Time Architect (TA) is an add-in for Enterprise Architect (EA) by Sparx Systems. It has been written by Solutions Reality to extend the functionality of EA. Although driven by a need to bring Time and Project Management features into EA, TA has been written by EA modellers for EA modellers. This means that TA is a tool for all users of EA, the majority of the features we needed to add to make time and project management easy in EA, make modelling easier too.
At Solutions Reality, we needed a tool to help manage the timings of our projects that we plan, build and manage with EA. We initially wanted a way of getting task information from EA out to an external project management tool (in our case MS Project). However, as we developed this functionality, we realised that taking the information held in EA out to an external project management tool was not the right solution! We were losing a lot of contextual information that we had built up in our EA models. We were losing the ability to rapidly move around the model and all the elements and really see how things fitted together. So instead of taking EA data out to a project management tool, we decided to add additional tools - including Gantt Charts and Project Tracking into EA!
TA has continued to evolve from this original design to the toolkit you have now. TA will continue to evolve as a product in the future. We invite your feedback on Time Architect, we want it to be a tool that you want to use!
Welcome to Time Architect - a true extension for Enterprise Architect.
Key Features:
Draw Gantt Charts
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Time Architect can take EA resource information and display it as a truly interactive Gantt Chart. Not only does this allow you plan your project, but it also allows you clearly see what needs to be done when. Project managers can quickly and easily build the chart in TA and modellers can use this to get to the relevant tasks/elements, just by clicking on the appropriate task in the Gantt Chart |
Powerful Data Grid View of your model
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Behind the Gantt Chart is a powerful data grid that allows full filtering, sorting and group by functionality. TA's grid allows you to manage multiple tasks/elements at the same time, not only updating Resource information (Resource, duration, start date etc.) but also EA data such as Phase, Version, Status, Tags and more. |
Export data to Microsoft Excel format
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Having selected the correct elements in the Data Grid, it is a simple matter to export this information out to Microsoft Excel. TA remembers your configuration of sort, column order, group by and filters and exports what you see to Microsoft Excel (.xls). In addition, you can also select to have the element notes exported, kickstart other processes outside of EA. |
Multi Element Management
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When project managing through TA or modelling in EA, you often need to manipulate many elements at the same time. Time Architect extends EA's functionality with the following capabilities:
- Move elements to package
- Add Elements to diagram(s)
- Delete Elements
- Add related element
- Change EA properties for multiple elements.
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Quick Chart
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Kick start your project planning process. Time Architect can read your EA complexity/difficulty settings and assign definable durations to tasks based on these settings. |
Time Calculations
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EA provides a resource tab that allows you to record who is doing something and when. This is only informational in EA - there is no relationship between the start time, end time and duration. Time Architect uses this information to calculate the timings of your project correctly. Project Managers can now plan, live inside EA. Modellers can see what needs to be done, by them, by when! |
Project Review
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Time Architect makes it easy to see which tasks need attention and which are OK. TA adds review functionality to the data grid showing which tasks are finished, due to start, late ending and more. |
Powerful Visualisation
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As well as adding a colourful, meaningful, interactive Gantt Chart, Time Architect adds a new dimension to your EA models. It is now easy to see the relationships between elements based on timescales as well as the normal, UML relationships. |
Other Features:
Improved Resource Management
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Time Architect is fully integrated into Enterprise Architect and builds on many of the existing EA dialogs and their associated data. When adding Resources to TA it is one simple dialog to add the new resource, yet the EA fields are populated correctly 'behind the scenes'. TA passes your task information back to EA through the project management/Resources tab, correctly populating all the relevant fields. | |