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ENGG951
Engineering Project Management

FINAL EXAM - AUTUMN 2009

Time Allowed: 3hours 15 minutes

Number of Questions in this Exam: Answer all Questions

Section A: 50 Multiple choice questions
Section B: 1 analytical question
Section C: 2 questions (problem solving)

DIRECTIONS TO CANDIDATES
Section A: Multiple Choices. (Answer all questions)
 Use the provided answer sheet to answer the multiple choice questions
 Each question is worth one mark to make a total of 50 marks.

Section B: Analytical Section. (Answer all questions)

 This section is worth 15 marks.

Section C: (Problem Solving) (Answer all questions)

 This section is worth 35 marks

Examination paper is printed on both sides.

Number of pages including first page and the appendix is 15

This examination is worth 50 percent of your final marks

EXAMINATION MATERIALS
Calculator
THIS EXAMINATION PAPER MUST NOT BE REMOVED FROM THE EXAMINATION ROOM

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 1

 Section A

Multiple Choices ( 50 marks)

1- Which of the following is not an external-unpredictable risk?

1. Changes in government regulations

2. Natural hazards
3. Unexpected environmental side effects
4. Inflation

Answer:D

2- Which of the following statements concerning contract type is correct?

1. A fixed price contract contains the most risk for the buyer.
2. Cost reimbursable contracts offer sellers the highest profit potential.
3. Lump sum contracts offer sellers the greatest profit potential.
4. Unit price contracts are illegal in many jurisdictions.

Answer:C

3- Your customer ask for a small change in the project, which was not budgeted in the
project. It is a small effort as compared to the total project and you need the goodwill for
a multimillion dollar on the pipeline. You will

1. Refuse to do the work

2. Agree to do the work at no charge
3. Do the work and bill him later
4. Assess the cost and schedule impact and tell them you will decide later

Answer:D

4- On a top-secret biotechnology R&D project, the project performance reports indicate

a Cost Performance Index (CPI) of 0.81 and a Schedule Performance Index (SPI) of 1.19.
What is the most likely explanation for this situation?

a) Poor project management and estimating.

b) More experienced specialists have been used.
c) The project team is working overtime.
d) The special resources (equipment, materials) procured cost more than originally
projected.

Answer B

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 2

5- To manage a project, a project plan should be realistic and achievable. Which of the
following is the best method to achieve a realistic project plan?

a) The project manager creates the project plan based on input from the team.
b) The project manager creates the project plan based on input from senior management.
c) The functional manager creates the project plan based on input from the project
manager.
d) The project manager creates the project plan based on the scope statement and
organizational procedures.

Answer A

6- Project managers frequently monitor variances to determine where they should focus
their attention on a project. What is schedule variance?

a) The difference between how much the project was expected to cost and how much it is
actually costing.
b) It's not an issue for project managers because schedules do typically vary.
c) The difference between the amount of time a task was to take and the actual amount
of time it took.
d) It's considered a major problem by the project management professional body.

Answer C

7- A consulting company first forms a pursuit team to develop a competitive bid and
response to an RFP it received. After learning its response had been selected by the
buyer, the company formed a negotiation team to settle on a final price. After the
negotiation was complete and the contract was signed, the project manager was
assigned to the engagement. The project manager was not part of either team or the
process to date, so what should he, as a good project manager, do first?

a) Compare the proposal statement of work with the statement of work in the contract.
b) Develop a project charter and communications plan.
c) Develop an initial WBS.
d) Review the constraint and assumptions used in estimating process.

Answer D

8- Where is the best place to go to find out when individual people resources will be
needed for the project?

a) The roles and responsibilities matrix

b) The project schedule
c) The staffing management plan

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 3

 d) The communications plan

Answer C

9- You have created the project charter but could not get it approved by senior
management. Your manager and his boss have asked you to begin the project anyway.
Which of the following actions is the best thing to do?

a) Focus on other projects that have a signed charter.

b) Start work on critical path tasks.
c) Update your Project Risk Log.
d) Show your manager the impact of proceeding without approval.

