Import Catalogs from Excel

Learn what you can import from your Excel file, how to prepare your Excel file and get guided through the import configuration steps.

Written By Antonia Langner

Last updated About 1 month ago

About the Excel-Import

You can use the Excel-import when creating a new catalog within a project or standard. The import includes:

  • Specifications, including the classification and hierarchy

  • Properties, including mapping to IFC and Revit

  • Tags and the assignment to specifications and properties

  • Assignments of properties to specifications

  • Information levels and the assignment to properties

You can skip everything that is not contained in your Excel file.

Preparation

While the Excel import allows some configuration to fit your Excel file, there are still some basic structures that are required in order to be able to read your data.

  • The name or order of the columns does not matter. Just make sure, that if you have multiple worksheets that the columns with the same information are named identically.

  • Every kind of information that you want to import needs an extra column.
    E.g. if you want to import specifications, you will need one column with the specification name. If you want to import properties, you will need one column for the property names, data types, value lists etc. each.

We have a collection of tips how to adjust your Excel file including some Excel formulas for copy & paste here 🔗

Some information are more complex. There are different layout options that you can choose from:

Representation of the Hierarchy

1) Numbered Rows

A column with a number indicates the hierarchy level of the specification.

2) Formatted rows

The hierarchy level is defined by the formatting (background color) in the specification name cell.

3) Indented rows

Specifications are indented with empty cells to indicate the hierarchy level.

Assignment of Properties to Specifications

1) List assignment:

The properties are listed in one column either next to or beneath the specifications that they belong to.

2) Matrix assignment:

The property and specification names build a matrix. Cells with content mark the active combinations.

Information Level and their Assignment to Properties

1) Matrix assignment:

One column for each information level. Cells containing content indicate which level the property is required for.

2) List assignment:

One column for the information level group. The information levels for which the properties are required are listed in the rows.

3) Numeric assignment:

One column that specifies the information level at which the property is required for all subsequent levels. Only working for numeric values.

Combinations of information levels:

The combination of information levels e.g. project phases and use cases is currently only available in the matrix layout:
There, you need one column for each combination, the head of the column needs to contain the combination e.g. like this: “LPH3-AWF110” → project phase 3 with use case 110

In the import configuration you can specify a separator where the information levels are split, e.g. “-”.

Tags and their Assignment to Properties & Specifications

Importing tags works in a similar way to importing information levels and their assignments.

  1. One column per tag group; assigned tags are listed for each property/specification

  2. One column per tag; filled cells mark assignment to properties/specifications

Classifying Properties

For importing classifying properties, add one column that contains the classifying properties with their values in the following pattern:
"PropertyName1":"PropertyValue1", "PropertyName2":"PropertyValue2", …

e.g.: Specification “Pile Foundation”
→ "Object":"Foundation", "FoundationType":"Pile"

Using the quotation marks is relevant if you have white spaces in your property names or property values. Otherwise the quotation marks can be left out.

If one property can have multiple values, please list the property for each value:

→ “Discipline”:”ARC”, “Discipline”:”TWP”,…

Note: To use classifying properties, you also have to import them as properties → s. Guide Step 3 and 4.

Guide

  1. To start the Excel import go to the project or standard where you want to import the Excel file.

  2. Click on Create Catalog, select the option Import from Excel and open the Excel file:

  3. Choose Worksheets with Properties:

    Add all worksheets that contain the properties that you want to import. This might be only one worksheet with the list of all properties, or your properties might be spread over different worksheets, e.g. by grouped by disciplines.

    From the selected worksheets you will import the following information, if existing:

    • General: Property name, description, data type, unit, values, property group, GUID

    • IFC: IFC property name, IFC property set, IFC datatype

    • Revit: parameter name, parameter group, datatype, type vs instance, GUID

    • Tags

    💡 Use the Skip button if you have no properties to import to go on with the configuration of the specification import (6).

  4. Configure the Property Import:

    Select the information that you want to import. For each selected information, select the column where it can be found.

  5. Map the data types:

    Choose how the data types should be interpreted by LastBIM. Use the blue auto-fill button to save some time:

  6. Choose Worksheets with Specifications
    Add all worksheets that contain the specifications that you want to import.


    From the selected worksheets you will import the following information, if existing:

    • General: Specification name, description, GUID

    • IFC: IFC entity, IFC predefined type, IFC object type

    • Revit: Revit category, sub-category

    • Classifying Properties

    • Tags

    • Hierarchy

  7. Configure the Specification Import:

    Select the information that you want to import. For each selected information, select the column where it can be found.

  8. Choose the Hierarchy Layout

    s. https://help.lastbim.com/articles/3690107#rlqlmk24q68

  9. Configure the Hierarchy

    • Indented Rows: Select the first and last row with indentation

    • Formatted: Add as many hierarchy levels as you need. Then select for each level one specification an example. Every row with the same formatting will be recognized as the same hierarchy level.

    • Number: Select the column that contains the numbers for the hierarchy levels.

  10. Choose the Layout for the Assignment of Properties to Specifications

    s. https://help.lastbim.com/articles/3690107#otw340dddb1

  11. Choose the Worksheets with the Assignments

    Add all worksheets where the properties are assigned to the specifications and to the information levels. These can be the same worksheets that you selected in the steps before for the properties and specifications.

  12. Configure the Assignment of Properties to Specifications

    • List: Select the columns for the properties and specifications. This also can be the same column for both.

    • Matrix: Select if every specification has an extra column (“Column”) or if all specifications are listed in one column with an extra row for each specification (“Rows”). The same for properties.

  13. Choose the Layout for the Information Level Assignment

    s. https://help.lastbim.com/articles/3690107#x2bcib0dafb

  14. Configure the Information Level Assignment

    Select the columns with the information levels.

    For the Matrix layout you will have the option to specify a separator that splits the column headers into two information level groups.

  15. Warnings

    If there are some complications with the data, those will be listed here.
    You can either resolve these in the Excel file and start the import again, or you accept the changes to go on and adjust the imported catalog on LastBIM if needed.

  16. Import the catalog

  17. Done! 🎉

    Congratulations! You now have all your data on LastBIM.

    💡 To avoid surprises later on, please check if the data was interpreted as expected during the import.