Inventory Import & Export

Inventory Import

Getting Started

The lab inventory spreadsheet allows you to import your chemical and biological materials into our system with ease. The template consists of two sheets: one for products and one for aliquots (individual portions of products).

Download our import template spreadsheet

The template contains two sheets: Products and Aliquots

Fill in the Products sheet

Add each unique product (as received from vendors)

Fill in the Aliquots sheet

Add individual aliquots/parts associated to each product

Upload the spreadsheet and review

Verify all information is correct before submitting

Submit and start tracking your inventory digitally!

Access your complete inventory through Indaggo

Understanding the Two-Sheet System

Products Sheet: Contains the base product information as received from vendors (e.g., “Sodium Chloride Solution” from Fisher Scientific)Aliquots Sheet: Contains the individual containers or portions you’ve created from each product (e.g., “NaCl-A1” - a 250mL aliquot in Fridge 1)

Products Sheet - Column Reference

The Products sheet defines each unique product as purchased from vendors.

Required Fields

All required fields must be completed for successful import.

Product Name

Full product name or description as received from vendor.

Examples:
- "Sodium Chloride Solution"
- "Ethanol 200 Proof"
- "Bovine Serum Albumin"
- "Mouse IgG Antibody"

This should match the vendor’s product name exactly

Vendor/Source

Supplier or manufacturer name.

Common vendors:
- Fisher Scientific
- Sigma-Aldrich
- Thermo Fisher
- Bio-Rad
- VWR
- In-House (for internally prepared materials)

Catalog Number

Vendor’s catalog or part number for reordering.

Examples:
- S271-500
- E7023
- 161-0719

This is crucial for reordering the exact same product

Optional Fields (Custom Attributes)

Any additional columns beyond the required fields will be imported as custom attributes for the product.

Concentration

Product concentration or strength.

Examples:
- "5.0 M"
- "100%"
- "10 mg/mL"
- "1X"
- "Powder"

Serial Number

Unique serial identifier if provided by manufacturer.

CAS Number

Chemical Abstracts Service registry number (for chemical compounds).

Examples:
- 7647-14-5 (Sodium Chloride)
- 64-17-5 (Ethanol)
- 67-68-5 (DMSO)

Custom Attributes: You can add any additional columns (e.g., “Hazard Level”, “Storage Temperature”, “Purity”) and they will be imported as searchable attributes.

Aliquots Sheet - Column Reference

The Aliquots sheet defines individual containers or portions of products.

Required Fields

Product Name

Must match exactly with a Product Name from the Products sheet.

Example:
If Products sheet has "Sodium Chloride Solution",
Aliquots sheet must use "Sodium Chloride Solution"

This field links the aliquot to its parent product

Product Catalog Number

Must match exactly with the Catalog Number from the Products sheet.

Example:
If Products sheet has "S271-500",
Aliquots sheet must use "S271-500"

Used together with Product Name to uniquely identify the parent product

Aliquot Name

Your internal identifier for this specific container or portion.

Examples:
- "NaCl-A1"
- "EtOH-B2"
- "BSA-Stock"
- "mIgG-I1"

Use a consistent naming scheme for easy tracking

Aliquot Lot Number

Manufacturer’s lot or batch number.

Examples:
- LOT-2024-001
- L21012703DVAK
- 284928

Important for quality control and traceability

Aliquot Amount

Quantity of this aliquot (numeric value only).

Examples:
- 250
- 500
- 100
- 1

Enter only the number, not the unit

Aliquot Unit of Measurement

Unit for the amount (must be recognized by the system).

Supported units:
- Volume: µL, uL, mL, L
- Mass: mg, g, kg
- Count: unit, units

Use standard abbreviations for best results

Aliquot Location

Physical location using hierarchical format with ” > ” separator.

Format: Building > Room/Area > Storage Unit > Shelf > Container

Examples:
- "Lab-A > Fridge 1 > Shelf 2 > Box A"
- "SW426 > Fridge G > Shelf 3 > Box 435"
- "UTSC > IC > IC-230 > Box 1"

Use greater-than symbol (>) to separate location levels

Optional Fields

Aliquot Cost

Cost of this specific aliquot (numeric value).

Examples:
- 15.50
- 320.00
- 85

Aliquot Expiry Date

Expiration date in YYYY-MM-DD or YYYY/MM/DD format.

Examples:
- 2025-12-31
- 2026/06/30

System will track expiring items and send notifications

Custom Attributes: Additional columns (like “Concentration”, “Serial Number”, “CAS Number”) from the Products sheet can be repeated in the Aliquots sheet for aliquot-specific values.

