tic al path are in Section 7.4. A brief introduction to
PER T is also provided in the same to demonstrate a need for .LH.,,'-.lLlJlH

the data and the of PERT to introduce a

re1=)re~;entatLon technique. The line of balance method is in Section as
the method to schedule tasks at different locations. Finally, in Section
the state-of-art computer graphics are briefly evaluated, to observe that no
advancements have occurred in the of project the
proliferation of personal computers.
7.1 BREAKDOWN OF PROJECTS

The vely first step for preparing a schedule for a is to identify

the set of the discrete tasks th at compose the project. These tasks must fulfill the
following criteria:
.. The tasks are identifiabie, each having a scope.
• The tasks are at an equallevel.
The required resources for each task are identifiabie .
.. The tasks constitute the whole
.. The time duration of each task can be defined .
.. The direct pre:ceclences among the tasks can be defined.
• The time and time of each task can be established.
.. Each task can be subdivided further to subtasks. The subtasks of each task
should follow the same criteria as were tasks of a larger project.
The process of identifying the tasks that cornpI1se a project is the task breakdown
of the project. After the task breakdown is one or more of the following
replresentatHJnS are for the scheduling of projects:
.. Milestone chart.
.. Gantt chart or bar chart.
.. Networks with nodes and corme,ctulg arrows with the tasks represented by the
nodes.
Networks with nodes and corme,ctulg arrows with the tasks represented the
arrows.
.. The line of balance "".lU, for repeatmg tasks at several identifiable and
Hiv

me:ammgtullocations of the

7.2 MILESTONE CHART

The simplest scheduling of a project is the milestone chart. The milestone chart
presents a list of the tasks, who is responsible for the task and the expected finishing
 Chart 111

times (TabIe 7.1). The tmlshmg times of the tasks are determined by the project
and the of the tasks are but not indicated.
its the milestone chart is used. However, the aPl>l1cabllIty
milestone chart is limited to a handful of tasks. In addition to the text a
milestone chart is often presented on a time sc ale as well (Fig. 7.1).

Table 7.1. The milestone chart.

PROJECT TASK RESPONSIBLE TARGET

FORMWORK CARPENTERS FEB/12/92

2 RE-BARS COLUMNS BAR BENDERS FEB/8/92

3 CLEANING & INSPECTION GENER AL CONTR. FEB/8/92

4 CONCRETE COLUMNS CONCRETERS FEB/9/92

5 RE-BARS BEAMS/SLAB BAR BENDERS FEB/16/92

6 CLEANING & INSPECTION GENER AL CONTR. FEB/16/92

7 M & E INST ALLATIONS ELECTRICAL CO. FEB/16/92

8 CONCRETE BEAMS/SLAB CONCRETERS FEB/17/92

As a management tooI, the milestone chart is weak. It the project

executer with the estimated times. the execution of each task there
is only qualitative information on the progress of each task. It is only at the end of
each task that the accuracy of the is tested: the task is either cornpJ.ete:Q as
t J H... HU'Ufo.

or not.
 FORMWORK T
COLUMN RE-BARS
T
CLEANING & INSPECTlON
T
COLUMN CONCRETE T

BEAMS;SLAB lill-BARS T

M&E INSTALLATIONS T

CLEANING & INSPECTlON T

BEAMS;SLAB CONCRETE
T

7.1. The time scaled milestone chart.

7.3 GANTT CHART

In 1919, Gantt the scheduling chart that bears his name. The Gantt
chart is an one-dimensional chart with the horizontal axis time. The
tasks are on the chart as horizontal bars of constant width. The
starting time of each task is defined as the left side of the corresponding bar while the
time of each task is defined as the right side of the corresponding bar. The
relative positions of the bars on the same chart display the time mter(lepen~:1erlCl(~S of
the tasks (Fig.
 MOBILIZATION !lW/!IFII!WtW
FOUNDATION
SUPERSTRUCTURE

FINISHING
MECHANICAL & ELECTRICAL

TIME

7.2. The Gantt chart or bar chart.

The drawbacks of the Gantt chart result from its simplicity. The
interdependencies of the tasks are not The on
how the bars are along the time axis are not displayed either. In addition,
tasks that require less effort are shown the same notation as the tasks that
more effort. Thus, there is a to include only tasks with a similar effort on a
Gantt chart, omitting other tasks. Such apractice often is mrsle:ading.
Despite its drawbacks, the Gantt chart is used in pra.ctl<;e more than any other
system. It is a remarkable communications tooI and
U,",\.HU.LHb far the easiest
chart to A Gantt chart accompanies the
even if more detailed representation tec:hnlqtleS are
employed.

MOBILIZATION

FOUNDATION
DELIVERY OF RE-STEEL

SUPERSTRUCTURE

INSPECTION
-
FINISHING

MECHANICAL & ELECTRICAL 'n

SPRINKLER TEST

TIME

7.3. A combination Gantt chart with milestones.

 Often, a milestone chart is combined with a Gantt chart to produce a Gantt chart
with milestones. The milestones in such a case are the deadlines of the
project and are not related to each task of the

7.4 NETWORK DIAGRAMS

A network pre:serltatlon of a uses a node and arrow notation It

can be seen as a direct on how a computer receives the input for the
tasks and their Each task of the project should be identified
for a network reT>resernal:10Jl, and its eX1Jected duration and pn~cedelnC(~S must be
explicitly described.

7.4. The node and arrow notation.

7.4.1 Task Precedences on a Network

The tasks in a network can be either independent or directly The direct

dependency is by the constraint that a task can start only after another
01J,-,vU.lv task has finished. Thus, the one task constitutes a precedenee on the othef
task. Precedences relate to two actual constraints. when the completion of a
task the framework for the execution of the other task. when the
resources dedicated to one task must be released in order to be employed for the
execution of the other task. Often a task could be started while the other task is still
This can be represented on a network by the task in
two subtasks and estaOllsn:mg the necessary HAU1P"\Tpr such a splitting
of a task may be if the newly geIlerated subtasks are not at the same
level as the other tasks on the network.
Dummy tasks are included in a network diagram, for the convenience of the
representation. Dummy tasks are artificial and do not to an actual
task. take no time but are needed to define and to mark on
the events of interests such as milestones.
There are two variations of the network representations of projects. In the first
vaJLlal:1011, the nodes represent the tasks and the arrows the nodes
represent the direct relationships of these tasks. In the second variation the arrows
represent the tasks and the nodes that define the nodes represent the direct
relationships of the tasks. Each has its own merits.