Answer D

10- To be effective, the risk management process should ___________________.

a) be applied throughout the project and at all levels of system decomposition and project
organization
b) focus on risks that senior management finds most critical
c) include a meeting with key stakeholders to identify risks and develop response
strategies
d) be applied primarily during concept and closeout and to some extent during planning
and implementation

Answer A

11- Which of the following statements best describes the relationship between projects
and programs?

a) There are no differences…just different terms for the same thing.

b) A project is composed of one or more related programs.
c) A program is composed of one or more related projects.
d) A project is a temporary endeavor, whereas a program is permanent

Answer C

12-During which phase of the project lifecycle is there the greatest degree of
uncertainty?

a) Initiating
b) Planning

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 4

 c) Executing
d) Controlling

Answer A

13- You go to dinner at an expensive restaurant with a group of vendors from China. The
bill is more than $500. After dinner, they offer to buy you dinner. How should you handle
the situation?

a) Gracefully decline and pay for your own meal.

b) Accept the gift and thank them for their generosity.
c) Ask for a copy of the new vendor contract.
d) Offer to put it on your expense account.

Answer A

14- Schedule variance is _____________________.

a) the difference between how much the project was expected to cost and how much it is
actually costing
b) not an issue for project managers because schedules do typically vary
c) the difference between the amount of time a task is scheduled to take and the actual
amount of time it takes
d) considered a major problem by PMI

Answer C

15- Activity A has a duration of 4 days and begins on the morning of Wednesday the 4th.
The successor activity, Activity B, has a finish-to-start relationship with Activity A. The
finish-to-start relationship has a lag of 3 days, and Activity B has a duration of 3 days.
Saturday isn't a workday. What can be determined from this data?

a) The total duration is 11 days.

b) The finish date of Activity B is Sunday the 15th.
c) The total duration is 14 days.
d) The finish date of Activity B is Tuesday the 17th.

Answer B

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 5

16- What is the purpose of cost budgeting?

a) To allocate cost estimates to individual work items to establish a cost baseline against
which project performance can be measured.
b) To monitor cost performance to detect variances from the plan.
c) To determine the cost of the resources needed to complete the project activities and
allocate them to the proper chart of accounts for the organization.
d) To provide a quantitative assessment of the likely costs of the resources required to
complete project activities.

Answer A

17- Using the following earned value metrics, calculate the SV, CV, and EAC for this
project: PV=$5,000, EV=$5,250, AC=$5,500, BAC=$25,000

a) SV=–$250, CV=$250, EAC=$26,315

b) SV=$250, CV=–$500, EAC=$24,038
c) SV=–$250, CV=–$500, EAC=$24,038
d) SV=$250, CV=–$250, EAC=$26,315

Answer D

18- You have four projects from which to choose. Project 1 is a 5-year project with an
NPV of U.S. $750K. Project 2 is a 3-year project with an NPV of U.S. $600K. Project 3 is a
1-year project with an NPV of U.S. $500K. Project 4 is another 3-year project with an NPV
of U.S. $650K. Which project is preferred?

a) Project 1
b) Project 2
c) Project 3
d) Project 4

Answer A

19- Which of the following is a tool used to secure expert judgment?

a) Peer review
b) Delphi technique

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 6

 c) Expected value technique
d) Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

Answer B

20- Based on the information provided below, which project would you recommend
pursuing?
a) Project I, with BCR (Benefit Cost ratio) of 1:1.6;
b) Project II, with NPV of US $ 500,000;
c) Project III, with IRR (Internal rate of return) of 15%
d) Project IV, with opportunity cost of US $ 500,000.

