Microsoft Project VBA: How to open a project file from Excel

Recently I’ve been playing around on how to open a Microsoft Project file from Excel using macros / VBA scripts.  I’m currently using MS Project 2010 and MS Excel 2010.  This script should work at minimum for MS Project 2010 / 2013.  If you need it for earlier version, it should be similar, so play around with the code.

You can build a procedure Sub in your VBA Editor after you add a new Module to your current workbook.

Before starting to write your code, make sure you have the right references to access Microsoft Project! Click on Tools>References>Microsoft Project xx.x Object Library. Then click okay.

Now you are ready to start coding in MS Excel to access information from MS Project!  Let’s start by opening an MS Project file from MS Excel.

Make sure to first set up your variables, which in this script you only need one.  You will need one variable for your MS Project application, which I called projApp.

I use the On Error Resume next in case MS Project is not installed and an error occurs.  This way the code stops running and you don’t get an error.  We set projApp to be a new  instance of object type.  This means we can now access everything we need in MS Project.

NOTE: Every time you run a new Macro /  VBA script you run a risk of losing all your work.  When trying out new code I recommend you use it on copies of your projects and not on active projects.  This way if your VBA doesn’t run correctly, you won’t lose valuable information.  Run it at your own risk!

Sub OpenProject()
Dim projApp As MSProject.Application

'Excel Set up to access MS Project
On Error Resume Next
Set projApp = GetObject(, "MSProject.Application")
If projApp Is Nothing Then
Set projApp = New MSProject.Application
End If
projApp.Visible = True

'Open MS Project file
projApp.Application.FileOpenEx "C:\<>\My Example Project.mpp" 

Set projApp = projApp.ActiveProject

'Final set up of code
Set projApp = Nothing

End Sub

Where you see “C:\<>\My Example Project.mpp”, this is where you put the information on where YOUR file is located.  I took out most of my file path to not make it confusing

The last comment I want to make is that about the MS Project file you might be trying to open.  I have found that if your MS Project file has macros, then you might have trouble using this macro because of Microsoft built in security. You might have to change the security settings so that your macro can work.

Otherwise, it works like a charm!

MS Project 2010/2013 – List of Shortcuts

When building schedules, sometimes it’s easier to make changes by using shortcuts in Microsoft Project.  Here is a short list of the shortcuts I seem to use most frequently.  I might update this list to add other shortcuts.  If you know of other shortcuts, tell me and I can add them to this list.

Introduction to Mad Schedules

Here I am writing my first post for Mad Schedules! I’m pretty excited because I have been thinking about doing this project for many months, even maybe many years! I just didn’t know exactly how I wanted it to look like. Now I have a better idea of what I want to write about. That doesn’t mean I’m a professional writer. Actually, English is my second language, so please be kind. If you find any blatant misspellings (I always run spell check) or grammatical errors you can’t ignore, please contact me and let me know! I’ll try to fix them as soon as possible.

So who am I? My name is Minerva Goree. I’ve spent the better part of the last 7 creating, implementing, and executing project schedules. If I take into account the times I used MS Project during college and my internship, I would say I have much more experience, but who’s counting? I started scheduling with MS Project 2003 during college and my engineering internship at Nextwave Wireless in San Diego, California. I then was the master scheduler for overhauling jet propulsion engines at Lockheed Martin for about 4 years and used MS Project 2003 and 2007. Now I’m a program planning and scheduling analyst for Sierra Nevada Corporation and mainly use MS Project 2010/2013. Many of the programs I’ve scheduled have been multi-million dollar endeavors. Keeping these projects on track and delivering on schedule has saved these companies hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years.

Now I’ve taken my skills and started consulting on the side. My clients seem to be extremely happy with the solutions I provide for them. Now I am going to showcase my portfolio here, and also share some tips and tricks to build simple and effective schedules. I also want to explore other tools used to build and communicate schedules. Most people know schedules better as Gantt charts. I build many high level schedules using MS Excel after doing a sanity check on MS Project. Oh, and for those interested to know what degrees I hold, I have a BS in Mathematics and an MS in Software Engineering.

Why did I name this site MAD Schedules? Why not? Most project managers that are faced with the daunting task of building an effective project plan and schedule feel like they’ve enter the world of madness. So a little crazy is good. Don’t worry, I’ll try to demonstrate how scheduling can be done in simple steps without having the need to tear out your hair… or not a lot of it. 😉

What would you like to see on this site? I’m always open to constructive questions and comments.