Let’s take a high-level look at the timesheet functionality in Oracle Primavera Cloud (OPC). Timesheets provide functionality allowing users to enter hours worked against projects. The project hours are logged against resource assignments on activities. Security privileges assigned to users for timesheets are based on the actions they require access to perform on a timesheet.
OPC contains Timesheet User, Timesheet Supervisor and Timesheet Approvers. Timesheet Users can create timesheets, log time against activities on projects, and submit them for approval. Timesheet Supervisors can create their own timesheets and enter time. They can also create timesheets for the resources assigned to the projects for which they are the timesheet supervisors. They can enter time on behalf of the resources and submit their timesheets for approval. Timesheet Approvers can create their own timesheets and enter time. They can also create timesheets for the resources for which they have been assigned as the timesheet approver. They can enter time, submit, approve, or reject their resources' timesheets.
Written by Mary Lynn Backstrom, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-BA – Implementation Specialist
on Sunday, 17 September 2023.
Posted in Oracle Primavera Cloud (Prime)
Are you new to using Oracle Primavera Cloud (OPC) for your project scheduling? When entering or importing information, keep in mind OPC is structured into modules. When you login, you will have icons available for the modules you have been assigned access to. For a quick walk through of a few items of interest, we will start by looking at the Utilizing the Scope Module which gives access to the windows in the list below.
Written by Mary Lynn Backstrom, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-BA – Implementation Specialist
on Monday, 11 September 2023.
Posted in Oracle Primavera Cloud (Prime)
Have you ever had a critical piece of data deleted in your Primavera P6 database and needed to recover it?
A client of ours had just this sort of scenario.
The user reached out to us in a panic. This user had just been given increased access in P6 and had renamed an existing UDF. He realized it was renamed improperly and instead of changing the name of the UDF, he deleted it. The project level User Defined Field (UDF) had data assigned to many of their projects. They needed to recover it and ensure the values were reinstated on their projects. We were able to recover the data in less than and hour and a half.
Written by Sue Fermelia - Implementation Specialist
on Friday, 25 August 2023.
Posted in P6-Auditor, P6-Loader
Your project is in execution. What schedule update options do you have out of the box using Oracle Primavera Cloud (OPC)? There is more than one approach available to updating your schedule of course. Updating in OPC can start with task updates and progress to updating the activities in the schedule.
The work plan receives updated status on the tasks. The updates for tasks can be entered in the task list window as well.
Written by Mary Lynn Backstrom, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-BA – Implementation Specialist
on Saturday, 05 August 2023.
Posted in Oracle Primavera Cloud (Prime)
The Work Plan screen in Oracle Primavera Cloud is a virtual planning board available for use by the companies working on a project to coordinate their tasks. This functionality allows adding tasks, assigning, and monitoring task constraints, commitments to dates, and placing tasks in sequence using hand-offs. Tasks can be color-coded according to their assigned company. Task cards are customizable to display information important to your project. You can customize the board display from a daily view to up to six weeks.
The Work Plan screen planning board provides easy sequencing for your tasks. Create tasks and then drag and drop them onto the planning board to build your work plan. Change the hand-off mode that is selected. Enable activity bands to assist with assigning tasks to activities. Easily move the planning board time period to previous or future periods. Application of quick filters to the tasks is available as well as grouping them by best fit or by company to organize the view.
Written by Mary Lynn Backstrom, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-BA – Implementation Specialist
on Monday, 31 July 2023.
Posted in Oracle Primavera Cloud (Prime)
If you have an .xer or Primavera .xml format file and you’re looking to set up a schedule in Oracle Primavera Cloud, you can start importing those files from the Projects window under the Actions menu.
By clicking on Activities from the Schedule icon in Oracle Primavera Cloud, you can reach the upload template from the Actions menu in that window. You can also choose to enter your project schedule information manually.
Written by Mary Lynn Backstrom, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-BA – Implementation Specialist
on Sunday, 23 July 2023.
Posted in Oracle Primavera Cloud (Prime)
In Oracle Primavera Cloud (formerly Oracle Prime), you can create and track scope items, work packages, and WBS elements.
If you’re not using the default PBS structure, you can set up a custom PBS structure. The PBS structure commonly reflects a hierarchical structure of the components required for a project. You can use a PBS in initial planning to organize scope items.
Written by Mary Lynn Backstrom, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-BA – Implementation Specialist
on Monday, 17 July 2023.
Posted in Oracle Primavera Cloud (Prime), Other
Recently, I was working with a client who was reorganizing. This client has many business units (BU) that work in the same database, so they have a prefixing standard for each BU.
