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Time-Scaled Logic Diagram (TSLD)

While TSLDs (time-scaled logic diagrams) are common in Primavera P6, you can create them from Microsoft Project as well, when you use OnePager Pro.

Time-Scaled Logic Diagram (TSLD) created from Microsoft Project.

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OnePager Pro works with Microsoft Project, Project Server, and Project Online to help you create a TSLD. To see how, you can follow either our simple or our more detailed instructions:

Simple Instructions

These instructions are designed for people don't already have a Microsoft Project plan. You can use our example MS Project plan as a starting point and follow these abbreviated steps to create your TSLD in a matter of minutes.

  1. Start by downloading these two sample files to your downloads folder or to your desktop. The Microsoft Project file contains the tasks, milestones and dependencies themselves, and the *.tat file is the OnePager template that will drive the formatting of the TSLD you're about to create.

      TSLD.mpp (Microsoft Project Plan)
      TSLD Template.tat (OnePager Template)

  1. Open the Microsoft Project file that you just downloaded. From Project's Add-Ins tab, click the OnePager Pro button:

    OnePager Pro add-in launch from Microsoft Project.

  2. On the Start screen, click NEW to begin building a new TSLD:

    OnePager Pro start screen.

  3. On the next screen, locate the Starting Template section, and go to Change > BROWSE FILES. Browse to your desktop or downloads folder and select the TSLD Template.tat that you downloaded in step #1:

    Change your OnePager template.

  4. With your Microsoft Project file loaded and your OnePager template selected, click Next, and then on the following screen, click Create new chart. OnePager will import the data from your MS Project file and create a TSLD in just a few seconds:

    Time-Scaled Logic Diagram (TSLD) created from Microsoft Project.

Now that you've done this, you can go back to Microsoft Project and adjust the schedule to match the dates, WBS, and dependencies of your real-world project plan. Once you've done this, follow the same steps again with your updated MPP file, and you'll be well on your way to building your own custom TSLD!

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Detailed Instructions

These instructions are designed for people who have already built a solid Microsoft Project plan with tasks and dependencies, and just need to import what they already have into OnePager. These instructions also provide more details about customization along the way.

  1. Start with your Microsoft Project plan. Here, we have a simple plan with a WBS, tasks, and some dependencies. The only change that you need to make in Microsoft Project is to use a flag field like Flag20 to select which tasks and milestones that you want to include in the TSLD.

    Microsoft Project plan with dependencies.

  2. Once your Microsoft Project plan is in good shape, go to the Add-Ins tab, click the OnePager Pro button:

    OnePager Pro add-in launch from Microsoft Project.

  3. On the Start screen, click NEW to begin building a new TSLD:

    OnePager Pro start screen.

  4. On the import wizard, give your TSLD a name, and then click the Create New Chart button:

    Create a new time-scaled logic diagram from Microsoft Project.

  5. OnePager will import your selected tasks from Microsoft Project, and initially create a basic Gantt chart like this. In the remaining steps, we'll show you how to convert it from a Gantt Chart to a Time-Scaled Logic Diagram.

    Gantt chart from Microsoft Project.

  6. The first change is to adjust the layout from a Gantt chart to a timeline so that multiple tasks can be lined up next to each other in the same row. To do this, go to Home > Chart Properties > Rows/Swimlanes. Change the Task Layout to Timeline based on Level 1 Summary Name or whichever level of the WBS is best for your project plan. We'll also choose to Stagger overlapping tasks to improve readability:

    Switch from a Gantt chart to a timeline layout.

  7. Click OK, and you'll instantly see OnePager realign your chart into a series of timelines based on the summary tasks back in Microsoft Project:

    Timeline based on summary tasks in Microsoft Project

  8. Now we need to import the predecessors from Microsoft Project so that we can show the logic between predecessors and successors. To do this, go to Home > Chart Properties > Task Links. Check the box to Show Data-Driven Links:

    Import dependencies from Microsoft Project to show logic between predecessor and successor tasks.

  9. Click OK, and OnePager will import the existing logic from your Microsoft Project file:

    Timeline showing dependencies from Microsoft Project

    If the addition of dependency logic to your chart made it a little busier than you'd like, don't worry. You can use your mouse to change the path or your links, or to move text to a different location to improve readability.

  10. We can also use conditional formatting to highlight tasks that are on the critical path so that they stand out better. To do this, go to Home > Chart Properties > Task Bars and then click on the Manage Rules button. Here, we've defined a rule that assigns a red color when a task is critical and a gray color when it's not:

    Conditional formatting for a TSLD

  11. Here is the end result after clicking OK and turning on the optional legend to show what the colors mean:

    Time-Scale Logic Diagram with critical tasks in red.

Build a time-scaled logic diagram (TSLD) by downloading a free trial.

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