University of Technology & Applied Sciences

Higher College of Technology

Engineering Department

Construction Management
CEQS3230

Construction Planning

Sahar Ismael Baker

 Outline
 Objectives and learning outcomes.
 Introduction.
 Project Planning Steps.
 Work Breakdown Structure.
 Project Activities.
 Activities relationships

 Estimating project duration

A- Gant chart
 Objectives and learning outcomes

 Objectives:
Demonstrate the planning process in construction and how breakdown the
project to elements.

 learning outcomes:
Understanding the planning process and ability to draw a Work Breakdown
Structure. Ability to estimating project duration using Gantt chart.
 Introduction
The planning process in construction has the following activities
within it:  
1) Identification of goals to be achieved.

2) Formulation of strategies to achieve the goals.

3) Creation of the means required for achievement.

4) Implementation in the correct sequence.

Planning a construction project has the following benefits (McIntosh, 2017):

1) Clearer Direction.
2) Higher accountability.
3) Better problem anticipation.
4) Greater reliability.
5) Higher project completion probability.
 Project Planning Steps
The following steps may be used as a guideline, or checklist to develop a project
plan:
1. Define the scope of work, method statement, and sequence of work.
2. Generate the work breakdown structure (WBS) to produce a complete list
of activities.
3. Develop the organization breakdown structure (OBS) and link it with work
breakdown structure to identify responsibilities.
4. Determine the relationship between activities.
5. Estimate activities time duration, cost expenditure, and resource requirement.
6. Develop the project network
 Work Breakdown Structure
The WBS is described as a hierarchical structure which is designed to logically
sub-divide all the work-elements of the project into a graphical presentation. The
full scope of work for the project is placed at the top of the diagram, and then sub-
divided smaller elements of work at each lower level of the breakdown. At the
lowest level of the WBS the elements of work is called a work package. A list of
project’s activities is developed from the work packages.
Effective use of the WBS will outline the scope of the project and the
responsibility for each work package. There is not necessarily a right or wrong
structure because what may be an excellent fit for one discipline may be an
awkward burden for another.
 Steps of making a WBS:
1) Project tasks are broken down into work packages with sufficient detail to allow
planning.
2) The work packages are arranged in a hierarchal order and listed.
3) A diagram is drawn to show the relationships between the various work packages.
Level 1: The entire project.
Level 2: Independent areas.
Level 3: Physically identifiable sections fully contained in a level 2 area, reflect construction strategy.
Level 4: Disciplines set up schedule.
Level 5: Master schedule activities, quantity, duration.
 Level WBS Term Description
Level 0 (Highest) Project The overall project under development

Level 1 Deliverable The major project components

Level 2 Sub-deliverable Supporting deliverables

(Lowest) Level Work package Individual project activities

 Types of WBS
There are four (4) main types of WBS:
 
1) Facility: The division is done based on different departments and their
services.
2) Function: The division is done based on different goals and their results.
3) Space: The division is done based on different physical locations.
4) Process: The division is done based on the steps involved in the creation of the
result. This is the only type of WBS which is arranged chronologically from
left to right.
Facility

Level 0 Project

Site
Level 1: Major Facilities
Buildings
Utilities
Site Work

Level 2: Sub-Facilities
Office
Building
Maintenance
Building
Warehouse
Building Water Electricity Paving

Architectural Level 3: Work

MechanicalItem Electrical
Structural

Foundation Level
Shell4: Tasks

Work Work
Level
package5:
1 Work packages
package 2
Function

Level 0 Gas-Steam Combined Plant

Level 1: Major Functions of the Plant Gas Steam Interfaces

Compression
Level 2: Items Station
Generator Turbine

Level 3: UnitsGas Treatment

Compressors Enclosure

Comp 1 Level
Comp4:
2 Sub-units
Comp 3

Design Level 5: Work packages

Procurement Installation
Space

Process
Level 0 Project

Feasibility Design LevelBid1 Construction Commissioning

Bid Steel
Basic Detail Level 2
documents
Foundations erection
Finishing

Level 3 Main
building
Service
building

Level 4 Piles Concrete

foundations Piles Concrete
foundations
 Example:

This case study is for a small 3 houses project. The main segments of a single house, the logical
relationship are identified as follows:
 11 work packages are involved: A and B (civil work, substructure), C, D, E, and F(civil
work, superstructure), G (electrical, interior), H (electrical, exterior), I (mechanical,
HVAC), J (mechanical, elevator), and K (mechanical, plumbing).
 It is required to create a WBS chart.
 Project Activities

 An activity is defined as any function or decision in the project that: consumes time, resources, and
cost. Activities are classified to three types:

 Production activities: activities that involve the use of resources such as labor, equipment, material, or
subcontractor. This type of activities can be easily identified by reading the project’s drawings and
specifications. Examples are: excavation, formwork, reinforcement, concreting, etc. each production
activity can have a certain quantity of work, resource needs, costs, and duration.

