| Course | GM592 Project Planning and the Project Plan |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 7 |
| Paper type | Schedule network diagram |
| Length | About 1,140 words, 7 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | MS in Management |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for GM592 Unit 7
The Utility, Not the Kiln: A Unit 7 Schedule Network Diagram for a Sawmill's Dry Kiln
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
GM592: Project Planning and the Project Plan
Unit 7 Schedule Network Diagram
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
The sawmill, its vendors, the utility and every duration are composite and illustrative; the methods cited are real.
The Activity List
Forty-one activities make up the kiln network, each carrying an ID, a work breakdown structure code, a duration from the estimate basis worksheet, its predecessors and the type of each link. Durations are in working days from the day the charter is signed.
Most links are finish-to-start: one activity must finish before the next can begin. Two are different. The sampling procedure can start three days after the drying schedules begin, a start-to-start link with a three-day lag, because the grader can draft the sampling method once the first schedule's sample points are chosen. Operator training is tied to the trial charge by a finish-to-finish link: the operators' sign-offs cannot be completed until the trial charge, which they run under the vendor's supervision, is finished.
How the Dates Were Computed
A short script reads the activity list and performs the two passes of the critical path method, which James Kelley and Morgan Walker introduced for planning plant construction and maintenance work (Kelley & Walker, 1959). On the forward pass, an activity can begin no sooner than its last predecessor permits, after adjusting for link type and lag, then adds the duration to get its earliest finish. The backward pass starts from the project's finish and gives each activity its latest finish and latest start without delaying the project. Total float is the difference between the latest and earliest start. Activities with zero float form the controlling path. Harold Kerzner describes these passes as the basis of network scheduling, and notes that float shows where a delay can be absorbed and where it cannot (Kerzner, 2022).
The Controlling Path
The controlling chain runs through the utility: charter signed, 2 days; load study, 5; utility application, 3; utility design, 50; transformer delivery and service installation, 97; service energized, 5; kiln power-up, 3; boiler firing and controller startup, 2; trial charge and site acceptance, 10; and first saleable charge, 10. Operator training, tied to the trial charge by its finish-to-finish link, also has zero float. The first saleable charge finishes on working day 187.
The kiln everyone watched has fourteen days of float; the utility nobody can hurry has none.
Float on the Other Chains
The kiln chain begins with the equipment loan, which must close before the purchase order is placed, and continues through fabrication, factory inspection and shipment, rigging and erection on the pad. Its earliest finish leaves 14 working days of float before the kiln must be ready for power-up. The panel wiring and electrical inspection, which follow erection, share the same 14 days.
The boiler and piping chain holds 15 days of float on the piping and condensate drain, which wait for the kiln's fans and coils, and 43 days on the boiler itself.
The air permit holds 88 days of float. The application is drafted once the boiler is ordered, and even at its slowest recent review time it would be issued well before the boiler fires.
The county building permit holds 114 days, and the testing station and drying schedules more than 140, because they depend only on the plan and can be finished early.
The Diagram
The activity-on-node diagram shows each activity as a box with its earliest and latest dates, with heavier borders on the controlling path. The diagram makes one point immediately visible: almost all of the controlling time sits in two boxes, the utility's design and its transformer and service installation, which together account for 147 of the 187 days.
Near-Critical Chains and What Could Change the Path
A path with little float can become the controlling path if one of its activities slips. Two chains sit close. The kiln and electrical chain has 14 days, and the boiler piping and drain chain 15. If the equipment loan closes three weeks late, or the kiln vendor's plant falls behind by more than 14 working days, the kiln chain becomes controlling. The estimate worksheet rates the kiln vendor's date as high confidence, but the loan has no contractual date, so the owners have agreed to submit the loan application in the first week of the project.
The utility chain carries the most uncertainty as well as the most time. Its three-point estimate has a high value 14 weeks above its most likely value. If the transformer arrives at the high end, the first saleable charge would move about 70 working days, to roughly day 257. The schedule reserve of ten days would not cover that, so the risk register carries a separate response: the mill has asked the utility whether a temporary rental transformer could energize the kiln if the permanent unit is late.
A Sample of the Activity Table
Each row of the activity table shows the dates the script produced. Three examples show how to read them. The utility design, activity U4, has an earliest start of day 10, an earliest finish of day 60 and no float. Kiln fabrication, K2, starts at day 40 at the earliest and finishes at day 120, but could start as late as day 54 without delaying the project. The air permit review, Q2, could finish as late as day 160 and still not hold anything up.
What the Network Changes
The finding changes where the operations manager spends her time. Before the network, the team planned to call the kiln vendor weekly. Now the weekly call goes to the utility's project engineer, with a standing question about transformer delivery. The Project Management Institute treats schedule analysis as a way to direct attention to the work that drives the end date (Project Management Institute, 2021).
It also changes how the mill thinks about the cabinet maker. A delay at the kiln vendor of up to 14 working days would not move the first saleable charge. A delay of any length at the utility would move it day for day. The sales manager now knows which updates to pass on to the customer.
