Analyze a delay
Something went wrong on site: an unforeseen condition, a late owner decision, a long-lead item that slipped. Now the job is behind. To ask for more time, defend a claim or price a change order, you usually have to show your work: a written analysis that proves how much delay the event actually caused. Owl PM runs that analysis for you and writes the report.
The Delay analysis specialist is an Owl agent with four flows, one for each recognized method of measuring delay. You pick the one that fits, answer a short form, and the agent builds the analysis and a report you can submit.
Note: The flows follow the methods published by AACE International (the professional body for cost and schedule analysis), the same methods used in real time-extension requests and disputes. You don't need to know the standards; the form walks you through it, and each page explains the terms it uses.
How every delay flow works
All four flows have the same safe, reviewable shape:
-
Start it. Open the chat panel and click + (New thread). Under Delay analysis specialist, click a flow: Time impact analysis and Windows analysis are listed there. Type in the search box to find As-planned vs as-built and Collapsed as-built.
1231+ starts a new thread in the chat panel.2The Delay analysis specialist and its flows. Click a flow to open its form in the new thread.3Search finds any agent or flow by name.
Already in a thread with the Delay analysis specialist? The Flows button under the message box lists all four.
121Flows opens the list of this agent's flows.2All four delay flows, with what each one does.
-
Fill in the form. The flow opens as a card at the bottom of the thread, one step at a time: what happened, who is responsible, which schedule to analyze. You can attach evidence such as change orders, RFIs, a delay log or schedule files. The last step shows every answer so you can change one before you press Start.
-
Approve the judgment calls. Before it changes anything, the agent posts its plan in the chat (the delay activities it will add, or the delays it will take out) with a question card. Pick an answer or tell it what to change.
-
The work happens in a scenario. The agent runs the analysis in a what-if scenario, so your working schedule never changes.
-
You get a report. Each flow writes a report document (under Documents in the project tree) and keeps the scenarios it built under Scenarios, so you can open the schedule and see exactly what it did. It asks you to accept the report or say what to change before it calls it final.
Tip: You don't have to use the form. In a Delay analysis specialist thread, describe the event in your own words. The agent follows the same method and asks for anything it's missing.
Which method should I use?
| Flow | Use it when… | It answers |
|---|---|---|
| Time impact analysis | You have a specific event and want to show how far it pushed the finish. The most common choice for a time-extension request. | "How many days did this event add to the completion date?" |
| Collapsed as-built | The job is finished or well along, and you want to show when it would have finished if the other party's delays hadn't happened. | "When would we have finished but for their delays?" |
| Windows analysis | You want to walk the whole job period by period through your schedule updates and see where time was lost. | "Which periods lost time, and what drove each one?" |
| As-planned vs as-built | You want a quick comparison of the original plan against what actually happened. | "What changed versus the plan?" (a screening view) |
If you're not sure, start with Time impact analysis. It's the method most owners and courts expect for a single delay event.
Heads up: A delay analysis supports your position; it isn't a legal opinion, and it doesn't settle who is entitled to what. As-planned vs as-built in particular is a screening view: it shows what changed, not what caused it. For an entitlement argument, use a time impact, collapsed as-built or windows analysis.
What to do next
- Model a specific event: Time impact analysis walks through the most common case step by step.
- Send the report: export the report document and attach it to your submittal.