Waterfall graph in Illustrator

[Sharrell]

Is there a plugin or script that can help plotting a waterfall graph in Illustrator?
we've got all the other graphs but not Waterfall.

or if you can advice me on how to do a waterfall graph in illustrator, that would be great.

NOTE: I can do Waterfall graphs from Excel and Powerpoint and import that into Illustrator, but when the data changes, I have to go back to Excel or Powerpoint to change it. And yes, i can change colours in Powerpoint. But bringing it into Excel, it comes in as a group and thus cannot change any data if something changes.
can anyone help me, please

[Sharrell]

I mean bringing the graph into ILLUSTRATOR and not Exel. 

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

Did you google anything?

Not sure if it will do everything you want, but check out:

https://www.datylon.com

[Sharrell]

Thanks for the answer. I check datylon out. I don't often do waterfall graphs, so cannot justify buying a subscription of 15 Euro per month.

I do the graph in Excell and then import them to Illustrator, keeping the Excell file in the same folder as Illustrator graph.

[Mylenium]

You could probably do this with a script if you named layers explicitly or tagged them with variables, then update them with an exported CSV from Excel. It doesn't really reduce the number of steps, though. It will just facilitate the process in that you don't lose custom styling in AI, not start from scratch every time.

Mylenium 

[Sharrell]

Thanks.
I wonder if Illustrator fundis haven't thought about giving us a Waterfall graph in the toolbar...

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

May I ask the purpose of importing the Excel charts into Illustrator? Is InDesign the final stop?

[Sharrell]

Yes. Indesign is the final stop.
The idea is to plot the waterfall chart in Illustrator and import it into Indesign.
I want to keep the data in Illustrator so that when client makes a change to a number, that it can be updated quick without losing any colour or for me to go back to Excell to update the graph there and then bring it back into Illustrator. Result: we loose all the formatting and colours.
This is for printing CMYK with clients corporate colours. Not upload to Website.

For website I export straight from Excell or Powerpoint as a PDF and place that into Indesign.

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

Consider this workflow:

Create chart in Excel.

Save.

Save-as PDF.

Place PDF in InDesign.

For updates, edit Excel file, save, and replace old PDF.

In InDesign:

Export as PDF without converting colors.

Convert colors in Acrobat and convert RGB blacks to 100%K using the Preserve Black setting.

[Sharrell]

We do lots of Annual Reports that gets printed in CMYK with clients' corporate colours.

I do create the Waterfall chart in Excel and then bring it into Illustrator to fix the colours. But when the client changes a figure in their chart, then it is back to Excel, make the change and bring it back into Illustrator.

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

What are you fixing in the colors?

[Sharrell]

Illustrator do not have a Waterfall graph in their toolbar. That is why I Import the plotted Waterfall graph from Excell or Powerpoint and then change the colours, fonts, etc to client's specifications.
I can plot a waterfall graph if ALL figures are positive using stacked bar chart. But you cannot mix a positive and negative figure in one line.
that's where Excell and PowerPoint comes in.