Sample Assignment MS-52 Jan June 2017

Course Code MS - 52 Course Title Project Management Assignment Code MS-52/TMA/SEM - I/2017 Assignment Coverage All Blocks

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School of Management Studies

INDIRA GANDHI NATIONAL OPEN UNIVERSITY MAIDAN GARHI, NEW DELHI – 110 068

1. What is the concept of concurrent engineering in project management and how can it be used to optimise project durations? Concurrent engineering is a work methodology ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Development (IPD) using an

Integrated Product Team approach. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------the elapsed time required to bring a new product to the market.

The basic premise for concurrent --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------, testability, maintenance issues, environmental impact and finally

disposal and recycling, should be taken into careful consideration in the early design phases.

The second concept is that the preceding design activities should all be occurring at the same time, i.e., concurrently. The

idea is that the concurrent nature of these ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------is still flexible. By locating and fixing these issues early,

the design team can avoid what often become costly errors as the project moves to more complicated computational models

and eventually into the actual manufacturing of hardware.

Concurrent engineering replaces the more ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------difference between these two methods is that the

‘Waterfall’ method moves in a linear fashion by starting with user requirements and sequentially moving forward to design,

implementation and additional steps until you have a --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------that something does go wrong, the design

usually must be scrapped or heavily altered. On the other hand, the iterative design process is more cyclic in that, all aspects

of the life cycle of -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------seen graphically in Figure below.

Traditional “Waterfall” or Sequential Development Method vs. Iterative Development Method in concurrent engineering.

A significant part of the concurrent design ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------. Giving the designer ownership is claimed to improve the

productivity of the employee and quality of the product that is being produced, based on the assumption that people who are

given a ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------a task with little say in the general process.

Although the concept of concurrent ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------- (CE) in the Construction Industry because CE has the potential to

make construction projects less fragmented, reduce project duration, improve project quality, reduce total project

cost and increase project ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------the construction industry. The concurrent engineering plays a key role in the

integration of the construction process. The --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------to waste a lot of piping materials and in turn increases

construction cost, time and labor and will cut down construction quality.

Concurrent design comes --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------and teams, software compatibility, and opening up the design process.A

concurrent design process usually requires ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------issues are not addressed properly, concurrent design may not

work effectively. It is important to note that although the nature of some activities during a project imposes a

degree of linearity— completion of -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------significant benefits based on the improved sharing of information as

each functional area progresses.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. Economic analysis is done from societal point of view in contrast to financial analysis which is a private appraisal from the viewpoint of a producer. How does it bring about a change in the methods of evaluation? Describe with examples.

Systematic approach in which economists and other professionals will estimate the Economic environment and its strengths

and weaknesses. Economic analysis plays an important role in determining how a trader will want to position themselves in

a market.

The economic analysis assesses ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------that price developments over those horizons are influenced largely by the interplay of

supply and demand in the goods, services and factor markets.

To do so, the ECB regularly reviews, inter alia,

developments --------------------------- output,

demand and -------------------------- conditions,

a broad ------------------------------------ cost indicators,

fiscal -----------------------------------------, and

-------------------------------- of payments for the euro area.

The economic analysis also --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------------for their propagation in the economy.

No formal analytical system for project analysis could possibly take into account all the various objectives of every

participant in a project. Some ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------other objectives at other points in the process of project selection. The justification for this

is that in most developing countries increased income is probably the single most important objective of individual economic

effort, and increased national income is probably the most important objective of national economic policy.

For farms, we will take as the ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------For a private business firm or corporation in the public sector, we will take as the objective

maximizing the incremental net income, to which we will return in ---------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------the project makes to the national income-the value of

all final goods and services produced during a particular period, generally a year. This is virtually the same objective, except

for minor formal variations in definition, as maximizing gross domestic product (GDP).

It is important to emphasize that taking the income a project will contribute to a society as the formal analytical criterion in

economic, analysis does not downgrade other -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------we can judge which among alternative projects or alternative forms of a

particular project will make an acceptable ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------generating potential and also will make a significant

contribution to other social objectives. For example, from among those projects that make generally the same contribution

to increased income------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------those in a disadvantaged region.

Thus, in the system of economic analysis discussed here, anything that reduces national income is a cost and anything that

increases national income is a benefit. Since our --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------that directly increases them is clearly a benefit. But recall, also, the

intricate workings of the ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------chain of events it eventually reduces the

total final goods and services available elsewhere in the economy.

On the one hand, if we divert an orange that -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------final goods and services, or national income, by the value of the orange and

increasing it by the value of the orange juice. On the other hand, if we use cement to line an irrigation canal, we are not

directly reducing the final goods and services available; ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------is to shift the cement away from some other use in the economy.

This, in turn, reduces production of -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------, using cement in the project is a cost to the economy.

3. A project comprising of eight tasks (A to H) has the following characteristics:

(a) Draw an AOA network. Carry out all the calculations, determine the critical path and mark it in the network. What is the total project duration. (b) What is the probability of achieving the project within the deadline of 30 weeks?

4. ‘Contract Planning’ phase of project is often compared with constructing the foundations of a building – building will be as strong or as weak as its foundation. Justify.

