Scheduling Networks

James is a project planner at Hybrid Machinery. Linda works there as a controller. They are discussing the scheduling options in SAP S/4HANA EPPM Project System.

Planned dates for networks, activities, and activity elements are called basic dates. You can enter basic dates manually and/or schedule them. The activity duration and relationships allow you to schedule networks.

You can use scheduling in several applications, including the following:

• Project Builder
• Project Planning Board from within the Project Builder or as a standalone transaction in SAPGUI (CJ2B)
• Overall Network Scheduling

In this lesson, we focus on scheduling with the Project Planning Board. Using the Project Planning Board, you can select WBS elements and schedule corresponding activities assigned to them. The scheduled dates of the assigned activities are summarized to determine the scheduled dates of the WBS elements (represented as thin time bars in the Project Planning board). These dates can be copied as planned basic dates. The dates copied to the WBS can then be extrapolated within the project structure.

In the implementation guide, you can configure the appropriate scheduling parameters or use predefined scheduling scenarios. You can use the Project Planning Board to change these settings for a particular project.

Networks are always scheduled forwards and backwards. The scheduling type in the scheduling parameters specifies the direction in which you begin the scheduling. The system determines the earliest dates of the activities by means of forward scheduling, and the latest dates by means of backward scheduling. The difference between the earliest and the latest dates of an activity are referred to as floats. Floats can be positive, zero, or negative. If the float of an activity is zero or negative, the activity in question is critical.

Relationships determine the chronological sequence of the individual activities in a network (or standard network). You can enter additional data (such as a time interval or reference to a particular factory calendar) in the detail screen for each relationship.

Relationships determine the chronological sequence of the individual activities in a network (or standard network). You can enter additional data (such as a time interval or reference to a particular factory calendar) in the detail screen for each relationship.

You can maintain the following three sets of dates for network activities:

• Basic dates

• Actual dates

• Forecast dates

You can use scheduling for basic dates and forecast dates.