What features are included / excluded from the Import process:
Feature | Import Control Availability |
Forecast Range | Available - indirectly controlled by the number of demand months included in the Demand template. |
Fill Forecast | Not available |
Enter demand manually | Available - import demand using the Demand template. |
Configure history | Not available |
Strategy | Stock Days - available - import via the Strategy template. Manual - not available |
Min Days of Stock | Available - import via the Strategy template. |
Max Days of Stock | Available - import via the Strategy template. |
Lead Days | Available - import via the Strategy template. |
Fix replenishment dates | Min Stock (default) - available - import via the Strategy template Interval purchasing - not available |
Minimum order quantity (MOQ) | Available - import via the Strategy template |
Use default supplier MOQ | Available - import via the Strategy template |
Increment (batch) size | Available - import via the Strategy template |
Plan Production - link components | Not available - must be enabled in the UI, then importing new forecast data will trigger a recalculation of the production plans. |
How to bulk import and export AIM forecasts
Use this process to load monthly sales demand figures and set stock strategies for many products and warehouses at once. This is useful if you want to bulk edit existing forecasts, or load in new forecasts as part of a onboarding migration to Unleashed. After import, AIM will calculate your upcoming replenishments based on your strategy, forecast demand and open transactions.
Before you start
You should familiarise yourself with AIM Forecasting using the UI to help understand the process with CSV files.
Any product or warehouse you're importing forecast data for must have been in Unleashed for 1-2 hours to load the product into AIM via the sync processes
If a forecast is not active, you need to import a Stock Strategy file to create an active forecast
If you import only a strategy and no demand file, then the forecast will be active, but the replenishments will calculate to only cover the open transactions booked into the system
You can upload the demand and strategy files together or separately. If you are happy with your strategy, you may only need to regularly update your demand forecast expectations
Importing a forecast will not create an entry into the Review tab. If you want to set a review reminder, you will need to save the forecast in the UI.
You can import 100 files per day
The maximum file size for the Demand template is 20MB (147k - 776k rows depending on product code and description length) and for the Strategy template is 5MB (30k - 200k rows depending on product code and description length)
Some controls cannot be set via import, such as interval purchasing and manual strategies. If you import a strategy, these settings will be reverted to Replenish at min stock and Stock Days Strategy. However, if you have an active forecast using these settings, you can import forecast demand, and the strategy will not be affected.
You can link the minimum order quantity (MOQ) to the default supplier of that product. If the MOQ hasn't been populated, then the import of the strategy for that product will fail and generate an error as it is unable to set any MOQ quantity.
Use the Export Forecast Demand and Export Forecast Strategies to save a snapshot of your forecasts. Save these files and use them to restore previous settings.
If you export forecast demand to CSV, the file will include past months. These rows should be removed before import. Rows with dates in the past will generate errors if they are imported, as you are unable to edit forecasts for historic months.
Step 1: Open Import/Export Forecasts
Go to the AIM Insights dashboard.
In the top right, click the Import dropdown.
Select Import/Export Forecasts.
Note: the same dropdown has an Import Historic Sales Data option which is useful for new customers looking to migrate their sales history into Unleashed. This feature will populate the demand history in AIM and Business Intelligence reporting.
Step 2: Get your template
You have two options:
Download Templates: downloads blank Forecast Demand and Stock Strategy files with the correct column headings.
Export existing data: downloads populated templates with data currently set up in AIM. Use Export Forecast Demand and Export Stock Strategies to download the pre-filled files, so you're editing/adding rather than starting from scratch.
Step 3: Fill in your file
Forecast Demand file
Column | What goes in it |
Product Code* | The product's code in Unleashed |
Warehouse Code* | The warehouse code found in Settings > System Settings > Warehouses |
Month YYYY-MM* | The forecast month, e.g. |
Sales Forecast* | The forecast quantity for that product, warehouse, and month |
*Required fields
Example:
Product Code, Warehouse Code, Month YYYY-MM, Sales Forecast
ABC123, MAIN, 2026-08, 4600
ABC123, MAIN, 2026-09, 3600
ABC123, MAIN, 2026-10, 2400
XYZ789, MAIN, 2026-08, 1200
XYZ789, MAIN, 2026-09, 1400
Stock Strategy file
Column | What goes in it |
Product Code* | The product's code in Unleashed |
Warehouse Code* | The warehouse code |
Min Days* | Minimum days of stock to hold |
Max Days* | Maximum days of stock to hold |
Lead Days* | Supplier lead time in days |
Min Order Qty | Minimum order quantity |
Sync MoQ to Default Supplier |
Use this option if you want to control the minimum order quantity using the products default supplier setting. If the setting is not found, the import of this forecast will generate an error. |
Batch Increment Size | Sets the size of the quantity step that the replenishment increases by. Useful if the supplier requires you to order in multiples of a number, or pack size. |
*Required fields. One row per product/warehouse combination.
