LITERATURE REVIEW

Construction industry is an important sector that part of the Malaysian economy. According to
Ministry of Finance (2009) in Elias, S. & Ismail, N. (2012) state that in the 2010 Malaysian
Budget, an allocation of RM 9 billion (0.05% of total budget) was provided for construction.
Moreover, the use of certain technique or method has been proved to be among the factors that
affect project performance and has been perceived as a success factor by many construction
businesses as stated. The technique such as Critical Path Method (CPM) has helped to improve
the productivity in executing of task such as planning, scheduling, estimating and project
control. By using CPM, it can identify the two important variables of any project the time and the
cost of the project. CPM can show the time duration whether the project is on track or delay
even can show the budget of project whether within budget or over budget.
As according to Newbold (1998) in Stelth, P. & Professor Le Roy, G. (2009) stated that Critical
Path Method (CPM) is a technique for analyzing projects by determining the longest sequence
of tasks (or the sequence of task with the least slack) through a project network. By
concentrating on the most critical tasks it can be ensured that the project is on time and is
keeping pace with the schedule set up. Ackley et al. (2007) in Elias, S. & Ismail, N. (2012)
stated that a project schedule establishes the start date, duration, completion date, and
resource needs for each activity in the project. Mistakes in the schedule may cause the project
team to allocate resources to the inappropriate place or may cause the parties to inaccurately
assess whether the project is ahead of or behind schedule. According to Lowe (1966) in Stelth,
P. & Professor Le Roy, G. (2009) the CPM uses a work breakdown structure where all projects
are divided into individual tasks or activities. For any project there is a sequence of events that
have to be undertaken. Some tasks might be dependent on the completion of the previous tasks
while other might be independent of the tasks ahead and can be undertaken at any given time.
Lu, M. & Li, H (2003) stated that this technique generally consists of two stages. First, the
project is broken down into distinct activities that are logically or technologically related to one
another according to the construction process/method without imposing resource constraints
(e.g., the superstructure follows the substructure; the concrete pouring succeeds the formwork
and reinforcement.) Second, basic CPM scheduling calculations are made for early and late
start and finish dates and total and free float times, based on which (1) the project is
rescheduled so that a limited number of resources can be efficiently utilized while minimizing the
unavoidable extension of project duration (also known as resource allocation); or (2) the start
times of certain activities are adjusted within the float limits for a leveled resource profile (also
known as resource leveling). The Critical Path analysis is also a helpful way of identifying if
there are alternate paths or plans that can be undertaken to reduce the interruption and hurdles
that can arise during the execution of any task so that we can be prepared and find a way to
resolve the problem before the problem arises.

On the other hand, CPM also has the disadvantages which are the complexity of it. The CPA
process can become complicated as the scope and extent of the project increases. Too many
interconnecting activities can result in the network diagram becoming very complicated. The risk
of making a mistake in calculation of the critical chain becomes very high as the number of
activities increase (Stelth, P. & Professor Le Roy, G. 2009). Moreover, in term of estimation,
CPM works most effectively on projects with predictable timelines. Construction projects, for
example, lend themselves to CPM, because you repeat tasks from job to job, and a manager
quickly learns how long it takes the crew to perform each one. For assignments asking
managers to make guesses about unfamiliar activities, the risk of schedule delays increases.
For example, a critical path might not be the best solution for a research and development
project with less-certain timelines.

In the nutshell, CPM is very helpful technique that helps to maximize the productivity of the
users. Other than that, CPM also gives the timeline so that the user can follow it without getting
lost in time and budget. Although this CPM has the disadvantage but if it be used carefully, it
can ease the user to manage the project. Scheduling of project-based activities can be done by
using either the forward or the backward pass in CPM. CPM method looks backwards. It often
makes the manager (functional or project) look good in the short term. This is due to the
achievement of the milestones set in completing tasks (Stelth, P. & Professor Le Roy, G. 2009).

REFERENCES

1. Elias, S. & Ismail, N. 2012, The usage of critical path method software in Malaysian
construction, The International Journal of Knowledge, vol. 11, Issue 5

2. Lu, M. & Li, H. (2003), Resource Activity critical path method for construction Planning,
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, pp. 412-420.

3. Stelth, P. & Professor Le Roy G. 2009, Projects analysis through CPM (Critical Path
Method), School of Doctoral Studies (European Union) Journal, pp. 10-51