Question

An BA program (with an emphasis in Supply Chain Management) at a Mid-western University in the US requires completion of 12 courses.  Duration of each course is one semester. Courses required (and their prerequisites) for the BA program are as follows:

Accounting (AC) course:

AC 701 (Prereq: None)

Finance (FN) courses:

FN 735 (Prereq: AC 701)

Supply Chain Management (SC) courses:

SC 719 (Prereq: AC 701)

SC 761 (Prereq: SC 719)

SC 763 (Prereq: SC 719)

SC 768 (Prereq: SC 761 and SC 763)

Marketing (MK) courses:

MK 719 (Prereq: None)

MK 757 (Prereq: MK 719)

Information Technology (IT) courses:

IT 715 (Prereq: None)

IT 745 (Prereq: IT 715 and MK 719)

Management (MG) courses:

MG 747 (Prereq: IT 745)

MG 771 (Prereq: FN 735, SC 768, MK 757 and MG 747)

NOTE: Assume all courses are offered every semester by the university.

1. Draw a precedence network (using Activity–on–Node Convention) for the above “project”.

2. Compute slack (in semesters) for each course.

3. What is minimum number of semesters needed to complete the program

4. If a student has waiver for IT 715, what is the minimum semesters needed to complete that program?

5. If a student is interested in taking only 1 course (AC 701 ORIT 715) in the very first semester. Which course should the student take (based on the most critical followers rule)?

6. If a student is interested in taking only 1 course (IT 715 ORMK 719) in the very first semester. Which course should the student take (based on most successors (followers) rule)?

Answer 1

1.Ans 2

Slack time will be zero for all activities on the critical path as they can not be relaxed.

Therefore, slack time for

AC701=0,

SC719=0

SC761=0,

SC763=0

SC768=0

MG771=0

For FIN 735, which can be at the earliest on sem 2, and latest be started on sem4, to meet MG771 on sem5

Slack for FIN 735 = latest start - earliest start = 4-2 =2 sem

Similarly MK719 can be latest started at sem2, to meet MG771 at sem 5. Earliest start is sem1

Slack for MK719 = 2-1 =1 sem

Slack for MK 757 = latest start - earliest start = 4-2 =2 sem

Slack for IT 715= Latest start - earliest start = 2-1 =1

Slack for IT 745 = 3-2 =1

Slack for MG 747 = 4-3 =1