Import & Export
The Novant platform supports bulk import and export of project data using CSV files. This capability simplifies initial setup, integration with external systems, and performing bulk edits at scale.
Each entity type — such as Spaces, Assets, and Zones — has its own CSV format and import behavior. Use the links below to view detailed documentation and field definitions.
Supported Entities
- Importing Zones
- Importing Spaces
- Importing Assets
- Importing Sources
- Importing Source Maps
- Importing Trend Data
Property Data Types
Assets and Spaces support additional properties beyond their structural fields, included as CSV columns named by property id. Each property has a data type that determines how its value is written:
| Type | Format | Example |
|---|---|---|
text |
Any text | Carrier |
integer |
Whole number, group separators allowed | 1,500 |
number |
Decimal number | 250 or 12.5 |
quantity |
Value and unit | 150000 ft² |
currency |
Amount with a symbol | $25,000 or $5.99 |
duration |
Plain language, or ISO 8601 | 9 years or P9Y |
date |
Project date format, or ISO 8601 | 9/7/2023 or 2023-09-07 |
The type of each individual property is listed in Asset Properties and Space Properties.
Dates follow the date format configured for the project, so
5/8/2025 is May 8th in a project set to
M/D/YYYY and August 5th in one set to
D/M/YYYY. ISO 8601 (2025-08-05) is unambiguous
and always accepted.
Omitted vs. Empty
The distinction matters when updating:
- Column omitted — the property is left unchanged.
- Column present but cell empty — the property is cleared.
This means an export can be edited down to just the columns you want to change, and blanking a cell is how you remove a value.
Type-Specific Properties
Most properties apply to every record, but some apply only to certain
types - street_address applies only to a
building space, fluid_loop only to a
mech.pump asset. The On column in each
property table lists where a property applies.
A property that does not apply to a record’s type is ignored rather than rejected, so check the property table if a value does not appear after import.
NEX (Novant Exchange)
In addition to CSV, Novant supports the NEX format (Novant Exchange).
Multi-sheet workbook — A single Excel file where each sheet represents an entity type (Spaces, Assets, Zones, Points, etc.).
Cross-references — Temporary ids can be used across sheets to build relationships before system ids are assigned.
Round-trip editing — A project can be exported to NEX, modified offline in Excel, and then re-imported.
Consistency — NEX enforces the same validation rules as CSV imports. If validation fails, no data is added or updated.
NEX is the recommended format for large projects, offline collaboration, and complex data modeling, since it keeps all entities in one structured file.