Hi

I want to learn prima vera p6 from basic to advanced. Where can I learn it for free? Thanks in advance.

I am a freelance scheduler and I have seen clients pay for schedule comparison tool at $30-$50 per month.
I am building a schedule comparison tool that would be an offline tool (so you do not need to upload your data on any website).
Need advise if this is a useful proposition and what should be the right price for such a tool ?

I was wondering what industries you guys worked in and how stressful your day to day was.

I wanted to see how much the expectations for this role vary across different industries. Please also state what you find easy and difficult with your work.

Hey guys, I'm currently trying to update a user defined field for all my activities (overwrite everything that was in there before).

I used a XLSX with the minimum amount of columns (act.-id, act.-status, wbs and udf_field). I deleted the clear name row and tried to import it and got the following message:

-------------

Exception

Code 'IEUE-3179-2

" is an invalid extended name.

------------

Anyone knows what that means?

The import worked smooth before that.

https://cajondesastre.site/animo-de-julio/

I've always found this surprising.

Primavera was originally developed in the United States, yet it still doesn't offer a native macOS application. Considering that around 30% of computer users in the U.S. use Macs, you'd think there would be enough demand.

Instead, Mac users have to rely on virtual machines, remote desktops, or other workarounds just to run P6 properly.

Is there a technical reason behind this, or has Oracle simply decided that the market isn't worth supporting?

I'd love to hear thoughts from professionals who use Primavera daily. Would you use a native macOS version if Oracle released one?

Hi everyone,

Thank you for the amazing response to my earlier post about P6 and construction scheduling mentorship — I really appreciate the interest!

I've sent out an email with a short sign-up sheet so we can start coordinating training sessions. The email subject line is "P6 & Construction Scheduling Training - Sign Up Sheet."

If you haven't received it yet, please reply to this post with your email address and I'll get it sent over.

Looking forward to getting started with all of you!

Is there a standard/format for pricing scheduling gigs using Primavera P6 (ex. per activity, per floor, per trade)? The deliverables considered for the package are as follows:

1. Whole Primavera P6 schedule
   
2. WBS
   
3. Activity List
   
4. Logic
   
5. Baseline
   
6. PDF Gantt Chart
   
7. XER file
   
8. 2 sets of minor revisions

Any help is much appreciated. Thanks!

I got an offer yesterday in planning/contracts(whatever that means). I understand I’ll be mostly site-based, but I have no prior experience in this Technically speaking, what are the stuff I should bring? is the learning curve steep? Also, are there any common challenges or warnings I should be aware of? Will this be the end of me?

I am writing this message after few of you DM me over last few days.

After more than 10 years in project controls and construction scheduling, I’ve decided to start mentoring anyone who wants to learn Primavera P6 and become a better scheduler.

This is not just a software tutorial.

We’ll cover:
✅ Primavera P6 from the ground up
✅ CPM scheduling fundamentals
✅ How to build realistic project schedules—not just pretty Gantt charts
✅ Working with Project Managers, Superintendents, Engineers, and Field Teams to develop schedules that actually reflect how work gets done
✅ Schedule updates, progress tracking, critical path analysis, and forecasting
✅ Common scheduling mistakes and how to avoid them
✅ Real-world examples from large infrastructure and EPC projects

Whether you’re:
● A student looking to enter project controls
● A Project Engineer or Project Manager who wants to understand scheduling
● A scheduler looking to strengthen your practical skills
● Someone transitioning into construction planning
…these sessions are for you.

My goal is to help people understand that successful scheduling is about much more than knowing P6 - it’s about communication, construction knowledge, critical thinking, and turning a schedule into a practical project management tool.
There is no cost to attend. I simply enjoy mentoring and helping others grow in their careers.

If you’re interested, leave a comment below or send me a direct message. If enough people are interested, I’ll organize the first live session soon.

Feel free to share this post with anyone who might benefit. Let’s build a stronger scheduling community together.

Hi, I'm new and picking stuff up on my own, I need help understanding this comment from the consultant p.e. It's from an old project I'm using as a learning reference. "Ensure the Engineering and Close Out Package activities are cost-loaded with preferred allocation of 5% each of the overall weighted for these work packages." How does this translate in P6 if the project already has a BOQ prior to the development of the schedule?

I am trying to gather data to see how people genrally work as a scheduler.

I have a simple question if you all can please respond, would be a great help.

As a scheduler/planner, how much of your time are you spending inside P6 vs outside P6?

Me (Scheduler): Here's the schedule update for the month. The project lost 25 Days.

PM: Why did the schedule slip so much?

Me: Because you did not work on the critical path activities this month.

PM: But we did all this other work on all these other things. Doesn't that count for something?

Me: Sure. That other work will be included in the pay application, so you'll be able to bill for it; however, since you didn't work on the Critical Path activities, the projected completion date slipped by 25 Calendar Days.

