Chapter 3 - Program Management Case Study Minnesota State University (MSU), a large state college in Mankato, Minnesota, 30 miles southwest of the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex, enrolls close to 15,000 students. In a typical town gown relationship, the school is a dominant force in the small city, with more students during fall and spring than permanent residents. A longtime Division Il football powerhouse, MSU is a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate conference and is usually in the top 20 in Division Il college football rankings. To bolster its chances of reaching the elusive and long-desired number one ranking in 2014, MSU "re"-hired Todd Haffoer as its head coach. One of Bottecs demands on rejoining MSU had been a new stadium. With attendance Increasing. MSU administrators began to face the issue head-on. After 6 months of study, much political arm wrestling, and some serious financial analysis, Richard Davenport, president of Minnesota State University, had reached a decision to expand the capacity at its on-campus stadium. Adding thousands of seats, including dozens of luxury skyboxes, would not please everyone. The influential Hotfaec had argued the need for a first-class stadium, one with built-in dormitory rooms for his players and a palatial office appropriate for the coach of a future NCAA Division Il champion team. But the decision was made, and everyone, including the coach, would learn to live with it. The job now was to get construction going immediately after the 2015 season ended. This would allow exactly 270 days until the 2016 season opening game. The contractor, Townsonstruction (Randy Towns being an alumnus, of course), signed his contract. Randy Towns looked at tht tasks his engineers had outlined and looked President Davenport in the eye. guarantee the team will be able to take the field on schedule next year," he said with a sense of confidence. sure hope so," replied Davenport. "The contract penalty of $10,000 per day for running late is nothing compared to what Coach Hatfoec will do to you if our opening game with crosstown rival Southwest Minnesota State is delayed or canceled." Towns, sweating slightly, did not need to respond. In football-crary Minnesota, Towns Construction would be mud of the 270-day target was missed. Back in his office, Towns again reviewed the data (see table below) and noted that optimistic time estimates can be used as crash times. He then gathered his foremen. "Folks, if we're not 75% sure we'll finish this stadium in less than 270 days, I want this project crashed Give me the cost figures for a target date of 250 days-also for 240 days. I want to be early, not just on time! 2 630 words IE Focus W Activity Pessimistic Cost/Day A 45 $1,500 B 70 3,500 Minnesota State University Project Predecessor Description (5) Optimistic Likely Bonding, insurance, 21 tax structuring 27 Foundation, concrete footings 20 60 for boxes Upgrading skybox stadium seating 50 60 Upgrading walkways, 30 50 stairwells, elevators Interior wiring. lathes B 25 30 Inspection approvals E 1 1.5 Plumbing DF 25 30 100 4,000 D 100 1,900 E 35 9,500 F 2 0 G 35 2,500 H G 10 20 30 2,000 1 Painting Hardware/AC/metal H workings Tile/carpet/windows H 20 25 60 2,000 8 10 12 6,000 K 0.5 1 1.5 0 L Inspection Final detail work/cleanup 20 25 60 4,500 Discussion Questions 1. Develop a network drawing for Towns Construction and determine the critical path. How long is the project expected to take? 2. What is the probability of finishing in 270 days? 3. (Enrichment) if it is necessary to crash to 250 or 240 days, how would Towns do so, and at what costs? As noted in the case, assume that optimistic time estimates can be used as crash times. 330 words Focus w