ReqIF & field mapping

Two things make an import land cleanly: a standard way to exchange requirements with partners, and a reliable way to line up incoming data with your own structure. ReqIF handles the first; field mapping handles the second.

ReqIF

ReqIF (Requirements Interchange Format) is the industry standard for exchanging requirements between tools. When you work with a customer, a supplier, or a partner who uses a different requirements tool, ReqIF lets requirements move between you without losing their structure. Importing a ReqIF file brings those requirements — and their attributes — into TraceUnified as governed records, and requirements can be exported the same way for the round trip.

Field mapping

However requirements arrive — spreadsheet, document, or ReqIF — their fields have to be matched to your item structure. Field mapping is that step: you connect each incoming column or attribute to the target field it belongs in, so a “Priority” column lands in your priority field and a “Description” lands in your description. Mapping is what turns someone else’s data shape into your governed item type.

Getting mapping right

Good mapping is the difference between a clean import and a mess to untangle later. The importer lets you set the mapping explicitly rather than guessing, and the preview shows the mapped result before you commit — so you can confirm that every field lands where it should. Where incoming data has no home in your structure, you decide what happens to it rather than having it silently dropped.

Reusable and consistent

Because your item types are defined once, the same mapping logic applies every time you import from the same source — so a recurring import from a partner stays consistent run to run. This keeps imported data aligned with the records you author natively, rather than drifting into a parallel shape.