# Construction Planner Software, MS Project Import

> Construction planner software with a schedule playground, templates, working calendars and baselines, and import from Microsoft Project or Excel.

Canonical: https://superwise.site/professions/construction-planner/
Last updated: 2026-11-03

SuperWise is construction planner software. You import a schedule from Microsoft Project or Excel, assemble it from templates in a playground, verify the critical path on the working calendar and update progress against baselines.

The programme was approved in a meeting. On site, nobody updates it.

## A planner's day on SuperWise

1. **Morning, 9:00. Start from a template.** The planner imports a schedule from Microsoft Project or Excel as a background job, or starts from a template that holds the WBS, tasks, durations and predecessors.
2. **On site, 12:00. Progress collected from the floor.** Site teams log progress against the task. The planner sees percent complete move, and bulk Excel upload rejects lower percentages, future dates and duplicate dates.
3. **In the office, 16:00. Variance read by package.** The package-wise summary shows planned and actual dates, percent complete and delay in days for each package, against the active baseline.

## Three workflows a planner runs

### Assemble the programme from templates

The playground places templates as linked nodes with a relation and a lag, so a typical floor is built once. Edits go to a working copy that is saved, verified and approved.

### A schedule checked before approval

Verification computes CPM dates on the working calendar, and zero float marks the critical path. Template validation checks for orphan tasks, dependency cycles and missing required fields.

### Progress that moves the plan

Progress is logged one task at a time or by bulk Excel upload. Variance against the active baseline and delay by package show where the plan slipped.

## What changes for a planner

- **Templates instead of retyping.** Before: Every floor was rebuilt from scratch, with the same links typed again. Now: A template holds a WBS, tasks, durations, predecessors and milestones. The playground places templates as linked nodes, so a typical floor is built once.
- **A schedule checked before approval.** Before: A schedule went to approval with orphan tasks and loops that nobody found until the chart looked wrong. Now: Verification computes CPM dates on the working calendar, and template validation checks for orphan tasks, dependency cycles and missing required fields.
- **Progress that moves the plan.** Before: Site progress reached the plan by phone call, so the plan ran a week behind the site. Now: Progress is logged one task at a time or by bulk Excel, and variance against the active baseline and delay by package show where the plan slipped.

## Modules a planner uses

The [construction scheduling feature](https://superwise.site/features/construction-scheduling/) and the [Microsoft Project integration](https://superwise.site/integrations/microsoft-project/) pages cover the same modules from the product side.

| Module | What you do in it |
| --- | --- |
| Schedule templates | Import a template from Microsoft Project (MPP or XML) or Excel, as a background job that creates the WBS, tasks and predecessors. |
| Working calendars | Set working days, hours per day and dated non-working days with a reason, which the CPM calculation skips. |
| Schedule playground | Place template nodes, link them with a relation and lag, then save, verify and approve the working copy. |
| Baselines | Approve to save a baseline, add manual baselines, set the active one and read start and finish variance in days. |
| Task progress | Log progress one task at a time or by bulk Excel upload, which rejects lower percentages, future dates and duplicate dates. |
| Construction packages | Tag tasks with a package, so that reports roll up by package. |
| Package-wise schedule summary | Read planned and actual dates, percent complete and delay in days for each package node. |

## Templates assemble the programme

A planner who repeats one floor across a tower rebuilds the same links each time. In SuperWise a schedule template is a reusable blueprint of tasks with durations, predecessors and milestones, grouped in categories. The playground places templates as nodes with a name and a prefix, and the links between nodes carry a relation and a lag. A parent node rolls up in the Gantt.

The AI schedule builder works through discovery, template design and playground assembly in conversation. It drafts templates and playground nodes from that conversation, and pre-assembly checks run before you assemble.

## Import, calendars and the critical path

Templates import from Microsoft Project (MPP or XML) or Excel as a background job that creates the template, the WBS, the tasks and the predecessors. Excel imports follow a fixed column format, with predecessors written like 12FS+2 using FS, SS, FF or SF.

A working calendar sets working days, hours per day and dated non-working days with a reason, and the CPM calculation skips them. Verification runs the forward and backward passes as a background job, zero float marks the critical path, and milestones show as diamonds in the Gantt.

Edits go to a working copy that is saved, verified, approved or reverted. Approval promotes the working copy, raises the revision and saves a baseline.

## Frequently asked questions

### Can I import my Microsoft Project schedule?

Yes. Templates import from Microsoft Project (MPP or XML) or from Excel, as a background job that creates the template, the WBS, the tasks and the predecessors. Excel files follow a fixed column format, and the import checks titles, weightage and name matches. Place the template in the playground to assemble the project schedule.

### Does SuperWise level resources?

No. Verification computes CPM dates on the working calendar and shows the critical path, but resource levelling is not implemented. Resources attach to tasks as planning data. If you level resources in Microsoft Project, do that there and import the resulting schedule into a template.

### How does progress reach the schedule?

Progress is logged on a task one at a time, or by a bulk Excel upload with a fixed set of columns. The upload rejects a percentage lower than the one recorded, a future date and a duplicate date. A user with the Progress Add privilege can also ask the help agent to log progress.

### What happens to the baseline when the plan changes?

Approving the working copy raises the revision and saves a baseline automatically, and you can add manual baselines. One baseline is the active one, and start and finish variance in days is read against it. Earlier baselines stay in the list, so each revision of the plan remains available for comparison.

### Can SuperWise draft a schedule from a conversation?

It drafts templates and playground nodes from a conversation. The AI schedule builder walks through discovery, template design and playground assembly, looks up existing templates, and creates nodes and links. Pre-assembly checks look for orphan tasks, dependency cycles and missing required fields. You review the result and assemble it in the playground.

## Related
- [Construction scheduling software](https://superwise.site/features/construction-scheduling/)
- [Microsoft Project integration](https://superwise.site/integrations/microsoft-project/)
- [Primavera and MS Project field update guide](https://superwise.site/resources/primavera-ms-project-field-updates/)
- [Construction manager](https://superwise.site/professions/construction-manager/)
- [Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)](https://superwise.site/glossary/work-breakdown-structure/)
- [Gantt Chart](https://superwise.site/glossary/gantt-chart/)