7.5. Nodes and arrows notation, tasks on the nodes network

prece(),(em~e
diagram).
1.4.2 Tasks on the Nodes Networks

When the nodes represent the tasks of the a arrow between

two nodes defines a direct relation between these two tasks
Thus, these are often referred as two nodes
that are not connected by arrows imply that the corresponding two tasks are not
directly related by a relation. may be indirectly related
through other tasks.
On a such a np'tulI"\T'V time is indicated with text. Usually the starting time, the
finishing time and the time duration are shown next to each node. Similarly,
resources or cost are indicated with text next to the nodes.
Tasks on nodes networks are easier to sketch by at the of
the planning. So, are used primarily for smaller projects.

BEAMS/SLAB
RE-BAR

FORMWORK

7.6. Nodes and arrows nmfatlon, tasks on the arrows network.

7.4.3 Tasks on the Arrows Networks

In this alternative reT>re:senltation of a netwolrk. the tasks are pn~se:nted the

arrows. Thus, the nodes between arrows indicate tasks
As in the other network only direct delperldemcles are displayed,
although tasks may be indirectly related through other tasks. In its the
tasks on the arrows network does not time. the
network can be modified to time and become a time scaled network. The
nodes in a time scaled network are properly on the network ...."... El.L .....
'->

along a horizontal axis indicating time (Fig. 7.7). Thus, the horizontal projection of
the arrows indicates the time duration of the co:rresu4::>n<lm g task. For easiness of
reading, arrows are drawn to have a horizontal component to indicate time and a
vertical component to the and make it readabie. The use of arrows
reT)re:serltlrlg dummy tasks to introduce the float between connecting nodes is
necessary in such a case.

CLEANING &
INSPECfION

BEAMSjSLAB
CONCRETE

TIME

Fig. 7.7. Nodes and arrows notation, tasks on the arrows network
with time dimension scaled
 The of time scaled networks is laborious to be executed by hand
and it the calculation of the starting time and time for each
which is usually automated. Thus, such diagrams are employed for COlmplllcate~a
nrr.,.>('t", and they are almost always gellerated by a computer.

7.4.4 The Critical Path Method

The critical method is associated with the network

However, the CPM is a scheduling which is independent of
The data for the CPM are the tasks that the
project, their estimated time duration and the relations among the tasks.
The for of tasks and in the constraint that a
cOInpJlete~d before another task can start.

The critical method identifies the critical or the sequence of the tasks
that must be executed sequentially with no float between any two of them in order to
achieve the minimum total duration of the project. The summation of the durations
of the tasks the critical defines the minimum duration of the project.
Furthermore, it determines the and time for each under the
assumption of a zero float for all the tasks on the critical path. the starting and
the times of the tasks on the critical path are calculated. The tasks
th at are not on the critical path can have a float: can start later and finish later
attlectmg the total duration of the The size of the float on
pre~celaerlce relations. An early time and the corresponding earlyending
spe:Cltled for those which are not on the critical The late
time is calculated as the addition of the starting time and the float. A
cOlrre~mc~ndmg late to the late time plus the duration of
the task.
Most a date to the project is also a total
allowable duration of the project. If the time along the critical path is less than the
total allowed duration of the a float may be added to all the tasks of the
project. If the time along the critical path is more than the total allowed duration of
the float exists. In such a case, the planner should either
reduce the time duration of the tasks along the critical path or request an extension to
finish the project.
In network representations, the tasks on the cri tic al path are marked to U.1.:l'UH5U.''''''''

fiom the other tasks of the in order to attract the attention.

The deterministic nature of the critical path method for a process that is highly
variabIe and uncertain is a drawback. The to the exact
duration of each task and the exact precedences among the tasks is
at the beginning of a Furthermore, changes in the datamay
result to a different critical for a project.

7.8. Network with text information.

The Performance Evaluation and Review was invented to face

these issues l . APERT network describes the duration of each task with three
values. The mean execution time of each task is accompanied by a minimum
estimated execution time and a maximum estimated execution time. The critical
is calculated using a similar algorithm to the critical path method but all the calculated

The PERT and the CPM were developed in parallel by two groups of scientists.
times include mean, minimum and maximum values. As far as the network
re1=)re~;entat:lon
is the only difference between a CPM network and a
PERT network is that the PERT network includes the additional numerical values
for each task mean, minimum and maximum time estimates.
The CPM or PERT methods ean be applied by hand only for a few tasks.
Almost are executed by computers which can calculate the critical
for a quite large number of tasks. Since the information is available in the
computer, the network are also plotted the calculation of the
critical path, with the simultaneous display of text information
7.8).

STARTING FINISHING
TIME TIME

DURATION OF THE REPEATING TASK

7.9. The line of balance chart.

7.4.5 The Gantt Chart as rnrnn,IOl"rliOf'\t!:lllrU HAt'\lrAC::::eli>n't::ltllnn

Gantt charts always aceompany the network ........ /S ... as a cOlnpleU1erltaI'y

UH,'"

If the network is by a computer, then the

cOITe~;pondimg Gantt ehart is also plotted by the computer, based on the network
information. While the network diagrams contain information desirabie to the
experts, a Gantt chart is for a of the project and as
a communications tooI. The decision to include multiple reJ)reSerltaltlOlrlS for the
same project in practice is an indicator that none of those is the most desirabie or

