MS Project is a project management software program that has become a construction industry standard for creating and managing construction schedules.
Most people know MS Project for its ability to organize work and resources to complete everything from a small project to large initiatives in the most efficient way possible. But at the core of MS Project and most project management software is the schedule. As we’ve discussed in our post 5 Warning Signs Your Project is Headed for Disaster, the project schedule is not just a “plan” but a tool: “It is the most important planning, communication, and control tool for your project.”
In this post, we’ll cover why creating a project schedule for construction is important, how to create a schedule in MS Project, as well as outlining the 10 basic steps needed to build a solid foundation to start your build off right.
Developed in 1984 (made commercial in 1985) by Microsoft, it was the third application created for its Windows-based operating system and quickly became the dominant platform for managing projects. In the last 30+ years, it has evolved and seen many updates, versions, and changes. Today Microsoft Project (MS Project) ranks as the second most popular project management system (PMS) across all criteria and industries, and its latest version was just released in 2023.
Currently, there are two versions of MS Project: Project Online and Project for the Web. Once originally a desktop platform, it is now offered primarily as a cloud-based solution using a Web browser in a 3-tier level subscription format.
At the time of this post, the 3-tier subscriptions are as follows:
One of the primary differences between the two versions is that Project Online was built on the Microsoft Power Platform. On the other hand, Project on the Web was built on Microsoft SharePoint. Moreover, Project for the Web is designed with a clean, easy-to-use interface for more simple projects. Project Online is more robust, powerful, and secure. It was designed for more complex projects, collaboration, and managing project portfolios.
Most importantly, MS Project utilizes a standard proprietary file format (.mpp). The MPP extension is a data file that can only be opened by MS Project or with a 3rd party application. To view a project or project schedule in MS Project, it must be in a .mpp format. If you would like to export your data or schedule out to import into other applications, often it will need to be an MPP file, .xls, or .pdf.
MS Project is a great tool that enables seamless collaboration for project teams. Everyone working on the project can log in, see what task(s) they need to work on, update their status, and record any changes. Some of the main features currently available for all versions of MS Project include:
Specifically, MS Project is a project management software program that has become a construction industry standard for creating and managing construction schedules. It allows you to track the progress of your construction project and identify potential problems, such as delays or cost overruns, early so that you can take corrective action.
In addition, MS Project can help you forecast your build’s completion date and ensure that your project stays on track utilizing the following resources traditionally leveraged in a construction schedule: Starting new projects or importing old, scheduling, cost management, resource tracking, critical path analysis, and third-party application integration.
Even some of the most experienced construction project managers and schedulers face challenges with scheduling and scheduling using MS Project. However, creating a construction project schedule in MS Project can be complex, but it doesn’t have to be difficult. Learning how to create an MS Project schedule can then be helpful to both seasoned professionals as well as beginners.
Below, we are going to walk you through step-by-step how to build and create your own construction schedule using MS Project that’s specifically customized for construction. We’ll teach you how to create a new schedule, how to design your columns (or what data points to capture unique to construction), what fields to include, how to create a baseline so you can track planned vs. actual, how to identify and chart your critical path in MS Project and, then finally, how to display all this in the traditional Gantt chart view.
Note: For more details on the importance of a project schedule in general and the components of what goes into an effective project schedule, please review SmartPM’s post on how to create a project schedule here.
Step 1: Create a New Construction Project
1. First, you need create a project. You can do so in several ways:
2. Second, set your options by clicking ‘Set Options‘ in the lower-left corner.
Step 2: Adjust Construction Schedule Columns
Next, you want to adjust the auto-populated columns.
* Remember, there are over 500 auto-populated choices to choose from. Simply begin typing in the column header, and MS Project will fill it in for you.
The last thing you need to do is to add a ‘start date’ for your project. Then, you’re ready to begin filling in the schedule.
Step 4: Add Schedule Tasks and Activities
Once your project is created, add tasks and activities to your project:
Step 5: Order Schedule Tasks and Define Relationships
After you have created your construction work activities and added their durations, you’ll want to establish the relationships between each task. Tell MS Project what order they should occur in and which one should follow the next. We do this by adding tasks dependencies:
*Never adjust the Start and Finish Dates while doing this. MS Project will perform those functions and calculations for you.
Step 6: Create Construction Schedule WBS, Summary Bars & Milestones
You could continue creating a long list of job tasks. However, at this stage, it might be important to create “summary bars” to refine task relationships. Summary bars or WBS (work breakdown structures) are a good way to “bucket” work activities. All tasks that complete a larger activity or milestone can be grouped together. To do this, you insert a new task (or modify a previous one), give it a name, and then “indent” all the sub-tasks below it. Those changes and new relationships will update on the Gantt chart view.
To make any summary bar a milestone, you have to indicate to MS Project that it should now be considered a milestone:
As we all know, even with the best-laid plans, things often go awry. Although not recommended, this is where “constraints” come in. When something that is scheduled for a certain date can no longer start on that date, as an example, you would need to go back into that task and put a constraint on it:
For our example above, you would select the ‘Must Start On’ constraint and then select the new date it should start on.
Step 8: Define Critical Path Method (CPM) for Construction
One of the great things about Microsoft Project is that it effortlessly enables you to see the critical path. Harvard Business Review defines the critical path as “…the longest path (in time) from Start to Finish; it indicates the minimum time necessary to complete the entire project.” For construction projects, it’s perhaps the most critical thing to safeguard and monitor with respect to the schedule. To view the critical path on your schedule:
All activities with zero days of slack/float are on the critical path and should be highlighted in red.
Step 9: Set up the Construction Schedule Calendar
For your project and, therefore, for your construction work schedule to have accurate times and dates, you need to customize your MS Project calendar to reflect reality accurately. You need to tell MS Project which days are non-work days, such as holidays, and what dates those fall on. You can also refine what days are workdays and what the workweek looks like. To change your calendar:
The final step in completing your construction schedule setup is to set the baseline. The baseline is the official finalized or approved version of the schedule file. The construction schedule baseline is very important as it compares against the final project schedule.
It is locked and can only be formally changed through strict change control procedures. To set the baseline:
Once your baseline is set, you’ve now created a “snapshot” of your project and have the ability to view your planned vs. actual. You should be able to see both the original baseline schedule activity underneath the actual one in the Gantt chart.
And there you have it! You have now created your own MS Project Schedule customized to start your construction project! Remember, once created, do not neglect your project schedule! Practice good project management best practices and routinely update your schedule—monitor for any changes, especially those that can adversely impact the critical path.
