DCMA-14 · Check 13 of 14
CPLI (Critical Path Length Index)
How much float the critical path has relative to its length.
What it measures
Whether the project has enough float on its critical path to finish on time.
How Claims Digger calculates it
(Critical path length + total float) divided by critical path length. Here the critical path length is the span from the baseline schedule's data date to its finish date, and the total float is the current schedule's float on its finish milestone (or the latest-finishing activity if there is none). It needs a designated baseline: without one the result is N/A. A value of 1.0 means finishing exactly on time; 0.95 or higher is reported as healthy, and it is shown as an indicator rather than a hard pass or fail.
Why it matters
It is a single number for whether the finish date is realistically achievable given the float that remains.
How to fix a failure
- A low CPLI is a project status finding, not a data error: it says the finish is at risk.
- Look at what is consuming float on the critical path, and compare against earlier updates to see when it eroded.
Claims Digger runs all 14 checks on any schedule you upload, and lists the exact activities behind every failure. See how the health check works.