Construction Management Blog

Float is a quick indicator in scheduling to see how an activity is peforming in relation to other activities. In many cases it is best if the float is calculated off of a project completion date. Because float represents how long an activity can be delayed until it impacts either another activity or contraint, the float values can be hard to understand without knowing all constraints used in a schedule. Another point of confusion is that schedules that are scheduled to fninish ahead of a required schedule completion date can show negative activity float values, again depending on whether or not constraints are used and if they are being satisifed.

 

Some customers require that constraints be omiited from the schedule. This is a clear approach to use so that all float values reference the same thing, being the required completion date. Because schedules are seen by more than schedulers, reducing this confusion can go a long way to be building confidence in the integrity of the schedule by people other than schedulers.