MS Project 2010 - Task Type bug?

Question

Hi,

I having been teaching project management and MS Project for several years, and I am having a problem with Project 2010.

I teach the task types concept, and how MSP recalculates duration, units and work based on the task type, so I know what is supposed to happen.  The problem is that the recalculation is not happening correctly.  Here is the situation:

Create a Fixed Work Task (Task A)

Using the Task Entry form, I assign a resource with 100% units and 64h work & click OK -> Project calculates the duration as 8d (as expected)

Change the units to 50% & click OK -> Project recalculates the duration as 16d (as expected)

Change the duration to 10d and click OK -> Uh oh!  In the units field in the form, and in the Assignment Information dialog box, and in the Resource Name beside the Gantt bar, the units are not recalculating.  They are still 50%.

I have check the Resource Chart view and the units are displaying as 80% (which is correct), and if I display Peak Units in the Resource Usage view because there is only one assignment, the Peak Units are displaying correctly as 80% as well.  How is this possible?  How can the units be displaying as 50% in three different views incorrectly, and as 80% in two other view correctly.

More importantly, if I want to be able to see how many units are required to complete 64h of work in a duration of perhaps 5 days, shouldn't MSP display the units in the form, assignment information, and Gantt chart appropriately?

Your assistance would be appreciated. :)

Answer 1

RC PM --

Although I do not work for Microsoft, I can assure you that this behavior is most definitelyNOT a bug.  Microsoft designed this functionality to resolve another problem that has been in the tool for a long time.  This problem occurs when the PM applies the Task Usage view (or Resource Usage view) and enters Actual Work in the timephased grid on the final day of the task, and the Actual Work entered is greater than the Remaining Work on that final day, and then the PM increases the Remaining Work after that.  Microsoft introduced the Peak field to resolve that problem, which it did very nicely.  However, in solving one problem, Microsoft created a lot ofconfusion in the minds of experienced users (such as yourself) who are used to the tool behaving as it has in all other previous versions.  We address this issue directly in ourUltimate Study Guide to Microsoft Project 2010 book and class, where we have the students learn how Task Types now interact with the new Peak field.

I feel your pain, my friend.  Hope this helps.

---

Dale A. Howard [MVP]

VP of Educational Services

msProjectExperts

http://www.msprojectexperts.com

http://www.projectserverexperts.com

"We write the books on Project Server"

Answer 2

Thanks for your response, Jan.

That is very unfortunate.  It seems that this is a bug in 2010, because I cannot see why Microsoft would purposely remove a basic field calculation.

Cheers :)

Answer 3

Hi,

I can only repeat what I said in my previous post. Units do no longer recalculate; Peak takes this role now.

Useless to search further, this is how i works in 2010. I too had to adapt my courses.

Answer 4

Hi Jan,

Thanks for responding.  The problem is that I do know.  In Project 2003 and 2007, the Units field worked correctly and recalculated as Microsoft says on their own site:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/project-help/about-task-types-HP001038014.aspx

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/project-help/change-the-task-type-project-uses-to-calculate-task-duration-HP010092039.aspx

I demonstrated this relationship for years to my students.  The difficulty now, is that units is not recalculating the way it is supposed to.  Peak Units is a separate field that is calculated based on the aggregate assignment units for a resource within a time period, and I only mentioned this field in my previous post because it was how I was able to see the cumulative units on the resource, but it would not be appropriate to use this field to see units for a single assignment.

If you try this in previous versions of MSP, you will notice that the units field does recalculate.  Is there a way to have the units field recalculate in 2010? Especially since I need to teach this concept, not just the MSP feature, to students.

Thanks for any assistance you can provide. :)

Answer 5

Hi RC PM,

It's quite simple when you know.

Units are not recalculated by the W=D*U formula. Another field, PEAK, is. So use units to first assign the resource, then watch peak to see how it is recalculated.

Greetings,