Velocity - Custom Export Development Basics (2–3 Hours)

Published Date: July 2026
Validated: Yes
Audience: Signed-in Users
Products and Versions Covered:

Jama Connect®
Velocity

Summary

Your team needs to extract polished, professional documents from the engineering data within Jama Connect®.

The training below will equip teams with the skills needed to create custom reports using the open-source Engage and Apache Velocity. This training will provide the foundational knowledge, resources, coding exercises, and development templates needed to achieve your reporting needs.

The training takes 2-3 hours to complete and is recommended for technical users familiar with HTML/CSS

It is recommended that all users, regardless of technical skill level, begin with this Basic Training. This can be followed with our Intermediate Training.

Not sure you need this training? Watch: Introduction Video

Resolution

Prerequisites

Be aware that Velocity custom reports utilize Velocity, HTML, and CSS code, for which prior knowledge of HTML and CSS is required and will not be covered in this training offering.

Jama Velocity training is intended for technical resources but does not teach HTML or CSS. Participants unfamiliar with any of the following are recommended to have prior learning through other resources.

HTML & CSS
API utilization & method calling
Java data manipulation (Strings, Arrays, etc.)
Access to Microsoft Word & Excel

Module 1: Velocity Custom Report Development

Review the Basic Velocity Training Part 1 video and associated slide deck resources below, taking notes as needed. Each primary topic covered will be further expanded upon in the optional Velocity coding exercises found in Velocity Basic Training Module 3.

Basic Velocity Training Slides - Part 1 (download and review)

Module 2: Developer Environment

In order to develop Velocity custom reports, you will need access to either a text editor or Integrated Development Environment (IDE) of your choice alongside a Velocity language package/plugin. If you do not have one already, please find the resources below, which include a link to a free text editor, a .zip Velocity package, and installation instructions.

If you will be using your own editor, be aware that Velocity .vm files contain Velocity, HTML, and CSS code together. With that, we recommend a Velocity package/plugin library that provides syntax highlighting for all three, rather than just Velocity.

Suggested Downloads:
- Sublime Text (suggested editor)
- Velocity Sublime Dev Environment Setup (click to download setup instructions)
- Download the Java-Velocity Sublime package (ZIP) and unpack it

Module 3: Developer Exercises

The following developer exercises will give you hands-on experience building your own Velocity custom reports. Each prompt will outline the implementation task corresponding to a topic covered in the prior modules.

Be aware that these do not need to be perfect, and if you get stuck, you can move on to the next exercise, as we will review the solution code next.

Module 3 Basic Training Exercises(click to download PDF)
Basic Training Velocity Template (download .vm template)
Mockup Example (click to download)
Output Example (click to download)

Module 4: Solutions Review, Templates, and Debugging Tips

This follow-up video walks through exercise solutions, reviews Velocity templates, and shares practical debugging tips to help you work faster and get unstuck.

Basic Velocity Training Part 2 Training Deck (click to download)

Module 5: Templates and Exercise Solutions

Download both the Word and Excel Velocity Template files below, along with the exercise solution file. These can be installed in your Jama Connect instance immediately and will produce valid outputs, with implementation examples in each section for you to review.

Word - Velocity Template (.vm)

Utilize this file as a master template in which you want to retain at least one base version to begin new report efforts from.

Excel - Velocity Template (.vm)

Utilize this file as a master template in which you want to retain at least one base version to begin new report efforts from.

Basic Training Velocity Solution (.vm)

Use this for review/reference (or to quickly unblock yourself) when comparing your exercise implementations.

Tip: If your browser opens the file instead of downloading it, use the menu (⋯) and choose Download, or right-click the link and select “Save link as…”.

END OF COURSE - Congratulations!

Additional Resources

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