EdExcel Decision Mathematics 1

Critical Path Analysis

Section 1: Activity networks

Notes and Examples

These notes contain subsections on

 Drawing an activity network
 Using dummy activities
 Analysing the network
 Float and slack

In these notes several different examples are used to demonstrate the drawing
and analysis of an activity network, including the use of dummy activities
where required. To help you understand how each network is built up, there
are PowerPoint presentations for the shorter examples and video clips for the
longer example. Each example will be in two parts: the first part deals with
drawing the network (covered in Exercise 5B in the textbook), the second
looks at finding the earliest event time, latest event time and critical activities,
and also looks at float (covered in Exercise 5C and 5D in the textbook). The
same examples will be used in section 2 to look at scheduling activities.

The first three examples are given without any context, so that you can
concentrate on dealing with the network. The fourth example deals with a
practical situation.

Drawing an activity network

Example 1 shows a very simple network, in which no dummy activities are
required. There is a PowerPoint presentation which shows how the network
is built up. Note that it is sometimes helpful to redraw a network part way
through, if you realise that you can avoid having activities crossing.

Example 1 (Part 1)
The table below shows the activities required to complete a project, with their
durations and immediate predecessors.

Duration Immediate
Activity
(hours) predecessors
A 3 -
B 4 -
C 6 -
D 5 A
E 1 B
F 6 B
G 7 C, D, E

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Draw an activity network for the project.

Solution 2
D(5)
A(3)

C(6)
1 4
G(7)
E(1)
B(4) 5
3 F(6)

Dummy activities
Many networks require “dummy activities” in order to make them fit the
requirements. A dummy activity has zero duration.

There are two types of dummy activity. These are shown in the two next
examples.

In Example 2, a dummy activity is introduced because two activities would

otherwise start at the same event and finish at the same event. This means
that both activities would be described by the same number pair (i, j). When
doing a network by hand, this would not really matter, but when programming
a computer it is important that each activity is described by a unique number
pair. The dummy activity ensures that this is the case. Even when doing
networks by hand you must follow this rule, or you will lose marks in an
examination.

You can also look at the PowerPoint presentation which shows how the
network is built up.

Example 2 (Part 1)
The table below shows the activities required to complete a project, with their
durations and immediate predecessors.

Duration Immediate
Activity
(days) predecessors
A 2 -
B 3 -
C 5 -
D 6 A, B
E 8 C
F 2 C
G 4 D, E
Draw an activity network for the project.

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Solution Activities A and B both start at the same

event and need to end at the same event,
since D depends on them both. The
2 dummy activity is introduced to ensure
unique numbering.
A(2)

D(6) G(4)
1 3 5 6
B(3)

E(8)
C(5) F(2)

Example 3 shows the second type of dummy activity. This is used when it is
not otherwise possible to draw a network with the correct dependencies.

You can also look at the PowerPoint presentation which shows how the
network is built up.

Example 3
The table below shows the activities required to complete a project, with their
durations and immediate predecessors.

Duration Immediate
Activity
(days) predecessors
A 2 -
B 4 -
C 5 A, B
D 3 B
E 6 C
F 3 C
G 8 D
H 2 D, F

Draw an activity network for the project.

Solution C(5)
2 4
A(2) E(6)
F(3)

1 H(2)
6 7
A dummy activity is
G(8)
needed here as C
B(4)
A dummy activity is
depends on both A needed here as G
and B but D 3 5
D(3) depends on D only but H
depends on B only. depends on both F and D.
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Analysing the network

Once you have drawn a precedence network, the next step is to find the
earliest event times and latest event times. The earliest event times are found
by working forwards through the network and recording the earliest possible
times that you can reach each event, and the latest event times are found by
working backwards through the network and recording the latest possible time
that each event can take place if the project is still to finish on time.

The critical path can then be found by identifying those activities (i, j) for which
the difference between lj and ei is equal to the duration of the activity.

Example 1 (Part 2)
Use activity network for the project in Example 1 to find the earliest event times and
latest event times.
Give the minimum duration of the project and the critical activities.

Solution
3 3
2
D(5)
A(3)

8 8
C(6)
1 4
G(7)
0 0 E(1)
B(4) 5 15 15
3 F(6)
4 7

The critical activities are A, D and G.

The minimum time for the project is 15 hours.

You can also look at the PowerPoint presentation which shows how the
earliest event times and latest event times are calculated.

Float, slack and the critical path

Float is the spare time associated with an activity. It is important as it gives us

information about the impact that a delay on one activity will have on the whole
project. Activities with no float are critical activities and lie on the critical path.

Float becomes very important in the next section, when we consider the
scheduling of activities. The „spare time‟ on non-critical activities can be used
to delay the start of some activities. This can enable one resource (such as a

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person or a machine) to carry out more than one activity without affecting the
critical path.
Slack is the spare time associated with an event. Events with no slack are
critical events and lie on the critical path, but an activity that goes from one
critical event to another critical event is not necessarily a critical activity.
Because of this, the idea of float is often more useful than than the idea of
slack.

