Render to multiple PDFs

[HUAL87]

Hi,

I've created a workflow, with the use of a Macro, which generates hundreds of individual statements, each a single page. This is what it looks like:

The output of the macro is the Visual Tool which arranges the various data inputs into what I want the statement to look like.

When I run this workflow, I can see the Macro tool generating temporary pdfs for each statement, however, the Render tool combines them all into one PDF. I want them to stay as individual PDFs.

I've read several posts (such as this) and experimented with the "Group Data Into Separate Reports" option in the Render tool but I can't get it to work. My best guess is the output of the macro being a "Visual Layout" tool means I don't have a "Field to Group On" (which actually says "[No Valid Fields]" - although I could easily be completely wrong.

Can any one please help? Any suggestions/solutions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

[Thableaus]

Hi @HUAL87 

The question would be - does your output generates multiple records (each for one pdf?)

Then, as the post says, you should be able to create the path for each pdf and use that field as the Grouping field to generate multiple reports.

I guess if we had more details of the data that is going through the workflow, and its format, it would be better to evaluate the situation.

Cheers,

[HUAL87]

Hi @Thableaus 

The data set is in Excel. It has hundreds of customers and each has a number of balances associated with it e.g. opening balance, purchases, sales, profit, closing balance.

I've then created a macro that selects one customer and turns their data set into a one page statement, using a variety of tools and pulling them together with the Visual Layout tool.

The workflow in the image in my initial post is me running that macro once for each customer, thereby generating hundreds of statements in one go.

So, to try and answer your question, the macro generates one statement for one particular customer and the workflow generates hundreds of statements, one for each customer.

The problem I'm having is those hundreds of statements are being saved as one PDF. I need them as individual PDFs and I don't know how to do that.

Thanks.

[ncrlelia]

Hi @HUAL87,

I'm assuming that the output of your macro is a list of layouts, I would suggest to create a filepath for each statement - this can be incorporated into your macro but it has to be a separated from the layout field (see Figure 1). This is because you will need to group by this field in the last Render tool (Figure 2). 

Figure 1

Figure 2

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Lelia

[mst3k]

you should be able to use that "group into reports" without a macro - it does what you're trying to do on its own as far as i know? so if i have 10 locations in my data, i can just connect a render tool and use the "group into separate reports" to make 10 files, instead of passing it through a batch macro 10 times or something

[binay2448]

Attached example may help you for same..

[iCFO]

If the customer reports need to be processed differently based on criteria, then you can place the render tool within an iterative macro and use the group reports setting to append the customer name to each PDF output. That way it will do an iterative process of creating each customer's report through the macro and save each PDF separately with the customer name. I have to do this on iterative accounting report macros to add back missing parent accounts and apply various subtotal / narrative / presentation methodologies by criteria.