When they reorganized, all the prefixing for several BUs needed to be brought into alignment with the reorganized BU structure. This involved moving their EPS structure around and updating the prefixes on calendars, codes, resources and roles. I had started moving the structures to accommodate the changes and updating the prefixes with P6-Loader, but I also did some updating directly in P6. I had completed roles and was partially through resources when the client realized their reporting may be effected by the changes. They wanted to revert all the changes I had made. While I did have several P6-Loader change files that I could use to revert the changes I made using P6-Loader, I wanted to be sure the manual changes I made were also restored.
Written by Sue Fermelia - Implementation Specialist
on Thursday, 29 June 2023.
Posted in P6-Loader
A solution for common cases of accidental data deletion in Primavera P6
Accidental deletion of important data is something that happens. Everyone has done it at some point.
In Primavera P6 EPPM, some of the most common cases of accidental data deletion are:
- Deletion of the wrong resource
- Deletion of the wrong project
- Deletion of the wrong WBS node or nodes
Written by Ravi Wallau - Integration Specialist, Sue Fermelia - Implementation Specialist
on Tuesday, 16 May 2023.
Posted in P6-Auditor, P6-Loader, Primavera P6
In this article I will visit some of the data a user may be utilizing in Primavera P6 and how it is handled or not handled in Oracle Primavera Cloud (OPC). These are some of the differences found that may be of interest to current Primavera P6 users.
Written by Sue Fermelia - Implementation Specialist
on Sunday, 23 April 2023.
Posted in Oracle Primavera Cloud (Prime), Primavera P6
There are many approaches to creating reports from your P6 data, and while free always sounds like the right price, we all know that you get what you pay for. Before you choose an approach, you owe it to yourself to fully assess its strengths and weaknesses. In this article, we’ll compare reporting using XER files versus our own tool: P6-Reporter.
Written by James Andrade - Integration Specialist
on Sunday, 09 April 2023.
Posted in P6-Reporter
In executing any type of project, whether it’s a turnaround, construction, manufacturing or other project type, they all benefit from access to quick and current reporting in an easy to digest format. This not only improves project reporting but project communication as well, keeping the team up-to-date with project progress and any issues. With access to self-serve dashboard reporting, the user can easily filter to display the exact data they need to focus on. To deliver reporting for your projects, a reporting tool that is quick to deploy and offers a number of standard reports makes roll out easy. The tool should allow you to produce reports easily on spread data as well, which allows you to compare forecasts captured at different points in time. P6-Reporter offers all of this and more.
Written by Mary Lynn Backstrom, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-BA – Implementation Specialist
on Friday, 24 March 2023.
Posted in P6-Reporter
Your project schedule has been created with no resource curves incorporated. (Resource curves are not always required.) Suddenly, during project execution and reporting, the project is displaying issues. Budget labor, actual labor units and at completion labor units are out of sync. In checking your schedule, it is one section of the schedule which looks to be displaying the issue. You find one of the schedulers has added resource curves to activity resources. At the time of the change, a number of the activities already had progress posted to them. What can happen when resource curves are added or changed after progress has been posted to activities? (Please note this is an example of what can happen given the settings and information scenario that was present at the time. My intent is purely to share what can happen.)
Written by Mary Lynn Backstrom, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-BA – Implementation Specialist
on Thursday, 09 March 2023.
Posted in Primavera P6
Green up reports can be configured on the specifics required by your project. By using P6-Reporter self-serve dashboards, you and your project teams can have current, easy to digest project information including overall status and highlights for issues requiring immediate attention. Keep in mind that the green up dashboard examples below are meant as food for thought. These examples may be reflecting exactly the items you need to track in your project(s), or you may need to track entirely different elements. Green up reports can be created for the specifics your project teams require whether it is easily tracking manufacturing stages, distribution status, inventory completion status, machine service cycle completions…the list goes on. A green up report can be configured to track many different schedule items.
Written by Mary Lynn Backstrom, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-BA – Implementation Specialist
on Friday, 24 February 2023.
Posted in P6-Reporter
Above is an example of a Portfolio Dashboard available in P6-Reporter that is displayed using Power BI. Self-serve dashboards provide easy access to data in a very easy to digest format. Notice the gradient color coding in these Portfolio screen shots that help focus on issues quickly. Easily re-sort column data by simply clicking on the column headers. Select graph elements and the column elements that are connected to it automatically filter to highlight on the dashboard. (see below)
Written by Mary Lynn Backstrom, PMP, PMI-SP, PMI-BA – Implementation Specialist
on Friday, 17 February 2023.
Posted in P6-Reporter