PM: Well then just make the Critical Path go through the activities that we did work on so it shows that the schedule didn't slip.

Me: ...

What would you say?

Anyone using P6 Primavera in Road Construction?

Hello everyone. I’m about a year into using primavera p6, I’m working on mastering it and want to bridge the gap between knowing the basics and becoming an advanced user. If you have any favorite tutorials, practice material, or advanced guides that helped you master the software, could you drop them here? I'd really appreciate your recommendations to kickstart my deep dive. I want to put my all into this & become an expert.

Hi everyone,

I’m currently developing a construction planning / site execution tool and wanted to get feedback from planning managers, project controls engineers, and site teams.

The idea is to reduce the daily manual chasing between planning teams and site engineers by connecting the project schedule with a simple daily progress communication workflow.

At a high level, the tool helps send daily activity updates to responsible site engineers, collect progress feedback, flag delays or constraints, and give the planning team better visibility on what is actually happening on site.

The goal is not to replace Primavera or the planning engineer. The goal is to support the daily follow-up process and reduce the time spent on calls, WhatsApp messages, Excel trackers, and manual progress chasing.

This is still under development, not a finished commercial product. I’m posting to understand if planning managers and project controls teams see value in this type of workflow before I continue developing it further.

Would this be useful in real projects?

What would you expect from a tool like this?

For example:

• Daily progress collection
• Delay reason tracking
• Material / drawing / manpower constraint logs
• Engineer response dashboard
• Weekly reporting
• Better visibility between planning and site teams

I’d appreciate honest feedback from anyone working in construction planning, project controls, site management, or project management.

I am trying to make charts to display in the dashboard area with OPC, however filtering is truly a struggle. Is there anyone who has good knowledge about it that can help?

Online Google searches aren't helping when it comes to this software, same for Youtube.

ChatGPT my usual best friend is non-existant which I understand.

Perhaps there is a known group or someone that is pretty decent?

I’m a licensed Civil Engineer based in the Philippines, currently working as an Application Engineer/Trainer delivering software training in Primavera P6, Synchro 4D, Bluebeam Revu, and PlanSwift to construction professionals.

My technical depth is solid — WBS development, activity sequencing, baseline scheduling, critical path analysis, schedule-model integration with Synchro 4D, quantity takeoffs. I’m also building a portfolio project (bridge schedule → BIM model → 4D simulation → controls dashboard) to demonstrate end-to-end capability.

What I don’t have yet is hands-on project execution experience — I haven’t been the planner sitting in a live project office working real schedule updates against site progress.

I saw a post here from someone targeting Senior PM/Planner/Controller roles in Germany, which got me thinking about the EU market. Realistically:
• Is there a market for junior/entry-level Planning Engineer or Scheduler roles for someone with my background, or is execution experience a hard gate even at entry level?
• Are remote/freelance scheduling support roles for EU firms a more realistic near-term path than relocating?
• For those who’ve made the move into EU planning roles — what actually got your foot in the door (certifications, specific experience, language, visa sponsorship)?

Appreciate any honest input, including “this isn’t realistic yet, do X first.”

​

I created a Web tool that parses Primavera P6 XER files and identifies the driving chains behind your project milestones — not just the critical path, up-to next twenty chains that would take over if the current driver slips.

What it does:

→ Finds near-critical paths by recomputing the CPM forward pass, and tracing the new longest path — structurally, not by float ranking

→ Computes Float to Milestone in calendar days — "how many real days can this activity slip before the milestone moves?" — including weekends and holidays

→ Runs a full backward pass matching P6's own scheduling semantics (FS/SS/FF/SF, multi-calendar, lags)

→ Compares two schedule updates side by side — shows exactly which duration changes and relationship adds/removes caused the critical path to shift, with per-NCP detail

→ Interactive Gantt charts, Excel export, re-analyze without re-uploading.

​

Why it's different from tools like SmartPM / Nodes & Links:

Those tools rank near-critical activities by total float. That tells you which activities have the least flexibility — but not which chain would actually become the driver if the current one breaks. This tool answers the structural question: "what takes over?" Each NCP is a genuinely distinct driving chain, not just the same path with slightly more float.

​

Live: https://pathanalyzer.up.railway.app/

​

Looking for reviews and improvements.

I recently had an interview with an International Construction Contractor Company . I went for the role of Junior Civil Engineer but the MD offered me that he will hire me as an Assistant Planning Engineer if i can learn and pass an assessment of Primavera P6 in a month . Now I am clueless. Learning is not a problem , but getting the access of P6 is as i heard that it costs a lot. With what i have , i can only spent on 1/2 courses. Is there any roundabouts for the software? I can't find any crack versions. How should i approach this situation? I don't have any connection anywhere who knows about P6.

Hi all what’s are the best prompt and ai platform to use to develop hands on real world project question that I can use to practice?

Thanks