c Scott Adams, Inc./Dist. By UFS, Inc.
ME 4054W:
SENIOR DESIGN PROJECTS
Week 3 – Tuesday
Managing your ME 4054W Project
Notes
• Design Ideation Workshop next week
– Logistics will be provided at Thursday’s
lecture
• Read “Design Report”
(http://www.me.umn.edu/courses/me4054/assignments/designreport.html)
and “How to Write a Design Report”
(http://www.me.umn.edu/education/undergraduate/writing/How-to-write-aDesign-Report.pdf)
2
Class Agenda
• Project Planning
• Task Definition
• Work Breakdown Structure
• Milestones
• Gantt Charts
• Running Effective Meetings
3
Schedule
• Project plan due February 14
2
5
8
93
Weeks to first site visit
Weeks to mid-project review
Weeks to second site visit
Days to Design Show
4
Definition
Project
A set of activities that end with a
specific accomplishment
Attributes:
• Non-routine tasks
• Distinct and defined start and finish dates
• Resource constraints (time, money/people/equipment, scope)
5
Definition
Project Management
The discipline of planning, organizing
and managing resources to bring about
the successful completion of specific
project goals and objectives.
Wikipedia
6
Project Management Steps
1. Plan
2. Organize
3. Manage time and resources
Utilize limited resources most effectively
Plan the work and work the plan
7
Project Planning
• What
– Tasks, Deliverables
• When
– Schedule
Project Plan
• How
– People, money, equipment
1. SOW
2. PDS
3. Work
Breakdown
Structure
4. Gantt Chart
The goal of the planning process is to eliminate surprises
Refer to http://me.umn.edu/courses/me4054/assignments/wbsgantt.html
8
Properties of a Task
• Short duration relative to project
• Significant; appropriate level of detail
• Requires resources
• Assign a “verb-noun” combination name
– "create drawings”
– "build prototype”
– “develop transmission”
Refer to http://me.umn.edu/education/me4054/assignments/wbsgantt.html
9
Properties of a “Task”
1. Defined deliverable
a. Document
b. Demo
c. Thing
2. Responsible person (one primary)
3. Due date
10
Definition
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
• A “to do” list, sorted by category
• It includes:
– Task description (what)
– Estimated time (length)
– Person responsible for task (who)
– Resources required
– Cost ($)
12
Sample Work Breakdown Structure
Task #
What
5
Validate motor
performance
Personhours
Who Resources
$
5.1
Design test
stand
20
SE,
JM
Pro/E
5.2
Build test stand
15
SE,
JM
Parts, machine
shop
$35
5.3
Test 3 motors
3
JM,
SE
Stroboscope
$75
5.4
Plot torque vs.
speed
2
JM
Excel
13
Team Activity
• Create a draft Work Breakdown Structure
• 10 minutes
Task #
What
5
Validate motor
performance
Personhours
Who Resources
$
5.1
Design test
stand
20
SE,
JM
Pro/E
5.2
Build test stand
15
SE,
JM
Parts, machine
shop
$35
5.3
Test 3 motors
3
JM,
SE
Stroboscope
$75
5.4
Plot torque vs.
speed
2
JM
Excel
14
Properties of a Milestone
• Tasks with zero duration
• Mark significant project checkpoints
• Use to motivate
• Use to check progress
• Name by “noun-verb”
– “report due”
– “parts ordered”
– “concept selected”
15
Gantt Chart
• Bar chart that
– Uses tasks from WBS
– Defines beginning and end of each task
– Establishes interdependencies
– Defines milestones
• Most basic (and most common)
planning tool
16
Sample Gantt Chart (segment)
17
Project Management Software Tools
• Microsoft Project
– Most popular project management
software
– Easy to use
– Available in IT labs
– Web tutorials available
• GanttProject (www.ganttproject.biz)
– Open source
– Free download to your computer
18
Project Management Triple Constraint
= Desirable direction
Adapted from Wikipedia
• For a given level of quality on a project, any two of the three
constraints (scope, schedule, cost) can be moved in the
desirable direction by moving the other constraint in the
undesirable direction.
• All three constraints cannot be moved in the desirable direction
without lowering the quality of the project deliverable.
19
Effective Project Management
• Get buy-in from stakeholders
– Advisor
– Team
• Review your plan regularly
• Keep your plan up to date
Plan the work and work the plan
20
Effective Meetings
• Have an agenda and stick to it
– Review agenda at start of meeting asking for
additional items
– Assign a duration for each item to be discussed
– Have a definite end time
• Assign a scribe
– Record decisions and assignments and post to
Google site
• Use meeting time to report findings
– i.e. come prepared
21
These forms are available and can
make your job easier
ME4054 Senior Design - Forms
Project Management Forms
• Meeting agenda form (Word, PDF)
• Work breakdown form (Excel, PDF)
Administrative Forms
• Petty cash reimbursement form (PDF)
Evaluation Forms
• Mid-Project Design Review Evaluation (PDF, DOC)
• Individual Contribution (Notebook & Website) evaluation form (PDF, Word)
• Design Report scoring criteria (PDF, Word)
• Design Report evaluation form (PDF, Word)
• Design Show evaluation form (PDF, Word)
• Advisor's evaluation of Project Plan documents (PDF, Word)
• Advisor's evaluation of the Quality of the Design form (PDF, Word)
Legal Agreements
• Non-Disclosure Form
• Pre-invention Assignment Form
Refer to http://me.umn.edu/education/courses/me4054/forms/index.html
22
Team Activity
• Create the agenda
for today’s group
meeting
• 5 minutes
23