Netzplänen

Netzpläne, also known as network diagrams or network plans, are visual tools used in project management to represent the tasks and activities of a project and their interdependencies. They provide a chronological and logical overview of how a project will unfold. The core components of a Netzplan are nodes, which represent activities or events, and arrows, which represent the dependencies between these activities. These diagrams help in identifying the critical path of a project, which is the sequence of tasks that determines the shortest possible project duration. Any delay in a critical path task will directly impact the overall project completion time.

There are several common types of Netzpläne, including the Activity-on-Arrow (AOA) diagram and the Activity-on-Node (AON) diagram, also known as PERT charts or precedence diagramming method (PDM) charts. AOA diagrams use arrows to represent activities and nodes to represent events (start or end points of activities). AON diagrams, which are more widely used today, represent activities as nodes and use arrows to show the relationships between them, such as finish-to-start, start-to-start, finish-to-finish, and start-to-finish.

Netzpläne are valuable for planning, scheduling, resource allocation, and risk management. They facilitate clear communication among project stakeholders, help in identifying potential bottlenecks, and enable managers to monitor progress and make informed decisions to keep the project on track. Their graphical nature makes complex project timelines easier to understand and manage.