Dynamic priority–dynamic programming scheduling method (DP)2SM: A dynamic approach to resource constraint project scheduling

The purpose of this paper is twofold: first to introduce and evaluate a dynamic priority scheduling model developed in this research for solving the resource constraint project scheduling problem and second, to introduce an improvement made upon the first model by cross-breeding Dynamic Programming with the Dynamic Priority Scheduling Method (DPSM). The second model called the Dynamic Priority Dynamic Programming Scheduling Method |(DP)²SM|, aims at optimising the staged resource allocation decisions in DPSM. DPSM divides a project into phases (cycles), the length of which depends on the duration of the project and the period of clock cycle selected. The scheduling process starts by allocating resources to the first phase/cycle using a variety of policies, then the best schedule is selected based on an objective function. The process continues till all the activities are scheduled. In DPSM the interaction between phases is ignored while the decisions of each phase or cycle will affect all the remaining phases. Using (DP)²SM it may be possible to improve the quality of a schedule and reduce the duration of a project by optimising the overall project schedule.