Earned Value Management for Construction: SPI, CPI, EAC and TCPI in Context
Earned Value Management combines scope, schedule and cost evidence into a common performance language. The formulas are simple; the difficult part is ensuring the underlying baseline, progress rules and actual costs are controlled enough for the indicators to mean something.
PV, EV and AC are the foundation
Planned Value represents budgeted work scheduled by the status date. Earned Value represents budgeted value of work actually accomplished. Actual Cost represents the cost incurred for that work. If any of these are incomplete or use inconsistent cut-off rules, downstream indicators can be misleading.
Read SPI and CPI as signals, not verdicts
Schedule Performance Index compares EV with PV, while Cost Performance Index compares EV with AC. Values below 1.00 indicate underperformance against the selected baseline basis, but management should still investigate the underlying causes, timing effects and data quality before deciding on action.
Forecasting connects current performance to the remaining work
EAC, ETC and VAC translate current performance and remaining scope into forecast outcomes. Different EAC methods make different assumptions about future cost and schedule efficiency. The selected method should match the project's forecasting policy rather than being chosen because it produces a preferred answer.
TCPI tests the efficiency required from now onward
The To-Complete Performance Index helps show how efficiently the remaining budget must be converted into earned value to achieve a target. If the required future efficiency is materially stronger than historical performance, the target may need deeper recovery analysis.
Move from guidance to governed workflow.
ORQIV publishes practical project-control guidance publicly while keeping customer data, proprietary algorithms and private implementation details inside the governed product boundary. Review methodology is documented in the Editorial Policy.