For Example 1 above, the floats for each activity and the slack for each event
are as follows:

Activity Total float Event Slack

A 3–0–3=0 1 0–0=0
B 7–0–4=3 2 3–3=0
C 8–0–6=2 3 7–4=3
D 8–3–5=0 4 8–8=0
E 8–4–1=3 5 15 – 15 = 0
F 15 – 4 – 6 = 5
G 15 – 8 – 7 = 0

Notice:
 The critical activities, C, E and G have zero float. Any delay in these
activities will delay the whole project.
 Events 1 and 4 are critical events, but activity C, which goes from
event 1 to event 4, is not a critical activity.
 All the float on activity C belongs only to activity C. By looking at the
network, you can see that C can take two extra hours without any
impact on the whole project or on any other activities.
 B and E together take up 5 hours, and they need to be complete after
8 hours. So between them they can take an extra 3 hours, but this 3
hours of float is shared between them. If for example B takes an extra
3 hours, E must not take any extra time.
 F has a total of 5 hours of float. 2 hours of this belongs only to activity
F – it can take an extra 2 hours without affecting any other activity or
the total duration. However, if F takes its maximum possible extra time
of 5 hours, then you can see from the activity network that B must not
take any extra time. The other 3 hours of belonging to F is therefore
shared with B – if B takes an extra 3 hours (the maximum allowed by
B‟s float) then F can take only the extra 2 hours that belongs only to F.

Example 2 (Part 2)
(i) Use the activity network for Example 2 to find the critical activities and the
shortest time in which the project can be completed.

(ii) Calculate the total float on each activity.

(iii) What effect does each of the following delays have on the duration of the
whole project and the critical activities?
(a) C is delayed by 2 days

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(b) F is delayed by 3 days

(c) D is delayed by 5 days
(d) A is delayed by 5 days
Solution
(i)
2 7
2
A(2)
13 13
D(6) G(4)
1 3 5 6
B(3)
0 0 3 7 17 17
E(8)
C(5) F(2)

4
5 5

The critical activities are C, E and G.

The total duration of the project is 17 days.

(ii) The float for each activity is as follows:

Activity Total float
A 5
B 4
C 0
D 4
E 0
F 10
G 0

(iii) (a) C is a critical activity, so a delay of 2 days results in the whole project
being delayed by 2 days. The critical activities remain the same.
(b) F is not a critical activity, and it has float of 10 days, so it can
be delayed by 3 days without affecting the overall duration of the project
or the critical activities.
(c) D has only 4 days of float available, so a delay of 5 days means that the
whole project is delayed by 1 day. D and B now become critical activities,
and C and E are no longer critical.
(d) A has 5 days of float available, so a delay of 5 days makes no difference
to the overall duration of the project or the critical activities, but it reduces
the float on D to zero. This means that A and D are now critical activities
(taking 13 days between them to reach event 5), but C and E are still
critical (since they also take 13 days to reach event 5). There are now two
critical paths: ADG and CEG).

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Notice:
 A and B share a float of 4, and A has an additional float of 1 which
belongs only to itself. So A can take 1 day longer without affecting any
other activities or the duration of the whole project, and either D, or
both A and B, can take up to 4 days longer (or the 4 days can be split
between D and both A and B, e.g. D with an extra 3 days and each of
A and B with one extra day).
 F has float of 10 which belongs only to itself, so it can take up to 10
days longer without affecting any other activities or the duration of the
whole project.

You can also look at the PowerPoint presentation which shows how the
earliest event times and latest event times are calculated.

Example 3 (Part 2)
(i) Use the activity network for Example 3 to find the critical activities and the
shortest time in which the project can be completed.

(ii) Calculate the total float on each of the non-critical activities.

(iii) Activity H is delayed by 3 days. What effect does this have on the duration of
the project and the critical activities?

(iv) Extra resources are available which can be used to shorten the duration of one
of activities B, E or F (on the original network) by one day.
Which of these activities should be shortened, and why?

Solution
(i)
4 4 9 9
C(5)
2 4
A(2) E(6)
F(3)

1 12 13 6 H(2)
7
0 0
15 15
B(4) G(8)
3 5
D(3)
4 4 7 7

The critical activities are B, C, D, E and G.

The minimum total duration of the project is 15 days.

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(ii) The non-critical activities are A, F and H.

A has float of 2
F has float of 1
H has float of 1.

(iii) H has float of 2, so delaying H by 3 days will increase the total duration of the
project by 1 day. F and H will now be critical activities, and D, E and G will no
longer be critical.

(iv) Shorten B by one day.

F is not a critical activity, so reducing it would not shorten the project.
Although E is a critical activity, there are two critical paths (BCE and BDG),
so reducing E would not have any effect unless either D or G were reduced as
well.

Notice that in this example there are two critical paths (BCE and BDG). This is
an important consideration in part (iv).

You can also look at the PowerPoint presentation which shows how the
earliest event times and latest event times are calculated.

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