To create lanes from a work breakdown structure, you must first configure the WBS via the Codes Manager. To create lanes from codes, you must have a single-assignment code and its values defined and activities assigned to them. The values will become lanes, and the activities assigned to them will be placed accordingly. For more info on creating and assigning codes and values, see the [bookmark postid=”11455″ anchor=”codes”]Codes[/bookmark] chapter.
NOTE: For large schedules or to reduce processing time, make sure lanes are turned off. For more details, see [bookmark postid=”12646″ anchor=”running-on-large-schedules”]Running On Large Schedules[/bookmark] of the Running Automated Layouts section.
NOTE: After running, all shades and text boxes will be hidden automatically. To unhide, see [bookmark postid=”10181″ anchor=”managing”]Managing Shades/Text[/bookmark] of the Working with Layouts section.
The Lanes view consists of two list boxes.
The main list on top shows a preview of the lanes in the order that they’ll appear on the canvas. Each row represents a lane, and the background color of the row corresponds to the color of the lane on the canvas. As you click through the top list, the secondary list on bottom refreshes to show which activities are assigned to the selected lane (value).
Column | Definition |
I/O | Controls whether or not a lane will be created from the value. |
Value | The description of the lane, as inherited from the value. |
Title | A customizable description of the lane that can be displayed on the canvas. |
The lower list show which objects are assigned to each lane. As you click through the list, the canvas will scroll to the location of each object and it will be spotlighted in yellow.
Column | Definition |
Icon | An image representing the type of object. |
Description | The text field for describing the object. |
Abbr. Description | The text field limited to 48 characters to be displayed on the canvas if the description is too long |
ID | The user-entered unique identifier. |
Start Date | The date and/or time the object begins. |
Duration | The amount of time the activity takes to complete. |
Finish Date | The date and/or time the object will be finished. |
Field | Definition |
Title | The description for the lane. By default, it inherits the same value that was entered in the structure view. It can be hidden or displayed on the canvas as desired. To adjust the font or formatting of multiple titles at a time, use the Text tab of the Set Global Properties window. For more info, see [bookmark postid=”8278″ anchor=”multiple-objects”]Bulk-Editing Objects[/bookmark]. |
Shade Color | The color that the lane will display as. For codes, lanes are assigned a global scheme of alternating yellow and white shades but can be customized on an individual basis by un-checking Use Global Scheme. For WBS nodes, lanes are assigned a default color based on their level, up to level 6. Any levels past 6 will be white. |
Assigned Objects | If checked, the color will apply to all activities assigned to this lane with a total float value less than or equal to the criticality threshold. |
Displays | The title can be toggled on or off the canvas. When checked, it shows up as a text object toward the top of the lane along the left edge of the canvas |
NOTE: Any changes made here will NOT apply in real-time or to previously stored layouts, only to those created in the future after the layout engine is re-run.
Unlike the settings in the Lane Properties window which apply to individual lanes, these options apply to all lanes globally and are stored uniquely for each schedule.
If a lane’s shade color is selected to use the global scheme in the Lane Properties window, it’s color will be determined here. If it’s the first lane on top, third, fifth, etc., it is an odd-numbered lane; if it is the second from the top, fourth, sixth, etc., it is an even-numbered lane.
If using a WBS hierarchy, the lane’s shade color will be determined slightly differently. Instead of even and odd, colors are assigned to each level up to 6. Any levels past 6 will be white. Colors can be reset for each level by clicking the dropdown and choosing the color under Default.
NOTE: Any changes made here will NOT apply in real-time or to previously stored layouts, only to those generated in the future after the layout engine is re-run.
When creating lanes from a work breakdown structure, you can choose which level to use as the bases for the lanes. This does NOT mean that ONLY the activities assigned to that level will be drawn but rather that any activities assigned to a lower level will also be drawn in their higher visible level. For example, if choosing Level 1, any activities assigned to Level 2 or below will show up in their corresponding level 1’s. With the following WBS, for example:
A lane would be created for Design and Engineering, Interior Finishes, and Foundations. Any activities assigned to Coverings or Paint would end up under Interior Finishes.
If choosing Level 2, a lane would be created for Design and Engineering, Interior Finishes, Coverings, Paint, and Foundations. In this case, the lane for Interior Finishes could be empty if every activity were actually designated at the second level.