Add simulated timeframes

The Activity Forecast feature allows you to simulate demand by configuring various types of tasks.

You can create forecasts based on either:

Real activities and operations already present in the system.
Simulated activities

A significant advantage of using activity forecasts is their complete independence from actual activities and work-orders data. This means any adjustments or edits made within the forecast simulation will not impact the live operational data in your system.

Before you start

Create the activity forecast
Learn how to add activities: Add activities

In the FSM App, navigate to FEATURES → FORECASTING & CAPACITY PLANNING → ACTIVITY FORECAST
Use the filter panel to search for existing forecast records
Clicking the option button related to the Activity Forecast, going on “Detail” option the configuration page will be showed as a gantt view.
Right-click on an activity row
OPTION 1: Click “Add Timeframe” to add a single timeframe using the form.
OPTION 2: Click “Add Multiple timeframes” to add more timeframes using the form.

Form - Add one timeframe

Field	Description
Start Date	start date of the execution period
End Date	end date of the execution period
Priority	priority level
Grouping Constraint	grouping constraint to associate to the activity, only one for each timeframe
Mode	mode to define the activity duration. It can be “Expected Duration” and “Number of tasks”. They are exclusive.
Expected Duration (minutes)	the total duration of the timeframe expressed in minutes.
Number of Tasks	number of tasks to execute in the defined period
Average Task Duration (minutes)	average time of each task in the defined period
The “Refresh” icon	It allows to compute expected duration also when the selected Mode is “Number of Tasks”. It is not possibile the otherwise. `Expected Duration (minutes) = Number of Tasks * Average Task Duration (minutes)`

Form - Add multiple timeframes

Field	Description
Start Date	start date of the execution period
End Date	end date of the execution period
Every	to define how often the timeframe starts
Timeframe Duration (days)	duration of each single timeframe expressed in days
Priority	priority level
Grouping Constraint	grouping constraint to associate to the activity, only one for each timeframe
Mode	mode to define the activity duration. It can be “Expected Duration” and “Number of tasks”. They are exclusive.
Expected Duration (minutes)	the total duration of the timeframe expressed in minutes.
Number of Tasks	number of tasks to execute in the defined period
Average Task Duration (minutes)	average time of each task in the defined period
The “Refresh” icon	It allows to compute expected duration also when the selected Mode is “Number of Tasks”. It is not possibile the otherwise. `Expected Duration (minutes) = Number of Tasks * Average Task Duration (minutes)`

The “Generate Preview” button allows to evaluate the result through a timeframe table, before to save it.

Edit a timeframe

To edit a timeframe already created, right-click on the timeframe and it will be possibile to edit or delete a timeframe.

The edit option will open the same creation panel, and it will be possibile to edit all parameters.

A tooltip on each timeframe will show some information about it:

Start Date
End Date
Expected Duration (minutes)