Construction planning is a fundamental and challenging activity in the management and execution of construction

projects. It involves the choice of ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------of any interactions among the different work tasks. A good

construction plan is the basis for developing the budget and the schedule for work. Developing the construction

plan is a critical task in the management ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------------------planning, it may also be necessary to make

organizational decisions about the relationships between project participants and even which organizations to

include in a project. For example, the ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------ construction planning.

Most people, if you describe a train of ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------something will come to pass. There are few people,

however, who, if you told them a result, would be able to evolve from their own inner consciousness what the

steps were which led up to that result. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------and must synthesize the steps required to yield this result.

Essential aspects of construction planning include the generation of required activities, analysis of the

implications of these activities, and choice ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------, construction planners also face the normative

problem of choosing the best ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------the final facility as described in the plans and specifications.

In developing a construction plan, it is ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------primarily divided into expense categories with associated

costs. In these cases, construction ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------of an activity and

indirectly for the accomplishment of the project.

For example, borrowing expenses for project financing and overhead items are commonly treated as indirect

costs. For other projects, scheduling ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------------among activities are maintained and that efficient scheduling

of the available resources prevails. Traditional scheduling procedures emphasize the maintenance of task -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------consideration of both cost and scheduling over time, so that planning, monitoring and record keeping

must consider both dimensions----------------------------------------------------------------- is a major concern.

As in the development of appropriate ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------critical ingredients in the success of the project. For

example, a decision whether to pump or to transport concrete in buckets will directly affect the cost and duration

of tasks involved in building ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------transport methods. Unfortunately, the exact implications of different

methods depend upon numerous considerations for ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------underground

condition at a site.

In selecting among ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------. Once the full plan is available, then the cost, time and reliability impacts of

the alternative approaches can be reviewed. This examination of several alternatives is often made explicit in

bidding competitions in which several ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------may wish to prepare plans for each alternative design using

the suggested -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------of the value engineering process.

In forming a construction plan, a ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------technique. By observing the result, comparisons among different

plans or problems with the existing plan can be identified. For example, a decision to use a particular piece of

equipment for an operation immediately leads to -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------design (CAD) system may be helpful in

simulating space requirements for --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------process might be effectively forestalled by providing

additional resources as part of the construction plan.

5. (a) Explain the use and advantages of squared networks in project management. Project Management involves defining the tasks to be performed, scheduling the tasks and developing the

planning documentation ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------not treated in this Project Planning series. I treated assigning people to

tasks in the postings on Team Dynamics and I ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------its own article.

Some of these activities can run -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------until it has been chosen, the new window cannot be painted until

the window is installed and the new putty has set. Delaying the acquisition of the glass is likely to delay the entire

project - this activity will be on the critical ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------------------may not automatically hold up the entire project as there

is still some waiting time for the new putty to dry before it can be painted anyway - there will be some 'free float'

attached to the activity of purchasing ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------not subsequently mean any delay to the entire project, does

mean that choosing the paint has no 'free float' ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------which does have 'total float'.

A WBS illustrates all of the -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------elements into manageable components and keep breaking them down

until you reach the work package level.

Most tasks people perform on a ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------. Our natural ability to skip details and abridge processes can save

us time in everyday life. But this "normal" behavior ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------to shorten schedules or see which tasks can run

in parallel,

A big mistake inexperienced project -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------listing the tasks to be performed and working out a schedule

for the list. Defining tasks should be done first, at least for complex projects, because it’s just not obvious how

tasks should be sequenced and -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------of tasks does not mean that the inputs, outputs and the work needed

to turn inputs into outputs are --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------corrections.

(b) What are network-based milestone charts and what are their advantages and disadvantage as compared to squared networks?

A milestone is used to ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------similar to a Gantt chart with one milestone per line vertically with a description

on the left and the milestone located horizontally along a time scale showing when it occurs. Milestones differ

from the bars in a Gantt chart in that -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------depicting the status of the milestone. Milestones can also appear

on Gantt ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------by the software.

The early days of project --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------one hundred activities. It was not practical for the project manager to

duplicate the Gantt chart for ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------unless there was quite a lot of wall space.

The milestone chart was ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------assigned a milestone to each group. A milestone was placed on the project

schedule representing the group. Another milestone was placed on the project managers' supervisor's milestone

chart as well. If there were changes in ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------all likelihood the project manager gave an explanation of the

schedule slide at this time as well. Of course, this kind of explanation was not always the most pleasant sort of

meeting.

If the milestones are mixed into -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------activities that have a duration of zero and printing the milestone chart

with these activities. There is one risk in creating these milestone charts. The placement of the milestone on the

time scale can be done two ways. One ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------milestone is not changed by hand, it will still show the original

date and thus give the wrong information when the milestone chart is produced.

The second way of placing a ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------if this activity is rescheduled. Still, there is risk in this technique as well

because it is possible that other activities in the group could be rescheduled without rescheduling the activity the

milestone depends on. If using -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------and the milestone itself. In this way if any of the activities is

rescheduled, the milestone will automatically be rescheduled as well.

A better method for ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------and finish dates for the group of activities.

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