so im doing general maths yeah. so lets say an activity G is reduced by 3 but G's est and lst is different, so the float time is not 0. therefore this activity is not on the critical path. so if g's delayed by lets say 3 days, will this cause there to be an effect on the critical path? like im confused one side im thinking no effect since G is not even on the critical path, so the min time for the critcal path stays the same. but otherwise, this delay in G may cause a delay in another activity like J, which is on the cirtical path, so there may be an effect on the critical path right? which side is correct?


Your thinking is on the right track, and it's good you're considering both sides of the argument. Let me break it down for you:

### Case 1: **No effect on the critical path**
- If Activity G is **not** on the critical path and has some float (non-zero), then delaying it by 3 days **may not** affect the overall project completion time, **as long as** the delay is within the float time. Float is the amount of time an activity can be delayed without affecting the project’s overall duration.
- If the delay in Activity G is less than or equal to the available float, the critical path remains unchanged, meaning no impact on the minimum time required to complete the project.

### Case 2: **Effect on the critical path**
- On the other hand, if delaying Activity G causes a downstream activity (like J, which **is** on the critical path) to be delayed, then **yes**, it might affect the critical path indirectly. 
- If the delay in G is large enough that its completion now pushes back Activity J (or another critical activity), this could extend the overall project duration and impact the critical path.

### So, which side is correct?
- **If the delay in Activity G stays within its float, it won’t affect the critical path.**
- **However, if delaying G causes delays in activities that are on the critical path (like J), then it will affect the overall project duration and the critical path.**

In summary, both sides are partially correct depending on how the delay in G interacts with other activities and their float. You need to assess how much float G has and whether delaying it affects any downstream activities on the critical path.

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Do you want more details on how to calculate float or explore this further?

Here are some related questions to expand your understanding:

1. How do you calculate the float for an activity?
2. What happens when multiple activities have float and get delayed?
3. How does the critical path method (CPM) help in project scheduling?
4. What are the effects of having multiple critical paths?
5. How do you identify which activities will cause delays in the overall project?

**Tip:** Always monitor both the critical path and non-critical paths with small floats, as delays on non-critical paths can cascade into the critical path if not managed properly.

so im doing general maths yeah. so lets say an activity G is reduced by 3 but G's est and lst is different, so the float time is not 0. therefore this activity is not on the critical path. so if g's delayed by lets say 3 days, will this cause there to be an effect on the critical path? like im confused one side im thinking no effect since G is not even on the critical path, so the min time for the critcal path stays the same. but otherwise, this delay in G may cause a delay in another activity like J, which is on the cirtical path, so there may be an effect on the critical path right? which side is correct?

Understand how delaying a non-critical activity with float time can affect the critical path in project management. This detailed explanation covers concepts like float time, the critical path method (CPM), and how delays can cascade onto critical activities. Suitable for university-level project management students and professionals.

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