What Is a Precedence Diagram Method?

Precedence Diagram Method (PDM) is a visual representation technique that

depicts the activities involved in a project. It is a method of constructing a project
schedule network diagram that uses boxes/nodes to represent activities and
connects them with arrows that show the dependencies.
How is the Precedence Diagram Method (PDM) Depicted

The Precedence Diagram is depicted by a chart with nodes and their relationships.
An arrow connects two nodes to represent an active relationship. It’s also called a
nodal diagram or network diagram.

The Four Precedence Diagram Methods (PDM)

The PDM has four ways of developing the diagram. These methods are:

Finish-Start: In this dependency, an activity cannot start before a previous

activity has ended. This is the most commonly used dependency.
Start-Start: In this dependency, there is a defined relationship between the
start of activities.
Finish-Finish: In this dependency, there is a defined relationship between
the end dates of activities.
Start-Finish: In this dependency, there is a defined relationship between
the start of one activity and the end date of a successor activity. This
dependency is rarely used.

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What is a Gantt chart?

A Gantt chart is a horizontal bar chart developed as a production control tool in

1917 by Henry L. Gantt, an American engineer and social scientist. Frequently
used in project management, a Gantt chart provides a graphical illustration of a
schedule that can be used to plan, coordinate and track tasks in a project.

Gantt charts can be simple versions created on graph paper or more complex
automated versions created using project management applications such as
Microsoft Project or Excel.

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1.Consider the following table of information:

Activity Duration(days) Precedents

A 8 None
B 6 None
C 5 A
D 6 B
E 5 B
F 12 None
G 5 E,F
H 4 C,D
Draw the precedence network diagram and Gantt Chart.

Fig: Gantt chart

Fig: Precedence Network diagram

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2. Consider the following table of information:

Activity Duration Depends on

A 5 days -
B 1 days -
C 2 days A
D 3 days A
E 2 days A
F 3 days C
G 4 days D
H 2 days B,E
I 1 days H
J 1 days F,G.I

Draw the precedence network diagram and Gantt Chart using.

Fig: Gantt chart

Fig: Precedence Network diagram

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3.Consider the following table of information:

Activity Duration(days) Precedents

A 8 None
B 6 None
C 5 A
D 6 B
E 5 B
F 12 None
G 5 E,F
H 4 C,D

Draw the precedence network diagram and Gantt Chart.

Fig: Gantt chart

Fig: Precedence Network diagram

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4.Consider the following table of information:

Activity Duration(days) Precedents

A 4 None
B 6 None
C 4 None
D 3 A
E 4 B
F 10 C
G 9 D,E
H 6 B
I 8 F,H
Draw the precedence network diagram and Gantt Chart.

Fig: Gantt chart

Fig: Precedence Network diagram

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5.Consider the following table of information:

Activity Duration(week) Precedents

A 7 None
B 5 None
C 4 A
D 5 B
E 4 B
F 11 C
G 4 E,F
H 3 C,D

Draw the precedence network diagram and Gantt Chart.

Fig: Gantt chart

Fig: Precedence Network diagram

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6.Consider the following table of information:

Activity Duration(week)
Specify overall 15
Specify module A 16
Specify module B 10
Specify module C 9
Check specification 8
Design module A 5
Design module B 10
Design module C 5
Code /test A 6
Code /test B 8
Code /test C 10
System Integration 8

Draw the precedence network diagram and Gantt Chart.

Fig: Gantt chart

Fig: Precedence Network diagram

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7.Consider the following table of information:

Activity Duration(week) Precedents

A 9 None
B 5 None
C 6 A
D 5 B
E 6 B
F 11 None
G 6 E,F
H 5 C,D

Draw the precedence network diagram and Gantt Chart.

Fig: Gantt chart

Fig: Precedence Network diagram

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8. Consider the following table of information:

Activity Duration Depends on

A 6 days -
B 2 days -
C 3 days A
D 2 days A
E 3 days A
F 2 days C
G 5 days D
H 3 days B,E
I 2 days H
J 1 days F,G.I

Draw the precedence network diagram and Gantt Chart.

Fig: Gantt chart

Fig: Precedence Network diagram

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9.Consider the following table of information:

Activity Duration(week) Precedents

A 10 None
B 8 None
C 6 A
D 7 B
E 6 B
F 11 None
G 6 E,F
H 5 C,D

Draw the precedence network diagram and Gantt Chart.

Fig: Gantt chart

Fig: Precedence Network diagram

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10.Consider the following table of information:

Activity Duration(week) Precedents

A 4 None
B 4 None
C 5 None
D 3 A
E 2 B
F 10 C
G 9 D,E
H 8 B
I 7 F,H
Draw the precedence network diagram and Gantt Chart .

Fig: Gantt chart

Fig: Precedence Network diagram

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