Schedule Link for Autodesk® Revit® and AutoCAD®

The problem

Most MEP offices keep equipment schedules in Excel and general notes in Word, because that is where engineers edit them, check them and share them with reviewers. The drawing set needs the same information on the sheets. Getting it there usually means one of three things:

• Retyping the schedule as a Revit schedule or AutoCAD table, then keeping two copies in sync by hand.
• Pasting an image or OLE object that prints poorly, cannot be searched, and goes stale without warning.
• Rebuilding the notes block at every submittal because the numbering changed.

Each of these is a place where the sheets and the spreadsheet stop agreeing. Schedule Link draws the table from the file, tells you when the file has changed, and redraws it in place.

It is a workflow tool. It performs no engineering calculations.

How it works

1. Link the file

   Run Link Excel Schedule, pick an .xlsx or .xlsm file and a sheet, and check the preview. The table is created in a Revit drafting view or as an AutoCAD block, named after the schedule title in capitals.

2. Place it

   Run Place on Sheet. In Revit the view goes on a sheet as a viewport. In AutoCAD you pick a point on a layout. Use Arrange on Sheet to pack several tables into an area you choose.

3. Keep working in Excel and Word

   Edit the schedule in Excel as you do today. When you open the model or drawing, or before you print, publish or export, Schedule Link warns you about any linked file that has changed.

4. Reload

   Run Reload or Reload All. Each table is redrawn where it sits. Only what Schedule Link drew is replaced; anything you added by hand stays.

Features

Every feature below is included in the base price, write-back included. Command names are shown as they appear on the ribbon.

• Link Excel Schedule

  Pick an .xlsx or .xlsm file and sheet, preview it, and create the table. Draws the print area if one is set, otherwise the used range. Hidden rows and columns are skipped.

• Place on Sheet

  Revit: places the drafting view as a viewport on a sheet. AutoCAD: places the block at a point you pick on a layout, in paper space at full size or in model space at a chosen scale.

• Reload and Reload All

  Redraws linked tables in place, keeping their position. Replaces only what Schedule Link drew. It never deletes content you added by hand.

• Link Multiple

  Links several files in one step and stacks the tables with a set gap (1/2" by default). If one file cannot be read, it is reported by name and the rest still link.

• Link Word Notes

  Places a .docx as one text object with native numbered or lettered lists, bold, italic and underline.

• Arrange on Sheet

  Packs linked tables into an area you pick, around keep-out zones such as the title block or a key plan. The area is remembered per title block. Tables that do not fit continue onto a new sheet.

• Edit Cell, Edit Notes and Column Width

  Write changes back to the source file from inside Revit or AutoCAD. Edit a cell, add, change, remove or renumber notes, or drag a column border and have the width written to Excel. If you type directly into a linked table, the edit is caught and sent through Edit Cell so the file and the drawing stay in step.

• Out-of-date warnings

  Offered when a model or drawing opens, and before print, publish or export.

• Manage Links

  One list of every link with its status (up to date, changed, not found). Reload, relink, open in Excel, go to the view, or unlink from the same window.

• Relative paths

  Links are stored relative to the model or drawing folder, so a copied project folder points at its own spreadsheets. Schedule Link never silently reads another project's file.

Drawing defaults

The defaults follow a working office standard. Change them to match yours.

Text

1/4" Arial Narrow for title rows, 1/8" Arial Narrow for the body, width factor 1.

Values

Shown exactly as Excel displays them, including number formats and percents. Formula cells show the last saved result.

Formatting

Follows Excel for merges, wrapping, alignment, underline and borders.

Column widths

Columns widen so words never split. Text size never changes.

Line weight

Your choice of 1 to 5.

AutoCAD layer

G-ANNO-SCHD, created if missing. An existing layer keeps its color.

How it treats your files

Write-back edits engineering documents, so it is built to refuse rather than guess. Each rule below is covered by automated tests.

• Files are saved by writing a temporary copy in the same folder and replacing the original in one atomic step. A crash mid-save leaves the original intact.
• It refuses to write if the file changed since it was loaded, or if the file is open in Excel or Word.
• A backup is kept before each write, in a folder specific to that file.
• Excel: formula cells and table header cells are not editable. A number or date cell is never turned into text. Leading zeros are kept. Defined names, shared formulas and the print area stay consistent.
• Word: only run text is edited. Bookmarks, fields, hyperlinks, comments and tracked changes are kept, or the edit is refused.
• Revit: edits check element ownership in workshared models, and linked tables are never reloaded automatically on open without that check.

What it does not do

So nobody finds out after buying:

• No engineering calculations. It does not check, size or change values. What is in the file is what is drawn.
• Not a model schedule. Tables are drawn from the file in drafting views or as blocks. It does not read model parameters or fill in families.
• No recalculation. Formula cells show the result Excel last saved, and cannot be edited from the sheet.
• No silent reloads. You are told when a file changed; nothing on the sheet changes until you choose to reload.
• Three file types. It reads .xlsx and .xlsm workbooks and .docx documents. Other formats are not read.
• No AutoCAD LT. LT does not load add-ins.
• No accounts, sync or cloud service. Links are file paths on your network; the add-in makes no network connections.

Supported versions

Laid out like a product data sheet in a submittal, so it can be printed and filed with your software records.

Every version in the table is supported from the first release, 1.0. The same schedule looks the same in Revit and in AutoCAD, because both use one shared layout engine.

System requirements

Operating system

64-bit Windows, as required by the supported Revit or AutoCAD version.

Host program

At least one of the versions listed under Supported versions.

Source files

Excel .xlsx or .xlsm, and Word .docx. Files are read directly, so Excel and Word do not need to be installed. You need them only to edit the source files yourself.

Font

Arial Narrow must be installed. Tables and notes are drawn in it. It ships with Microsoft Office; if Office is not installed, install the font before using Schedule Link.

Install

Signed installer. Per-user or all-users mode; /ALLUSERS supports deployment through SCCM or Intune. Upgrades remove older versions first.

Network

None needed. The license file is checked on your computer, and the add-in makes no network connections.

Pricing

Launch pricing is set low and will increase as the product line grows. A later increase does not change what you already bought. See Pricing.

Free trial of 14 days, all features, from launch. Payment is handled by Paddle.com, our reseller and Merchant of Record. Refunds within 30 days: see the refund policy. Terms: see the license and the terms of sale.

FAQ

Before you buy

Your files and drawings

Compatibility

Changelog

Every release, with what changed and what was fixed: Schedule Link changelog. Versions follow Semantic Versioning.

Get Schedule Link

Schedule Link is coming soon. To get one email when it launches, write to support@selfsamelabs.com.

Questions before buying? Email support@selfsamelabs.com. See Support for response times.