7.5 UNE OF BALANCE CHART

The line of balance chart is employed to represent rel)eatmg tasks in different

physicallocations of a site. The chart is two-dimensionaL The horizontal
axis indicates time and the vertical axis indicates the location. A line
represents the planning of a task that is in the various locations with a
constant rate. The slope of the line represents that rate
7.9).
The line of balance chart changes in the production rate by V~'.UVjlH~ the
line segment by a series of line segments. Curved lines are
difficult to employ, and are rarely used in practice. The line of balance
level rather for or

Different tasks are represented with different line segments on the line of
balance chart. Continuous (serial) or tasks can be by
segments of straight lines that do not cross. In tasks 4 and 5 are
continuous, while tasks 2, 3 and 4 are overlapping. Tasks 4 and 6 have been
scheduled with a float, indicated in Fig. 7.10. On the other tasks
cannot be rpr\rf',;:pntprl unless are aggregated into a task.
1..<nT·th".... ,...,,.......'" independent tasks may result to "rr"""i,noT as tasks 1 and 2 in Fig.
7 .10. The line of balance method cannot display the re(IU11~ed quantity of work or the
critical path of the schedule. the use of lines often leads to sinlpl:itie:d
representations that cannot capture actual non-trivial situations in the sclledluling of a
 y TASK2 TASK3 TASK4 TASK5

TASK6

--
BUFFER
3&4 4&6

7.10. Jiff,orpirlt repeating tasks ..or.ro'~O>1tprf on a line of balance

chart.

A that two line segments are CrC)SSllllg each other indicates that the two tasks
are executed on the same location at the same time. a CrC)SSlcllg
indicates that the tasks are scheduled to be executed in a reverse order for the
locations that correspond to the loeations above the point than are
seheduled to be exeeuted below that point. In it is desirabie to have one task
exeeuted at a loeation at any time and reversals of order in the exeeution of the
tasks should be avoided. This is displayed by a series of line segments that do not
cross. among the line segments ean be avoided in
several ways. the of the line segments, which
more resources for the execution of the tasks. Seeond, by the line
segments along the time which eauses a longer exeeution time for the entire
discontinuing the execution of a certain task by "~j.jLLjlHM
line segment into two or more line segments, whieh causes a
exeeution and, most probably, a diseolltirmi1ty in the use of resources 7.11).
 Line of Balance

TASK3 TASK2
y 2NDPART

~u
3

TIME
DISCONTINUlTY
OFTASK2

7.11. Alternative scheduling for repeating tasks with the line of

7.6 GRAPHICS IN PROJECT SCHEDUUNG SOFTWARE

Initially, the contribution of computers in project was the

execution of the critical path The CPM calculated the critical
path of the as weIl as the starting and time for each of the tasks. Both
the and the output were in the form of text.
At a second priority, the network magrams were using anodes and arrows
notation. Gantt charts at that stage of were less errlpb.asl.ze,:1.
projects, mostly construction and shipbuilding for the government, were .,.p>rl1111~""rt
be and were to the CPM or PERT algonl:hmls.
During the transition from the mainframes to the computers, these
algorithms were downloaded and they were available to be used a much wider
spectrum of users. Further development was necessary and occurred in three
directions. First, the CalJaclty of the software was increased to handle more tasks and
more data per were employed; and third, there was an effort to
make the use of the scheduling software easier.
'"'V'''''U.'I"> on the employment of it is observed that and at the
personal computer level, were used for output only. Later, graphics were
errmj()ve:d to enter data for the various tasks of the project as well. For both
and output, however, graphics have been to enhance the
Gantt or resource histograms. Their contribution has been
limited in with vivid colors, nice-looking
symbolsand notations, and combined graphics with text.
 8

The objective of a rqlre:sen.tatlOn system of projects is dual. First, it should

represent the projects in a way that it supports the planner to make a best
schedule, befare actually the project starts. This schedule should be as close to
reality as possible, built on reasonable and with good judgment. This
reTlre1;entatLon should be also easy to understand by the involved in the
project, some of them being non-specialists in Section 8.1
compares the Visual and System with the state-C)t-1Jra,ctI(;e
replresentatl<)ns for the of projects.
Second, a system should the actual information from the
site execution. This information should be rerlre5,ented in such a way
that allows the project executer to make visual between the scheduled
and actual data and control the project. Corrections for the non-executed part of the
project, based on the actual data, should be invited by the of the
reT)re~~entatlon system. Finally, this reTlre1;entatlOn should be a communications
device, easy to understand by the parties involved in the execution of the
The visual display of the actual status of the work as to the schedule and
the consequences of delays are fundamental issues for the reJ)re:~entatlOn of projects.
Section 8.2 compares the Visual Scheduling and Management with the state-
of-practice reT,res;en1tatl,ons for the management of projects, during their execution.
8.1 COMPARISON FOR SCHEDUUNG

The focuses on the preparation of the initial scn"eOlJle, aSEmnlmg that

the project has not and it addresses the issues:
" visual
visual
" visual sCDledlJllrlg
• hierarehieal structure,
" visual identification of the critical path,
studies
.l\JIJLCHLHLlL.Y scheduling.

8.1.1 Visual of Work

None of the methods that are eITlDl(we:(1 in praetice provides a

visual of the quantity of work of each task. this inforrnation is
almost available to the as a element in the "\Jil\JUCUU""F;

process, and it is often included as text information on the network maLgnlms.

