Import and export units with Excel

The units sheet is the fastest way to record or correct many units at once: the architect's unit schedule, a round of area corrections after the RERA carpet areas are certified, or the facing and description of every unit. A row names its tower and floor, and a tower or floor that doesn't exist yet is created, so one sheet can build a project's whole structure.

The app checks every row first and writes nothing until every row passes, so a sheet with a mistake never half-imports. Unit status is deliberately not in the sheet: it follows estimates, offers and bookings ("Status is not in the sheet — it follows estimates, offers and bookings.").

Before you start

• You need both the Create and the Edit permission on Towers, Floors & Units to import; otherwise the Import button isn't shown. In the default roles that is the Administrator, the Project Manager and the Site Engineer. Export and Download template need the View permission on Towers, Floors & Units and on Projects.
• The unit types and configurations the sheet may name come from Settings > Lookups, and the template's dropdowns offer only the unit types the project's Property type allows.
• Work in Excel and save as .xlsx. A .csv from an older template is accepted too.

Steps

1. Open the project and choose the Structure tab. In the Structure workspace, the Export and Import buttons sit above the Towers rail. (The same buttons are on the setup wizard's Towers & units step.)

2. To change units that already exist, click Export (hover "Download this list as an Excel sheet"). You get "<project> units.xlsx" with one row per unit and its unit_id filled in, so the same file imports straight back as updates. Every download is noted in the audit log.

3. Click Import. The dialog Import units opens: "The workbook has a fixed set of columns, and the closed ones are dropdowns fed by its Lists sheet. Export or download the template, fill it in, and bring it back." and "A row names its tower and floor; a tower or floor that is not there yet is created. Status is not in the sheet — it follows estimates, offers and bookings." What each column takes at the bottom explains every column.

4. For a new structure click Download template; otherwise use the export. Fill in the Data sheet, one row per unit, and leave the EXAMPLE row as it is (it is skipped):

   Column	What to enter
   unit_id	Leave blank for a new unit. The export fills it in; keep it to update that unit.
   tower	Required. The tower name, for example A or Wing B. A tower this project doesn't have yet is created.
   floor_number	Required. A whole number from -20 to 200: 0 for ground, negative for a basement. A missing floor is created.
   unit_number	Required, unique on its floor, for example A-1201.
   unit_type	One of the organization's unit types. Required for a new unit unless the configuration says it.
   configuration	The typology (Studio, 2 BHK, Office, Shop…), optional. "It decides the unit type, never the areas."
   carpet_area_sqft	The Carpet area (Mofa) in sq ft. Required for a new unit.
   built_up_area_sqft	What the screen calls RERA Carpet Area, in sq ft. Optional.
   rera_carpet_area_sqft	What the screen calls Super Built-up Area, in sq ft. Optional.
   facing	For example East or Sea facing. Optional.
   designation	Saleable, PAP or Common. Blank means Saleable on a new unit.
   description	Optional.

   The two RERA / super built-up columns keep their old names, so go by the labels above rather than the column names. Whatever the column guide says about pricing, Per Sqft pricing multiplies the project's chargeable area: Carpet area (Mofa) unless the organization or the project chose another basis.

   The unit_type and configuration dropdowns offer only the types and active typologies the project's Property type allows; tower offers the project's towers but also takes a new name.

5. Click Choose Excel file and pick the file. The app checks it at once ("Checking…") and writes nothing yet. You see the counts "N to add", "N to update", "N skipped" and "N with errors", then "Row N" lines for anything worth a look: a note such as "also creates tower B and floor 12" for a row that builds structure, or the errors in red.

   • "Checked, nothing written yet. Use Import to apply it." means every row is good.
   • "Nothing has been written. Fix the rows below in your sheet and choose the file again." means some rows failed.

6. If rows failed, fix them in Excel, save, and click Choose another file. Until every row passes, Import is greyed out with "Fix the N rows listed below, then choose the file again" on hover.

7. Click Import N rows. All rows are written together; you see "N added, N updated." and "Imported into <project>.", and the Cancel button becomes Done. Rows are matched to existing units by unit_id first, then by tower, floor and unit number, so a repeated import updates rather than duplicates.

8. Click Done. New towers and floors appear in the Towers rail and the Floors view; new units are Available. Open any unit from Units or List to check it.

What happens next

• New units are Available and count as sellable when Saleable; the project overview's Inventory card updates.
• A blank cell in an update row leaves the stored value alone; it never clears it. To clear a facing or description, edit the unit on the screen.
• A unit's tower and floor can't be moved by sheet: a row that keeps the unit's unit_id but names a different tower or floor changes the unit's other fields only. (Clear the unit_id and the row becomes a new unit instead.) To move a unit, delete and re-create it on the screen.
• The sheet can change a unit's designation (Saleable, PAP, Common), but not while the unit is Reserved For Tenant, Allotted, Reserved For Buyer, Booked or Sold. To designate units for the rehab side see Earmark rehab units for tenants.
• To build a tower from scratch with numbering patterns, the generator is quicker: Generate towers, floors and units.

If something goes wrong

• A row in red with "tower: required", "unit_number: required", "floor_number: required", "floor_number: "<v>" is not a whole number", "floor_number: <v> is out of range", "carpet_area_sqft: "<v>" is not a number", "carpet_area_sqft: <v> is out of range" (a negative area), "unit_type: no unit type called "<v>" (known: …)", "configuration: no configuration called "<v>" (known: …)", "designation: "<v>" is not one of Saleable, PAP, Common", "unit_type: required for a new unit (or name a configuration that says it)", "carpet_area_sqft: required for a new unit", "unit_number: the same unit appears on row N" or "unit_id: no unit with this id in this project": fix that cell and choose the file again. Nothing was written. See Import rows rejected (trouble.projects.import-rows-rejected).
• "designation: unit <n> is <status>; release it before changing what it is for": the unit is Reserved For Tenant, Allotted, Reserved For Buyer, Booked or Sold, so its designation is locked. Leave the cell as it is, or release the unit first. See Unit is held, allotted or booked (trouble.projects.unit-status-locked).
• "The sheet is missing the column(s): <list>. Download the template and fill that in.", "That file could not be read as an Excel workbook (…)", "The file is not readable: save it as .xlsx from Excel", "The sheet has a header but no rows", "The workbook has no rows", "The file has no header row" or "The file is empty": the workbook itself is wrong. Start from the template or the export and save as .xlsx. See Import file not readable (trouble.projects.import-file-not-readable).
• Import greyed out with "Choose a filled-in sheet first" or "This sheet has no rows to add or update": pick a file, or check that the sheet has rows that change something. While the check is still running, or after the whole file was refused, the button also reads "This sheet has no rows to add or update"; read the message in the dialog for the real reason.
• No Import button: your role lacks the Create or Edit permission on Towers, Floors & Units. See No permission (trouble.admin.no-access).

Related

• Structure
• Importing and exporting Excel sheets
• Edit project
• Lookups
• Generate towers, floors and units
• Earmark rehab units for tenants
• Import members from Excel
• Excel sheets: check first, then apply
• Unit areas and the area basis