Custom fields with duration to show contingency

[donkeyboy]

I'm a newbie with MS Project, and have just started to use custom
fields today, as it looks like they meet a need of mine: I'm trying to
calculate the duration and cost of each project task, if each project
task took 50% longer than initially estimated -- I'm trying to factor
in contingency into the project, and our working practice is to add on
a 1/2.

As such, I'm trying to multiply the duration, work, start and finish
fields all by 1.5, to get the desired result, but I'm ending up getting
error messages, presumably due to syntax mistakes. I've just stumbled
across functions, but without any examples in the help file, I'm
struggling to see what I need to enter in the formulas.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how I can achieve the above?

Thanks in advance.

Ron

 

[Jan De Messemaeker]

Hi donkeyboy,

You cannot have formula in fields that are NOT custom fields such as
duration, work, cost; as such Project cannot recalculate the planned dates
from your contingency.
To do that you need some VBA programming - VBA can update all fieldds.
HTH

 

[Steve House [Project MVP]]

Take a look at the PERT tools for estimating based on best case, expected,
and worst case duration estimates. Maybe that will provide what you need.

 

[Mike Glen]

Hi Donkeyboy,

You might like to have a look at my series on Microsoft Project in the
TechTrax ezine, particularly Feb 06 on PERT, at this site:
http://tinyurl.com/2xbhc or this:
http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/Pub0009/LPMFrame.asp?CMD=ArticleSearch&AUTH=23
(Perhaps you'd care to rate the article before leaving the site,
Thanks.)

FAQs, companion products and other useful Project information can be seen at
this web address: <http://www.mvps.org/project/>

Hope this helps - please let us know how you get on

Mike Glen
MS Project MVP