Sankey charts are a powerful visualization tool that can help you understand the flow of data or resources through a system. By visualizing the movement and distribution of data, you can gain insights into how different parts of your system are interconnected and how they interact with each other. In this article, we’ll explore the power of Sankey charts, how to create them, and some of their applications.
What Are Sankey Charts?
A Sankey chart is a type of flow diagram that shows the movement of quantities between different nodes or stages in a system. It was named after Matthew Henry Phineas Riall Sankey, who introduced it in 1898 to visualize energy loss in steam engines. The chart uses arrows to represent flows and different colors for each flow path.
Key Features
- Arrows: These represent flows between nodes. The width of the arrows indicates the magnitude (or volume) of the flow.
- Nodes: These are points where flows enter or leave the system. They can be grouped into categories for better organization.
- Color Coding: Colors distinguish different types or categories of flows.
Creating a Sankey Chart
Step 1: Gather Data
Collect data on the flows you want to visualize. This could be anything from energy consumption by departments in an organization to data traffic across networks.
Step 2: Organize Data
Structure your data into categories for nodes and flows. Each category should have a name (node label) and an amount associated with it (flow value).
Step 3: Choose Software
Select a tool for creating your chart:
– Tableau offers drag-and-drop functionality to build complex visualizations.
– Power BI allows for interactive dashboards with embedded Sankey charts.
– D3.js is great for custom web-based visualizations but requires coding knowledge.
Step 4: Build Your Chart
Input your data into the chosen software:
– Assign nodes and connections based on your categories.
– Set widths proportional to flow values.
– Color code according to your needs.
Step 5: Customize
Adjust aesthetics like labels, colors, background, tooltips, etc., for better readability and user experience.
Step 6: Analyze
Interpret insights from your chart about efficiency, bottlenecks, resource allocation, etc.
Applications
- Energy Consumption Analysis: Visualize how energy is consumed across different departments or technologies within an organization.
- Supply Chain Management: Track product movements through various stages from production to delivery.
- Web Traffic Analysis: Analyze user navigation patterns on websites or app usage statistics across different platforms.
- Financial Flows: Map out cash inflows and outflows within an organization or investment portfolio performance by category.
- Environmental Impact Studies: Show greenhouse gas emissions sources within cities or industries.
Conclusion
Sankey charts are not just visual aids; they’re powerful tools that reveal hidden patterns in complex systems. Whether you’re analyzing internal processes within an organization or external interactions within ecosystems, these charts offer unparalleled insights into how things move around—literally mapping out pathways from input sources all the way through output destinations. Embrace this method as part of your toolkit for unlocking deeper understanding in many fields—from business strategy to environmental science—where clarity about movement patterns is key.
SankeyMaster
SankeyMaster is your go-to tool for creating complex Sankey charts . Easily enter data and create Sankey charts that accurately reveal intricate data relationships.
