RECOURSE ALLOCATION &

LEVELLING

Shahid Ali Khawaj

 DEFINITION
A resource is a necessary asset whose main role is to help carry
out a certain task or project.

Recourses in construction indicates three main categories

▪ Labor (salaried or daily wedgers)
▪ Equipment (equipment used for the construction process but is not
permanently installed in the project)
▪ Materials (materials stays permanently in the project after
completion)
RESOURCE ALLOCATION & LEVELLING
Resource Allocation is the process of assigning and scheduling
available resources in the most effective and economical manner.

Resource Levelling is a technique in which start and finish dates

are adjusted based on resource limitation with the goal of
balancing demand for resources with the available supply.
 WHY IS IT NECESSARY?
It is necessary to improve efficiency and minimize the cost of the
project:

• Mobilization
• Setup
• Operation (Operators, Spotters)
• Maintenance
• Demobilization
Therefore we can try to use resource levelling by postponing the start or finish of the activities those are not critical.
 STEPS FOR RESOURCE ALLOCATION
There are 6 steps to performing a proper resource allocation:

▪ Divide the Project into Tasks

▪ Assign the Resources
▪ Determine resource attributes
▪ Resource Levelling
▪ Re-allocate as necessary
▪ Track resource utilization
 DIVIDE THE PROJECT INTO TASKS
▪ In project management, the project is divided into tasks and managed on a task, rather than a project,
level. Resource allocation is an integral component of this process because each task is assigned the
necessary resources, and the resources are managed by task.
▪ During the project planning phase, the project’s constituent tasks are determined and listed, like this:
ID Task
100 Dig Holes
200 Build Fence
▪ Each task is assigned a start and end date and a budget, like this:
Budge
ID Task Start End
t
July $1,00
100 Dig Holes July 1
10 0
July $9,00
200 Build Fence July 8
31 0
▪ This is called a work breakdown structure (WBS), and it is the minimum planning phase for a small project,
according to all of the three main project management methodologies.
▪ Once the project is successfully divided into tasks, the resources can be assigned.
 ASSIGN THE RESOURCES
▪ Each task requires resources in order to be successfully performed. As a minimum, most tasks
require a human resource to carry out some actions. Usually, the person starts with some input
materials which are used to produce an output.

Generally, there are three types of resources:

▪ Labor
▪ Equipment D Task Start End Budget Resources
100 Dig Holes July 1 July 10 $1,000 Bob, shovel
▪ Materials
Bob, Bill,
shovel, fence
200 Build Fence July 8 July 31 $9,000
posts, fence
material
 DETERMINE RESOURCE ATTRIBUTES
▪ Grade
▪ Skill
▪ Quality
▪ Resource-specific attributes: Size, shape, length, speed, colour, strength, etc.
▪ Availability

Resource Attributes Availability

Bob Needs 1 week notice
•Garden style
Shovel Immediately
•large
 RESOURCE LEVELLING
▪ Project schedules are usually created without the resources in mind. That is, the network
diagram and gantt chart are manipulated to minimize the schedule duration based on the
number of hours or days required to carry out each task, but the resources assigned to the task
might be highly volatile, incurring sometimes major cost and schedule implications.
▪ For example, if we need Bob for 2 hours one day and 18 hours the next, we might need to pay
him overtime thereby driving the project over budget.
▪ Resource levelling refers to the process of inspecting the resources to ensure their use is as
“smooth” and level as possible. It is a common scenario that it is more advantageous to
extend the project schedule to avoid large spikes and dips in resource usage.
▪ In addition, the resources used to carry out those tasks must be procured (purchased),
delivered, and prepared. During the project, they must be maintained and serviced. All of
these tasks must be accounted for within the project schedule and budget.
 RE-ALLOCATE AS NECESSARY
▪ Throughout the project, resource re-allocation tends to be a constant and inescapable
function of the project manager.
▪ Resources are scarce. They sometimes do not show up on time, are needed by other projects,
or lose their usefulness over time. Many things can happen that require a shift of resources
from one task to another, or a change in the project schedule or budget.
 TRACK UTILIZATION RATES
▪ It is a surprisingly common occurrence that a resource arrives at a project and sits idle
for a long period of time.
▪ It is equally common that project managers have no idea that the resource is being paid
for but not being used.
▪ A simple solution is to track resource utilization rates. The utilization rate is simply the
percentage of billable time:
▪ Utilization Rate = Number of Billable Hours / Number of Total Hours
▪ For example, if Bill worked 4 hours out of a possible 40 hours for the week, his
utilization rate is 4 / 40 = 10%. Clearly this would suggest corrective action is warranted
on the part of the project manager.
 Es, Ef
EXAMPLE Name
Dur
Tasks Description IPA Duration Laborers Ls, Lf
▪ Perform the CP calculation
A Mobilization - 4 4
▪ Draw the precedence
B Milling 150mm - 7 2
▪ Allocate the resources and level
C Paving 18.2 A 4 8 them so do not use more than 15
laborers a day
D Paving 18.3 A-B 5 8

E Demobilization C-D 1 4
0,4 4,8
A C
4 4 12,13
3,7 8,12 E
SP 1
EP
0,7 7,12 12,13
B D
7 5
0,7 7,12
Activity
A 4 4 4 4
B 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
C 8 8 8 8 8
D 8 8 8 8 8
E 4
Days 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Labours 6 6 6 6 10 10 10
16 8 8 8 8
4
8 12

Ask yourself which is critical?