Carroll H. Dunn
With that background I decided to do an overall planning study of the total project and
instigated it through the division
We let a contract to a Texas Instruments
subsidiary to make a detailed study and develop a detailed critical path schedule of all
activities in connection with the project, including land procurement, bridge and road
relocations, design, completion of planning, as well as construction schedule. As I
remember, we had some 5,000 events that were involved in putting this all together. As
a result, we were better able to correlate the schedules for the various project segments.
One result was the elimination of one or two of the original proposed dam structures.
We were able to determine that, by a small change in land acquisition and reservoir
level at several of the dams, we could eliminate, as I remember it, two dams in the 432.
mile channel. We put this all together in one plan and followed up with a detailed listing
of annual funding requirements to go along with this schedule.
By the time we finished this study, we had a very good outline plan as to what could
be started when, what its schedule for design and construction had to be, and what the
funding requirements were year by year for the entire project. Based onthis? we could
forecast our funding requirements in the annual Corps' civil works budget.
After I
Dallas, these continued to be the schedule and funding requirements. The
project was completed with navigation available to Little Rock in 1968, to Fort Smith
in 1969, and to the head of navigation in 1970 as planned. And we were within the
budget figure of
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.2 billion. This was the original forecast for the cost of the project.
I believe it was actually completed with something like 0 million under the original
estimate and within the 1962 time schedule.
As I viewed it then and as it continued after I left in 1964, this planning, done eight
years before the project was completed, was a tremendous advantage to the program.
I had questions, both while I was there and later, as to whether or not the budgeted
amount of money was required. In several years it amounted to over 0 million,
which, in
of the total civil works budget, was an appreciable figure in those days.
The question was whether that figure could be reduced. My answer always was, "Yes,
we can reduce it to whatever you want, but we can't maintain the schedule if we reduce
it."
So having this detailed plan meant that there was a firm commitment to a schedule and
to the funding required to meet that schedule. As far as I know, certainly as long as I
was there,
funding was available. Because the project was completed on schedule,
I assume it continued to be funded as forecast. I think this type of planning was very
helpful for that project.
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