How to Edit the Activity name to include the Floor in 3 methods

Introduction

Properly naming activities in Primavera P6 is important for clarity and efficiency in large construction projects. One common requirement is to include the floor number or floor name in the activity name to make it easier for planners, site engineers, and managers to track progress.

If your project involves multiple floors, adding the floor name to each activity manually is time-consuming. Instead, you can use three efficient methods to achieve this:

These are options that you can choose from to apply to your project according to your project specifications

1. Using Smart IDs (if your activity ID contains floor information like “1F” for the first floor).
2. Using Activity Codes (if floors are defined using activity codes).
3. Using XER and WBS in Excel (if floor data is stored in the WBS).

Each method depends on how your project is structured. Let’s dive into these methods step by step.

Method 1: Using Smart ID (e.g., Con-A028-2F)

If your project uses Smart IDs where the floor number is embedded, such as:

• Con-A028-1F → 1F (First Floor)
• Con-A028-2F → 2F (Second Floor)

You can extract this information and automatically update activity names.

Step 1: Export Activities from Primavera P6

1. Open Primavera P6.
2. Click on File → Export.
3. Select Excel Spreadsheet (XLSX) as the format.
4. Choose the Activity ID and Activity Name fields.
5. Save and open the exported file in Excel.

This is the exported File sheet from Primavera P6 and we only need the Activity name and ID.

We will choose the RIGHT formula to get the floor abbreviation from the activity ID.

Hint all our floors consist of 2 letters so If you have higher floors consisting of 3 Letters as 10F, you need to modify the formula to match the floors you have

Then we need to add the Second Floor to the Activity Name, and we will do it for all the floors we have, we have only 3 floors starting from the Second floor.

Hint we are taking these steps for the construction activities only.

So, we only need to filter the Construction activities that have 2F – 3F – 4F so if any Activity ID has an end different than the above abbreviations delete it.

Then we will type an IF Formula as follows: =IF(F3=”2F”,” Second Floor”, IF(F3=”3F”, “Third Floor”, IF(F3=”4F”, “Fourth Floor”,0)))

The Final step is to add the written floor name beside the activity Name as follows:

The activity name and the Floor: = D3& “ – “ &G3

Copy and paste 123 the new activity name, remove all the unnecessary columns, save the changes, and import them back to Primavera P6.

This method is quick and accurate if your project follows a structured ID format.

Method 2: Using Activity Codes for Floors

If your project doesn’t have Smart IDs but uses Activity Codes for floors, you can still update activity names efficiently.

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Step 1: Export Activities with Activity Codes

1. In Primavera P6, go to the Activities tab.
2. Click File → Export → Excel Spreadsheet (XLSX).
3. Ensure you export the Activity ID, Activity Name, and Activity Code for Floors.

Step 2: Add Floor Names Based on Activity Codes

1. Open the exported Excel file.
2. Create a new column for the Updated Activity Name.

We will create the same as the previous method Formula: =IF(F3=”2F”,” Second Floor”, IF(F3=”3F”, “Third Floor”, IF(F3=”4F”, “Fourth Floor”,0)))

3. Drag down the formula to apply changes to all activities.
4. Create a new column to add the Floor to the activity name as follows:

5.       Copy and Paste the new activity Name in the Activity Name column and remove all the unnecessary columns.

Step 3: Import Back to Primavera P6

1. Save the modified file.
2. Go to Primavera P6 → File → Import.

This method works well when floors are pre-defined in your project’s activity codes.

Method 3: Using XER Format and WBS in Excel

In this method, we will use our Excel spreadsheet that has the format of Primavera after copying the data from Primavera. We will copy the construction activities and paste them into our Excel sheet.

If you want to know more about our Excel sheet and what uses this Excel sheet you can check this article: Convert Primavera XER to Excel Sheet (Free Tool)

Step 1: Filter the Construction WBS in Primavera

1. Open Primavera P6.
2. Filter the Construction WBS

Step 2: Copy XER Data into Excel

After filtering the construction WBS Copy, We will Copy the WBS with Activities to paste it into Our Excel sheet.

1. Open Our Excel Sheet and paste the XER data.

This is the pasted Data from Primavera then Click on Create

2. Locate the WBS column and identify floor-related information.
3. Identify rows where WBS indicates a new floor section.

Then Copy the Floor name from the WBS to a new Column and repeat it for the rest of the floors.

Step 3: Drag Floor Names Using Excel

1. Drag the floor name down until you reach the next WBS section.

We will do a smart way to fill the blanks between the second-floor cell and the third-floor cell.

Select the column below the second-floor cell till the last cell you want to fill with the previous floor name.

From Find & Select Choose to Go to Special…

Choose Blanks as follows then OK.

Type “ = “ Then the Cell which is “ C4 ” Then Press Ctrl and Enter

2. Create a new Updated Activity Name column and use the formula:

3.       Add the Floor Name to the Activity name as we did it before

Step 4: Match the Activity Name in Excel to the One in Primavera

1. Export the Activities in an Excel sheet
2. VLOOKUP with Activity ID from our Excel sheet to the Exported Sheet from Primavera

3.       Remove all the N/A as we edit the construction activities only

4.       Copy all New Activity Names and Paste them in the Activity Name Columns

5. Import the updated data back into Primavera P6.

This method is ideal when floor names are structured within the WBS.

Finalizing and Importing Back to Primavera P6

Once the activity names are updated:

• Ensure consistency and double-check for errors.
• Use Excel filters to verify that every activity has a floor name.
• Import the updated file back into Primavera P6.

Conclusion

Adding floor names to activity names in Primavera P6 improves project clarity and reporting. The best method depends on your project’s structure:

• Smart IDs → Best for structured activity IDs.
• Activity Codes → Works when floors are assigned as codes.
• XER & WBS in Excel → Useful when floors are defined in the WBS.

Using these methods, you can efficiently update activity names, saving time and ensuring accuracy in large-scale construction projects.

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