Resource Allocation and Resource Leveling - Construction Project Scheduling and Control - page 128

Staff members who do not have to be present at the job site every day can be
spread out, either by dividing their day between two or more jobs or by assigning
certain entire days to different jobs. Certain high-paid staff, such as safety officers,
schedulers, and project control managers, who need to spend only one day every week
or every two weeks at the job site, may even fly hundreds of miles between jobs. With
the advancement of telecommunications tools (phones, Internet, video conferencing,
etc.), many functions can now be performed from a remote location.
Tip Box 6.1
Sharing resources among projects is simply a matter of feasibility and economy.
Assigning Budgets in Computer Scheduling Programs
Without going into accounting details, let us briefly cover budgeting in this chapter,
but only in the context of project control and resource leveling. In scheduling pro-
grams, two methods are available for assigning budgets to activities (this subject is
discussed further in Chapter 10):
1. Assigning a lump-sum amount without explaining (in the program) how the
number was derived or what resources were used. You may still need to supply
a cost accounting code in some software packages, which helps track the cost.
2. Assigning a number of units of certain resources (e.g., one foreman, one equip-
ment operator, two laborers, one bulldozer, and one hydraulic excavator) to
the activity. The program will calculate the budget for a particular activity from
the “resource dictionary” in the project database.
The second method has six advantages:
1. You can level and manage your resources only when you assign resources to
the activity.
2. You can produce procurement reports, specifying the resources needed by
type, quantity, date, and cost. You can link your schedule with the account-
ing (and estimating) system, match your demand with supply, and trace each
expense in your project. You can do this, too, with the first method, but you
will see only dollar amounts without any breakdown details.
3. This method helps more in project control and earned value management.
4. In case there is a change in the cost or availability of a resource that is being
used for one or more activities, the scheduling program will reflect the impact
of the change at the entire project level.
5. You may be able to use a “resource calendar.” This type of calendar is defined
for a specific crew. For example, if the plumbing crew is available for work on