 Procurement activities: activities that specify the time for procuring materials or equipment that are
needed for a production activity. Examples are: brick procurement, boiler manufacturing and delivery,
etc.

 Management activities: activities that are related to management decisions such as approvals,
vacations, etc.
Activities Relationships
 In order to identify the relationships among activities, the planning team
needs to answer the following questions for each activity in the project:-

 Which activities must be finished before the current one can start?

 What activity (ies) may be constructed concurrently with the current one?

 What activity(ies) must follow the current one?

 Types of activities relationships
 Precedence: Not all activities can be carried out at the same time. Some activities
must start together, some activities can only start after another activity finishes and
other activities might finish when another activity finishes.
 There are three main types of precedence:
1) Technical Precedence: Caused by technical relationships among activities.
Spray
Install RCC Install RCC Pour RCC
Curing
Rebar Shutters Concrete
Compound

2) Procedural Precedence: Caused by organizational policies and procedures.

Obtain QC Obtain Obtain
Install RCC
Engineer Consultant Municipality
Rebar
Approval Approval Approval

3) Imposed Precedence: Caused by external factors that depend on the situation.

Search for
Order RCC Secondary Arrange Install RCC
Rebar Supplier due to Transportation Rebar
Shortage
 Types of dependencies (relationships)
There are four (4) main types of dependencies caused by the different types of
precedence discussed. They are:

1- Start-to-Finish: It is also known as SF and is not commonly used. The completion of B depends on
the starting of A. For example, the construction of the pad footings on this project can finish after the
starting of the roof slab on another project due to resource constraints.

2- Finish-to- Start: It is also known as FS and is the most commonly used type. The start of B depends
on the completion of A. For example, the compaction on the soil for the footing can start after the
excavation is complete.
3- Start-to-Star: It is also known as SS. The start of B depends on the starting of A. For
example, the submission of request for approvals to various authorities must start at the same
time.

4- Finish-to-Finish: It is also known as FF. The completion of B depends on the completion of

A. For example, the laying of two adjacent pipelines should finish together.
 Lag-and-Lead
Sometimes there is a need for an activity to start or finish sooner or later than another
activity to achieve the goals of the project in the best possible way.

 Lag : It is used when there must be a delay between the two activities. For example: the

vertical shuttering for a column can be removed 24 hours after the previous activity (pouring of the
concrete) is complete.

 Lead: It is used where the proceeding activity must start ahead of the usual time determined by
the dependency. For example, the preparation of the next stage of road construction can start a few
days before the previous layer is complete.
 Gantt chart
A Gantt chart is a bar chart used to illustrate a project schedule that includes milestones. It
normally includes start & end dates of activities and a summary of activities in a construction
project. The activities are taken from the work breakdown structure (WBS) of that project.
Gantt charts serve as an excellent tool to show updated schedule status using actual complete
shadings and vertical lines representing the actual date. Gantt charts are sometimes prepared
showing preceding and following activities. A Gantt chart provides an overall summary of the
project schedule without complicated details (“Milestone Gantt chart example schedule,”
n.d.).
Milestones on a Gantt chart can be shown in various colors or with markings that indicate
status. A milestone chart Gantt is usually used for top level reporting so management does not
become bogged down in the minutia of the project or projects.
The red lines show the critical path while the blue lines show activities with float. The red
diamonds are milestones and the black bars inside the blue and red bars the percentage
 Gantt Chart Advantages
A Gantt chart offers the following advantages (Rodriguez, 2016):
1) It can be used to represent phases and activities of a project in a
very simplistic visualization.
2) It can be useful for indicating the important parts on the chart with
bold or colored outlines of the bars.

3) An updated Gantt chart helps manage the project and foresee

schedule problems.
4) Computer software can simplify the process of updating a Gantt
chart
 Gantt Chart Disadvantages

A Gantt chart could have the following disadvantages (Rodriguez, 2016):

1) It is not recommended to define the WBS and the schedule of activities at the
same time.
2) It is not useful if it is intended to display complete detailed information.
3) Some charts may not represent the complexity of a project.
4) The Horizontal bars may misrepresent the actual resource requirements of a
project.
5) A Gantt chart with percent-complete shading may actually miscommunicate the
true schedule performance status.
A simple Gantt chart activity schedule showing sub-activities
Example
Solution
Conclusion
What we have been learned?
 Objectives and learning outcomes.
 Introduction.
 Project Planning Steps.
 Work Breakdown Structure.
 Project Activities.
 Activities relationships
 Estimating project duration

A- Gant chart