hi,all
Physical should be used if we are not sure which one is the best. Because all the infromation include the remain duration, physical percent,resource units etc. can be input in this option.

Hi Shazia,
That’s good and I fully recommend two settings for a start which may change during life cycle of a Project.

For all having fixed durations and measurable by time, use Duration % complete and Fixed Duration & Units.
Ex: Design, Project Management, Site office and maintenance, Engineering etc...

For all construction activities measurable by qty, progress measurement, deliverables…etc…. Use Physical % complete combine with Fixed Duration & unit if unit is fixed and Fixed Durations & Unit/time if unit is variables.

You don’t need unit % complete as you haven’t mention any resource driven activities and leveling of resource.

Good Luck!!!

Shazia,
It is very simple and only answerable by you. Don’t focus on the settings and that is only corresponds on how you want to control the response of the software which might be keep changing through the life cycle of the projects. You may use all of them in one Project depends on what type of input is gathered and required.

Basic questions that you need to answer which will be driving on which settings you need to use.
1) What are the basic reports required to produce?
•     Baseline comparison with current project
•     Progress status, S-Curve and histogram
•     Earned Value Management
•     Cash Flow and Forecast
•     Look Ahead Schedule
2) Levelling of Resource etc…
•     Resource Management
•     Resource Allocation and Utilization
3) Cost and Accounts Management
4) Production Steps or Rules of Credit
5) What are the sources of input for progress?
•     Supervisor/ Project Engineer
•     QS and quantified progress using BOQ
•     Physical effort measuring progress by going to site itself
•     Methods of Measurement

For measuring Physical effort and Physical progress or using Production steps recommended settings is to use Physical % Complete. This will allow planner to update Progress, Duration and resources independently.

Ex: Physical % complete, Act1 = Duration =5days, Total Unit =40 units, Unit/time = 8/day
Progress = 80%, remaining duration and units are manually updated based on estimated remaining duration left and actual and remaining units to complete the task.

For measuring Duration progress or Duration driven progress recommended settings are Duration % complete combined with Fixed Durations & Units or Fixed Durations & Unit/Time. These settings will synchronize Duration and Units update.
Ex: same as above
Progress = 80%, Duration and units are automatically updated = 1 day and 8 units remaining. (unit can adjust to reflect actual and estimated remaining units)

For measuring Resource driven progress or driving activities recommended settings are Unit % complete combined with Fixed Units or Fixed Unit/Time. These settings will allow task controlled by resource progress or unit % progress.
Ex: same as above
Unit or resource will control progress and duration will automatically adjust if drive activity dates by default is mark or tick.

Note: All these settings can be change during the Project life cycle to control response of each activity.

Another example why I mention it will be change during Project life cyle. If your setting is Duration % percent complete combined wiht Fixed Duration and Unit as per example above.
Say Act1 = 5 day with 40 units (8/d)
First update = 40 % which is according to plan so remaining is 3 days. Now on the next update you have 60% but not according to plan which supposed to be 80%. Your remaining is equal 2 day (5*60% = 3day) but estimated remaining duration is only 1 day. If you change the remaining duration to 1 day your progress will show 80% and not 60% and will have wrong progress. In order to show 60% progress you need to change the Percent complete type to Physical so the software will allow you to input 60% complete and 1 day remaining duration.

Shareef,
On your case you need to use Physical % complete and not duration % complete if you want to show actual progress against planned and not controlled by duration % complete or unit % complete. Duration % complete is also possible but needs to amend actual unit progress to reflect correct productivity output.

Ex: Duration % complete, Act1 = 10 days and 100units = 10/day
If progress = 80%
Remaining Duration = 1 day
Actual Unit = 80 unit
Remaining Unit = 20 unit
You can manually change the actual units if Progress per day is not correct or different productivity output.
Using this setting, Duration will control your progress but units can be amended.

Ex: Unit% complete
Using this setting will allow planner to control the unit progress. It will not update duration and need to do a manual update when progressing except if duration type used is Fixed Unit or Fixed Unit/Time and drive activity date by default is tick.

Both duration and unit % complete type are also controlled by Duration type.

For Duration % complete type the recommended settings is Fixed duration & Unit or Fixed Duration and Unit/Time. Any of these setting when combined with duration % complete type, allow planner to control progress by duration.

For Unit % complete the recommended settings is Fixed Unit or Fixed Unit/Time and will allow planner to control unit and duration using unit % if drive activity date by default is tick.

Physical % complete will run independently and duration or units are manually progressed.

In regards to your query duration type settings will control your resource units.
If Fixed duration & Unit is use it will fixed the unit assigned even duration is change. If Fixed duration & Unit/Time is use then unit will change and follow duration change whether increase or decrease. It will be the same response using Fixed unit = unit will retained even duration change and for Fixed Unit/Time unit will follow duration changes.

Shareef,
If you use Duration % complete combine with Fixed Duration and Unit or Fixed Duration and Unit/time that should automatically update duration and units at the same time base on the progress that you enter.

Shazia,
It depends on how you want to track or monitor your Project. Using Duration % complete type synchronize update of remaining duration and units and Unit % complete type do the same defends on Duration type settings. Using Physical will need manual update for all but good for monitoring EVM.