The Visual and Management represents the tasks as
quantified bars. In one of the alternative the area of each bar indicates the
work of the task while the intensity of the bar indicates the pnJ(111etJlon
per time unit. The charts show the of work and time relations
of all the tasks The absolute magnitudes of the work of the tasks are drawn
to scale and their relative are visually observed and the
user. The of the of work on the same quantified bar ehart
introduees a totally new dimension to the visualization of the with
a Gantt ehart or a network Fig. 8.1 provides a juxtaposition of the
nn·,..,j-·.h",.rI bar chart to a Gantt ehart and a network The eOInp:arü,on
demonstrates the visual riehness of the new system.
the proposed system displays small tasks with '1u"",,,-,.,--,",,,-, bars of a
pré~sellt1rLg a sm all but long task is shown in Fig.
as the task technical & user documentation in the for software
Fig.8.1. quantified bar chart ta a Gantt chart and
a netwark diagram.
 Such if take long, are not shown in most
,","'LLV'-"UUcHF, reJ)re1~entatlon methods. In a Gantt chart a bar with the same
c ""O","cc as the other bars is misleading. In a network diagram such a task would he
H1

either a different (and branch or it would be broken down to many

tasks interwoven in the network and would make the unnecessarily more
ULUkJ",L"UH

8.1.2 Visual UI;:!IUICIV of Resources

The the tasks and their duration. The

duration of each task is either estimated or it is calculated based on the
quantity of work of the the resources and the n ..rvln,f"t-nr1hr
ot-pr'lctlce rel)reserttat10I1S do not show the resources
aS~;Un1PIlorls on the available resources for the duration of each task are
visually hidden.
The VSMS explicitly the resources together with the time duration as
part of the representation of each task. If a resource per unit time is chosen as the
lnt,,,,n~'1hT then the area of each bar represents the total amount of
the resource dedicated for that task. The charts show the of
resources and time relations of the tasks simultaneously. The absolute macgnltw1es
of the resources are drawn to scale and their relative are visually
observed and the user. Similarly to the of
work, the of the resources on the same quantified bar chart introduces a
new dimension to the visualization of the compared with a Gantt chart
or a network diagram.
 ee GANTfCHART

BRICKLAY fNG

I I
1 2 ~ 5 6 DAYS

til 4

~ 3
RRTC-K T,A VING
ASSUMPTION
~ 2
1

6
5
;Q
g 4
BRICK LA YING
~
~ 3
ALTERNATIVE
2
1

8.2. Juxtaposition of /HJrlnn-nOrl bars to a Cantt chart,

assumptions on resources.

8.2 compares the bar chart with the Gantt chart as relate to the
assumptions on resources and time duration. The brick laying task for a
construction project is shown by a Gantt chart to last 6 with no further visual
explanation. Below, the quantified bar shows the underlying assumption that 4
workers will accomplish the task in 6 Alternatively, if 6 workers were
available 4 days would suffice for that task. If such a change is the Gantt
chart will The bars show the constraints of
resources a more cornplete of
the

Since the VSMS requires as the quantity of the dedicated resources

and the productivity for visual display, it forces the project to think along
those terms. The quantity of work is available to the planner. So, the planner
must estimate the ~..r , r I " " h ,
and determine the required resources to making
the sch.edllimg. the time duration of each task is which leads to
the schedule of the A in the available resources or the productivity
will immediately affect the duration of a task. a in the duration
of any task can he achieved by changing the dedicated resources.
The process of scheduling based on productivity generates more confidence for
the derived schedule. The accuracy of estlmllUIlg the duration of each task is
governed by the accuracy of estimating the available resources and their productivity.
in VSMS it is most to record the actual as as
possible. If the actual productivity is different, the time schedule could be
maintained by aOlustmg the dedicated resources acc;oDdmgly
If the productivity cannot be estimated and the required resources for a task are
a Gantt chart or a network could be used. their
usefulness under those conditions is qUlestllonabJ.e,

A resource a for the usage of each resource

throughout the duration of the Each histogram refers to a single resource,
without reference to to one or more tasks.
Furthermore, each histogram The of such
hlsto~~ra]ms is to and in the usage of each resource the
duration of the project. each resource appears on a separate display with the
intention to the usage of that resource. This is .L"'.H."~UA'VU'."'.U
different than the quantified charts of the VSMS which display the tasks of a
tOE~etl[1er with their resources and time mterdlepell(1en,Cle~s, which cannot be realized
with the resource loading view. The visual of and Gantt
charts exist for more than 70 years. the VSMS is the first to propose
visual such as the quantified charts.
The distinction between the resources of each task versus the resources the
project is useful for scheduling subcontracted tasks. In subcontracted
similar resources may be used for different tasks. it is important for the
project planner to visualize these resources as part of their COllTe~molndmg
rather than accumulate them on a histogram. At the same it is important
to visualize them as similar resources, so the planner can mix or redistribute
those tasks if such an action leads to a better execution of the
 RESOURCE
LOADING
VIEW
FOR
ALLWORKERS

TIME

8.3. Resource loading view for all the workers ofthe tasks shown
in 8.1.
 8.3 presents a resource loading view for the cumulative personpower of all
the tasks. The corresponding Gantt chart and the time scaled network are
also in the same figure. A juxtaposition of Fig. 8.3 to 8.1
demonstrates the fundamental difference between the qu:mr1Ile~u
persons-power, and the histogram generated for the resource view.
t'Ulrthi~rnl0re, the resource view is in a separate display in the state-of-
systems and without a reference to the time
Tyr'lr>tH'p of tasks.

of Relpeéltlnlg Tasks

The line of balance chart is the only rer)re~)entatllon available for the ':>v"lvU1lUH'J; of
nrr'""f'h' with tasks. However, it does not show network infonnation and it
cannot link with a Gantt chart or a network diagram. limited
in clusters of tasks executed sInJUltarLeousJ.y or repeatmg tasks
that the quantities of the work or the productivity
tasks can be scheduled
VIJ,.,<UJlH.", Gantt charts or network
diagrams by omitting the dimension of location. However, such an omission has
serious consequences on the among the tasks on the various locations.
The matrix-balanced chart offers a for tasks that is a part
of the hierarchical representation of the Visual Scheduling and Management System.
So, there is a direct link between the of tasks at a location and the
VV"VUlU.U,H.", of tasks at severallocations. In addition to this direct link, the
tasks at every location can have different without of
The and of any task can from
The learning curve is also
adJustments can be made for a best schedule. the matrix-
balanced chart has the same as any quantified such as the visual
display of work, resources and cost; the critical path visually as it will be
discussed in the Section 8. and makes studies easier
':>vll'-'UUHUJ;, as it will be discussed in Section 8.1.6.
8.1.4 Hierarchical Structure

Bath the Gantt chart and the network d1agra.ms do a hierarchical visual
rer)re~;entatlon of projects. many tasks are shown on the same
resulting to charts that are complicated to understand and to In practice,
a way to avoid charts is to the tasks of a at different levels and
show the tasks of each level The different methads that have been
applied to facilitate the classification of empn,lsli~e the use of meaningful

identification codes for classes and subclasses of tasks.

