During a renovation project, a carpenter is tasked with installing new cabinets. The original schedule allocated 3 days for cabinet installation. However, during the rough-in phase, it was discovered that the walls were not plumb, requiring an extra day for shimming and levelling before cabinet installation could begin. How should the carpenter adjust the project schedule to account for this issue?

Question: During a renovation project, a carpenter is tasked with installing new cabinets. The original schedule allocated 3 days for cabinet installation. However, during the rough-in phase, it was discovered that the walls were not plumb, requiring an extra day for shimming and levelling before cabinet installation could begin. How should the carpenter adjust the project schedule to account for this issue?

Answer options:

• Request an extension for the entire project equal to the delay. ✅ Assess if other non-critical path activities can be compressed to absorb the delay.
• Ignore the delay and hope to catch up later in the project.
• Tell the client the project will automatically be delayed by one day.

Correct answer: Assess if other non-critical path activities can be compressed to absorb the delay.

Explanation: When a critical path activity is delayed, the first step is to assess if there is 'float' available in other non-critical path activities or if other activities can be rushed to absorb the delay without impacting the overall project completion date. Simply requesting an extension or ignoring the delay are not proactive project management strategies.