Example: Complete Import

Here’s how a typical import scenario works across both sheets:

Scenario
Products Sheet
Aliquots Sheet

You purchased:

1 bottle of Sodium Chloride Solution (500mL) from Fisher Scientific
You divided it into 2 aliquots of 250mL each for different locations

Result:

1 row in Products sheet
2 rows in Aliquots sheet

Product Name	Catalog Number	Vendor/Source	Category	Concentration	CAS Number
Sodium Chloride Solution	S271-500	Fisher Scientific	Chemical/Salt	5.0 M	7647-14-5

Product Name	Product Catalog Number	Aliquot Name	Aliquot Lot Number	Aliquot Amount	Aliquot Unit	Aliquot Cost	Aliquot Location
Sodium Chloride Solution	S271-500	NaCl-A1	LOT-2024-001	250	mL	15.50	Lab-A > Fridge 1 > Shelf 2 > Box A
Sodium Chloride Solution	S271-500	NaCl-A2	LOT-2024-001	250	mL	15.50	Lab-A > Fridge 1 > Shelf 2 > Box A

Common Scenarios

Scenario 1: Single Product, Multiple Aliquots

Description
Products Sheet (1 row)
Aliquots Sheet (5 rows)

You bought: 1 bottle of antibody (1mL total)You divided into: 5 aliquots of 200µL eachResult:

1 product row
5 aliquot rows

Product Name	Catalog Number	Vendor/Source	Category
Mouse IgG Antibody	5415S	Cell Signaling	Biological/Antibody

Product Name	Product Catalog Number	Aliquot Name	Amount	Unit	Location
Mouse IgG Antibody	5415S	mIgG-1	200	µL	Lab-I > Freezer B > Box 8
Mouse IgG Antibody	5415S	mIgG-2	200	µL	Lab-I > Freezer B > Box 8
Mouse IgG Antibody	5415S	mIgG-3	200	µL	Lab-I > Freezer B > Box 8
Mouse IgG Antibody	5415S	mIgG-4	200	µL	Lab-I > Freezer B > Box 8
Mouse IgG Antibody	5415S	mIgG-5	200	µL	Lab-I > Freezer B > Box 8

Scenario 2: Multiple Products, Single Aliquot Each

Description
Products Sheet (3 rows)
Aliquots Sheet (3 rows)

You have: 3 different products, each kept as one containerResult:

3 product rows
3 aliquot rows (one per product)

Product Name	Catalog Number	Vendor/Source	Category
Ethanol 200 Proof	E7023	Sigma-Aldrich	Chemical/Solvent
DMSO	D2650	Millipore Sigma	Chemical/Solvent
Glucose	194683	MP Biomedicals	Chemical/Sugar

Product Name	Product Catalog Number	Aliquot Name	Amount	Unit
Ethanol 200 Proof	E7023	EtOH-B1	500	mL
DMSO	D2650	DMSO-F1	100	mL
Glucose	194683	Gluc-G1	500	g

Scenario 3: Same Product, Different Vendors

Description
Products Sheet (2 rows)
Aliquots Sheet

You bought: Ethanol from two different vendorsResult:

2 product rows (different vendors = different products)
2+ aliquot rows

Product Name	Catalog Number	Vendor/Source	Category
Ethanol 200 Proof	E7023	Sigma-Aldrich	Chemical/Solvent
Ethanol 200 Proof	BP2818500	Fisher Scientific	Chemical/Solvent

Product Name	Product Catalog Number	Aliquot Name	Amount	Unit
Ethanol 200 Proof	E7023	EtOH-Sigma-1	500	mL
Ethanol 200 Proof	BP2818500	EtOH-Fisher-1	500	mL

Different catalog numbers distinguish the same product from different vendors

Location Management

Location Hierarchy

The location system follows a hierarchical structure using > as separator:

Location Best Practices

Be Specific

Include enough detail to locate items quickly✅ “Lab-A > Fridge 1 > Shelf 2 > Box A”❌ “Fridge”

Be Consistent

Use the same naming convention across all items✅ All use “Fridge 1” or all use “Fridge A”❌ Mix of “Fridge 1”, “Fridge A”, “Refrig 1”

Use Separators

Always use > to separate levels✅ “Lab > Fridge > Shelf > Box”❌ “Lab, Fridge, Shelf, Box”

Avoid Special Characters

Stick to alphanumeric characters and spaces✅ “Box 12A” or “Box-12A”❌ “Box#12” or “Box@12”

Import & Maintenance

Important Notes:

