Page 169 - DCAP304_DCAP515_SOFTWARE_PROJECT_MANAGEMENT

Unit 8: Network Planning Model

Giving an international example, he said that the demand on AT&T’s network in the US Notes
went up by over 5,700 per cent over a period of three years immediately following the
introduction of Apple’s iPhone.
IPO delayed
While Mr. Nayak was keen on talking about the overall industry scenario, he was
noncommittal about the IPO plans of his company. In 2009, the company had plans of an
IPO in 2010, but these plans did not materialise.
Now, Mr. Nayak said, while it is still important, it is just one of the things that the
company is interested in. “IPO is not the focus of the company right now,” he said, but
refused to state whether or not his company would have an IPO next year.

8.6 Summary

 A Network Planning Model is a pictorial representation of the sequence in which the
project work can be done. There are two ways to build a project schedule: (a) Gantt chart
and (b) Network diagram.
 The Gantt chart is the older of the two and is used effectively in simple, short-duration
types of projects. The network diagram provides a visual layout of the sequence in which
project work flows.
 It includes detailed information and serves as an analytical tool for project scheduling and
resource management problems as they arise during the life of the project.
 Network diagrams can be used for detailed project planning, during implementation as a
tool for analyzing scheduling alternatives, and as a control tool.
 You can build the Network Diagram using the Precedence Diagramming Method which is
also known as the activity-on-the-arrow (AOA) method. Each activity in the network
diagram is represented by a rectangle that is called an activity node.
 The entries in the activity node describe the time-related properties of the activity. Some
of the entries describe characteristics of the activity, such as its expected duration (E),
while others describe calculated values (ES, EF, LS, LF) associated with that activity.
 The network diagram is logically sequenced. It is read from left to right. Every activity in
the network, except the ‘start’ must have at least one activity that comes before it (its
immediate predecessor). Similarly, every activity in the network, except the ‘end’ must
have at least one activity that comes after it (its immediate successor).
 There are four types of constraints:
 Technical constraints

 Management constraints
 Interproject constraints and
 Date constraints.
 Pauses or delays between activities are indicated in the network diagram through the use
of lag variables. In situation where, the initial project completion date is later than the
requested completion date, you must find ways to reduce the total duration of the project
to meet the required date.

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