A plan can add up mathematically and still not hold – if logic, float and constraints do not fit together. We check the technical quality of the schedule – in a plant shutdown as in a capital project.
The 14 criteria of the Defense Contract Management Agency are an internationally used benchmark for schedule quality. The SMI builds on them and extends them to 35 analysis points, each assessed individually. You see how many activities are affected, and we explain each deviation: what it means for your project and how it can be fixed.
We check the technical quality of the schedule – not whether the planned work is right in substance. That is the job of Scope Management and Technical Planning.
Each of the 35 analysis points is assessed. At a glance you see how cleanly your schedule is built technically; in the detail, each point has its description, an explanation of the deviations and a recommendation.
In the SMI report itself, these levels are shown as traffic-light indicators – together with the number of affected activities per criterion.
You provide the schedule as a native file – in the original format of your planning software, whichever you use. That is all it takes to start. The schedule is used solely for the analysis and treated confidentially.
Every criterion is assessed – at a glance or in detail, with a description and explanation of the deviations. Plus an assessment of the consequences they can lead to.
Detailed recommendations for improving quality and reducing risk – easy to analyse and concrete to implement. We help with implementation straight away, advising and hands-on – together with your planning team.
If the question is not a single schedule but how well your organisation as a whole is prepared for the next shutdown, the TAR-Check is the right tool: 16 analysis elements, results in two weeks.
A schedule becomes binding whenever others rely on it: at internal approval, at contract award, when it is presented to stakeholders, and in external reviews such as an IPA review. Each time, decisions are made on the basis of a document that hardly anyone can check in full – it is too large for that. This applies to a shutdown schedule just as much as to the schedule of a capital project: the technique of a schedule is the same, regardless of what is planned in it.
This is exactly where the SMI comes in: in two to four days, it makes measurable what otherwise remains a matter of experience. The results help you identify weaknesses quickly and eliminate them – an objective basis for discussion, both in-house and with contractors and partners. Ideally, commission it eight to ten weeks before such a milestone.
Three tools developed in-house, each with a different focus: the TAR-Check assesses the entire turnaround organisation, the SMI the quality of a specific schedule, and DICTUM forecasts cost, time and resources in the early phase of a project. Available individually or in combination.
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The SMI tells you how reliable a schedule is – and we help with the corrections straight away. These three services make sure it stays reliable, in a shutdown as in a capital project.
Logic-linked, dynamic detailed schedules, critical path and progress measurement every shift.
More on Turnaround SchedulingPlanning and scheduling for capital projects, from the idea to commissioning.
More on Project SchedulingScheduling, Cost Control and Document Control for capital projects – flexibly scalable from 0.1 FTE.
More on Project Controls on demandThe SMI works with the common planning programs. What matters is the native file, i.e. the schedule in the program’s original format – from P6, for example, as an XER export, from MS Project as an MPP file. A PDF or an Excel list is not enough, because the logic links are missing.
Two to four days from handover of the schedule – even for highly complex schedules. You need no preparation and no workshop: the schedule itself is the data basis.
The Defense Contract Management Agency has defined 14 checks that are recognised internationally as the standard for schedule quality – such as missing logic links, hard constraints, negative float or the critical path test. The SMI builds on these 14 criteria and extends them to 35 analysis points, each of which is assessed individually.
Yes. The SMI assesses the technique of a schedule regardless of who created it. That is exactly what it is often used for: as an objective basis for discussions with contractors and partners, before a schedule is approved or before contract award.
The TAR-Check assesses your entire turnaround organisation across 16 analysis elements and benchmarks it against the industry and best practice. The SMI checks the technique and integrity of a specific schedule. Both can be booked individually or combined – the SMI also outside shutdowns, for example in capital projects.
The SMI is a clearly defined package with a defined result. Billing is by the hour, by day rate or at a fixed price – we work out together which model fits. The price depends on the size and complexity of the schedule; after the free initial call, you receive a binding quote.
Terms such as IPA review and DCMA criteria are explained in our glossary – along with 57 other terms from the shutdown and project business.
Have it measured rather than estimated: hand over the schedule, have clarity in two to four days. Initial call free of charge.
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