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LOOK AHEAD PROGRAMS

16 replies [Last post]
Kumar I
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WE AS CONTRACTOR ARE 90 DAYS BEHIND SCHEDULE.TILL SUCH TIME THE CLIENT ASKS FOR RECOVERY/REVISED PROGRAM HOW TO PREPARE LOOK AHEAD PROGRAM FROM THE CURRENT SCHEDULE,WHICH SHOULD SHOW RECOVERY OF THE ONGOING DELAY.PLEASE NOTE THE CLIENT DOESNOT PERMIT CHANGES IN THE TARGET SCHEDULE PARAMETERS EG DURATION,LOGIC ETC WHILE UPDATING ON THE TARGET

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Andrew Flowerdew
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Kumar,

Returning to your original post. Firstly and foremost a programme is a management tool that will change through out the project. It is there to forecast what needs to be done to get the project built and enable management to make good, reasoned and therefore effective decisions.

Go and tell your Client to sit in the corner with his "I’m a complete idiot hat" on if he will not allow changes to durations and logic in the baseline programme.

You can, and should, change anything in the baseline programme as the project goes along such that the updated programme contains the most accurate information known and is a true reflection of how and when it is intended that the project will be built.

Obviously nothing should be changed without a very good reason and it is the reason that will give rise to who’s liable for the effect of that change. Progress should always be added first such that any affect a change might have is reflecting the site as it stands at the time.

Eg, if a activity is going to take 10 wks but was originally programmed to take 5wks, all else being equal, the liability for the effect of changing that duration will be the Contractors. Similarly any additional work should be added in to the latest programme, if possible as it occurs and its affect noted.

You should always use a straightened progress line and reschedule to this, not a jagged one which shows somethings behind, on programme or ahead and then say " well we’re abit behind here, abit ahead here so roughly we’re on programme". This is a complete load of rubbish.

If your Client wants crap information bearing no relationship to reality and he’s happy to plan on that basis then maybe he’s getting what he deserves, but in reality it’s in nobody’s interest to continue in this way.

Whoever your Client is being represented by (his own man or an external consultant)suggest to them that to continue down this road is not forefilling their obligation to their Client and to do so knowingly, may amount to negligence.
Eckart Schenck
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Hi Rami,

I have been through a similiar situation:
Project slippage of several months caused by the contractor with impact on contractual milestones followed by client’s requests for catch-up plans, reports etc...

To address this issue we set up a new baseline with the project team (revised target) taking into account actual available resources, optimized work sequence and resource allocation, phased testing periods (allows overlapped installation and testing activities).

In order to use this revised schedule as a new baseline used for progress reports it must be approved by the client. It is a hard job and requires a lot of cordination but if it is possible to convince the customer that the revised plan is feasible and realistic then it will be approved and can be used as the new project baseline.

Good luck!
Heinz
Reynaldo Y. Calay...
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Recovery programs .......are usually used as the term conotes to recover the delays. this is usually done by the contractor to recover their delays in which at their own fault. you dont get anything from this.

Accelerated programme........ this is done when there is a considerable delays that have been caused by the client like approvals etc. an instruction from the client that you need to accelerate in order to finish on time. you get something from this.

Lookahead programme ....... are used to provide information on the activities that needs to be done for a particular period of time lets say you have to prepare a 1 week lookbehind and 2 weeks lookahead depending on the requirement.......this also to show your previous progress this is prepared in line either with your Recovery, Accelerated, Target, Clause 14,etc. programme......to show where you stand on your current programme....

hope this helps guys.......


Damian Smith
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I’d suggest starting again, sounds like the orginal programme was far from acurate.
muquith waseem
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Hi,

It will be just a computer exercise if we filter for 90 day look ahead. So to make it practical one should list out the activities that are practically achievable in excel and present it to the Client.

Regards,
Waseem
Ronaldo Quilao
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Dear Rami,

Yes thats better! You can have baseline ...we called it Target 1, Target 2...and so on...so that you could analize your progress base on that...goodluck!

Ronald Quilao
Rami Al Haddad
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Hi all :)

thank you all for your input on this subject theve been of great help... just wanna ask what you think on what I’’m about to do.

I have a schedule that i’ve been updatin for like 3 months and already we are behind... boss insisting on recovering at this point... i don’’t wanna lose the update and baseline... so I thought I’d do the following:

1. Save the current schedule as "Mid Project Status" baseline, so now I have the Original Baseline as "Initial Plan" and the Latest Update as "Mid Project Status".

