Certain presentations and graphs require printing on a printable media, such as a paper sheet, of a dimension that is most beneficially presented in the form of a strip, for example, presentation charts used in project management. Project management is the planning and control of many activities that must be coordinated to achieve specific goals leading to the completion of an overall given objective. The project management process frequently uses a set of tools which incorporate charts and reports to detail the project for communication within the project team and with others.
One form of project management chart is referred to as a work breakdown structure (WBS) chart. A WBS chart is an organizational diagram type of chart depicting work packages comprising all of the principal elements of a project. Another form of project management chart, used for communication with the project team and with others, is a precedent network (Network) chart, sometimes erroneously referred to as a PERT chart. The Network chart displays activities required to produce the work packages depicted in the WBS chart and shows the relationships between the activities, i.e. the precedents and dependencies between the activities as they flow towards completion of a project.
For practical project management purposes, the WBS and Network charts are usually more than one standard sized page in width. To present either chart may require many standard sized pages to be joined one to the other. As the project evolves, the project management process results in the updating, modifying, and reproducing the project charts as a consequence of project progress. Thus, the WBS and network charts will change during the course of the project, consequently requiring the WBS and network charts to be produced frequently during the course of the project. To allow the charts to be printed on standard sized paper using conventional computer printers or photocopied onto standard sized paper, requires the joining of standard sized pages together to form a completed WBS or Network chart. Joining these pages is a time consuming process and usually requires input from the project manager to lay out the pages in a proper sequence prior to cutting and pasting them together to form the chart. Each time revised charts are produced during the life of a project, several copies are required each for key team members. The page assembly process to produce the charts is a frustrating task and often results in sloppy presentations even though the computer-generated data or the images printed or photocopied on each of the individual pages may be perfect.