As others mentioned, the whole timeline should be reviewed by the project manager and the timeframe for each phase should be reevaluated. Since the device failed in performing its major task as a weight loss aid, more research should be done regarding device safety, maintenance, risks, limitations, etc. This would require a big change in the Gantt chart Research & Development timeframe to allow gathering more information regarding the device and its specifications and to plan accordingly. Although this could change the anticipated date for the device launch, it will assist in avoiding any possible issues and would allow the risk management team to have a better perspective and understanding of the device.

The first factor in understanding Gantt charts is being able to associate tasks to one another in terms of their dependencies. These relationships are known as Finish to Start (FS), Start to Finish (SF), Finish to Finish (FF), and Start to Start (SS). A FS relationship indicates that the initiation of one particular task cannot commence until a predecessor task is completed (i.e. the 3D CAD design for a gastric balloon must be completed before it can be physically manufactured). Conversely, a SF relationship (the least common relationship) requires a task to start so that another one can finish, such as the ordering of supplies (predecessor) required for the completion of manufacturing a prototype (successor). A FF relationship requires one task to start prior to another task in a way that allows them to finish simultaneously. This can be analogous to writing up a standard operating procedure for manufacturing the gastric balloon (predecessor) so that it can be edited (successor), allowing both tasks to finish upon submission of the final draft. Finally, a SS relationship is defined as the start of a task being dependent on the start of a predecessor task (i.e. a prototype's 3D CAD drawing is contingent on the start of writing up the device's design specs).

An online article about generating a Gantt chart provides insight to techniques that promote organization throughout a project, such as by subdividing tasks into subtasks as a means of establishing priorities and directing what needs to get done first. The article also emphasizes the importance of establishing the critical path of a project (the longest taskline) as well as being able to set milestones in a way that allows for the project life to be addressed in chronological order. Are there any other types of management structures that schedules organization and consistency between tasks? How would a Pareto chart be applied in the Dual Balloon System example? What about a design matrix?

Reference:
"Tips for Project Planning with Gantt Charts", Smartdraw website

This entire scenario would pose a huge mess because since the failure is vital to the product’s intended use. I think that the possibility of this failure or a failure occurring and setting back the project should have been accounted for in the project timeline/gantt chart to avoid missing milestones. However since it’s already missed a decision has to be made on whether to extend the deadline, or maybe redistribute time allotted for something else to fix this problem. Though I feel like this probably affects the quality and increases risk of something going wrong. When restructuring the gantt chart, the following should be considered: impact on the budget, resources, different departments involved such as R&D and quality. Will validation protocols need to be updated, the design changed, etc. The project manager should account for other projects that team members have and whether this should be top priority over other tasks. Will this updated timeline occur at the same time people have taken vacation days and will this extend the deadline even more.

Since a milestone was missed it may have an impact on the entire project team and the various departments involved mainly the R&D. The PM will have to consider the more amount of time that will be needed to identify the problem and fix it by understanding the reason causing the problem and identifying based on this problem how many other tasks will be affected and will have to be altered depending on the new changes required which may also include a change in the design consideration. Apart from this the what other resources will be needed for the change and how much it would cost for these changes to get into practice is what will have to be considered by the PM depending on the budget of the project. However, if there was enough task slack in the Gantt Chart made initially in order to identify the problem and fix it then not much changes would be needed to be made in the gantt chart and only the cost and resources needed would have to be considered.

I believe that there is a time factor not followed. As professor Simon mentioned that the early you start the early you finish and also matching the timeline of two different parts of the project is important that went wrong here. Due to this lack of time the proper clinical testing would have been skiped assuming theoretical success. But every time tests may not work though they are theoretically or in laboratory environments successful.

This would depend on the timeline as a whole. How much time has been allocated to this segment in the project? Were there any milestones missed prior to this that have already delayed the project? The Project Manager may have already buffered this segment of the project in case of delays. You should also check to see how much time you have between your early and late finish dates. Another factor would be how much time it takes to put the experiment together.

While listening to Dr.Simon's lectures, he mentions that you have to take into account the work schedule of your employees, holidays, vacation time, and if your project members are working on multiple projects. When you don't take these things into account, it can lead to pitfalls in the Gantt chart. To make sure that you are able to meet the milestones and create an project finish, all these possible pitfalls need to be taken into consideration. I would say that backups or even having assistants for your main project members should be given just in the case that someone has vacation or get sick. If the company doesn't have employees to spare, time to get everyone to list out their possible vacation times in advance before starting the project so that leeway can be given to the sections they are working on. Also, communicate with the team to see if they are working on multiple projects and try to offer them assistance in anyway, such as if a group member isn't busy or has finished their tasks ask if they would be available to assist with documentation. By taking these possible delays in account, an accurate timeline can be produced and additional time can be planned out in the case of an unplanned emergency.

The scheduling is definitely affected since the device did not meet the expectations. As more time is needed to analyze the failure, the project is going to fall back. In that case, we need more assistance from different departments so we can find solutions together and accelerate the decision-making process. New dates must be set up. Therefore, the project manager needs to modify the Gantt chart and give more time to test, research, and revise all the documentation of the product that is currently failing. So that way we can determine if the product is safe to use based on more testing, or if we need to recall it. 

I agree with those who said that revisiting the Gantt chart might not be the most important thing in this case. Gantt charts are important and they allow you to plan a project and keep track of its progress. However, in the situation described above, the project is well beyond its planning phase. They are testing the product and it failed, so the first step would be to either see if something is wrong with their testing protocols or the product. In the Gantt chart, these changes would be reflected by adding more time to the development and testing parts of the project. In addition to adding more days to the development and testing parts, the manager would also need to take into account the cost analysis of this test failure (more money on development, testing, etc.) and add extra time for FDA approval and marketing. While actually working on the product, the manager might also have to hold meetings with stakeholders to update them of the test failures or keep them in loop of the project timeline. Missing a major milestone at this point would delay the whole project, which would be reflected in the Gantt chart.

Preemptively, the project manager would have considered the pitfalls that may occur and have some grace period for those revisions. The project manager would likely have to revise the verification protocol. These revisions include adding days to that part of the process as well as adjusting the length of the critical path so that it fits with the overall timeline. As the mass manufacturing process would likely be delayed, the finish-to-finish relationship of the chart would be affected as that can't happen with faulty parts in the product.

As others previously mentioned, the project manager now needs to focus on the research and development side of the project. There needs to be additional protocols as to why the balloon systems did not work. Additional tests need to be done to figure out if it was the material or possible placement/storage of the product. Time and budget need to be allocated to this part of the milestone because if this part does not work then the project will not succeed.

As a project manager for a company that manufactures ReShape Integrated Dual Balloon Systems, the discovery that the balloon pops immediately after placement would require several adjustments to the Gantt chart. The missed milestone would likely impact the project's timeline, causing the project manager to reschedule and adjust the chart to reflect the new timeline. The project manager would also need to identify the cause of the balloon popping, and additional testing may be required to prevent further mishaps.