Abstract. This paper presents the techniques and experiences of an industrial project, applying the formal method VDM in order to develop a work- ow planning and tracking system. A method for creating formal models of relational databases has been developed | speci cally, formal representations of SQL datatypes, a model of the structure of a database including primary and foreign keys and the formulation of queries in the model. With this approach, familiar informal design methods from the database world can be used without giving up the expressive power of formal methods. The transition from the informal to the formal world can be automated, keeping the relevant parts of the formal model synchronized with minimal e ort. The formal method used is VDM, but the results are easily transferred into similar model oriented methods.
