Baseline Deliverable Start (task field)

Data Type    Date

Entry Type    Calculated or entered

Description    The Baseline Deliverable Start field contains the originally planned deliverable start date saved with the project baseline. The Deliverable Start field contains the date when the deliverable task associated with the current task is scheduled to begin. This can be the deliverable task itself or the task that has a dependency on the deliverable task.

How Calculated    The Baseline Deliverable Start field contains NA until you set a baseline for the project. When you save a baseline, the value in the Deliverable Start field is copied into the Baseline Deliverable Start field.

Best Uses    Add the Baseline Deliverable Start field to a task sheet when you need to see when deliverable tasks were originally scheduled to start. You might also add the scheduled Deliverable Start field so you can see variances between the deliverable start dates in the original plan and the current schedule.

Example    Work started on your project two months ago, when you first saved the project baseline. Now you want to compare the Baseline Deliverable Start field with the current Deliverable Start field. You add both fields to the Task Sheet to analyze the differences in deliverable start dates and determine whether you need to make any adjustments to your schedule.

Remarks    You save a baseline plan in the Set Baseline dialog box.

After you save a baseline, you can change the date in the Baseline Deliverable Start field. However, edited baseline values do not cause any recalculation of baseline fields. The purpose of saving a baseline is to capture a "snapshot" of the project plan at a moment in time. Editing baseline values can change the integrity of your information and result in misleading conclusions.