Export & Import

Exporting

For most sections, there is an option to generate a spreadsheet export containing information related to the list or item being viewed. Click the Export button to the top right to generate and download the export as a CSV file.

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Importing

Overview

CxAlloy TQ can import most project data, including equipment, equipment types, systems, spaces, floors, zones, areas served, checklist and test lines, and issues. Data can be imported from .csv, .xls, and .xlsx files.

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File Formats

CxAlloy TQ does not require a rigid format for importing data. For example, neither specific column headers nor a specific column order is required. Only the following basic format is required:

The file must be formatted either as comma-separated values (.csv) or as an Excel spreadsheet (.xls or .xlsx).
Each item must be on a separate row (i.e. “AHU-1” and “AHU-2” could not be on the same row of data).
Each column must represent a single field (i.e. two different attributes, such as “Airflow” and “Voltage,” should not be combined into a single “Attributes” column).

This approach is flexible enough to handle most files, but some example files are provided below to demonstrate the recommended formatting:

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Formatting Imports

When importing checklist or test lines from an Excel file (.xls or .xlsx), CxAlloy TQ will attempt to bring in any supported formatting. CxAlloy TQ supports the following formatting:

Bold — Any cell with bold formatting will be formatted bold.
Italic — Any cell with italic formatting will be formatted italic.
Indented — Any cell with indentation applied (of any degree) will be formatted indented.

NOTE CxAlloy TQ only supports one level of indention. Any level of indention in the import file will be translated to the single level of indention supported by CxAlloy TQ.

Header — When the “Use background color to indicate header” option is checked, any cell with a background color will be formatted as a header.

CxAlloy TQ does not support partial formatting (i.e. one word of a sentence in a cell is bold). It only looks at cell-level formatting.

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Importing a File

1

Choose a file to import

The file must have extension .csv, .xls, or .xlsx. The following options may be available depending on what you are importing and the data currently in the project:

Update existing — When checked, the “Update Existing” step will be added to the import process. In this step, you can indicate whether each row should update an existing record or create a new record.

NOTE This option will not appear if there are no existing records.

Use background color to indicate header — When importing checklist or test lines, you can choose to have any row with a background color formatted as a header on import.

2

Select a worksheet

If the file you are importing has more than one worksheet, you will be prompted to select which worksheet to import. This step is only displayed for files with multiple worksheets.

NOTE Only one worksheet can be imported at a time.

3

Select fields

For each column of data in your import file, pick the matching field.

Selecting the “Attribute” field, available when importing equipment or locations, will prompt you to select a specific attribute. You can import different attributes by selecting the “Attribute” field multiple times for different columns.

4

Exclude rows

Click the “X” for any row that you do not want imported.

NOTE If you are importing related data (such as Equipment Type when importing Equipment), you will be prompted to indicate whether the related values should map to an existing value or be added as new.

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Multiple Value Fields

Some fields support multiple values, such as systems for equipment and zones for spaces. For these fields, multiple values are indicated during an import by the inclusion of a custom delimiter: a space - a pipe - a space ( | ). For example, to have a single piece of equipment belong to both the "HVAC" and "Chilled Water Loop" systems, put "HVAC | Chilled Water Loop" as the system value in the spreadsheet.

CxAlloy TQ uses the same delimiter when exporting, so it is possible to round-trip (export then import) equipment or spaces and all the systems or zones will be maintained.

Areas Served

Areas Served can also be imported. To specify multiple values, separate them by the space-pipe-space ( | ) delimiter. The import will automatically match the values against existing spaces, floors, zones, and buildings and suggest the closest match it can find. As with other "multi-field" fields, the values for Area Served must already exist in the project, and whatever values are specified will fully replace the existing served areas.

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Updating via Import

It is also possible to update existing values via import by checking the "Update existing..." option during the initial step of the you can choose whether to update an existing record or add a new record. When updating via import, an additional option called "Match" will be included in the dropdown of available fields. This refers to the value that is used to find the items being updated, which varies based on the item type; for most sections, this is the item's "Name". For example, an equipment import would require a column containing the equipments' current names to be mapped as the "Match" field; if attempting to update the names of the equipment, a separate column containing the new name value would be mapped to the "Name" field.

For equipment and spaces, the existing record’s name will be updated with the name specified from the imported file. For checklist and test lines, the existing record’s description will be updated with the description from the imported file.
If updating equipment or spaces with attributes, any existing attributes will be updated with new attribute data from the import file. Attributes that do not currently exist will be created. Existing attributes not found in the import file will remain.
If updating issues with comments, existing comments will remain. Any new comment data (the “Recommended Action” field) from the import will be added as new comments.
When importing checklist or test data where some lines will be updated and others created, the results may not be as intuitive. The final result will not result in a checklist or test with lines in the same order as the import file; rather, the updated lines will remain where they are and the new lines will be added at the end of the checklist or test. You can easily reorder the lines by pressing the “Reorder” button at the top of the section or attempt.

Status Importing

When importing equipment or issues you can import the status. Statuses have some unique considerations, including restricted and locked statuses.

The import will automatically handle restricted statuses to prevent a user from setting statuses they are not authorized to set. For example, if a user imports issues with the “Closed” status, but they don’t have permission to set the “Closed” status, the import will prompt them to select a different status to use in place of “Closed”.

Similarly, when updating existing issues or equipment a user may not be authorized to change the status of certain items at all. The import will automatically ignore status changes on those items and will notify the user in the results page if any status changes were ignored.

Unlike some other fields, it is not possible to create new statuses through an import.

“Multi-Field” Fields – Asset and Assigned To

Issues in CxAlloy TQ have the fields “Asset” and “Assigned To” which can reference one of several types of items. This is different from most fields. For example, an issue’s asset could be a space, zone, floor, building, system, equipment type, or piece of equipment.

Unlike other fields, it is not possible to create new values during the import for these “multi-field” fields. For example, new people, companies, or roles cannot be created by including them for the “Assigned To” field when importing issues. Any values for a "multi-field" field should reference existing items or be left blank.

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