CST Scheduling Fundamentals & Techniques 2

Question 1

Which scheduling technique calculates the latest allowable start and finish times for each activity without delaying the project?

Accepted Answer

Backward pass

Answer

The backward pass computes Late Start (LS) and Late Finish (LF) by working from the project end date back to the start.

Question 2

A project has a Planned Value (PV) of $50,000 and an Earned Value (EV) of $40,000. What is the Schedule Variance (SV)?

Accepted Answer

-$10,000

Answer

SV = EV - PV = $40,000 - $50,000 = -$10,000, indicating the project is behind schedule.

Question 3

What does a Schedule Performance Index (SPI) value of 0.85 indicate?

Accepted Answer

The project is earning $0.85 for every $1.00 of planned work

Answer

SPI = EV/PV, so 0.85 means only $0.85 of work is being accomplished for every $1.00 of work that was planned.

Question 4

Which network diagramming method uses nodes to represent activities and arrows to show dependencies?

Accepted Answer

Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)

Answer

PDM (also called Activity-on-Node) places activities in boxes/nodes and uses arrows solely to represent logical relationships.

Question 5

The technique of shortening the project schedule by overlapping activities that would normally be performed sequentially is called:

Accepted Answer

Fast-tracking

Answer

Fast-tracking overlaps sequential activities in parallel, accepting increased risk, while crashing adds resources to critical path activities.

(CST) Certified Scheduling Technician Practice Test