Example:
Product Code,Warehouse Code,Min Days,Max Days,Lead Days,Min Order Qty,Sync MoQ to Default Supplier,Batch Increment Size
BBTA001,HQ,5,20,7,,Y,2
A few rules that apply to both files
Take note of the required fields for each template.
If the importer encounters an error with a line, it will attempt to skip that line and process the remaining lines.
Files must be saved as .csv.
Step 4: Upload and submit
Use Choose File under Import Demand and/or Import Strategy to select your completed file(s).
Click Submit.
Step 5: Check the import ran cleanly
The import runs as a background job. To check on it:
Open Tasks in the left-hand navigation.
Look for BI Forecast Data Import.
Click into it to see row counts and status for the Demand and Strategy portions separately.
Status meanings:
Status | Meaning |
Pending | Still processing |
Completed | All rows applied successfully |
Failed | Some or all rows didn't complete — open the task for detail of the demand and strategy import with details on each row that failed. |
Example:
Export Historic Actuals
There's also an Export Historic Actuals button. This gives you past forecast and actuals figures side by side, for reference while you build your new forecast. It's not a file you import, it's read-only context. Use this information to help investigate the accuracy of your past forecasting, and as source data should you wish to create a forecast demand import file off system.
Imported Forecast Logic:
When importing a new forecast, or an existing forecast, the following logic will be applied:
Forecast Status
Forecast exists?
Yes -> Retains existing status
No -> Set to ACTIVE if strategy also imported (otherwise INACTIVE)
Lead days
Production Demand Enabled?
Yes -> Set lead days = 0 (Production duration is used instead)
No -> Set to imported value
Min & Max days
Set to imported values
Purchase interval
All related values (enabled, interval, start date) are set to default (for new and existing forecasts). Imported forecasts will use the 'reorder at min stock option instead.
Min order quantity value imported?
Yes
Set to imported value
Set use default supplier MOQ = N
No & [Sync MoQ to Default Supplier = "Y"]
Set use default supplier MOQ = imported value
Batch Size value imported?
Yes -> Set to imported value
No [& is a new forecast] -> Set = 1
Troubleshooting
Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
Task shows Warning | Some rows didn't apply | Open the task detail and check row counts against what you submitted; check for typos in product/warehouse codes |
A product's forecast isn't active after import | Only the demand file was imported, not strategy | Import a Stock Strategy file for that product/warehouse to activate the forecast |
A product is missing from the import entirely | Product was added to Unleashed less than 2 hours ago | Wait 2 hours and re-import |
File is rejected on upload | Wrong file format, or file exceeds 100MB | Save as .csv; split large files into smaller batches |
Some values didn't update the way I expected | Blank cells in the file, or rows out of sequence | Blank cells don't overwrite existing values by design; check demand rows are grouped by product/warehouse and in chronological month order |
Imports are no longer accepted | You have exceeded 100 imports within 24 hours | Wait for the 24-hour time out to expire. Consolidate forecasts to import together to avoid the 100 imports per day limit. |
FAQ
Can I import demand for a new product before importing a strategy and activating the forecast? Yes, provided the product has been synced into AIM, you can import forecast demand without importing a strategy and activating a forecast. No replenishments will be generated until the forecast is active.
What happens if I only import a strategy file, no demand? The forecast will activate, but without any demand it will only plan replenishments around open transactions that are in the system. This can be useful if you don't want to forecast demand but do want to consolidate replenishments to supply sales scheduled over a period.
Can I export what I have, edit it, and re-import? Yes, that's the recommended way to make bulk edits to forecasts or strategies you've already set up. Use Export Forecast Demand or Export Stock Strategies rather than starting from the blank template.
Can I only import a demand file? Yes, as the strategy is dynamically calculating stock holding requirements, you may set a strategy and then primarily only need to import demand updates.
Does this work with production demand? While you can't enable production demand via import, you can edit a forecast that has production demand enabled.
Can I use advanced settings, such as interval purchasing or manual strategy? No, you can't use all available settings when importing a forecast, such as manual strategy settings or interval purchasing for triggering a replenishment. When a strategy is imported, the min, max and lead days are set, and replenishments are set to be created when the forecast predicts stock levels reaching the quantity equal to the demand over the following min days.
Something is wrong with my import CSV. What should I do? If you can't figure what the issue with your file maybe. Open it with a text editor, such as Notepad++. This will show you the raw text:
In this example above, the extra comma at the end of the row is creating an unexpected extra column. This can be created in Excel when typing in that cell and then removed, leave an empty cell.