VBA Classes - How to have a class hold additional classes

Question

I have a challenge that I am trying to solve using classes.

I am logging transactions into a class.

Each transaction has the following:

• Name
• Date
• Time
• Description

However each transaction can also have many business related contacts with the following properties

• Business Contact Name
• Business Area
• Percentage of Bill

Are there any examples of how this would be done.

I have tried adding a second class for the business contact and then building a collection inside the transaction class, all with no joy.

I have also tried making the business contact details a collection within the transaction class also with no joy.

Below is what I have so far, but i may have gone down a blind alley and it may not be worth trying to rescue the code

Any help much appreciated.

Thanks JP

---

Test sub - trying to write the data in and get it back out

Sub test()

    Dim x As Integer
    Dim xx As Integer

    'code to populate some objects
    Dim clocklist As Collection
    Dim clock As classClocks
    Dim businesscontactlist As Collection
    Dim businesscontact As classBusinessContact

    Set businesscontactlist = New Collection
    Set clocklist = New Collection

    For x = 1 To 3
        Set clock = New classClocks
        clock.LawyerName = "lawyer " & Str(x)
        For xx = 1 To 3
            businesscontact.Name = "Business Contact " & Str(xx)
            businesscontactlist.Add businesscontact

        Next xx
        clock.BusinessContactAdd businesscontactlist '----- errors here
        clocklist.Add clock
    Next x

    Set businesscontactlist = Nothing

    'write the data backout again
    For Each clock In clocklist
        Debug.Print clock.LawyerName
        Set businesscontactlist = clock.BusinessContacts
        For Each businesscontact In businesscontactlist
            Debug.Print businesscontact.Name
        Next

    Next

End Sub

---

Clock Class - this is the transaction class

Private pLawyerName As String
Private pBusinessContactList As Collection

Public Property Get LawyerName() As String
    LawyerName = pLawyerName
End Property

Public Property Let LawyerName(ByVal sLawyerName As String)
    pLawyerName = sLawyerName
End Property

Public Property Get BusinessContacts() As Collection
    Set BusinessContacts = pBusinessContactList
End Property

Public Property Set BusinessContactAdd(ByRef strName() As Collection)
    Set pBusinessContactList = New Collection
    Dim businesscontact As classBusinessContact
    Set businesscontact = New classBusinessContact

    For Each businesscontact In strName
        businesscontact.Name = strName.Item()
        pBusinessContactList.Add businesscontact
    Next
End Property

---

Business contact Class - For the moment it only has one property

Private pBusinessContactName As String

Public Property Get Name() As String
    Name = pBusinessContactName
End Property

Public Property Let Name(ByVal sName As String)
    pBusinessContactName = sName
End Property

Answer 1

There are a few things that don't do what you expect in your code. I have cleaned it a bit and this new version should be closer to what you want. Let me know if the changes are not self-explanatory.

Main procedure:

Sub test()

    Dim i As Long
    Dim j As Long

    'code to populate some objects
    Dim clocklist As Collection
    Dim clock As classClocks
    Dim businessContactList As Collection
    Dim businessContact As classBusinessContact

    Set clocklist = New Collection

    For i = 1 To 3
        Set businessContactList = New Collection
        Set clock = New classClocks
        clock.LawyerName = "lawyer " & i
        For j = 1 To 3
            Set businessContact = New classBusinessContact
            businessContact.Name = "Business Contact " & j
            businessContactList.Add businessContact
        Next j
        Set clock.BusinessContactAdd = businessContactList
        clocklist.Add clock
    Next i

    Set businessContactList = Nothing

    'write the data backout again
    For Each clock In clocklist
        Debug.Print clock.LawyerName
        Set businessContactList = clock.BusinessContacts
        For Each businessContact In businessContactList
            Debug.Print businessContact.Name
        Next

    Next

End Sub

classClocks:

Private pLawyerName As String
Private pBusinessContactList As Collection

Private Sub Class_Initialize()
  Set pBusinessContactList = New Collection
End Sub

Public Property Get LawyerName() As String
    LawyerName = pLawyerName
End Property

Public Property Let LawyerName(ByVal sLawyerName As String)
    pLawyerName = sLawyerName
End Property

Public Property Get BusinessContacts() As Collection
    Set BusinessContacts = pBusinessContactList
End Property

Public Property Set BusinessContactAdd(contactCollection As Collection)

    For Each contactName In contactCollection
        pBusinessContactList.Add contactName
    Next

End Property