The VSMS has a built-in hierarchical structure that links the charts, as it
was discussed in 6. This hierarchical structure of
charts of details and distinct uses to campase the schedule of the entire
project. the VSMS incorparates the scheduling tasks into
the same system. On the contrary, the methads would have
used charts of different nature, such as a Gantt chart and a line-of-balance chart, to
display the of repeating tasks.

8.1.5 Visual Identification of the Critical Path

In the the total duration of a project is determined by the critical

path methad. Such a calculation is and the concept of
the critical path is an illusion. The critical path depends on the time duration of the
tasks and their The duration of each task is sa variable and on
sa many factors that almast inevitably, most tasks will be shorter or langer that
estimated. rarely in practice the of the tasks can
be sa and in-detail defined as it is for the ca1culation of the critical
path, in complicated, not well-structured work. in the amount of
resources or their productivity will the possibly precedences and,
consequently, the critical path. Bath the Gantt chart and the network diagrams
cannot display any of those can only recalculate the critical
based on the new data. U nder the best conditions, the same tasks will the
critical path but with a different time duration. However, such a reca1culation may
surface a cOlmplet1ely different critical than before with serious consequences.
the pn;ce:denc(~s among the tasks are not well-defined, as in the .UH~~H1HlS
work of construction projects or in the services In such cases the concept
of the critical is of an even lesser importance and the network are less
applicable. The use to describe duration in the PERT diagrams allows
for a of terms, it is equally prc,ble~m2ltIc.
The treatment of the critical is different with the charts.
Although the CPM may be used to produce the initial sequence of the
pf()Pe:ftH~s are visually. the critical path is
visually aS5moaptlOIlS on resources and
Similarly, cnalllg(~S on a qmmtltle~d chart may the critical path
or its duration.

Even more important, the chart the framework for a different

way of thinking. It by-passes the concept of a rigorous critical and displays the
SC11edlU!l,ng seq uence with the assumptions.
for scheduling tasks with or without well-defined pre~celC1eIlces. '-'HU.lll:;'-'~ are
qUimtitie~d chart itself and the various implications of those cnalng{~S

are J
UHJlUV·lU .... 'VI. Task can have various
fJ'UUU\'d,CCJntmllOUS, o'verlapPlutg or forced OVê~r1applng. the
can enforce a sequence of the tasks in an arbitrary way, to take into account
extern al factors. The final schedule is the result of these interactive changes on the
quantified chart and the critical is part of the chart. The hierarchical structure of
the VSMS captures the critical path for the total and for the detailed
operations, as the assembly of the various qmmtitie:d charts.

8.1.6 t-eé3SlIolll1ty Studies

The simultaneous of resources and time allows the user to interact

with the quantified bar chart without a need to retrieve hidden data. It is the
0Plpmate with studies on the state-of-practice representation methods. The
critical method can perform computerized studies to the effects
of precedences and durations on the schedule. However, the results of these studies
cannot be superimposed to see the of the one over the others.
Resources or are not visually displayed and a
the that can be seen on a Gantt chart or a network \.ti"'F,}.'''''''.
Visual interactive feasibility studies can be carried out in a quantified chart, after
the first schedule has been n"''''TH1",-prj Such studies could focus on the estimates of
productivity, on the si ze of the dedicated resources, on the durations ·of the as
well as on the times and the precedences of the tasks. The tasks with a
relatively low and a low slenderness ratio are the targets for
planner. A relatively low bar indicates a
Pf()dllctllon per unit time of that less allocated resources, or
pn)dllctLon cost. Such a task should be considered to shorten its duration by
mCrelllSlnlg the dedicated resources, by more per unit or
the production method (Fig. 2.8). Among the tasks with a similar intensity, the ones
with the duration (more slender bars) are the best candidates to shorten their
duration. All possible intensities (quantity of work, resources and cost) should be
examined the feasibility studies.

8.2 COMPARISON FOR MANAGEMENT

The Visual and Management is an effective management tooI

for the execution of because of its and its built-in
mcmi1:OIing and It is also a useful communication device for
technical understood by the On the contrary, the
Gantt the network and the line-of-balance chart are particularly weak
as management tools because of their to the planm:~d
versus the actual data.
The new system is compared to the SLare-OI-DnlCrJlCe reT)reSerLtal:iOIls for the
management of projects execution, where the initial schedule is used for
control and it is updated with new information. The focuses on the
following issues:
 e visual rec:ognitLon
.. communication.

8.2.1 Control of the Pr,nilC:Iol"'t

The user of a network concentrates on the starting time and completion

time of each task, that have been calculated based on the critical method. The
user focuses with even more attention on the tasks of the critical because their
proper and timely execution will affect the duration of the Although network
dlagralms are used for the master schedule at the starting of the project or are
to agree on a time are used to update a
its execution. This is explained by the absence of a method to SUlJerlmpO:5e
visually the versus the actual data as wen as the inherent problems of the
critical path concept, as discussed in Section 8.1.5.
8.4 a chart to a Gantt chart for monitoring a
The Gantt chart displays the executed part of the task as a percentage of the task,
either in a separate bar below the bar that describes the specific or within the bar
of the task itself, as in 8.4. the visual information on a Gantt chart
does not inform the user when that part of the task was executed, or if there are any
modifications to be made on the schedule of the tasks appear
to be to the of the time of in
Fig. 8.4. So, the Gantt chart provides insufficient visual information for the con trol

As discussed in Sections 4.4 and SUçlenJOsltlOifi of the U'Ol.lUUH.A.! bars

\.j

that represent the estimated quantities the initial planning with the mate
qUiantltH::d bars that represent the actual quantltIt::s offers a visual comparison between
the two, demonstrated in 8.4. This occurs at all the levels of the
hierarchical structure, an and supports management
decisions the execution of a project.
MOBILIZATION

FOUNDATION

SUPERSTRUCTURE

FINISHING

MECHANICAL & ELECTRICAL

GANIT CHART

MONTHS

MOBILIZATION PLANNED

ACTUAL
FOUNDATION

SUPERSTRUCTURE

FINISHING

MECHANICAL & ELECTRICAL

QUANTIFIED CHART

8.4. Juxtaposition of a quantified bar chart to a Gantt

control of the project.
 In as it was discussed in Section further control is achieved by
appropriate links of the resources with the labor management, the cast estimating
and the systems.

