Practice Test Geeks(CST) Certified Scheduling Technician Practice Test
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Critical Path & Float Analysis Flashcards

7 cards from real CST practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 7 Critical Path & Float Analysis flashcards as text

  1. A project activity has an Early Start of day 10, Late Start of day 15, Early Finish of day 20, and Late Finish of day 25. What is the Total Float?

    Answer: 5 days

    Total Float = Late Start − Early Start (or Late Finish − Early Finish) = 15 − 10 = 5 days.

  2. Which of the following best describes Free Float?

    Answer: The amount of time an activity can be delayed without delaying the Early Start of any successor

    Free Float is the amount of time an activity can be delayed without affecting the Early Start of any immediate successor.

  3. On a network diagram, Activity A (duration 4) → Activity B (duration 3) → Activity C (duration 5). Activity A also connects to Activity D (duration 6) → Activity C. Which path is critical?

    Answer: A → D → C with duration 15

    Path A→D→C = 4+6+5 = 15 days; Path A→B→C = 4+3+5 = 12 days; the longest path (15 days) is the critical path.

  4. An activity on the critical path has its duration increased by 3 days. What is the effect on the project?

    Answer: Project duration increases by 3 days

    Any duration increase on a critical path activity directly extends the project end date by the same amount.

  5. What does Interfering Float (also called Interfering Slack) represent?

    Answer: The difference between Total Float and Free Float

    Interfering Float = Total Float − Free Float, representing float that, if used, would delay a successor's Early Start.

  6. In CPM scheduling, what condition must exist for two activities to be considered 'parallel'?

    Answer: They do not have a dependency relationship and can be executed simultaneously

    Parallel activities have no dependency relationship between them and can therefore be performed concurrently.

  7. A project scheduler identifies that Activity X has a Total Float of −4 days. What does this indicate?

    Answer: Activity X is behind schedule and the project will be late unless corrective action is taken

    Negative Total Float means the activity cannot meet its constraint or deadline even if started at the earliest possible time, indicating a schedule overrun.