Answer B

21-Your team has identified a risk with some of the chemicals you are using on your
highway construction project. It is really difficult to mix them just right and, based on
past projects, you’ve figured out that there’s a high probability that about 14% of the
chemical supply will be lost in mixing problems. You decide to buy an extra 15% of the
chemicals up front so that you will be prepared for those losses and your project won’t
be delayed. Which response strategy are you using?

a) Avoid
b) Accept
c) Mitigate
d) Transfer

Answer C

22- When do you perform stakeholder analysis?

a) When defining the project scope

b) When developing the project charter
c) When creating the project management plan
d) When putting changes through change control

Answer A

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 7

23- Which is the BEST description of project scope?

a) All of the features and deliverables your project will deliver

b) All of the products your project will make
c) All of the people involved in your project
d) All of the work you will do to build the product

Answer D

24- You are in charge of developing a new product for an organization. Your quality
metrics are based on the 80th percentile of each of the last three products developed.
This is an example of:

1. Statistical sampling
2. Metrics
3. Benchmarking
4. Operational definitions

Answer: C

25- Paul is a project manager for an industrial design project. The project has a 60%
chance of making the company $230,000 over the next year. It has a 40% chance of
costing the company $150,000. What’s the project’s EMV?
a) $138,000
b) $60,000
c) $78,000
d) $230,000

Answer C

26 How much time does the typical project manager spend communicating both formally
and informally?

1. 40-60%
2. 50-70%
3. 60-80%
4. 75-90%

Answer: D

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 8

27- The three major causes of change on a project are:

1. Replacement of the project manager or key project team members; changes in

priorities by senior management; and contractual difficulties.
2. Changes in the relative importance of time, resources, or cost ; new knowledge about
the deliverable; and technological uncertainty
3. Errors in the initial assessment of how to achieve the goal of the project; new
information about the project deliverable; and a new mandate
4. Unavailability of resources promised by the functional managers; cost overruns; and
changes in customer requirements

Answer:C

28- Tom is the project manager of an accounting project. He has just finished defining
the scope for the project and is creating the WBS. He goes to his organizational process
asset library and finds a WBS from a past project to use as a jumping off point. Which of
the following is the tool of the Create WBS process is he using?
a) Decomposition
b) Delphi Technique
c) Brainstorming
d) Templates

Answer D

29- Which of the following BEST describes the main purpose of the project charter?
a) It authorizes the project manager to work on the project
b) It identifies the sponsor and describes his or her role on the project
c) It contains a list of all activities to be performed
d) It describes the initial scope of the work

Answer A

30- You are managing a construction project using a fixed price (FP) contract. The
contract is structured so that your company will be paid a fee of $85,000 to complete the
work. There was a $15,000 overhead cost that your company had to cover. It’s now three
months into the project, and your costs have just exceeded $70,000. The project has
now consumed the entire fee, and your company will now be forced to pay for all costs
on the project from this point forward. What’s the BEST way to describe this situation?
a) The project manager has overspent the budget
b) The project is overdrawn

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 9

 c) The project has reached the point of total assumption
d) The project has ceased to be a profit center for the company

Answer C

31- You are managing a project with a total budget of $450,000. According to the
schedule, your team should have completed 45% of the work by now. But at the latest
status meeting, the team only reported that 40% of the work has actually been
completed. The team has spent $165,000 so far on the project. How would you BEST
describe this project?
a) The project is ahead of schedule and within its budget
b) The project is behind schedule and within its budget
c) The project is ahead of schedule and over its budget
d) The project is behind schedule and over its budget

Answer B

32- You are working on a construction project. You, your team, and your senior manager
all feel that the work is complete. However, one of your stakeholders disagrees, and
feels that one deliverable is not acceptable. What is the BEST way to handle this
conflict?
a) Consult the contract and follow its claims administration procedure
b) Renegotiate the contract
c) File a lawsuit to force the stakeholder to accept the deliverable
d) Follow the administrative and contract closure procedures

Answer A

33- Project scope is:

1. The work that must be done in order to deliver a product with the specified features
and functions.
2. The features and functions that are to be included in a product or service.
3. A narrative description of work to be performed under contract.
4. a and b
5. all of the above

