When using Primavera P6 EPPM, you want to progress your schedule in a way that considers the actual work accomplished. The physical percent complete type is best for this type of schedule measurement.
The most efficient way to progress a schedule is with the duration percent complete type; this percent complete type requires the least input. But the duration percent complete type does not account for non-uniform production rates and/or learning curves.
What if the effort on the first half of your activity accomplished less progress than the effort on the second half of your activity? This is a non-uniform production rate. Again, it could be the result of a learning curve. The physical percent complete type considers the actual work accomplished. It’s as if your scheduler visited the construction site and inspected the actual physical work accomplished before progressing the schedule. The physical percent complete type provides the most accurate representation of progress.
It is also the required percent complete type when Primavera P6 Enterprise Project Portfolio Management (EPPM) steps are defined for an activity. Steps are a way to define additional activity related discrete efforts without having to insert additional activities on the Gantt chart.
Steps help keep the Gantt chart uncluttered from multiple small efforts that do not require precedence relationships. So, use steps to provide more definition to an activity, but remember to assign your steps activity the physical percent complete type, which again, is mandatory for steps.
This article demonstrates how to progress a schedule in Primavera P6 EPPM classic view, using the physical percent complete type.
Physical Percent Complete Type In Primavera P6 EPPM
Below in Figure 1 is our demonstration Primavera P6 EPPM schedule.
Figure 1
This schedule has a baseline. Also, note the percent complete type of all activities is physical. Let’s proceed and progress the schedule. Progressing the schedule is a three step process. First you enter activity status. Second you move the data date forward. And third you recalculate the schedule.
We begin by entering status for week one. In Figure 2 Notice to Proceed and Project Start are complete.
Figure 2
Now we want to enter status for the Mobilize activity, which has defined steps. We proceed and select the Mobilize activity and the bottom details steps tab, Figure 2. We then check off the Acquire Job Site Trailer and Acquire Job Site Furniture discrete steps as completed. Next we choose the bottom details general tab, Figure 3.
Figure 3
We check off the status of Mobilize as started, Figure 3. Note the activity % complete is 50.9%, which seems reasonable. But note that the remaining duration is still 10-days. This does not make sense.
But in the physical percent complete type it is not enough to enter the activity % complete. We must additionally manually provide either a remaining duration or an expected finish date. For our project we enter a remaining duration of 5-days, Figure 4.
Figure 4
Great! We have finished entering status for the first week of work. Now we move the data date forward to January 7th, Figure 5.
Figure 5
Finally, we recalculate the schedule, and the updated schedule appears similar to Figure 6.
Figure 6
Continuing we enter status for week two. In the bottom details steps tab we check complete all steps except the final Acquire Final Drawings step, Figure 7.
Figure 7
Again, we must either enter a remaining duration or an expected finish date. This time we enter an expected finish date of Monday, January 15th, Figure 8.
Figure 8
Note the expected finish date column, where we assign the Mobilize activity an expected finish date of January 15th. Next we move the data date forward to January 14th, Figure 9.
Figure 9
We again recalculate the schedule and the updated project schedule appears comparable to Figure 10.
Figure 10
Let’s enter the status for week three. In the bottom details steps tab we toggle Acquire Final Drawings as complete, Figure 11.
Figure 11
Next we say the Mobilize activity is finished, Figure 12.
Figure 12
This time we have two more activities that require a status. We check the Grade Site activity as started, enter an activity % complete of 25%, and set the remaining duration to 6-days, Figure 13.
Figure 13
Again, we must manually enter a remaining duration or expected finish date. We set the remaining duration to 6-days. Proceeding we check Set Foundation as started, set its activity % complete to 20%, and assign it a remaining duration of 7-days, Figure 14.
Figure 14
The status entry for week three is now complete. Move the data date forward one week, Figure 15.
Figure 15
And the final updated schedule appears as in Figure 16.
Figure 16
Summary
Primavera P6 EPPM’s physical percent complete type is preferable when it is possible to measure productivity on the project. This complete type is also required for activities that have defined steps.
Schedulers must remember that physical activities should have an activity percent complete value, and, additionally, either a remaining duration or an expected finish date. If it is an expected finish date Primavera P6 EPPM computes the remaining duration when the schedule is recalculated.
Yes, the physical percent complete type requires more detailed input, but it considers the actual physical progress of the project, which is a huge advantage.