How to Import Actuals from a File in EDGEBIC

To import actuals from a file in EDGEBIC by User Solutions you build an Actuals mask that maps the job number, work center id, and actual date, set the replace and auto-calc options, and run Do It, and each row writes real hours and pieces onto the matching scheduled operation. The one prerequisite that catches people out is that the job must already be scheduled, because actuals land on operations, not on orders.

This is the task of loading actuals in bulk. For the manual counterpart, see how to log actual hours and pieces, and for the general mechanics of masks, import masks explained.

Before You Start

• The jobs whose actuals you are importing are already scheduled. Actuals write onto scheduled operations; an unscheduled job has nowhere for them to land.
• Your file has one row per job, work center, and day, with a filled job number, work center id, and actual date on every row.
• You can see the Settings tab.
• You have decided whether the file is the complete record for its date range (which drives the ReplaceExisting option).

Building and Running the Actuals Mask

1. Open Settings → 📥 Import and select Actuals in the Entity Type list.

2. Click ➕ Define New… and name the mask, for example Daily Actuals.

3. Click 📂 Get File, pick the file, and choose the worksheet in Sheet. The headings list under File Header Titles.

4. Map the columns. The mandatory fields are ticked in Req:

   Field	Required	Meaning
   Job Number	Yes	Identifies the job
   WorkCenter Id	Yes	Identifies the operation's work center
   Actual Date	Yes	The day the hours or pieces belong to
   Actual Hours	No	Real hours for that day
   Actual Pieces	No	Real pieces for that day
   Complete	No	A truthy value marks that operation finished
   Actual Start	No	An explicit start time

5. Click Save.

6. Select the mask and click ⚙️ Options…:

   • Keep AutoCalcHours on so a day with only pieces (or only hours) has the other value derived from the operation's rate.
   • Leave ReplaceExisting off unless the file is the complete record for its range and you want uncovered days cleared.
   • Set MarkCompleteOnImport and the actual-start option to suit how your shop records completion.

7. Click ▶ Do It. Choose the file if prompted, and watch the progress window.

What Changes When You Save

Actuals import is designed to be safe to re-run: a corrected file simply fixes the earlier numbers on the days it covers.

How to Check It Worked

Read the summary line on the Import Result dialog. Then open a job that received actuals in Job View and confirm the hours and pieces sit on the right days, matching the file. Reversed or missing values are worth checking against the log, which records the exact outcome per row. If rows failed to find their operation, the log usually says so plainly, and the cause is almost always an unscheduled job or a mismatched work center id.

Why Re-running Is Safe

Actuals import is built to be run again and again without corrupting the record, and understanding why removes the fear of doing it. The days a file carries are always overwritten with the file's values, so importing the same file twice never adds the hours a second time, and importing a corrected file simply replaces the earlier numbers on the days it covers. Days the file does not mention are left exactly as they were. That default (overwrite what I cover, preserve what I omit) is what makes a daily or hourly actuals feed harmless to repeat.

The ReplaceExisting option changes only the second half of that rule. With it on, the imported file becomes the complete record for its range: days it covers are written, and days it does not cover are cleared. Use it only when the file genuinely is the whole truth for that range, such as a nightly export from a shop-floor system that holds every operation. Turn it on for a partial correction file and you will erase legitimately logged days that simply were not in this file.

Letting the Rate Fill the Gaps

Shop-floor collection is often one-sided: an operator counts pieces but not hours, or logs hours without a piece count. With AutoCalcHours on (the default), EDGEBIC fills the missing side from the operation's rate, so a day with only a piece count still lands complete with derived hours, and a day with only hours gets derived pieces. You only need to supply both columns when you want to record two explicit measured values rather than let the plan's rate infer one from the other.

Common Mistakes

Importing actuals for jobs that are not scheduled yet. There is no operation to write onto, so every row fails. Schedule the jobs first, then import.

A mismatched work center id. The row matches by job number plus work center. A misspelled or wrong id cannot find the operation. Check ids against the Job View grid.

Leaving ReplaceExisting on by habit. With it on, the file becomes the complete record and days it omits are cleared. If the file is only a partial update, that erases legitimately logged days. Use ReplaceExisting only when the file truly is the whole truth for the range.

Assuming an actuals import reschedules the plan. It records what happened; it does not move future work. Reschedule from actuals separately if you want the plan to respond. For how logged actuals ripple through a schedule, see how actuals flow into the schedule.

Next Steps

Actuals belong to jobs, so how to import sales orders is the upstream step, and how to re-run a saved import mask is the routine you will use every day once the mask is built. For the full task library, see the EDGEBIC how-to hub, and for the wider platform, EDGEBIC.