Import Building Elements from a Spreadsheet

This topic offers guidelines on creating a spreadsheet template in Microsoft Excel for importing building elements into Project Center.

You can access the sample building elements spreadsheet template supplied with Project Center in the following location: C:\Program Files\Newforma\Twelfth Edition\Project Center\Templates\Import_BuildingElements_Template.xlsx.

You must be a Project Center administrator to perform this procedure.

Building element fields

The import spreadsheet has the following fields:

●        Category – The element’s Revit category.

●        Number – The value of the element’s Revit Mark parameter.

●        Name – The value of the element’s Revit Name parameter.

●        Author – The team member that serves as the owner of the element.

●        Team Members – The team members designated as points of contact for the element.

●        Keywords – The keywords that apply to the building element. Separate multiple values with a semicolon. Whether all entries must already be in the project keywords keyword list depends on the project settings.

●        ID – A tracking ID generated by Project Center. Leave this field blank when adding data to the template.

The building elements import includes the <BuildingElementsExtendedPropertiesDataTable>.

To create an import file for building elements and import it

1.     Make a backup copy of your existing spreadsheet with the data.

2.     Edit the spreadsheet and fill in the required data:

●        Add the desired building element extended properties (Group Name, Property Name, Default Value, Show in Log, and Read Only).

●        Insert any newly created extended property’s group and property names into the Building Elements Data Table:

●        Add them before the ID column.

●        Follow the syntax of <Group Name.Property Name>.

●        The column order must follow the row order of the Extended Properties table.

●        Remove any extra rows from either table. Don’t remove any header or footer rows (marked with braces).

3.     Copy your data columns to the Import_BuildingElements_Template.xlsx file, replacing the sample columns with your own information.

4.     Edit the field values based on the information given in the Building element fields section above. Add values to fields where required.

5.     After you finish editing the Import_BuildingElements_Template.xls spreadsheet, import it into a Project Center project by opening the Building Models and Elements activity center and selecting All Elements from the drop down list. Click Utilities > Import Spreadsheet from the Tasks panel to open the Select Spreadsheet dialog box, as shown here. Locate the spreadsheet, then click Open.

6.     After it is imported, the Import Log dialog box opens showing any import errors. Fix any errors that appear in the spreadsheet, then re-import it.

The import will not succeed until all errors are addressed.