Stochastic Project Networks

Stochastic Project Networks
Author: Klaus Neumann
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 250
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 3642615155

Project planning, scheduling, and control are regularly used in business and the service sector of an economy to accomplish outcomes with limited resources under critical time constraints. To aid in solving these problems, network-based planning methods have been developed that now exist in a wide variety of forms, cf. Elmaghraby (1977) and Moder et al. (1983). The so-called "classical" project networks, which are used in the network techniques CPM and PERT and which represent acyclic weighted directed graphs, are able to describe only projects whose evolution in time is uniquely specified in advance. Here every event of the project is realized exactly once during a single project execution and it is not possible to return to activities previously carried out (that is, no feedback is permitted). Many practical projects, however, do not meet those conditions. Consider, for example, a production process where some parts produced by a machine may be poorly manufactured. If an inspection shows that a part does not conform to certain specifications, it must be repaired or replaced by a new item. This means that we have to return to a preceding stage of the production process. In other words, there is feedback. Note that the result of the inspection is that a certain percentage of the parts tested do not conform. That is, there is a positive probability (strictly less than 1) that any part is defective.

Management

Management
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 122
Release: 1970
Genre: Industrial engineering
ISBN:

NASA SP-7500

NASA SP-7500
Author: United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Publisher:
Total Pages: 100
Release: 1968
Genre:
ISBN:

An Introduction to Project Modeling and Planning

An Introduction to Project Modeling and Planning
Author: Gündüz Ulusoy
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 494
Release: 2021-04-05
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 3030614239

