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When Is a Set of Resources Not a Resource Group?

Typically, a resource set is any collection of resources that share the same skills or attributes and that you might assign to the same tasks. For example, if you’re planning to assign five painters to three painting tasks, you can create the resource set Painters and assign the set three times rather than assigning each individual painter to the three separate painting tasks. You have to make only 3 assignments instead of 15. (Of course, you can assign fewer than five painters from the set to a task.)

You create a resource set by naming the set, such as Painters, in the Resource Name field, and then entering a number in the Max. Units field in the Entry table of the Resource Sheet view. This is usually x times 100 percent, where x equals the number of resources in the set. So, a resource set consisting of five painters has a value of 500 percent in the Max. Units field.

A resource group, on the other hand, can consist of any combination of individual resources and resource sets and is typically used to categorize resources so that they can be tracked and reported on. For example, you might group the resource sets Painters, Plumbers, and Electricians, as well as an individual lighting expert, with the resource group Contractors so that you can periodically view or create a report showing contractor costs. A resource group can also be a department or a company. You create a resource group by entering its name in the Group field, which is located in the Entry table of the Resource Sheet view.

To create a resource list

You can also create a resource list as you assign new resources to tasks.
  1. On the View Bar, click Resource Sheet .
  2. On the View menu, point to Table, and then click Entry.
  3. In the Resource Name field, type a resource name in a blank field.
  4. If you want to designate a resource group, type a name for the group in the Group field.
    To add several resources to the same group, type the same group name in the Group field for each resource.
  5. If necessary, type the number of resource units available for this resource in the Max. Units field.
  6. Change the default information in the remaining fields as appropriate.
  7. Repeat steps 3 through 6 for each resource.

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