The inventory import feature is designed for initial inventory upload
The spreadsheet import does not support updating products or aliquots that have already been imported
After import, all updates (amount changes, location moves, etc.) should be done through the Indaggo interface
For bulk updates after initial import, contact Indaggo Support

Troubleshooting

Product-Aliquot Linking Issues

Error: “No product assigned for this aliquot”Causes:

Product Name doesn’t match exactly between sheets
Catalog Number doesn’t match exactly between sheets
Extra spaces in Product Name or Catalog Number
Product not defined in Products sheet

Solution:

Copy Product Name from Products sheet directly to Aliquots sheet
Copy Catalog Number from Products sheet directly to Aliquots sheet
Check for leading/trailing spaces
Ensure product exists in Products sheet before adding aliquots

Unit of Measurement Issues

Error: “Unit of measurement is missing”Common issues:

Using unrecognized units (e.g., “milliliters” instead of “mL”)
Typos in unit names
Mixed case (usually not an issue, but be consistent)

Supported units:

Volume: µL, uL, mL, L
Mass: mg, g, kg
Count: unit, units

Missing Required Fields

Error: “Required field is missing”Check these fields are filled for Products:

Product Name
Vendor/Source
Catalog Number
Category

Check these fields are filled for Aliquots:

Product Name
Product Catalog Number
Aliquot Name
Aliquot Lot Number
Aliquot Amount
Aliquot Unit of Measurement
Aliquot Location

Inventory Export

Export your complete inventory data to Excel spreadsheets for backup, analysis, or migration purposes.

Overview

The inventory export feature generates a comprehensive Excel workbook containing all your labspace data across four sheets:

Products Sheet

All product information including names, catalog numbers, categories, sources, and aliquot counts

Aliquots Sheet

Individual aliquots with lot numbers, amounts, expiration dates, and locations

Locations Sheet

Storage location hierarchy with parent-child relationships

Categories Sheet

Product and equipment categories with parent-child relationships

How to Export

Navigate to Export Settings

Go to Settings > Advanced > Export Inventory

Start the export

Click “Export Data” and confirm the action

The export process runs in the background and may take a few minutes depending on your inventory size.

Monitor export status

The export will show one of three statuses:

Started (amber): Export is in progress
Complete (green): Export is ready to download
Error (red): Export failed - contact support

Download your data

Once complete, click the “Download” button to get your Excel file

Export File Structure

The exported Excel workbook contains four sheets with the following data:

Products
Aliquots
Locations
Categories

Column	Description
Product Name	Full product name
Preferred Name	Custom display name
Description	Product description
Catalog Number	Vendor catalog number
Category	Product category
Source	Vendor/supplier name
Aliquot Count	Number of aliquots for this product
Created At	Timestamp when product was added
Updated At	Timestamp of last update

Column	Description
Product Name	Parent product name
Aliquot Name	Unique identifier for this aliquot
Lot Number	Manufacturer lot/batch number
Description	Aliquot-specific notes
Amount Left	Current quantity remaining
Unit	Unit of measurement (mL, g, etc.)
Expires At	Expiration date (if applicable)
Location	Storage location name
Created At	Timestamp when aliquot was added
Updated At	Timestamp of last update

Column	Description
Parent Location Name	Parent in location hierarchy
Location Name	Name of this location
Description	Location description/notes
Created At	Timestamp when location was created
Updated At	Timestamp of last update

Column	Description
Parent Category Name	Parent in category hierarchy
Category Name	Name of this category
Description	Category description/notes
Created At	Timestamp when category was created
Updated At	Timestamp of last update

Common Use Cases

Backup & Archiving

Create periodic backups of your inventory data for disaster recovery or compliance requirements. Download and store exports in a secure location.

Data Analysis

Export inventory data to perform custom analysis in Excel, generate reports, or create visualizations not available in the platform.

Migration & Integration

Export data when migrating to a different system or integrating with external tools like ERP systems or custom databases.

Audit & Compliance

Generate snapshots of inventory for regulatory audits, grant reporting, or internal compliance reviews.

Managing Exports

Export History: All previous exports are listed on the Export Inventory page, showing file size, creation date, and download status. You can download any completed export or delete exports you no longer need.

Important Notes:

Exports are stored securely in your labspace’s private storage region
Large inventories may take several minutes to export
You can create multiple exports - each is a snapshot of your inventory at that point in time
Deleted exports cannot be recovered

Permissions

Admin Access Required: Only lab administrators and users with appropriate permissions can access the inventory export feature. This is typically found under Settings > Advanced.

This documentation covers both the inventory import and export processes.For technical support, contact the Indaggo Support Team at [email protected].

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Inventory Import & Export