Total Float and Free Float Example
Calculate the total float and free float for the following example. Remember that you must complete the forward pass and then the backward pass before you can calculate float.
The total float for tasks A, C, G, and H is 0. The total float for tasks B, D, and E is 7: 8 - 1, 11 - 4, or 14 - 7. The total float for task F is 8: 12 - 4.
The free float for tasks A, C, G, H, B, and D is 0. The free float for task F is 1: 7 - 6, and for task E, 7: 17 - 10.
Remember that free float is time available between activities, and total float is time available within an activity. Float can be used to determine wether a project might be finished earlier by using resources that have time available within a task or between tasks to aid those tasks with 0 float. The tasks with 0 float are critical and must start on the ES date and finish on the EF date, or your project will be late.