2. Edit the current schedule to recover delays.

3. Save the new edit as a new target baseline and name it "Recovery Plan" so from now on I’ll just monitor agianst it :)

this way I will retain my actuals and ititial data for future analysis... and my boss will have a brand new schedule as he likes... what u all think... ur feed back is highly appreciated... thanx :)
Ronaldo Quilao
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Dear Fellow Planner:

Please don’t mixed up with accelerated programme and a look ahead programme.

Your project has a substantial delay, therefore you need to have or you must prepare a catch-up or recovery programme and not a look ahead programme. Your Team must review the current construction method being applied, look for possible alternative, review your present resources, your manpower allocation perhaps you need to increase your manpower, your equipments, or implement overtime, review the delivery of materials, the frequency of activity rejection, etc.

Look Ahead Programme is a tool to alarm, notify or to make the whole Team aware of the current activities and following activies for the next two week in order for them to prepare (in terms of resources availability, etc)to avoid delay or circumstances of course and if in case they by mean of this look ahead they could foresee the possible circumstances and mitigate it as soon as possible.

Accelerated Programme, this programme always has an associated cost or the cost will be double. Our fellow is right...secure first an approval prior to prepare this programme. This means that if you have a 365 calendar days duration of the project then your need to reduce it by half, you will need to prepare an accelerated programme meaning you will have to increase all your resources thereby having additional amount. Now if you have no prior approval how can you claim your expenses?

Enough for the lecture.....keep on planning...

Ronald Quilao
Rahmat Hidayat
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Hi All,

For your look ahead schedule pls consider also remainng work volume in order to define new productivity target. Shorten your schedule with fastracks and crash programs. Then calculate the cost impact of this acceleration to be proposed to your Proj Manager. In case there is some cost impact due to external cause, PM may coulkd claim them to Client.

Hopefully this helps
Zhang Haixiang
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to make recovery plan,you can

1 shorten the duration of the remain work
2 change the logic of the remain work
3 use different construction method (a new schedule is required, but keep the link to your key date)

for 1, 2 first start from critical activities, discuss with your team members to find out for which activity the duration can be shortened, which activity can be done in parallel( always start from the most cost effective ones)

then re-schedule, repeat the above process on the new critical path until these ’s nothing can be improved.

for 3 discuss with your team member to prepare a new schedule

hope this helps
Izam Zakaria
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easy man.....with using P3....use filter to track next look ahead schedule....example DD+30D...so u can see what the next activity will appear there....

Distribute to Project team ....... for their review....
So everybody will aware which act. is critical.....

Here, every week, we will submit to client, normally 2 weeks ahead.........

For recovery plan....discuss back with project team...seat together with them.....fix first the deadline....
Dougie Murphy
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Hi

90 days is a fair amount of slippage. What type of project, what is overall project duration and how far into project would your baseline have shown by now? I would assume current planned is greater than 3 months

Regards

Dougie
Rahul Mulik
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Hi,

If project is in delay

i. cause attributable to client - Dont prepare recovery programme until accelaration agreement is signed

ii. cause attributable to yourself - Prepare separate accelarated look ahead (dont make changes to original programme) and inform your clients with covering letter about the same, execute works accordingly and update the Original Programme on expiray of such look ahead period.
Clients concern shall be period performance & not the Day to Day activity Linking logic.

I believe that my point is Clear to you all, if any comment or suggestion on the same, do feel free to raise the point. I shall appreciate it.

Cheers & Regards,
Rahul Shamrao Mulik.
NMX LLC Dubai

Hilal Itani
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Hi,

Please make sure, when you do the recovery programme, to calculate the costs of acceleration, provided that the delay is not the Conractor’s delay.

Regards,
Kumar I
User offline. Last seen 13 years 39 weeks ago. Offline
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Hi Sonia,
Thanks for your reply.To summarise ,till such time the client asks for a recovery program,the contractor at his own should submit look ahead program showing recovery of his delays based on his recovery program which would be submitted to the client,when he requests for the same
Sonia Thomas
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Hi,

Your requirement is not clear..Do you want a lookahead programme from current schedule (which has 90 day delay) or look ahead programme which will recover the delay?

If it is the first one, it is a matter of filtering activities specifiying the period. But if it is the second one, then you will have to make a recovery programme (dont change the target..edit current schedule or make a copy of the current schedule and edit it). from the baseline/target programme you check where you shud be reaching say, after 3 months..make the recovery programme in such a way that in the look ahead period of 3 months you will reach taht point..

To make the recovery, obviously you will have to edit duration/relationship/calendar and most probably all of these.

regards
Sonia