Asta Powerproject Alternative for Construction Programmes

An Asta Powerproject alternative for construction programmes

Asta Powerproject is widely used by UK contractors, and for a planning team that has built its way of working around it, it does the job well. But not everyone who has to produce or work with a construction programme needs a full Powerproject licence: subcontractors, small contractors, consultants and clients who mostly read, update and check programmes. Here is what to look for in an alternative, and how Metre2 Programme Studio covers it, gaps included.

Published 9 Nov 20265 min readBy metre2

What it covers

Building the programme: type activities, durations and logic, insert fragments such as a drainage run or a design approval cycle, and start from housing, fit-out, M&E, highways, small works or refurbishment templates.
UK calendars: bank holidays for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, a Christmas shutdown, and calendars for 6-day, 24/7 and night work.
Construction views (Pro): line of balance by plot, block or floor, and time-chainage for linear work.
Contract work (Pro): progress and revisions, baselines, time impact and windows analysis, the 14-point check and an NEC4 clause 31.2 checklist, each with a Word report.
Printing: A4 and A3 free, A2 to A0 with Pro, with a title block.

Opening Powerproject programmes

The simplest route is to export from Powerproject to MS Project XML or Primavera P6 XER, which Programme Studio opens directly. A native .pp file is a closed format a browser cannot read: Programme Studio asks whether to convert it on Metre2's server, in memory, with nothing kept. Check the result against the original, as with any conversion between planning tools.

Where Powerproject is still the right tool

Programme Studio works on one programme at a time and has no shared planning database, enterprise features or BIM 4D model linking (it can export an IFC 4.3 schedule). Teams that rely on Powerproject's own formats, add-ons and reporting should keep it; Programme Studio suits the people around them who need to read, update and check programmes without a licence each.

Price

Elecosoft's UK shop lists Asta Powerproject at £1,530 a year per user, including VAT, billed annually (November 2026). Programme Studio is free to open and view programmes of any size and to build or edit programmes of up to 50 activities; Pro, with every planning tool and no activity limit, is £29.99 a month or £249 a year, with a 7-day free trial.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a free alternative to Asta Powerproject?

Programme Studio is free for building and editing programmes of up to 50 activities and for opening and viewing programmes of any size, with the critical path, UK calendars and A4/A3 printing. Pro adds the advanced tools.

Can Programme Studio open Asta .pp files?

It offers to convert them on Metre2's server with your agreement, since a browser cannot read the format. Programmes exported from Powerproject as MS Project XML or P6 XER open directly in your browser.

Can I send the programme back in a format Powerproject opens?

Programme Studio Pro saves MS Project XML and Primavera P6 XER and XML, which Powerproject can import.