AACE International AACE-PSP Online Practice Questions and Exam Preparation

AACE International AACE-PSP Online Questions & Answers

• Question 31:

  Assuming a total of 30 lifts per crane per day, what is the maximum number of lifts that could be accomplished using 3 small tower cranes over a 5-day period?

  

  A. 450 lifts
  B. 300 lifts
  C. 45 lifts
  D. 150 lifts
  A. 450 lifts

• Question 32:

  Which of the following project planning situations is the most frequent contributor to cost overruns?

  A. lack of detailed planning for operational start-up
  B. Insufficient planning for change management
  C. Inappropriate definition of work breakdown structure
  D. Inadequate definition of scope at the estimate (budget) stage
  D. Inadequate definition of scope at the estimate (budget) stage

• Question 33:

  In the "normal" schedule, excluding Activity 1000, what activity(s) are concurrent with Activity 3001?

  

  A. 2003 and 7001.
  B. 2004.
  C. 4001, 5001 and 6001.
  D. 4001 and 5001.
  D. 4001 and 5001.

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  Explanation/Reference:

• Question 34:

  The work breakdown structure is used to organize

  A. "Smart activity ID codes" representing similar items of scheduled work
  B. The chart of accounts
  C. Similar activity coding of schedule activities
  D. The smallest defined work packet
  D. The smallest defined work packet

• Question 35:

  For which of these delays should an owner grant a time extension?

  A. Structural steel shop drawings.
  B. Shop drawings and centrifuge delay.
  C. Differing site conditions at parking structure.
  D. Differing site conditions and centrifuge delay.
  C. Differing site conditions at parking structure.

• Question 36:

  Which of the following are NOT considerations or constraints of the planning process for construction scheduling?

  A. Consideration of all stakeholders.
  B. Value engineering.
  C. Project variables.
  D. Interest rate of owner's construction bonds.
  D. Interest rate of owner's construction bonds.

• Question 37:

  The sum of all budgets for work scheduled to be accomplished within a given time period is the ____________.

  A. Estimate at completion (EAC)
  B. Budget at completion (BAC)
  C. Budgeted cost of work performed (BCWP) D. Budgeted cost of work scheduled (BCWS)
  B. Budget at completion (BAC)

• Question 38:

  Determine the correct formula and date for the late finish for Activity 2001.

  

  A. LF.2001 - 1 day -> 08-28-01.
  B. LS.2002- 1 day-> 08-29-01.
  C. LS.2002 + 1 day -> 08-30-01.
  D. LS.2002 - 1 day -> 08-28-01.
  D. LS.2002 - 1 day -> 08-28-01.

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  Explanation/Reference:

• Question 39:

  CORRECT TEXT Background

  Your name is Evan Marshal. You are the corporate scheduler for Happy Insurance Corporation (HIC), a general health insurance company located in Ridgemond, Illinois. HIC is very busy with 49 unique software development projects. The organization structure at HIC gives the project scheduling responsibility to the Project Manager assigned to each project. You are charged with coordination of the project schedules into a Master Schedule and quality control for scheduling on the individual development projects. You report directly to the Director of Information Services (DIS), Desmond Rayburn.

  It has come to your attention Project JP-114 has fallen behind schedule and Rita Belateau, the Project Manager, wants to accelerate the project in order to reclaim lost time. Rita is a strong supporter of Total Quality Management and strives for zero failures; therefore she is assessing the need for overtime for resources assigned to an activity that is not projecting a completion prior to the early finish depicted in the current schedule.

  You and Rita review the current schedule to identify which activities are on the critical path and which activities have plenty of float. The review reveals several activities have suffered less than planned productivity and have contributed to falling behind. In the process of this review, you and Rita also review the budget for Project JP-114 and notice not only the schedule has fallen behind but the cost to date is more than she had expected. To total budget is $150,000, planned to date is $30,000; expended to date is $37,000.

  With nine months remaining until baseline contract completion, Rita needs to bring Project JP-114 back on track; knowing overtime for an extended period of time is not always the right answer, especially with the cost to date already over planned.

