Macro Automation in Excel
An Excel-based planning system will perform calculation and logic steps in a sequence. You can use Excel as planning software by automating these steps with macros. Excel Macros enable you to harness software development techniques and run with the level of coding that is right for you.
Many of our clients have built their planning and scheduling software system in Excel without learning any programming at all. They have two powerful tools at their disposal. The first is the Fast Excel Development Template. This tool has many useful functions and macros that are pre-written for you to start using straight away. The second is the Excel Macro recorder that allows you to record worksheet actions in Visual Basic sofware code.
Macros are mostly used to automate steps that are performed manually in a worksheet. This means that for most of the time they are repeating calculation and data tasks in an environment that is more familiar to most Excel users. VBA does extend far beyond this automation, allowing some powerful programming for advanced users. However, at the basic level the method is kept very simple and for the most part free of having to write any software code.
This means you can focus on the data inputs, planning logic and reports. Learn the parts of system development that are most relevant to your business. Any system can be extended with programming smarts, but you can acheive the core functionality with a zero programming philosophy.
Use Macros to turn Excel into your own production planning sofware. Get a kick-start in build a planning and scheduling system by using the Fast Excel Development Template and the macro recorder.
The Fast Excel Development method will process data across a system step-by-step. Next: How to get the most flow of data across a system.