Resource loading projects and Units

[Mike C]

We have projects in our organization that are more a continuous effort, not
really a true peoject. We need to track resource time for allocation
purposes so we have created projects and tasks to book time and allocate to.
Example would be server support. I would allocate "Mike resource" to this
Server Support task at 10% flat loaded for the year. I make the task type
Fixed Units. This flat loads the resource at 4 hours per week for the year.
This is perect. The issue comes when their actuals are more then the 4
hours. This should, in my opion only change duration, but it also does
change their units as well. Once the units change it also can change the
hours allocated per week. Am I missing something here? Could it be that the
task type was something other then fixed units when it was originally
created? Thanks

 

[Dale Howard [MVP]]

Mike C --

Yes, you are definitely missing something. The Units value that you see for
the resource to the right of the Gantt bar is known as the Peak Units value.
The Peak Units value represents the largest amount of Work or Actual Work
for the resource on that task during any time period during the life of the
task. When you assign the resource to the task at 10% Units, the system
sets the Peak Units value to 10%, which is what you see before you enter
actuals.

When you begin entering actuals for the resource on that task, and then
enter 6 hours of Actual Work during a single week (for example), the
software will recalculate the Peak Units value at 15%, since 6 hours of
Actual Work in a single week represents 15% of a 40-hour work week. Please
note, however, that the software DOES NOT change the Units assignment across
the remainder of the task, except for the last week probably. You can
confirm this by applying the Resource Usage view for the project and looking
at the Work assigned to the resource in each remaining time period. My
advice to you is not to worry about the Units value you see to the right of
the Gantt bar and do not attempt to change it. Rather, you should simply
live with it, as this is how the software works. Hope this helps.