1
Overview
The FM Order Upload tool takes a standard Excel order file, saves each customer as a new record in the Order_managementDB FileMaker database (@Ship_to layout), and returns a print-ready PDF of Avery 22823 stickers — one per customer — with a barcode of the FileMaker primary key.
This tool only creates records in FileMaker. It never deletes or modifies existing data.
2
How To Use
1
Open the toolGo to tools.esquireembroidery.com/fm-upload/
2
Select your Excel fileClick the upload area or drag and drop your
.xlsx file. Column order in the file does not matter.3
Click "Upload & Generate Stickers"The tool validates the file, saves records to FileMaker, and generates the PDF. This may take 10–30 seconds depending on the number of records.
4
Download the sticker PDFClick the Download Stickers PDF button. Print on Avery 22823 label sheets (2 × 3 layout, 6 labels per sheet).
3
Excel File Format
The Excel file must have one row per item.#11015; Download Sample Excel File
The Excel file must have one row per item. Customers with multiple items span multiple rows — the Name cell is filled only on the first row; subsequent item rows leave Name blank.
Column order does not matter. The tool finds columns by name (case-insensitive).
Required columns
| Column name | Notes |
|---|---|
Name | Customer name. Leave blank on continuation item rows. |
PONumber | Purchase order number (e.g. TS16080). |
ITEM Match | Must not be blank on any row. Used as the duplicate-detection key. |
Style | Item style code. |
Color | Item color. |
Size | Item size. |
Qty | Item quantity. |
Logo | Logo identifier. |
Optional columns
| Column name | Notes |
|---|---|
Address1 | Ship-to street address line 1. |
Address2 | Ship-to street address line 2. |
City | Ship-to city. |
State | Ship-to state abbreviation. |
Zipcode | Ship-to postal code. |
3rd Party Acct | Third-party shipping account number. |
Bill to Postal Code | Billing postal code. |
Example layout
| Name | PONumber | ITEM Match | Style | Color | Size | Qty | Logo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ray Nibbe ID#9916 | TS16080 | 35023 | 100925F | black | 14 | 1 | NHL |
| (blank) | 35023 | 300023F | blue | L | 2 | MLB | |
| Jane Smith | TS16081 | 35024 | 200100F | navy | M | 1 | NHL |
Ray Nibbe has two items; the second row has a blank Name. Jane Smith has one item on her own row.
4
FileMaker Field Mapping
Database: Order_managementDB | Layout: @Ship_to
| Excel column | FileMaker field | Value |
|---|---|---|
Name | Ship To Company | From Excel |
Address1 | Ship To Street1 | From Excel |
Address2 | Ship To Street2 | From Excel |
City | Ship To City | From Excel |
State | Ship To States | From Excel |
Zipcode | Ship To PostalCode | From Excel |
| — | Ship To Country | Always United States |
3rd Party Acct | ThirdPartyAcct | From Excel |
Bill to Postal Code | Bill To PostalCode | From Excel |
| — | Bill To Country | Always United States |
PONumber | PO Number | From Excel |
| All items combined | Reference | Style-Color-Size(Qty)-Logo:X per line |
ITEM Match | ITEM ID MATCH FIELD | From Excel |
| Computed | Ship To Details | PONumber:Total:TotalQty |
| Auto | PrimaryKey | Assigned by FileMaker → used as barcode |
5
Rules & Validation
ITEM Match must never be blank
If any row in the Excel file has a blank ITEM Match, the entire upload is rejected immediately.
No records are sent to FileMaker. The error message lists every customer name whose ITEM Match is missing so you can fix the file before re-uploading.
Example error:
ITEM ID MATCH FIELD is empty for 2 records:
• Jane Smith
• Robert Johnson
• Jane Smith
• Robert Johnson
No duplicate records
A record is never created twice. Before saving each customer, the tool searches FileMaker for an existing record with the same
ITEM ID MATCH FIELD and Ship To Company. If a match is found, that customer is skipped — the existing FileMaker primary key is reused for their sticker instead.
After uploading, the page shows:
- How many new records were saved to FileMaker
- How many duplicates were skipped (with names listed)
Skipped customers still appear in the downloaded sticker PDF, using their original FileMaker primary key barcode.
6
Sticker Layout
Labels are formatted for Avery 22823 — 2 columns × 3 rows = 6 labels per letter-size sheet.
| Area | Content |
|---|---|
| Top right (small) | PO Number |
| Top left (bold, underlined) | Customer name (Ship To Company) |
| Middle | Item lines: Style-Color-Size(Qty)-Logo:X |
| Lower left | Barcode — FileMaker PrimaryKey in Free 3 of 9 Extended font |
| Lower right | PrimaryKey number (human-readable) |
| Bottom (yellow highlight) | PONumber:Total:TotalQty |
7
Data Safety
This tool is read + create only. It performs exactly two types of FileMaker operations:
- Search (read) — to check for duplicates before creating
- Create — to add a new record when no duplicate is found
8
Error Reference
| Error message | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| ITEM ID MATCH FIELD is empty for N records | One or more rows in the Excel file have a blank ITEM Match column | Open the Excel file, fill in the missing ITEM Match values, and re-upload |
| No valid Name rows found | The file has no rows with a Name value | Check that the correct sheet is the first tab and Name column is present |
| Request failed: Failed to fetch | Network error or server is down | Check your internet connection; contact IT if the issue persists |
| ✗ N new records saved. M duplicates skipped. | Not an error — informational. Some records already existed in FileMaker. | No action needed. The PDF still includes stickers for all records. |