Answer:A

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 10

34- While identifying risks for a new construction project, you discover that a chemical
you are using on your building cannot be applied in rainy conditions. You also learn that
your project will be ready for the chemical application around the time when most of the
rainfall happens in this part of the country. Since the project can’t be delayed until after
the rainy season and you need to make sure the building gets the chemical coating, you
decide that your team will just have to work around the rain.
This is an example of which strategy?
a) Mitigate
b) Exploit
c) Accept
d) Transfer

Answer C

35. You are managing a construction project. During your risk identification interviews
you learn that there has been a string of construction site thefts over the past few
months in the area where your will be building your project. The team agrees that it’s
unlikely that people will be able to steal from your site. Even if thieves could get around
your security, it’s even more unlikely that your project will lose a significant amount of
material if a theft does occur. You decide to monitor the risk from time to time to be sure
that it continues to have a low probability and impact. Where do you record the risk so
that you don’t lose track of it?
a) In a trigger
b) On a watchlist
c) In the Probability and Impact Matrix
d) In the Monte Carlo analysis report

Answer B

36- Three Point Statistical Estimating Formula Group. Expected Value =

1. (Optimistic + (4 X Most Likely) + Pessimistic ) x 6

2. (Optimistic + (4 X Most Likely) + Pessimistic ) divided by 6

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 11

 3. (Optimistic + (4 X Most Likely) x Pessimistic ) divided by 6
4. (Optimistic + (4 + Most Likely) + Pessimistic ) divided by 6

Answer: B

37- A project manager has increased project costs by US $75,000, but completed the
project six weeks earlier than planned. What tool is best described here?

1. Resource leveling
2. Duration compression
3. Crashing
4. Fast tracking

Answer: C

38- A new project manager is about to begin creating the project's scope of work. One
stakeholder wants to add many items to the scope of work. Another stakeholder only
wants to describe the functional requirements. The project is important for the project
manager's company but a seller will do the work. Which of the following would you
advise the project manager to do?

1. The scope of work should be general to allow the seller to make its own decisions.
2. The scope of work should be general to allow clarification later.
3. The scope of work should be detailed to allow clarifications later.
4. The scope of work should be as detailed as necessary for the type of project.

Answer: D

39- Project Managers can contribute to their organization's knowledge base and to the
profession of project management most effectively by:

1. Developing and implementing a project review and lessons learned process

2. Establishing strict guidelines for protecting intellectual property
3. Promote the use of ad hoc project management
4. Ensuring that all project plans are developed before the project team is formed

Answer: A

40- A project manager is negotiating with a contractor. Neither has a good idea of how
long the project will take, or how much the materials will cost. Which contract type is
MOST appropriate for this project?
a) Cost plus fixed fee (CPFF)
b) Time and Materials (T&M)
c) Cost plus percentage of costs (CPPC)
d) Fixed price (FP)
Answer B

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 12

41- A project manager has been working on a project for six months with the same team
yet the team still shows a lack of support for the project. The best thing for the project
manager to do would be to?

1. Re-evaluate the effectiveness of the reward system the project manager has put in
place
2. talk to each team member's boss
3. Re-plan the project
4. Tell the team he needs its support

Answer: A

42- Quality assurance is:

1. top management's intention regarding quality

2. functions determining implementation of the quality policy
3. actions to provide confidence of satisfying quality requirements
4. responsibilities and processes which implement quality management
5. all of the above

Answer: C

43- Which of the following is NOT a stakeholder?

a) A project team member
b) An attorney from your company’s competitor
c) A representative from your project team’s union
d) The project sponsors

Answer D

44- Which of the following is NOT a part of the preliminary scope statement?
a) A list of requested changes
b) A list of project deliverables
c) The project objectives
d) A rough order of magnitude cost estimate

Answer A

45- You are the project manager for a railroad construction project. Your sponsor has
asked you for a forecast for the cost of project completion. Which of the following is the
BEST metric to use for forecasting?
a) EV and AC