8.2.2

In network the schedule is the aId data and

displaying the new schedule, as if it refer to a new project. The Gantt chart and the
line of balance chart can the new schedule on top of the aId one
additional connoting bars or lines respectively. Hr.U1P"\lPT the assumptions and the
reasans for updating the cannot be shown
The updating of schedules in the is a natural extension of its ll..l\.JlUICViJlllJ:;

capability. The actual data are superimposed on the planned data, thus aelPlctmg
the amount of a task. the tasks can be
updated to reflect the of the completed part of the quantified chart, as
discussed in Sections 2.4 and 6.4. The of the project is facilitated by
U I J '...... L--LHj;,

switching among the alternative displayed intensities of the tasks (quantity of work,
resources, 8.5 a chart to a Gantt chart for a
project, based on the example of Fig. 8.4. The updating of the Gantt eh art (tasks:
and mechanical and is based on the information
on the project but it is not visually justified on the Gantt chart alone. Furthermore,
there is an unanswered ón the Gantt chart: thefinishing, which is ahead
of schedule at the time of is not going to finish earlier. The answer is
visually shown on the chart: finishing started earlier with fewer resources.
it has reached an advanced stage but the rate of production is less than originally
expected, so Ü will finish on time.
 MOBILIZATION

FOUNDATION

SUPERSTRUCTURE

FINISHING

MECHANICAL & ELECTRICAL

GANTT CHART

MONTHS

PLANNED

MOBILIZATION AClUAL
BEHIND
FOUNDATION
AHEAD

SUPERSTRUCTURE

FINISHING

MECHANICAL & ELECTRICAL

QUANTIFIED CHART

8.5. Juxtaposition of a quantified bar chart to a Gantt chart for

l4UtA-LHH<rthe project.

8.2.3 Visual w~,...n,NnITll'ln of Errors

The input data are expected to be, and should be, as accurate as possible. The
,.,.prh11~'" of data
T\... r ... in the computer of networks is monotonous
and prone to errors, while understanding the computer output effort and
 skills. the data could include errors either from calculation or from
overlooks that can be disastrous to the schedules and management.
The data of the VSMS are displayed and they can be checked errors
are less probable. In addition, "''''1"1111"0'',''ri for the detaHed schedules at the

lower level and their accuracy can be v v VLLUU.'-'-'U to being ag~!;fe~~ated.

8.2.4 Communication

ComT)Utl~r output showing network diagrams is persuasive, for

projects. the visual of these networks promotes monologues
rather than dialogues. The of the together with the necessary
introduction of dummy tasks and split tasks to make the schedule, is difficult to
comprehend the its the Gantt chart has
found a niche in the usage as a communication device.
However, the of the tasks and their time as is
the maximum infonnation that can be communicated with a Gantt chart.
The quantified charts can fill the communication gap between Gantt charts and
network They are as easy to read as the Gantt charts while
much more information that need be communicated to other The role of the
4 charts as communication devices is either to inform the external
U (Ull.L.L.l\"'U

stakeholders of the project or to manage the subordinates.

time, personpower planning and cash flow are
",-,VLU\-I.'-"L,'VH delJlcted on
quantified charts and valuable information to the owner and
managers. These visual can be also employed for payments, progress
reports, company reports and
The quantified charts with persuading power to
the course of action to the subordinates who ..",r·nnng,,,, the schedule with minimal
due to its strong visual representation. In the amount to be to
the subcontractor is displayed as a function of the completed
work (quantity-in-place). So, the subcontractor's certification for payment claim can
be verified and thus making the quantified charts effective for the control
of subcontracting work 2.9, 2.10 and 2.11).
 The qmmtLtle:Q charts can also be emlnl()ve:Q for "'''''''''''''U.lJLHj:; professionals and
facilities. Easy communication and information are required in those cases.
An could be the scheduling and managing of units in hospitais.
Each doctor or group of doctors, nurses or assistants can be displayed throughout
the as weU as the usage of the available facilities. Different visual codes
on the quantified bars can the nature of the different tasks.
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J. S. E. Barndt and Martin D. Martin. 1979. by

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[7] K. R. 1974. Introduction to sequencing and scheduling. New

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M. 1990. lVlanu,T12Cntrl amJllcatum to

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scn.eGllllrlg from drawings. of Construction Congress I,
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Clough, R. and G. A. Sears. 1979. Construction management.2d

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Conway, R. W., W. L. Maxwell and L. W. Miller. 1967. Theory of

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 EEN SYSTEEM VOOR VISUELE SCHEMATISERING EN
MANAGEMENT

In dit werk wordt een nieuw systeem voor de visuele van

Uf(>le<;teln, dat de kwantiteit van werk, hulpbronnen en kosten laat zien. Dit nieuwe
systeem, dat Visual Scheduling and (VSMS) wordt gerlOelmd,
heeft een ingebouwd hiërarchisch waarmee de verschillende
schematiseringsniveaus worden verschaft en dat geplande en actuele gegevens
visueel .;, 1i~pnl"n,p waardoor het een cOlntriole:-alJP,Lra:at wordt. Het systeem is
(TT

