AI for project controls and scheduling
Point it at the schedule export, the cost workbook and last month’s report. It runs the 14-point check and the earned value roll-forward, then drafts the narrative that goes with the update.
DCMA14-April-update.xlsxExample| Check | Threshold | Count | Result | Pass/fail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Logic | ≤5% | 38 of 1,284 | 3.0% | Pass |
| 2 Leads | 0 | 0 of 2,406 links | 0.0% | Pass |
| 3 Lags | ≤5% | 112 of 2,406 links | 4.7% | Pass |
| 5 Hard constraints | ≤5% | 9 of 1,284 | 0.7% | Pass |
| 6 High float | ≤5% | 151 of 1,284 | 11.8% | Fail |
| 14 BEI | ≥0.95 | 418 of 437 | 0.96 | Pass |
NoteMost of the 151 high-float activities tie only to project completion, so link them to their install successors and rerun.
Ask it for
“Draft the WBS and logic-linked activity list for the Substation 7 rebuild, coded to the utility’s activity dictionary, with the energization milestone built in.”
Sub7-baseline-activities.xlsx“Run a DCMA 14-point check on the April contractor update and list every open end, lead, lag, hard constraint and activity with float over 44 working days.”
DCMA14-April-update.xlsx“Model the 12-day delay to the electrical house relocation as a fragnet, tie it to the March update and show the effect on the energization milestone.”
TIA-energization-fragnet.xlsx“Build package 44A’s June cost report: budget, commitments, actuals, bottom-up EAC and fee burn, flagged for every cost code whose EAC moved more than $50k.”
44A-cost-report-June.xlsx“Roll the February EV report forward from the March exports, then draft the variance analysis for every control account beyond the 10% or $50k thresholds.”
Mar-EV-variance-package.docx“Write the Class 4 basis of estimate for the centrifuge install: scope, assumptions, exclusions, contingency and escalation, priced from the vendor quote log.”
Centrifuge-install-BOE.docx
Inside the Project Controls & Scheduling mode
Project schedule
Builds the baseline activity list with WBS coding, logic ties, durations, milestones and buffers, then carries each month’s progress into the next update.
Schedule health and delay analysis
Runs the DCMA 14-point check over each contractor update. For delay work it builds the TIA fragnet or the windows analysis and names what owns the slip.
Earned value and change control
Recomputes CPI, SPI, EAC and VAC by control account, with variance analysis to your thresholds. Baseline changes and the reserve trail follow ANSI/EIA-748.
Project budget and cost forecast
Tracks budget, commitments, actuals, bottom-up EAC and fee burn through the monthly cost report, and flags every movement past the threshold you set.
Construction cost estimating
Prices takeoffs by CSI division and writes the basis of estimate with assumptions and exclusions. Contingency and escalation follow the design maturity.
- Office skills
- Excel, Word, PowerPoint, PDF
- Tools
- Read, edit and write files, Search files, Run code, Search and read the web, View images
- Connectors
- SharePoint, Google Drive, Gmail, and additional custom connectors
- House style
- Your fonts, layouts and rules, on every file
How it works
- 1
Fill the project folder
Drop in the P6 exports of activities, relationships, baselines and float, the cost workbook from finance, the field progress sheets, the scheduling specification and the prior month’s report. It reads them however the team keeps them.
- 2
Tell it what you need
Ask for the DCMA check, the TIA fragnet, the rolled-forward EV report or the monthly narrative. Each figure points back to its source file, and the draft names anything it could not reconcile.
- 3
Review, then send it out
The update goes out under your name, so test the floats, trace the driving logic and read the variances against your own view of the job. Every file it prepares is a draft until you send it.
Who it’s for
Schedulers, planning engineers, project controls analysts, cost engineers and EVM analysts on capital, EPC, energy and defense programs.
Questions
Can it run the DCMA 14-point check on the contractor’s update?
Yes, the mode includes a schedule health check in the DCMA style. Missing logic, leads, lags, relationship types, hard constraints, high float, invalid dates and missed tasks all get tested. Every failure carries the activity ID, so you can question the contractor’s explanations before you accept the update.
Won’t I spend more time checking its work than doing it myself?
Every number and statement cites the file it came from, so reviewing means tracing it back rather than recalculating from scratch. Whatever it cannot find or reconcile is flagged instead of guessed, so you know where to dig first. You still review every file it touched and decide what to use.
Can we use its delay analysis in a claim?
Yes as working papers, but you own the method and the defense. It builds the fragnet or the windows analysis and cites the source file for every figure. The choice of method under AACE 29R-03, the entitlement argument and the expert review stay with you and your claims team.
Is this a validated EVM system under ANSI/EIA-748?
No, Ultramarine Work is not a validated or certified EVMS, and no compliance status is claimed. The mode’s skills build CPI, SPI, EAC, ETC and VAC reports, variance analysis to your thresholds and baseline change documentation. Your program office decides whether the output satisfies your system description or the DFARS requirements.
Our schedule data is CUI on a defense program. Can we use it?
Check with your program’s compliance team before you start. Ultramarine Work changes files only in the project’s folder. When a request needs it, it can read files elsewhere on your computer, never passwords, keys or app data, and you can turn that off in settings. The model runs on Paper Instruments’ servers, so the content it works on is sent there to be processed. Paper Instruments is SOC 2 Type II, and our security and compliance details are on our compliance page.