Improving the performance of Earned Value Analysis as a construction project management tool

Abstract

Earned Value Analysis (EVA) is an accepted theoretical technique advocated for the control of projects. This paper attempts to refine and improve the performance of traditional EVA by the introduction of a hybrid methodology based on work packages and logical time analysis entitled Work Package Methodology (WPM). The proposed WPM provides the means to periodically update project cost and time performance by restricting EVA calculations to individual work packages. These are then subjected to a logical time analysis to determine the predicted project cost and time to completion. A comparative analysis between WPM and EVA is then undertaken using adapted test data derived from knowledge of previous projects to identify the reasons for variation in the results obtained from both methods. The evaluation of the test results indicates that when the Cost Performance Index (CPI) and the Schedule Performance Index (SPI) are well above or below unity then, especially in the early stages of the project, traditionally applied EVA predictions can be un‐realiable and require further investigation and evaluation. WPM provides a vehicle for judging the performance of EVA by applying an alternative logical time and cost utilizing work sequence and construction methods. The predictive performance of EVA is refined by these means.