Baseline Schedules
A complete schedule from notice to proceed through closeout: preconstruction submittals, procurement of long-lead items, construction sequence by area and trade, inspections, commissioning, and closeout.
CPM Scheduling
CPM Scheduling Services for Construction Projects
On many public and institutional projects, the schedule is a contract document. The owner's spec says how many activities, what logic, which software, how often it's updated, and what the narrative must cover. Get the baseline rejected and progress payments can stall. Get the updates wrong and a legitimate time extension becomes hard to prove.
We build and maintain critical path method (CPM) schedules that meet specification requirements and reflect how the job will actually be built, because a schedule that passes review but doesn't match the field isn't much use to anyone.
Critical pathBaselines and updates
Excel + PDFNative schedule files and reports
Spec-drivenBuilt to your contract requirements
Fixed feeQuoted before work starts
What a CPM Schedule Does
A CPM schedule breaks the project into activities, assigns each a duration, and links them with logic: this can't start until that finishes. The longest chain of linked activities through the project is the critical path. Any delay on it delays completion.
Activities off the critical path have float: time they can slip without affecting the finish date. Knowing where float exists, and who uses it, is the basis for planning the work and for deciding whether a delay deserves a time extension.
Meeting the Owner's Scheduling Specification
Scheduling specifications (often in Division 01) vary, but commonly require: [Each item is a typical requirement, not a universal one.]
- A baseline schedule submitted within a set number of days after notice to proceed
- Maximum activity durations, often limited to a set number of working days
- Complete logic: every activity with a predecessor and successor
- Limits on constraints and lags
- Cost loading tied to the schedule of values, or resource loading
- Monthly updates with actual start and finish dates and remaining durations
- A written narrative explaining progress, critical path changes, and delays
- Native files (such as P6 .XER) along with PDFs
We read the specification first and build the schedule to it, so the baseline isn't returned for format reasons.
Our CPM Scheduling Services
Monthly Updates
Progress entered, durations adjusted, and the critical path re-evaluated each period, with a narrative explaining what changed.
Look-Ahead Schedules
Two- to six-week look-aheads pulled from the master schedule for field coordination.
Recovery Schedules
When a project falls behind, a recovery schedule shows how the lost time can be made up (resequencing, added crews, or overlapping work) and what it requires.
Schedule Reviews
For owners or contractors who receive a schedule from someone else: we check whether the logic, durations, and critical path are reasonable.
Time Impact Analysis
See below.
Schedules Built From the Estimate
Most schedulers estimate durations by experience. Because we also estimate costs, we can tie the schedule to the estimate:
Durations from labor hours
An activity's duration comes from the estimated labor hours and realistic crew sizes, not a guess.
Cost loading
Activities carry costs from the estimate or schedule of values, producing a cash flow curve for owners and lenders.
Resource loading
Crews and equipment are assigned, showing peaks that may not be realistic.
This makes the schedule easier to defend because every duration has a basis. Construction cost estimating →
Schedule Quality Checks
Before any schedule leaves our office, we check it against common quality measures, including those used in the DCMA 14-point assessment:
- Open ends (activities missing predecessors or successors)
- Excessive leads, lags, and hard constraints
- Unrealistically high float
- Activities longer than the spec allows
- Out-of-sequence progress in updates
- Invalid dates (actuals in the future, forecasts in the past)
Owners' reviewers use similar checks, so catching these first saves a resubmittal.
Time Impact Analysis and Delay Support
When a change or delay affects the work, a time impact analysis (TIA) shows whether it pushed out the completion date and by how much. It typically involves:
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01
Representing the delay or change as a fragment of new activities
Representing the delay or change as a fragment of new activities
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02
Inserting it into the most recent accepted update
Inserting it into the most recent accepted update
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03
Comparing the forecast completion before and after
Comparing the forecast completion before and after
A well-prepared TIA, built on accepted updates, gives a time extension request a factual basis. For larger disputes, retrospective delay analysis may be needed. Estimating consultant →
Software and Deliverables
Primavera P6
our default for spec-driven projects
Microsoft Project
when the owner or your team prefers it MS Project scheduling →
Native files (
Native files (.XER.XML, or .MPP), PDF Gantt charts, critical path reports, and narratives
Process
How It Works
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01
Send the contract documents
Drawings, specifications (especially the scheduling section), contract dates, and your planned approach.
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02
Planning call
We confirm sequence, phasing, crew assumptions, and long-lead items with your project team.
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03
Draft baseline
You review it before submission.
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04
Submit and respond
We help address reviewer comments.
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05
Updates
Monthly or as agreed.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a CPM schedule?
A critical path method schedule models a project as linked activities with durations. It identifies the critical path (the sequence that determines the completion date) and shows float on other activities.
Do I need Primavera P6 or can I use MS Project?
Check the specification. Many public owners require P6. MS Project is often fine for private and smaller projects.
How long does a baseline schedule take?
It depends on project size and spec requirements.
Can you take over updating a schedule someone else built?
Yes. We'll review the existing schedule first and flag anything that needs correcting.
What is a time impact analysis?
It's a method of measuring how a specific delay or change affects the project completion date, using the current schedule.
Can you cost-load the schedule?
Yes. We can load costs from your schedule of values or our estimate.
Ready to Get Started?
Get a Schedule That Passes Review and Works in the Field
Send your specifications and drawings. We'll review the scheduling requirements and quote the baseline and updates.