Colouring late milestones red - help please!!

If you are using date constraints then you got the required fields to do so.

If not using constraints then you can set a user date field to enter your milestone target date and another field to identify if a start or finish target. Then you can set up an if-statement formula that will compute the difference between the actual start/finish and your target start/finish.

If you find this approach acceptable and need further help, let me know.

By the way I avoid using finish date constraints other than to fix a milestone that does not drive any activity. I avoid messing with backward pass computations. I believe the implementation of finish constraints that set your constrained activity Late Finish equal to the constraint date rather than the CPM logic computed value is wrong. Unfortunately even the PMI favors use of negative float and many software developers, if not all, followed this misleading implementation.

Best regards,
Rafael

Rafael, Thanks for you quick response.

As I’m a beginner to MS Project I need help to do this.

Can I show you the file? [email removed by Gary W]

Thanks, Adam

Hi Adam,

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If you want to give Rafa your email, please send him a private message (click on the envelope icon next to his name) to keep it secure.

Cheers,

G

Adam,,

Sorry with my late response but PP emails notice of postings in threads you have postings are not being received, probably due to changes in the working on PP site; this place will get even better.

I email you via PP mail.

My main scheduling software is not MS Project but as everyone at times I have to deal with this very useful software, any excuse to practice MS Project is good.

MS Project as it updates it changes original constraints field so you will first have to record original constraint type and date on custom fields as to freeze the data and be able to compare them with Start and Finish dates. This way you can get data for constraints already not met and also for those predicted not to be met. In one custom field you can set MS Project to calculate overrun duration.

I will post the file so everyone interested in helping us can use it if wish to. I am working on a job quotation so for a few days will be busy and my response will be slower than usual.

Best regards,
Rafael

After updating the job with no progress as to make all constraints not met you can get the relationship from the formula and use it to set your conditional formatting. You can also use graphical indicators, these can be more effective.

Look how constraint type changed, is the way MS Project works its updating, there is no way around that I know.

Formula for Number10 :
IIf([Text10]="Start No Earlier Than" Or [Text10]="Start No Later Than",[Date10]-[Start],IIf([Text10]="Finish No Earlier Than" Or [Text10]="Finish No Later Than",[Date10]-[Finish],0))

Hi Adam,

A simple solution to your question in post #1 could be to introduce a Flag1 with e.g. the formula:
[Current Date]>[Start] And [% Complete]<100

and then a make a bar styles for Milestone;Flag1 in colour red. The milestone will then change to red if not completed by time now.

If you want to relate to the Status Date instead, then just replace that with Current Date in the formula above.

Regards,

Bo

Bo and Rafael - thank you both for your solutions.

My MS Project Plan now works as I need it to and it looks "the Cat’s pyjamas", as they say.

Thanks, Adam