Code Files

Typically, the first step a project manager must take is to define the scope of the project. In Cobra, this is accomplished using hierarchical coding systems designed for reporting at different levels of detail. These hierarchical coding systems are known as code files.

Codes in a code file are sometimes referred to as being at a certain “level” and as having a “parent” and “child” relationship. Each level can have up to 35,937 codes, and each of those codes can be a parent of 35,937 child codes.

Additionally, each child code can also have up to 35,937 child codes. By extension, the children of the children of a code may be called grandchildren, and all the lower-level codes that are directly or indirectly related to a particular code may be called descendants of that code.

To display the hierarchical relationships between different codes in a code file, Cobra uses an outline format.

When you define the codes in a code file, Cobra ensures that all codes beneath the top level have valid parents. This validated structure plays a key role in reporting because information associated with any code or with any of its descendants is summarized, or “rolled up,” into a single set of data.

Types of Code Files

The most common code file is a description of the various products (or deliverables) of a project. This type of code file is commonly referred to as a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and may be the only way in which project information needs to be rolled up.

Often, there is a requirement for another code file that is based on who is doing the work or where it is being performed. This Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS) might be limited to the organizational chart of the contractor, or it might be expanded to include subcontractors or different sites.

In Cobra, code files can also be used for rolling up budget elements that define the calculation of direct and derived costs. This type of code file lets you enter costs at different levels of detail and consolidate the results during the reporting process. Using this feature, different management systems (for example, Cost, Schedule, or Finance) can track cost detail at the level of summarization most appropriate to their needs.

Coding Systems

Cobra supports the use of up to five different code files and nine code fields for a single project.

Cobra makes few assumptions about how you define the coding system for a code file, or how the code file is used in the project. Three basic varieties of coding systems are allowed:

• Punctuated Significant — Each code (with the exception of the code at the top of the structure) is formed from the name of its parent, followed by a user-selected punctuation mark and one or more additional digits.
• Fixed-form Significant — This is similar to punctuated significant except that the number of characters that relate to each level is predefined and fixed, eliminating the need for a punctuation character.
• Non-Significant — There is no significance built into the code itself. Thus, you cannot look at the code to determine the level of the code or which code in the structure represents its parent. In a non-significant coding structure, for example, the codes “Engineers” and “Projectmgrs” might be children of the code “Labor.”

Code Files and Project Data

Up to 34 code files can be associated directly with a project in Cobra. Each of these code files can use a different type of coding system. For example, you can use punctuated significant codes for your WBS and nonsignificant codes for your OBS.

You can also use the same code files for different levels of project information so that, for example, work package identifiers are based on a lower level of the WBS used by control accounts.

Through these associated code files, all control accounts, work packages, and resource data can be summarized and reported at the appropriate level.

Variance Thresholds

Most project managers have found that the most efficient way to manage a large contract is to concentrate on areas that exceed predefined thresholds. With Cobra, this can be accomplished by using code files as the basis for a variance threshold reporting system.

For each code in a code file, it is possible to specify either a positive or a negative threshold for cost and schedule variances. It is also possible to specify whether the threshold is based on a fixed value or a percentage.

These thresholds can be analyzed during the reporting process, triggering exception reports when the predefined values are exceeded. For example, assume that an unfavorable threshold of 10% is defined for a specific WBS code. Then, if the costs associated with that WBS code exceed the budget by 10% or more, Cobra triggers an exception report.