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 13

 b) SV and CV
c) ETC and VAC
d) SPI and CPI

Answer C

46- A company uses a management technique that employs quality assurance

techniques to continuously improve all processes. This is called:
a) Just In Time Management
b) Kaizen
c) Ishikawa Diagrams
d) Inspection

Answer B

47- You are working with potential sponsors to determine which project your company
will pursue. Based on the benefit-to-cost (BCR) ratios, which of the following four
projects should you recommend?
a) Project A has a BCR of 5:2
b) Project B has a BCR of 5:4
c) Project C has a BCR of 3:1
d) Project D has a BCR of 2:1

Answer C

48- Which of the following is NOT an example of a deliverable?

a) Project Management Plan
b) Project Schedule
c) Work Breakdown Structure
d) Parametric Estimation

Answer D

49-You have been asked to select between three projects. Project A has a net present
value of $54,750 and will take six months to complete. Project B has a net present value

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 14

of $85,100 and will take two years to complete. Project C has a net present value of
$15,000 and a benefit-cost ratio of 5:2. Which project should you choose?
a) Project A
b) Project B
c) Project C
d) There is not enough information to decide

Answer B

50- What are the strategies for dealing with positive risks?
a) Avoid, mitigate, transfer, accept
b) Transfer, mitigate, avoid, exploit
c) Exploit, share, enhance, accept
d) Mitigate, enhance, exploit, accept

Answer C

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 15

 Section B
(Analytical 15 marks)

Question 2 (15 marks)

The Chief Operating Officer of Beirut Airline, Karim Ajam was put in charge after the CEO
unexpectedly resigned. Karim was named acting CEO and told by the airline’s board of
directors that he would be considered for the position permanently if the next few months went
smoothly. Karim was very nervous because he knew that the company was on the verge of
financial troubles. He was not expecting to make profits that had been projected for the next
few months. He knew the ticket selling was down due to recent unrest in the political situation
in the city and nationally.

The resigned CEO had hired the consulting group to help identify the cost saving for the airline.
The firm hired was unfamiliar to Karim, and there were rumours around the company that the
lead consultant was a friend of the now resigned CEO.

The Consulting group had been interviewing staff at the company for the last two weeks in
order to prepare a proposal for work re-design to cut costs. Karim met with the consultants and
they presented him with their proposal. The proposal outlined the cost of the consultants and
the projected savings the company could expect after the consultant’s work was finished. Karim
was now sure precisely how the savings were determined and what would be the redesign
project specific deliverables.

What should Karim do next? What information he should ask the consultant for before
accepting their proposal? What project planning tools would you suggest Karim ask the
consultant to use to outline the project more specifically and address his concerns?

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 16

 Section C
( Problem Solving - 35 marks)

Question 1 (20 marks)

You are asked to manage the morning seminars at Dubai Construction Week Conference next
year. There are three seminars, each requiring several tasks. You must begin by recruiting a
committee of six people to help you. You must also recruit one assistant. This is task A and you
expect it will take 12 hours. Then, you will concurrently work on developing ideas for each of
the seminars. The business college dean, Mohamed Salem, says two of the seminars will be
on “Project Management” you know this won’t take you long. In fact you plan to divide your
committee into two groups to define the topic and then recruit a speaker. You think that these
two groups, working concurrently, will take about 4 hours each to complete the task.
The third seminar is more difficult; dean Salem wants something on “the future of sustainable
development in UAE”. You are going to work on this yourself, along with your most trusted
assistant. This will be done at the same time as planning for the other two seminars. It will
probably take about 12 hours to complete. All the three tasks must be completed before
moving on the next phase.
The next phase (E) will require only you and your assistant. You will write the material
for the programs. This will take about 6 hours to complete. For task F, your assistant faxes the
program materials to four printers, asking them for bids (1- hour). You will use specifications
that were developed last year. You receive the bids, make copies, and provide them to
committee members (3- hours). In task H and I, the committee again splits up into two groups.
Each group reviews all four bids and rates them (4-hours). Then, in task J, the committee
members all meet and discuss the bids (2-hours). They then vote on winning bids. This takes
an additional hour.
After you and your assistant receive the vote, you booth meet with the winning printer ( task L),
another hour. After the printer returns the proof, you and your assistant are required to have
another 1-hour meeting with the printer to give your final approval. Two members of the
committee make final agreements for the venue (5 hours). The printer takes 10 hours to print
the programs. Finally, the three seminars are run, concurrently. Each of them takes 2 hours
and requires two committee members to be present at each seminar. After it is all over, your
entire committee, including you and your assistant, meet for a 1- hour debriefing.

