Add time based on certain task

[Mike]

I have a project with a wide range of dates. I have one
certain task, that if moved to a later date, I want to add
time to other tasks. ie, if the task starts 30 days later,
i want to add 30 days to specific tasks, not change their
start dates, but add a "buffer". I"m not sure how to link
these tasks, if it's possible to do. I hope I was able to
get my problem across. Thanks for your time.

Mike

 

[Sean]

Mike:

As long as the tasks are dependent on one another, they
will move in concert. From what you've posted it sounds
like finish-to-start dependencies will work fine for
you. So as task 1 gets delayed by 30 days, task 2, which
will start after task 1, will also be delayed by 30 days.

If you need to apply a buffer period, you could insert
lag time or you could insert a task to serve only this
purpose. This will help you model your course, but you
will still need to use dependencies properly.

If I missed something, please repost.

Hope this helps!

 

[Steve House]

When you say "add time" do you mean something like this? -- Task A is 30
days long and when it ends Task B will start, also lasting 30 days. But if
B is delayed in starting so it would start 60 days after A begins, the
duration of A will automatically increase from 30 days to 60 days. This is
highly unusual behavior for tasks as a task or "work package" usually is a
definite discrete amount of work resulting in a specific deliverable. The
way it would normally work is if task A were a required predecessor to B,
delay in the finish of A would push back the start of B. When two tasks are
linked, one is the controlling task and the other is controlled. If A->B, A
controls B, so if A slides so will B. You can also set it so B controls A.
But in either case, it would be very very rare for the start of B to control
the *duration* of A as that implies that the deliverable A produces is
fluid - our project requires us to produce 100 widgets but if we have time
because B is delayed in starting we'll produce 200 instead, just for the fun
of it.