ETIC converts formatted Excel tables into editable InDesign tables through IDML while preserving the formatting already defined in the Excel source. It is designed for workflows where Excel is the source document and its formatting matters. ETIC works as a standalone Windows application, so the conversion itself does not require InDesign. Open the generated IDML in InDesign and continue editing normally.
Hi Product Hunt!
I built ETIC after years of working with document production and automation.
One problem I kept seeing was that carefully prepared Excel tables often became something that had to be rebuilt, reformatted, or heavily adjusted once they reached the InDesign stage.
ETIC takes a different approach: treat the Excel file as a real source document rather than just raw data.
It converts formatted Excel tables to IDML while preserving details such as fonts, sizes, colors, borders, merged cells, row heights and column widths. The resulting tables remain editable in InDesign.
ETIC is also a standalone Windows application. You don't need InDesign installed on the machine performing the conversion.
My goal isn't to replace InDesign's styles or layout tools. It's to preserve more of the work that has already been done before the document reaches InDesign.
I'd be especially interested to hear how designers and production teams currently handle complex Excel tables in their InDesign workflows.