CST Schedule Variance & Delay Analysis 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which recovery schedule technique adds resources to critical activities to compress the schedule while minimizing additional cost?
- Fast-tracking
- Crashing (Correct answer)
- Re-baselining
- Resource leveling
Correct answer: Crashing
Crashing adds resources (overtime, additional crew) to critical path activities to reduce duration, with a focus on the lowest cost-slope activities first.
Question 2: A contractor submits a Time Impact Analysis (TIA) for an owner-caused delay. The TIA must demonstrate that the delay event:
- Increased project costs by more than 10%
- Impacted the critical path and extended the contract completion date (Correct answer)
- Occurred during the first half of the project
- Was documented within 24 hours of occurrence
Correct answer: Impacted the critical path and extended the contract completion date
A valid TIA must show that the delay event pushed activities onto or further along the critical path, resulting in a later project completion date.
Question 3: Schedule Variance at Completion (SV at completion) is zero when:
- The project finishes exactly on its planned completion date (Correct answer)
- EAC equals BAC
- The EVM cost variance is zero at closeout
- SPI returns to 1.0 in the final reporting period
Correct answer: The project finishes exactly on its planned completion date
Schedule Variance at completion is zero only when the project actually completes on the planned finish date, meaning all planned work was completed as scheduled.
Question 4: The 'critical path collapse' (Collapsed As-Built) method in delay analysis works by:
- Removing all delay events from the as-built schedule to calculate the theoretical shortest completion (Correct answer)
- Collapsing parallel paths into a single sequence to simplify analysis
- Reducing resource assignments to minimum levels to identify float
- Converting the CPM network to a bar chart format
Correct answer: Removing all delay events from the as-built schedule to calculate the theoretical shortest completion
The Collapsed As-Built method removes delays from the as-built schedule to reveal what the completion date would have been without those delays.
Question 5: If the SPI = 1.15 and the project is 60% complete by schedule, what does this suggest?
- The project is 15% over budget
- The project is performing 15% more efficiently than planned and is likely ahead of schedule (Correct answer)
- The project has 15% remaining float
- The project will finish 15 days early regardless of remaining work
Correct answer: The project is performing 15% more efficiently than planned and is likely ahead of schedule
An SPI of 1.15 means the team is earning $1.15 of planned value for every $1.00 worth of scheduled time, indicating ahead-of-schedule performance.
Question 6: In delay analysis, what distinguishes a 'compensable delay' from a 'non-excusable delay'?
- Compensable delays are caused by the owner and entitle the contractor to both time and money; non-excusable delays are the contractor's fault (Correct answer)
- Compensable delays are acts of God; non-excusable delays involve subcontractors
- Both grant time extensions but only compensable delays require documentation
- Non-excusable delays are always on the critical path; compensable delays affect float only
Correct answer: Compensable delays are caused by the owner and entitle the contractor to both time and money; non-excusable delays are the contractor's fault
Compensable delays are caused by the owner (or their agents), entitling the contractor to a time extension plus additional costs; non-excusable delays are the contractor's responsibility with no relief.
Question 7: During a schedule review, you find that Activity G has a Late Start of Day 20 and an Early Start of Day 12. What is the Total Float for Activity G?
- 8 days (Correct answer)
- 32 days
- 12 days
- 20 days
Correct answer: 8 days
Total Float = Late Start − Early Start = 20 − 12 = 8 days.
CST Schedule Variance & Delay Analysis 3
Which recovery schedule technique adds resources to critical activities to compress the schedule while minimizing additional cost?