A comparison of resource allocation and activity scheduling rules in a dynamic multi-project environment

The use of a dual-level structure in managing the use of resources in a multi-project environment involves two sets of decisions. Resource allocation decisions, usually controlled by a central authority, determine the allocation of resources among projects such that resources are allocated to the critical projects. Once assigned to a project, the resources are managed by an independent project manager who schedules the activities within his project using only the resources assigned to him. This paper evaluates the relative performance of four resource allocation priority rules and six resource transfer rules in conjunction with two activity scheduling rules. The results show that the First in System First Served resource allocation priority rule dominates over the other three proposed resource allocation priority rules with the lowest project tardiness, flowtime, and lateness standard deviation. Further evaluation of the resource transfer rules shows that additional resources should only be transferred into a project just-in-time of expected use, and idle resources which are expected to be utilized within a time period of not longer than two times the resource transfer time should be retained within their assigned project. The minimum late finish activity scheduling rule is also shown to perform better than the minimum slack activity scheduling rule.