Appendix: The Script and Its Tests
The appendix contains the script, its input file of 41 activities and the output of two test runs. The first test used a three-activity network small enough to check by hand, including one start-to-start and one finish-to-finish link, and the script's dates matched the hand calculation. The second test lengthened the utility's transformer activity by ten days, and the finish moved from day 187 to day 197, while lengthening kiln fabrication by ten days left the finish unchanged, as the float predicted.
References
Kelley, J. E., & Walker, M. R. (1959). Critical-path planning and scheduling. In Proceedings of the Eastern Joint IRE-AIEE-ACM Computer Conference (pp. 160-173). Association for Computing Machinery. https://doi.org/10.1145/1460299.1460318
Kerzner, H. (2022). Project management: A systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling (13th ed.). Wiley.
Project Management Institute. (2021). A guide to the project management body of knowledge (PMBOK guide) (7th ed.).
Reading the GM 592 Unit 7 instructions
GM592 Unit 7 asks you to build a schedule network from your work breakdown structure and estimates. List each activity with its ID, package code, duration and predecessors, and state the link type, using start-to-start or finish-to-finish links with lags where the logic requires them. Compute the forward and backward passes, by software, spreadsheet, script or hand, and report earliest and latest dates and total float. Identify the controlling path and explain what drives it. Report float on the other chains and name the near-critical ones, with what could make them controlling. Show the diagram with the controlling path marked. Explain what the network changes about how the project is managed. If you use a script or spreadsheet, describe how you tested it. Expect about five pages with an activity table, a diagram and an appendix, citing scheduling sources in APA 7.
How the GM 592 Unit 7 example is put together
The activity list describes 41 activities and two special links, a start-to-start lag for the sampling procedure and a finish-to-finish tie between operator training and the trial charge. The computation section explains both passes, citing Kelley and Walker's critical path method and Kerzner on float. The controlling path runs from the charter through the load study, utility application, utility design, transformer and service installation, energizing, power-up, startup, trial charge and first saleable charge on day 187, which the highlighted sentence contrasts with the kiln. Float follows for the kiln chain at 14, piping at 15, the air permit at 88 and the building permit at 114. A near-critical section covers the equipment loan and a transformer at the high estimate moving the finish to about day 257. Sample rows, the PMBOK guide on schedule analysis and two script tests close the paper.
GM592 Unit 7 rubric: what earns full points
GM592 instructors grade this network on correct logic, correct passes and useful interpretation. Activity lists should show predecessors and link types, with any lags justified. The passes must be computed correctly, and earliest dates, latest dates and float should be reported. Identifying the controlling path and what drives it earns credit, especially when it overturns an assumption. Reporting float on other chains and naming near-critical ones shows the writer understands risk in the schedule. Explaining what the network changes for management turns analysis into action. If a tool or script was used, tests that confirm its output carry weight. APA 7 citations cover Kelley and Walker's original critical path paper, Kerzner's text and the PMBOK Guide.
GM592 Unit 7 help: mistakes that cost points
Many GM592 Unit 7 networks use only finish-to-start links, even where work can overlap, which lengthens the schedule. Others report the critical path without the float on other chains, so the reader cannot see what else is close. A common gap is interpretation: a correct diagram that never says what the team should watch differently earns less than it could. Some writers rely on software without checking its results. List activities with logic and link types, compute both passes, identify what controls the finish, report float on every chain, name the near-critical ones, say what changes in management and test any tool you used.
Get a GM592 Unit 7 example written to your instructions
Scheduling logic belongs to one project, so the activity list or estimate worksheet the section is using has to come along, plus the Unit 7 prompt and rubric and any software requirement. Within 24-48h a first network returns at no charge, both passes computed and tested, and the controlling path read from the float column instead of assumed. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
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GM592 Unit 7 questions, answered
Does the critical path have to be calculated by a script?
Seldom. Scheduling software, a spreadsheet or a worked calculation on paper is usually acceptable, since what earns credit is sound logic backed by visible passes. The example relies on a short script because 41 activities with mixed link types make arithmetic slips likely by hand. Whichever tool is used, printing the passes and testing the output matter more than the tool itself.
How can a schedule script be tested?
By changing an input whose effect the logic predicts and checking the output agrees. Lengthening a zero-float activity should move the finish by the same amount; lengthening an activity with float, by less than its float, should move nothing. The example runs both tests and prints the results in the appendix beside the script.
Where can I find a free GM592 Unit 7 sample paper?
This page carries a full GM592 Unit 7 schedule network diagram for a sawmill's dry kiln, with 41 activities, computed passes, the utility on the controlling path and APA 7 references.
Why is the kiln not on the critical path?
The electric utility's design and transformer installation take 147 of the 187 working days, while the kiln chain finishes 14 days before the kiln must be ready for power-up. A kiln delay of up to 14 days would not move the finish.
What makes a chain near-critical here?
Its float is small enough that a plausible delay would make it controlling. The kiln chain has 14 days and depends on an equipment loan with no contractual date, so the owners agreed to apply for the loan in the first week.