eveneens ontworpen om n-r,"\,p('tp,n te schematiseren en te op

verschillende lokaties worden vervuld. De visuele identiteit
van het systeem maakt het tot een machtig communicatiemiddel.
De bouwkosten van het VSMS is de staaf die één enkele taak van
een project weergeeft. Deze wordt in Hoofstuk 2 omschreven als een dat een
taak laat zien met een daaraan verbonden hoeveelheid Deze kwantiteit kan
het werk vereist voor de een hulpmiddel voor de taak, de aan dat hulpmiddel
verbonden kosten of de totale kosten van de taak. Deze alternatieve weergaven
stellen de in staat de taak vanuit verschillende te bezien. De
gec:ontroJleel"d door twee ge.1,:wlmt:itïc:ee]~de
staven bijeen te voegen: de staaf voor de oors"(:lronklell.Jke
van de taak en
" ....... VAJU .... l,.""".LH"E> die de Ita[e1:lJKC~,
veld afkomstige gegevens afbeeldt. Uitgaande van de actuele gegevens, wordt het
schema voor het nog niet deel van de taak bijgewerkt, gebruik
wordt gemaakt van de eigenschappen van de gekwantificeerde taak.
Het wordt in Hoofdstuk 3 als het eerste
gekwantificeerde van het systeem (VSMS). Een
laat een groep taken
":""U.L\.JLU.LE,AU'"H elke taak wordt voorgesteld door een
ge1~w(mtJltlc:ee]rdestaaf. De toelaatbare soorten pnontelten worden "rY'I"(>~n'""",,,n
terwijl de van taken, wat
door de positie van elk dier taken ten OP:llc.nte
Het gekwantificeerde-staafdiagram schematiseert zowel taken met duidelijk
omschreven als waarin taken wat de
Oll(lerjlm~~e afhankelijkheid vertonen. De ""1In",.,,,,

de ge}cw,mtl11c:ee:rde staven toegestane werkzaamheden worden omschreven als

verschuiving, uitbreiding of comprimering, van continue taken en als
ve:rmeel'denn.g van taken. Tenslotte wordt ook de introductie
uiteengezet van als gevolg van specifieke werkzaamheden.
De wordt in Hoofdstuk 4 als het volgende representatieniveau
van het VSMS, Een omvat een van de mtonna'tle,
zowel in grafische als in alfanumerieke VOIm. De in- en uitvoer van infonnatie is
dus door middel van hetzij via Er
wordt van een template gebruik gemaakt om de hulpbronnen visueel op gelijk niveau
te brengen onder van op het samenvatten van de intensiteiten
van de groep in beeld gebrachte taken. Tenslotte wordt een template ontworpen om
de van de taken te controleren door de en de
te voegen met gekwantificeerde hulpstaven.
het in het VSMS-
systeem, wordt besproken in Hoofdstuk 5. Dit UH"!".".HH

dimensie van de locatie in een die is voor het schematiseren van

herhalingstaken. Het kan ook van lokatie tot lokatie het gevolg van de
atllDOIJkrornlme in beeld van de taken de verticale
as stelt de gebruiker in staat het schematiseren eerder te bestuderen volgens de
verschillende bestanddelen der dan de lokatie ervan. Tenslotte wordt
door beteugeling van de intensiteit van de gekwantificeerde staven, waarbij deze
worden tot een uit dit door
herschikking verkregen matrix -evenwichtsdiagram.
Het laatste hoofs tuk waarin het nieuwe systeem wordt is Hoofdstuk 6.
De in de voorgaande hoofdstukken besproken onderdelen worden bijeengebracht,
waardoor het Visuele en voor het
schematiseren en besturen van gehele projecten wordt samengesteld. Door middel
van opvouwen men de van de verschillende door
een groep taken visueel samen te voegen tot een Zo worden micro-
tempiaten, templaten, alsmede het hoofdschema met
elkaar verbonden door middel van opvouwtaken waardoor een strakke hiërarchische
structuur ontstaat. Op de verschillende niveaus van deze hiërarchische structuur
'''J':ÜF,U'l'oVH toegestaan, en deze kunnen zowel naar boven als naar beneden in de

hiërarchie worden Het systeem wordt voor het

controleren van de 11.1"'lTAP·r1n nrl-"1Pf'tp'n door de weergave van de UIJ.~t;~;HH~t;ll

gegevens op de verschillende diagramnlen

reJ,re:senltatieteclmi1ekem voor
en management besproken: de Milestone de
eerlV01ua:Lgsre en meest toegepaste vorm van projectschematisering; de Gantt chart,
erkend als de gemakkelijkst te hpcrrll1r1pn rer:,re~;entatle
alsmede de network waarin het idee van de Knlt1e~K-paia-rnem(,ae
opgenomen. Ook wordt de evenwichtslijn-methode besproken voor het
schematiseren van op de verschillende lokaties. Tenslotte volgt een
beJ<mo,pte beoordeling van enkele allernieuwste mogelijkheden met de
computer, valt op te merken dat er, ondanks de sterke van het aantal
pelrsonal computers, geen hebben bij de
representatie van projectschematisering.
In Hoofdstuk 8 wordt een tussen de thans in
representaties en het VSMS-systeem. De vergelijking richt zich op de eerste
op het maken van het U1t,garlgsch(~ma, en vervolgens worden de voordelen van het
voorgestelde systeem Op dit niveau heeft de op
de visuele weergave van het de visuele weergave van de hulpbronnen; de
visuele weergave van de herhalingstaken; de hierarchische structuur; de visuele
identificatie van het kritieke en tenslotte de op elkaar inwerkende
uitvoerbaarheidsonderzoeken tijdens het schematiseren. Daarna verschuift de
velrge:lijldng naar het terrein van controle en management. Op dit niveau concentreert
de vergelijking zich op het vermogen tot visuele controle en pn)grloseV10rrmI1lg
elk systeem, alsmede op de mogelijkheden ervan als communicatie-middel.
het systeem uitstekende kwantitatieve weergaven verschaft en over een
m~~ebouwd vermogen tot controle en prognosevorming vertonen de Gantt
de netwerk-diagrammen en het evenwichtslijn-diagram bij het
a'~AAU~'" naast elkaar van de en feitelijke gegevens.
 Op dit nieuwe systeem is met het Amerikaanse Octrooischrift No. 5.016.170. van
14 mei 1991 octrooi verleend aan de uitvinders ervan, Professor N.Pollalis en
de heer Yasuo Ueda. Dit is het eerste octrooi dat is verleend op grond van
research werk uitgevoerd op de Graduate School of van de Harvard
en het is tevens het eerste octrooi dat op de Harvard University is
toegekend voor een onderwerp op het van computer-programmatuur.

translated Drs. Th. Gerritsen

Most of the conlcep1ts of the prc)posed Sctled1u1irlg and Management System
have been pat(~nté:d Yasuo Ueda with the U.S.
Patent No.

