A heuristic algorithm in project scheduling and project time optimization: through managing the size of the project buffer, feeding buffers, and resource buffers

Abstract

Execution of projects is not always done according to the original plan, and in many cases, projects are accompanied by delays, which will lead to financial and time losses for companies and organizations. This research is introduced an innovative heuristic algorithm for more accurate scheduling of projects and minimizing delays in them by managing project buffers and determining their size. Providing a heuristic algorithm to determine the size of project buffer, feeding buffers, and resource buffers simultaneously is the innovation of this research. The proposed heuristic algorithm is coded and run in MATLAB software to analyze the data and also evaluate its performance and the results are compared with similar previous algorithms. The results are showed that using this algorithm will have better results than similar algorithms and will increase project productivity and projects can be completed in a shorter time.