Helping Moore's Essay

Jason Oliver
Module 2
Case Study 2

Case Analysis: Helping the Moore’s
May 4, 2015
I). Background Moore’s Housing Contractors are a local contracting company that is looking to build 6 houses in a new developmental area. Depending on the weather, they are looking to build in the late winter or early spring. They plan to build through the summer and have the houses ready for the fall. The realtor believes that they can sell the houses prior to them being completed. All of the houses have similar floor plans and are similar in size. This will help in determining the length of the builds. The realtor is asking that the houses be completed within 45 days of being started. The realtor could face additional charges if the houses aren’t completed on time.
II) Problem The initial problem will be the
building contractors completing their work according to the time frame. There are also other problems that could be presented as time goes by during the process. Weather is always a factor when doing construction. It could possibly delay the contractors from completing their work depending on how far they are into building the house. The only other thing that could cause problems would be the buyers pushing the closing up so that they could move in quicker causing additional stress to the builders as well as the realtor.
III).
Case Study Questions
I) Develop a CPM/PERT network for Moore House Contractors and determine the probability that the contractors can complete a house within 45 days. Does it appear that the Moore’s might need to increase their bid to compensate for potential penalties?
II) Indicate which project activities Moore Contractors should particularly diligent to keep on schedule by making sure workers and materials are always available. Also, indicate which activities the company might shift workers from as the need arises.
IV). Recommendations Based on the information that was originally provided and after my analysis, it is recommended that Moore and the contractors renegotiate their contract. From the table attached at the end of recommendation, it is clear that houses will not be completed within or under 45 days. It is highly recommended that they change their contract to have the houses completed within 60 days. This gives everyone a little flexibility. Another idea might be for Moore to increase their bid and possibly add on a bonus for contractors who are able to complete their work on target, and give a little leeway for potential
problems. Another way to ensure that the contractors can complete their work on schedule or possibly early is to continuously monitor them. There are processes that can be put into place to help keep the contractors honest. For example, continuously communicating with them to check on the status and unannounced visits can help. Other ways to keeping the contractors are paying after the work has been completed and possibly taking legal action. This can be done by monitoring their performance and documenting that and all the communication that has transpired from beginning to end. This can be explained at the beginning of the contract stages and by letting them know that you will take legal action will help implant that in their head and motivate them to get the work done on time and to the correct standards. According to the information and analysis, there is a 34.58% probability that a house will be completed within 45 days. That means that one out of three houses will be completed on time leaving two houses going over the time line to get done. This can really hinder buyers and could cause additional fee for all parties involved. The critical parts that need to be monitored and made sure that they have been completed on time are the excavation, foundation, sewer, basement floor, furnace, A/C, plasterboard, subflooring, kitchen, painting, and wood floors. These are vital to the completion of the home being built on time. There are activities that aren’t as vital but do need to be monitored as they might become slack. These activities are drain tiles, windows, brickwork, shingles, gutters, and grading. The drain tiles show a slack of 26.5, which needs to be really looked after and might need to have workers shifted to this area.
V) Conclusion As seen from above and the table that has been attached below, Moore Contracting can see what will need to be done in order for them to get the houses completed within a 45 day time frame or a possible 60 day period. There are many ways that Moore’s can implement new processes help achieve this goal.
VI) References
Hill, C. (2007, November 16). Your Contractor Delayed Completion of the Project: What Next? Retrieved May 5, 2015, from https://www.lorman.com/resources/your-contractor-delayed-completion-of-the-project-what-next--15345
Strain, M. (n.d.). What Can Be Done to Induce Fixed-Price Contractors to Become More Responsive? Retrieved May 5, 2015, from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/can-done-induce-fixedprice-contractors-become-responsive-35293.html

Activity
Description
Activity Time
Var
Activity Slack
Critical Path
Critical Path Duration
Critical Path Variance
A
Excavation
4.17
0.25
0
Yes
4.17
0.25
B
Foundation
3.17
0.25
0
Yes
3.17
0.25
C
Frame/Roof
3.83
0.25
3.8

D
Drain Tiles
2.17
0.25
26.5

E
Sewer
2.00
0.11
0
Yes
2.00
0.11
F
Insulation
3.83
0.25
3.8

G
Basement Flr
3.17
0.25
0
Yes
3.17
0.25
H
Plumbing
4.17
0.69
4.2

I
Windows
2.83
0.25
6.2

J
Electrical
2.17
0.25
0.5

K
Furnace, A/C
5.17
0.69
0
Yes
5.17
0.69
L
Brickwork
6.50
0.69
6

M
Plasterboard
8.33
1
0
Yes
8.33
1
N
Shingles
3.33
0.44
6

O
Gutter
2.33
0.44
6

P
Grading
3.50
0.69
6

Q
Subflooring
4.17
0.25
0
Yes
4.17
0.25
R
Driveway
6.33
1
6

S
Carpentry
5.83
2.25
4.8

T
Kitchen
4.33
1
0
Yes
4.33
1
U
Bathrooms
3.33
0.44
5.1

V
Painting
6.33
1
0
Yes
6.33
1
W
Wood Floors
5.00
1
0
Yes
5.00
1
X
Light Fixtures
2.83
0.25
2.2

Total Days
45.83

Probability
34.58%

Std Deviation
2.41

Total Variance

D

A

B

C

F

I

L

E

J

G

K

M

H

P

O

N

R

Finish

W

S

X

Q

T

V

U