Assessment of the use of resource scheduling facilities in project management software packages for large contractors

In the construction industry today, the execution of project requires the management of scarce resources. Construction planners need to schedule and select appropriate resources, including crew sizes, materials, equipment and plant to execute a construction project. These resources are essential for the successful completion of the project. Making optimal decision by construction planners in the use of these resources is difficult and time consuming, and it usually involves the use of Critical Path Method (CPM) software packages. These software packages are mainly Project Management (PM) software. Surveys were conducted to assess the use of resource scheduling facilities in CPM software packages over a ten-year period. The questionnaire surveys were carried out in 1997 and 2007. The study is concentrated on large construction firms, the top sixty-five contractors as published in the NCE 1995 and 2006 contractors' files. A questionnaire was designed and sent to the contractors: Questions were asked about the following: factors used by contractors regarding the selection of CPM as a planning technique, types of users and types of projects planned and scheduled by CPM. Also questions were asked on the distribution of scarce resources with emphasis on resource optimization methods, and CPM impact on key resource areas. The results confirm that construction professionals are frequent users of PM software. However, the degree of usage differs among respondents in their usage patterns. Most CPM capabilities within the software are not fully utilised by most respondents.