  In order to truly understand the options available to help remedy the current situation, you and Rita brainstorm on several potential courses of action. All the potential courses of action will require an evaluation of budget impact versus schedule correction.

  1. Pull the project team together and ensure everyone understands which activities are on the critical path. Rita would like to use the existing project team and focus them on these critical path activities, laying out a plan for periodic overtime when needed to crunch through a deliverable. This approach could add approximately 20% to the budget.

  2. Outsource various modules of activities to qualified and known consultants. This could drive up the costs and must be evaluated before implemented. Having an outside source working in parallel with the project team could also accelerate the schedule to mitigate some of the delays, as well as keep overtime down to a minimum for the project team. Potentially this could add as much as 40% to the budget, but could also be very productive schedule wise.

  3. Mandatory overtime for the project team - entire project goes on a 50-hour work week. If the entire project team works overtime for an extended period of time, the budget could see an additional 60% increase.

  4. The project continues as is completes the project late and accepts the penalties imposed. Penalties imposed for late delivery could add as much as 50% to the budget.

  Assignment

  Draft a proper memorandum to Desmond Raybum, IS Director, explaining in your own words:

  1. the current problem and potential impact(s);

  2. each course of action, stating advantages and disadvantages as appropriate;

  3. your recommendations, properly supported.

  Please be sure to include the rationale for your recommendations. Be sure to summarize your thoughts and address (To, From, Date, and Subject/Project Name) and close the memo appropriately. If you are uncomfortable with the courses of action noted, provide your own with appropriate substantiation for your position. Limit your answer to one, full typewritten page (roughly three handwritten pages).

  While your email can be a detailed as you like, be sure to write sufficiently to address each element of the assignment, yet not so long that you go beyond the scope of the exercise.

  Take time to read the problem and consider what you want Evan to say. Good luck!

  A. Check the
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  A. Check the

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  Explanation/Reference:

  To: Desmond Rayburn, IS Director

  From: Evan Marshal, Corporate Scheduler

  Date: [Current Date]

  Subject: Status and Recommendations for Project JP-114

  Overview:

  Project JP-114, under Project Manager Rita Belateau, has fallen behind schedule and exceeded the planned budget by approximately $7,000 with nine months until completion. The total budget is $150,000, with $30,000 planned for this point

  and $37,000 spent. Delays are due to several low-productivity activities impacting the critical path.

  Potential Courses of Action:

  Focused Critical Path Work with Periodic Overtime:

  Advantages: Minimal overtime maintains team morale, controlled budget impact (+20%), retains current team expertise.

  Disadvantages: Extended schedule risk if productivity doesn't increase.

  Outsource Specific Tasks to Consultants:

  Advantages: Accelerates project timeline; less team overtime.

  Disadvantages: Higher cost (up to +40%), potential integration risks between consultants and in-house team.

  Mandatory 50-Hour Work Weeks for Entire Team:

  Advantages: Fastest completion potential.

  Disadvantages: High additional cost (+60% budget), likely burnout and possible decrease in quality due to prolonged overtime.

  Continue with Current Approach, Accept Penalties:

  Advantages: No extra project cost immediately.

  Disadvantages: Severe penalties add up to +50% budget, negative project impact on company's reputation and future scheduling.

  Recommendation:

  I recommend Option 1: maintaining the existing team, focusing on critical path activities with limited, periodic overtime. This approach provides the best balance of schedule recovery with a reasonable budget increase and minimizes team

  burnout. If needed, we can consider outsourcing selectively as an alternative to contain critical activities. Option 1 will allow us to leverage internal resources effectively while monitoring budget impact.

  Sincerely,

  Evan Marshal

• Question 40:

  Activity 1001 started on the scheduled date but has slipped 10 days. Activity 10002 will slip 35 days. All remaining activities retain their original duration. What is the revised completion date?

  

  A. 02-19-04
  B. 03-21-04
  C. 03-11-04
  D. 03-20-04
  C. 03-11-04

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  Explanation/Reference: