CAC Construction Scheduling and Planning 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: PERT (Program Evaluation and Review Technique) uses three time estimates for each activity. What are they?
- Optimistic, most likely, and pessimistic (Correct answer)
- Minimum, average, and maximum cost
- Early start, late start, and target start
- Best case, base case, and contingency
Correct answer: Optimistic, most likely, and pessimistic
PERT uses optimistic (O), most likely (M), and pessimistic (P) durations to calculate a weighted average expected time for each activity.
Question 2: A Finish-to-Finish (FF) relationship with a lag of 5 days means:
- The successor must finish at least 5 days after the predecessor finishes (Correct answer)
- The successor must start 5 days after the predecessor finishes
- Both activities must finish within 5 days of each other
- The predecessor must finish 5 days before the successor starts
Correct answer: The successor must finish at least 5 days after the predecessor finishes
A Finish-to-Finish relationship with a positive lag requires the successor to finish a specified number of days after the predecessor finishes.
Question 3: Which document serves as the baseline against which schedule progress is measured throughout a project?
- The approved project schedule baseline (Correct answer)
- The bid schedule submitted at procurement
- The contractor's preliminary schedule
- The owner's milestone list
Correct answer: The approved project schedule baseline
The approved schedule baseline is the frozen snapshot of the original plan used to measure deviations and report schedule performance.
Question 4: What is 'fast-tracking' in construction project scheduling?
- Overlapping phases or activities that would normally be done sequentially (Correct answer)
- Accelerating a schedule by adding more resources to critical activities
- Removing non-critical activities from the schedule
- Substituting faster construction methods for original methods
Correct answer: Overlapping phases or activities that would normally be done sequentially
Fast-tracking compresses the schedule by performing phases in parallel rather than sequentially, though it often increases risk and coordination demands.
Question 5: Which scheduling method assigns probability distributions to activity durations to model schedule risk?
- Monte Carlo simulation (Correct answer)
- Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)
- Arrow Diagramming Method (ADM)
- Linear Scheduling Method (LSM)
Correct answer: Monte Carlo simulation
Monte Carlo simulation runs thousands of iterations using probability distributions for activity durations to produce a probabilistic project completion date.
Question 6: In a Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM) network, activities are represented by:
- Nodes (boxes), with arrows showing dependencies (Correct answer)
- Arrows, with nodes representing events
- Horizontal bars on a time scale
- Diagonal lines showing production rates
Correct answer: Nodes (boxes), with arrows showing dependencies
PDM (also called Activity-on-Node) places activities in boxes connected by arrows that define the logical relationships between them.
Question 7: What is the purpose of a 3-week lookahead schedule on a construction project?
- To identify and remove near-term constraints so field crews can execute work without interruption (Correct answer)
- To provide the owner with a monthly progress report
- To replace the master CPM schedule for day-to-day use
- To satisfy the contract requirement for weekly schedule updates
Correct answer: To identify and remove near-term constraints so field crews can execute work without interruption
A 3-week lookahead is a short-interval schedule used to identify and resolve upcoming constraints such as material deliveries, inspections, and labor needs.
CAC Construction Scheduling and Planning 2
PERT (Program Evaluation and Review Technique) uses three time estimates for each activity.
What are they?