Exporting a BPM to SIMUL8

You can export your BPM to SIMUL8 to run a simulation of your model, and analyze the results. When you export a BPM to SIMUL8, you generate one .XS8 file for each BPM diagram selected.

  1. Select Tools > Simulation > Export SIMUL8 File to open a standard generation dialog.
  2. Specify a directory in which to generate the SIMUL8 file.
  3. [optional] Select the Check Model option to verify the validity of your model before generation.
  4. Select one or more diagrams to generate from the Business Process Diagrams sub-tab. Each diagram you select is generated as a separate .XS8 file.
  5. [optional] Click the Generated Files tab, and specify which files will be generated. By default, all files are generated, and PowerDesigner remembers for any subsequent generation the changes you make.
  6. [optional] Click the Tasks tab, and select the Open the first SIMUL8 model in SIMUL8 option, if you want the first SIMUL8 model to open automatically after you close the Generated Files dialog.
  7. Click OK to generate.

    A Progress box is displayed, and the SIMUL8 files are generated in the destination directory. The Generated Files dialog opens to display the generated .XS8 files.

  8. Select an .XS8 file, and click the Edit button to open the file in the main SIMUL8 simulation window (if you have selected the Open the first SIMUL8 model in SIMUL8 option, you can close the dialog, and the first SIMUL8 model will open automatically).
  9. Click the Run tool in the SIMUL8 toolbar to run the simulation, and then analyze the simulation results (see Analyzing Results and Fine-Tuning the Simulation).
    The process control flow moves around the organization, and can reveal any bottlenecks, over-utilized resources, or under-resourced elements. The clock in the corner of the window shows the passage of time.
Note: When you export a diagram contained in a hierarchy of packages, the hierarchy is preserved in the Windows Explorer.