This textbook teaches the basic concepts and methods of project management but also explains how to convert them to useful results in practice. Project management offers a promising working area for theoretical and practical applications, and developing software and decision support systems (DSS). This book specifically focuses on project planning and control, with an emphasis on mathematical modeling. Models and algorithms establish a good starting point for students to study the relevant literature and support pursuing academic work in related fields. The book provides an introduction to theoretical concepts, and it also provides detailed explanations, application examples, and case studies that deal with real-life problems. The chapter topics include questions that underlie critical thinking, interpretation, analytics, and making comparisons. Learning outcomes are defined and the content of the book is structured following these goals. Chapter 1 begins by introducing the basic concepts, methods, and processes of project management. This Chapter constitutes the base for defining and modeling project management problems. Chapter 2 explores the fundamentals of organizing and managing projects from an organization’s perspective. Issues related to project team formation, the role of project managers, and organization types are discussed. Chapter 3 is devoted to project planning and network modeling of projects, covering fundamental concepts such as project scope, Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS), Cost Breakdown Structure (CBS), project network modeling, activity duration, and cost estimating, activity-based costing (ABC), data and knowledge management. Chapter 4 introduces deterministic scheduling models, which can be used in constructing the time schedules. Models employing time-based and finance-based objectives are introduced. The CPM is covered. The unconstrained version of maximizing Net Present Value (NPV) is also treated here together with the case of time-dependent cash flows. Chapter 5 focuses on the time/cost trade-off problem, explaining how to reduce the duration of some of the activities and therefore reduce the project duration at the expense of additional costs. This topic is addressed for both continuous and discrete cases. Chapter 6 discusses models and methods of scheduling under uncertain activity durations. PERT is introduced for minimizing the expected project duration and extended to the PERT-Costing method for minimizing the expected project cost. Simulation is presented as another approach for dealing with the uncertainty in activity durations and costs. To demonstrate the use of the PERT, a case study on constructing an earthquake-resistant residential house is presented. Classifications of resource and schedule types are given in Chapter 7, and exact and heuristic solution procedures for the single- and multi-mode resource constrained project scheduling problem (RCPSP) are presented. The objective of maximizing NPV under resource constraints is addressed, and the capital-constrained project scheduling model is introduced. In Chapter 8, resource leveling, and further resource management problems are introduced. Total adjustment cost and resource availability cost problems are introduced. Various exact models are investigated. A heuristic solution procedure for the resource leveling problem is presented in detail. Also, resource portfolio management policies and the resource portfolio management problem are discussed. A case study on resource leveling dealing with the annual audit project of a major corporation is presented. Project contract types and payment schedules constitute the topics of Chapter 9. Contracts are legal documents reflecting the results of some form of client-contractor negotiations and sometimes of a bidding process, which deserve closer attention. Identification and allocation of risk in contracts, project control issues, disputes, and resolution management are further topics covered in this Chapter. A bidding model is presented to investigate client-contractor negotiations and the bidding process from different aspects. Chapter 10 focuses on processes and methods for project monitoring and control. Earned Value Management is studied to measure the project performance throughout the life of a project and to estimate the expected project time and cost based on the current status of the project. How to incorporate inflation into the analysis is presented. In Chapter 11, qualitative and quantitative techniques including decision trees, simulation, and software applications are introduced. Risk phases are defined and building a risk register is addressed. An example risk breakdown structure is presented. The design of risk management processes is introduced, and risk response planning strategies are discussed. At the end of the Chapter, the quantitative risk analysis is demonstrated at the hand of a team discussion case study. Chapter 12 covers several models and approaches dealing with various stochastic aspects of the decision environment. Stochastic models, generation of robust schedules, use of reactive and fuzzy approaches are presented. Sensitivity and scenario analysis are introduced. Also, simulation analysis, which is widely used to analyze the impacts of uncertainty on project goals, is presented. Chapter 13 addresses repetitive projects that involve the production or construction of similar units in batches such as railway cars or residential houses. Particularly in the construction industry repetitive projects represent a large portion of the work accomplished in this sector of the economy. A case study on the 50 km section of a motorway project is used for demonstrating the handling of repetitive project management. How best to select one or more of a set of candidate projects to maintain a project portfolio is an important problem for project-based organizations with limited resources. The project selection problem is inherently a multi-objective problem and is treated as such in Chapter 14. Several models and solution techniques are introduced. A multi-objective, multi-period project selection and scheduling model is presented. A case study that addresses a project portfolio selection and scheduling problem for the construction of a set of dams in a region is presented. Finally, Chapter 15 discusses three promising research areas in project management in detail: (i) Sustainability and Project Management, (ii) Project Management in the Era of Big Data, and (iii) the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the New Age Project Management. We elaborate on the importance of sustainability in project management practices, discuss how developments in data analytics might impact project life cycle management, and speculate how the infinite possibilities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the new technologies will transform project management practices.

Research and Practical Issues of Enterprise Information Systems

Research and Practical Issues of Enterprise Information Systems
Author: A. Min Tjoa
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 774
Release: 2007-11-14
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 038734456X

The idea for this conference came from a meeting of the IFIP (International Federation for Information Processing) Technical Committee for Information Systems (TC8) in Guimares, Portugal in June 2005. Our goal is to build an IFIP forum among the different Information Systems Communities of TC8 dealing with the increasing important area of Enterprise Information Systems. In this particular meeting the committee members intensively discussed the innovative and unique characteristics of Enterprise Information Systems as scientific sub-discipline. Hence, in this meeting it was decided by the TC8 members that the IFIP TC8 First International Conference on Research and Practical Issues of Enterprise Information Systems (CONFENIS 2006) would be held in April 2006 in Vienna, Austria. Dr. Li Xu (USA) and Dr. A Min Tjoa (IFIP TC8) were assigned to propose a concept for this conference in order to establish an IFIP platform for EIS researchers and practitioners in the field to share experience, and discussing opportunities and challenges. We are very pleased therefore to have this conference organised by the help of the Austrian Computer Society (OCG). OCG supports the idea of this conference due to the urgent need of research and dissemination of new techniques in this key area. We received 180 papers from more than 30 countries for CONFENIS and the Program Committee eventually selected xx papers or extended abstracts, making an acceptance rate of xx% of submitted papers. Each paper was thoroughly reviewed by at least two qualified reviewers.

