# The Weather Channel

The Weather Channel needed to move into a larger facility without interrupting 24-hour broadcasting operations. Microsoft® Project enabled the cable television network to plan a seamless move that was invisible to viewers.

Vital Statistics:
The Weather Channel
Atlanta, GA
Mark McKeen, Senior Vice President of Operations

Industry:
24-hour Cable Television Weather Information Network

Employees: 350

Software Programs:
Microsoft Windows® 95
Microsoft Project
Microsoft Schedule+
Microsoft Word
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Publisher
Microsoft PowerPoint®

Hardware:
Compaq Pentium PCs

Results of Using Project:
"We would not have been able to meet our goals without using Microsoft Project to show critical paths and identify dependencies."

The Weather Channel is a 24-hour, seven-day cable television network devoted entirely to weather which is seen by a national audience of 64 million households. The network had outgrown its existing facilities in Atlanta, GA, and continuing growth demands prompted a decision to relocate into a larger building. The moving process required that all operations of the 24-hour cable television network continue without interruption.

The Weather Channel needed a scheduling tool to plan a seamless move into a remodeled eight-story building. This process had to be transparent to viewers, eliminating the possibility of temporarily shutting down operations in order to move into the new facility.

The Weather Channel’s parent company, Landmark Communications Inc., approved the move in March, 1996, with a targeted completion date of December 2, 1996. This ambitious schedule placed strict time constraints on planning the move.

The Weather Channel examined several different project management programs before deciding to use Microsoft Project to create a master scheduling plan that would coordinate all aspects of the move. Senior Vice President of Operations, Mark McKeen, explained that the network selected Microsoft Project because it was easy to use yet powerful enough to meet all of the project management requirements involved in such a complex endeavor.

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