/tilos/tilos-vs-primavera-p6/
This isn’t really a rivalry — on most major UK infrastructure programmes, both tools are in use, on the same schedule, at the same time. They solve different problems, and the confusion this page exists to clear up is almost always about scope, not quality.
| TILOS | Primavera P6 | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Linear, chainage-based work | Whole-project network scheduling |
| Primary view | Time-location (distance vs time) chart | Gantt chart / network diagram |
| Shows physical progress along a route | Yes, natively | No — distance isn’t a native dimension |
| Critical path logic | Driven by activity logic and location-based conflicts | Driven purely by activity logic |
| Complex logic across thousands of activities | Workable, but not its strength | Yes — this is what it’s built for |
| Resource & cost histograms | Yes | Yes, more extensive at portfolio scale |
| Data exchange | Imports/exports Excel, MS Project, Primavera P6 | Imports/exports MS Project and TILOS via XML/Excel |
| Typical user on a programme | Planner responsible for a linear package | Planning team managing the whole programme |
When to use TILOS
- The work physically progresses along a route — rail, highway, pipeline, water main, tunnel.
- You need to spot clashes between crews working the same stretch at the same time, before they happen on site.
- Production rate (chainage per week) is a number stakeholders actually want to see.
When to use Primavera P6
- You’re managing the full programme logic — design, procurement, multiple work packages, interfaces.
- You need portfolio-level reporting and resource levelling across many projects.
- The client or framework contractually mandates P6 as the tool of record.
Using both together — a worked case
Picture a rail civils package: a 12 km cutting-and-embankment section sitting inside a much larger programme managed in Primavera P6. The master P6 schedule carries the whole project’s logic; the 12 km package itself gets built and maintained in TILOS, resourced and given a realistic production rate. Once settled, it’s exported — typically via TILOS’s Primavera XML or Excel exchange — and imported into the master P6 schedule as a summary activity, linked to the interfacing milestones either side of it.
Want your team confident switching between both tools? See corporate TILOS training →