Project Engineering

Project Engineering
Author: Anastasia Pagnoni
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 246
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 3642756301

Manufacturing processes, scientific experiments, research programs, tax collection systems, are all endeavors once born as projects. Project engineering is the application of science to the development and analysis of project plans, and to the supervision of their realization. This book is a unified treatise on the technology of project planning and execution. It provides a systematic understanding of the different methodological approaches to the development and supervision of project plans. Readers are given a technical introduction to the main methodologies, such as graphs, activity networks, CPM, PERT, GERT, and Petri nets, and given guidance as to when and why to apply one technique rather than another. The book deliberately emphasizes those techniques which are particularly suitable to exploiting the power of computation, and therefore supplies a solid platform for applying computer tools to the analysis and control of projects. The book also introduces ODM, a methodology based on the theory of fuzzy sets for supporting plan execution supervisors in making operational choices. The book is self-contained. It is designed to serve professionals and students in the fields of systems engineering, computer aided planning, and decision support systems.

Project Planning, Scheduling, and Control in Construction

Project Planning, Scheduling, and Control in Construction
Author: Calin M. Popescu
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 630
Release: 1995-03-20
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 9780471028581

Critical Path Method (CPM) and Performance Evaluation and ReviewTechnique (PERT) are widely recognized as the most effectivemethods of keeping large, complex construction projects onschedule, under budget, and up to professional standards. But thesemethods remain underused because they are poorly understood and,due to a host of unfamiliar terms and applications, may seem morecomplicated than they really are. This encyclopedia brings together, in one comprehensive volume, allterms, definitions, and applications related to the time and costmanagement of construction projects. While many of these termsrefer to ancient and venerable building practices, others haveevolved quite recently and refer specifically to modernconstruction and management techniques. Sources include hundreds ofprofessional books, trade journals, and research publications, aswell as planning and scheduling software vendor literature. The detailed glossary of all applicable terms includes across-referenced listing of examples that describe real-worldapplications for each term supplied. An extensive bibliographycovers all applicable books, articles, and periodicals available onproject planning, scheduling, and control using CPM and relatedsubjects. This book is an important quick reference and desktop informationresource for construction planners, schedulers, and controllers, aswell as civil engineers and project managers. It is also theultimate research tool for educators, students, or anyone who seeksto improve their understanding of the management of modernconstruction projects.

Modern Project Management Techniques for the Environmental Remediation Industry

Modern Project Management Techniques for the Environmental Remediation Industry
Author: Timothy J. Havranek
Publisher: CRC Press
Total Pages: 456
Release: 2017-11-01
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1351430521

Environmental remediation has brought significant improvements to industrial sites and surrounding communities throughout the nation. It's also become notorious for high budget overruns and frequent schedule delays, as environmental remediation's technological aspects become subject to political, managerial and economic concerns. Modern Project Management (MPM) Processes offer a new framework for remediation programs, geared to increased efficiency and precise troubleshooting. Environmental consultant and certified project management professional (PMP) Timothy J. Havranek has helped various companies put MPM into practice: now, he brings his techniques to the environmental remediation industry at large. Melding traditional project management structure and advanced strategic planning techniques to the needs of environmental remediation, Modern Project Management Techniques for the Environmental Remediation Industry presents this major innovation: a standardized planning process, applicable to all types of remediation projects. Every participant in an environmental remediation effort can mutually benefit from Modern Project Management Techniques for the Environmental Remediation Industry. Environmental consultants will discover precise budget and schedule-planning skills-quite an advantage in their increasingly competitive industry. Customers will also know what to consider when selecting an environmental services company, and discover advanced methods for reducing project costs and durations. MPM: it's bringing new vitality and purpose to environmental protection. Put it into practice with the benefit of Havranek's real-life experience.