In a complex project schedule, what is the most critical factor when determining which activities to crash to recover lost time?
Correct Answer
B) Activities on the critical path with the lowest crash cost per day
To effectively recover lost time, you must crash activities on the critical path, and among those, select the ones with the lowest crash cost per day to minimize additional project costs.
Why This Is the Correct Answer
Option B is correct because crashing (accelerating) activities only reduces project duration if those activities are on the critical path - the longest sequence of dependent activities that determines project completion time. Among critical path activities, selecting those with the lowest crash cost per day ensures you achieve the time recovery at minimum additional expense. Crashing non-critical activities wastes money without shortening the overall project schedule.
Why the Other Options Are Wrong
Option A: Activities with the lowest crash cost per day
This option ignores the critical path requirement. You could crash activities with low cost per day that aren't on the critical path, which would increase project costs without reducing the overall project duration since the critical path still determines the project end date.
Option C: Activities with the shortest duration
Activities with the shortest duration may not be on the critical path, and even if they are, they might have very high crash costs. Duration alone doesn't indicate cost-effectiveness or impact on overall project timeline.
Option D: Activities with the most available resources
Resource availability doesn't guarantee that crashing those activities will reduce project duration or be cost-effective. Activities with abundant resources might not be on the critical path, making their acceleration irrelevant to overall project completion time.
Memory Technique
Think 'Critical + Cheap' - you must crash activities that are both CRITICAL (on the critical path) and CHEAP (lowest cost per day) to crash effectively.
Reference Hint
Project Management chapter, specifically sections on Critical Path Method (CPM) and project acceleration/crashing techniques
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