a) How long does the project take? (2.5 marks)

b) Which task has the most slack time? (2.5 marks)
c) Which task has no slack time? (2.5 marks)
d) What is the slack time for the critical path? (2.5 marks)
e) How many different tasks are there in the project? (2.5 marks)
f) Calculate how many hours you, your assistant, and the committee spend on the
project? (2.5 marks)
g) You value your time, your assistant’s time, and the time of your committee
members at 25$/hour. A consultant has bid 5,000$ to take over the whole project
(excluding actual printing) and do all the work. Should you accept the bid? (5
marks)

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 17

3.27  (a) Total project  56 hours (see tables at right)
(b) Task with most slack  N  final arrangement for venue
(c) Which tasks have no slack time 
A, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, O, P, Q, R, S
(d) Slack on critical path, by definition, is zero
(e) How many tasks in project  19
(f) Labor hours for you  36
Hours for your assistant  22
Committee hours  94
(g) Total hours  $25/hr  152  $25  $3,800
Keep project in-house.

Dat Tim Precedent Precede Precede

e e nt nt
A 12
B  4 A
C  4 A
D 12 A
E  6 B C D
F  1 E
G  3 F
H  4 G
I  4 G
J  2 H I
K  1 J
L  1 K
M  1 L
N  5 B C D
O 10 M
P  2 O N
Q  2 O N
R  2 O N
S  1 P Q R

Early Early Late Late

Task Start Finish Start Finis Slack
h
A   0 12 0 12 0
B   12 16 20 24 8
C   12 16 20 24  8
D   12 24 12 24 0
E  24 30 24 30 0
F 30 31 30 31 0
G 31 34 31 34 0
H 34  38 34 38  0
I 34 38 34 38 0
J 38 40 38 40 0
K 40 41 40 41 0
L 41 42 41 42 0
M 42 43  42 43  0
N 24 29 48 53 24
O 43 53 43 53  0
P 53 55 53 55 0
Q 53 55 53 55 0
R 53 55 53 55 0
S 55 56 55 56 0
Proje
ct

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 18

Question 2 ( 15 marks)
Activity Precedence Manpower Normal Crash Normal Crash ES EF LS LF TF FF %
Cost Cost $ Duration Duration COMPLETED
(days) (days)
A First Activity 14 10000 15000 2 1 100

B follows A 2 1000 2000 8 6 100

C follows A 8 4000 6000 6 4 100

D follows A 6 1500 2500 5 2 100

E follows A 10 5000 8000 4 2 100

F follows B , C 16 7000 10000 5 2 80

G follows C, D 4 800 1400 4 2 100

H follows F, G 12 1500 2200 6 3 50

I follows E 18 6000 13000 2 1 50

J follows H,I 20 12000 20000 6 4 0

a- What is the total project duration (2.5 marks)

b- Complete the table shown above ( 2.5 marks)
c- If an update was done at day 15 from the start of the project what do you conclude (2.5 marks)
d- How can the project finish on time if it is behind in part c (2.5 marks)
e- If activity E was completed in 3 days at a cost of $55000, what do you conclude (5 marks)

ENNG 951 – Engineering Project Management: Autumn 2009 19