3.7,3.10,3.16,3.17,3.18,3.19,3.20,3.21, 4.1,
5.6,5.7,5.8,5.10, and 6.7; and Tables 4.1, 6.1, and 6.3 appearin
the U.S. Patent No. 5,016,170 ofMay 14,1991.

2.11,5.3,5.4,6.1,6.8,8.1,8.5 were dev'elooed

special student at the Graduate School
under the supervision of Prof. S.N. Pollalis.

Fig 2.7,4.5 and 4.6 were Ko·mllnat1o, special student at the

Graduate School under the of
Prof. S .N. Pollalis.
accounting systems 104, 138 downward 105
actual execution of the task 20 dummy tasks 117, 140
addition of continuous tasks 38 duration of the project 118
addition of parallel tasks 38
aerospace industry 7 ending time 118
alternative displays 16 starting time 33, 118
auxiliary monitoring chart 83, 107 time 24
exp.msilJn 38
balancing of the matrix 74
bar chart 112 facilities management 7
breakdown of projects 110 no at 33, 117
folded-up task 53, 88
changes in the quantity of work 22 forced tasks 30, 32
changes in the schedules 104 foreign resources
common finish tasks 30 foreign task 34
common start tasks 30 fraction of a time unit 24
communication 7, 8, 83, 101, 140
comparison for 135 Gantt chart 112
comparison for 126 Gantt chart with milestones 114
composite task 6 graphics in project scheduling software
connoting bar 14 123
connoting bar chart 29
constant intensity 89 heterogeneous task 88
constituent matrix chart 81 hierarchical structure 136
constraints 48 homogeneous task 88, 93
construction industry 7 horizontal arrow 33
continuous tasks 30 horizontal shift 37
contraction 38
control of subcontracting work 140 identification codes 133
con trol of the project 136 independent tasks 29
cost 16, 89 independent variables 25
cost centers 104 input 55
cost estimating 104, 138 18, 24
cost of a resource 18 intlerchaJrlge~able intensities 28
cost of a resource per time unit 18 interchangeable views of the same task 17
cost time unit 18
f'rpOlti,.,it" 8 job code 28
Path Method) 7, 118
pa th 118, 133 labor 104, 138
critical algorithm 123 late ending 118
resource quantified bar 59 late starting time 33, 118
learning curve 72
decision support system 6, 8 line of balance chart 121
dependent tasks 30 line of the diagonals 70
of capacity 48
1

linear of the alternative required resources 16

displays a task 17 resource 6, 18
link with other systems 104 resource leveling 59, 93
location 68 resource loading view 130
location-specific quantified chart 68, 74 reversal operations 48
location-specific template 68
loose dependencies 75 proJteSS:lonalls 141
low intensity 126, 135 serial
services industry 7, 17, 134
mainframes 123 shape of the quantified bar 15
manutac:tuflJag 7 shipbuilding industry 7
master 90, 101 slope of the intensity 70
mate quantified bar 20, 62, 106 split tasks 140
mate quantified bars 136 starting time
matrix of quantified bars 74 subcontracted tasks 130
matrix-balanced chart 67,69,90, 107, 132 subcontractors 62
matrix-balanced schedule 90
microtemplate schedule 90, 93 task 6
milestone chart 7, 110 task breakdown 110
monitoring 83, 106 task precedences on a network 114
monitoring a task 20 tasks on the arrows networks 117
tasks on the nodes networks 116
negative float 119 template 53
network diagrarns 114 tcmplate schedulc 90, 94
node and arrow notation 114 temporary 48
time 6,28
operations on quantified bars 37 time network 117
55 total cost 16, 18
ove~rlalPplIlg tasks 30
updating 106
parallel tasks 30, 32 updating a task 21
PERT (Performance Evaluation and updating the Project 138
Review Technique) 119, 134 upward Changes 104
precedence 116 US patent No. 5,016,170 9
precedences 68, 114, 133
processor 6 variabIe intensity 89
production or work per time unit 18 variables of thc quantified bar 24
production rale 121 vertical arrow 33
productivity 56, 130 vertical axis 70
progression in the execution 29 vertical shift 39
project management 5 vertical translations of the quantificd bars
pure task 6 81
visual of resources 128
quantified bar 11, 12 visual of work 126
quantified bar chart 28 visual of errors 139
quantified bars on tbe chart 32 visual resource leveling 59
quantified chart 67, 90
quantity 18, 24 well-defined precedences 37, 134
work 18
relationship between intensity and duration
13
rep(~atulg tasks 67, 101, 132
resource per time unit 18
This book proposes a new system for the visual
representation of projects th at displays the quantities of
work, resources and cost. This new system has a built-in
hierarchical system to provide different levels of
schedules, and superimposes visually planned and actual
data to become a control device. It is also designed to
schedule and manage projects with repeating tasks at
various locations. The system's visual identity makes it
powerful for communication, even among non-specialists.
This system has received the first patent granted to
research carried at the Graduate School of Design,
Harvard University, as weil as the first patent awarded at
Harvard University on a computer software subject.

Spiro N. Pollalis, born in 1954, is Associate Professor of

Architecture at the Graduate School of Design, Harvard
University, Visiting Professor of Architecture at the
TU-Delft in 1991-92, and has been associated with the
architectural-engineering firm Calatrava Valls SA for
several years. He was awarded his PhD from MIT and an
MBA in high technology. His current research and
teaching focuses on technology, design process and
product delivery. He is the editor of Architecture: Design
Implementation (1991) and co-inventor of the patented
Task Management (1991).