Bring an existing building program from Excel into Program Mode without retyping it. Snaptrude imports each sheet in your file as a custom sheet, keeping its tabs, formatting and most formulas. You can then use Interpret to turn the data into spaces on the canvas or into area targets.

Before you start

Use an .xlsx, .xls or .csv file. Any sheet layout works; you don't need a Snaptrude template.
Tidy the file first: remove sheets you don't need, fix broken formulas and give each sheet a meaningful name. The sheet names become the names of your custom sheets.
Files larger than about 3 MB take a little longer to process.

Import an Excel file

Open your project and click the project name in the top bar.
Select Import.
In the Import dialog, choose the Program Data (.csv, .xlsx, .xls) tile, or drag your file onto the dialog.
Choose your file and wait for the import to finish. Each sheet in the file appears in Program Mode as a separate custom sheet, in the same order and with the same names as the source file.

You can also import from Program Mode itself. The first time you click the Program tab in a project (Program Mode opens in a separate browser tab), the Get started dialog offers Snaptrude template or Import existing program. Choose Import existing program to import your own Excel program.

Note: Imported sheets are saved with the project, so you don't need to re-import them. They are also carried over when you duplicate the project.

What is preserved

Sheets: every sheet is imported as its own custom sheet, keeping order and names. Hidden sheets are imported as visible.
Formatting: background colours, fonts, merged cells, borders, row heights and column widths. Hidden rows and columns stay hidden.
Formulas: most formulas import as working formulas, and references between sheets are kept.

Create spaces or targets with Interpret

Interpret reads the program in your imported sheet (space names, areas, counts, departments, dimensions and story) and either creates objects on the design canvas or sets area targets.

In the imported sheet, select the cells that hold your program.
Use the Interpret actions that appear when you select valid cells. In a new project with an imported sheet, Create object is offered as the default action. You can also choose Interpret from the agent dropdown in the Agent panel on the left of Program Mode.
Choose what to do:
- Create Objects creates objects on the design canvas. Pick Net area to create rooms (this also sets their targets) or Gross area to create Program Blocks (no targets are set).
- Set Targets sets net or gross area targets without creating any objects.
Review the results in the Interpret Table before you commit. You can edit area, length, width and ratio here; linked values recalculate and the cells that change are highlighted.
Confirm to create the objects or apply the targets.

Note: When creating objects, Interpret picks up length, width, ratio, height and story where your sheet provides them. A story written as text, such as "First Floor", is mapped to the matching story (Story 1). Where no proportions are given, spaces default to a square shape.

Note: Creating net-area rooms does not automatically create gross Program Blocks around them. Create Program Blocks separately with Gross area if you need them.

Troubleshooting

A cell shows #REF!: the formula was unsupported or broken in the source. Correct it in Program Mode after import.
MULTIPLY() doesn't work: this Excel-only function isn't supported. Use the * operator instead, for example =A2*B2.
Number formats look different: data types, percentages, thousands separators and decimal places may not carry over exactly. Reapply the formatting after import.
Dragging an Excel file into the prompt box doesn't import it: attaching a file to the prompt box doesn't create program sheets. Use the Program Data tile in the Import dialog instead.

Tips

Check your formulas and totals once the import finishes, especially on sheets that reference other sheets.
Keep one sheet for the room-by-room program and select only that range when you run Interpret.

Program Mode Overview
Custom Program Sheets (Schedules)
Interpret: Turn Spreadsheet Data into Program Objects or Targets
AI Agents in Program Mode
Departments and Program Blocks
Export a Program to Excel or PDF

Import an Excel Program