Merge keep data

Location on ribbon: Tab DVD Addin → Group Cells and Rows → Menu Merge cells

Command ID: btnMergeKeepData

What it does

Excel's own Merge & Center keeps only the top-left value and throws the rest away. This command merges the selection but concatenates every value into one string, preserving per-character formatting (bold, italic, font colour, superscript and subscript) — exactly what you need when joining quantity descriptions that carry symbols such as m³, H₂O or ø10.

If the selection is a single, already merged cell, the command does the opposite and unmerges it, so one shortcut covers both directions.

How to use

1. Select the cells to merge. Ctrl-select several separate areas if you like — each area is merged into its own cell.
2. Click DVD Addin → Cells and Rows → Merge cells → Merge keep data, or press Ctrl+Shift+Z.
3. For each area the command unmerges any inner merges, walks the cells left→right and top→bottom, joins the text, writes it into the top-left cell, turns Wrap Text on and merges the area.
4. The status bar reports the result, e.g. "Merged 3 areas preserving data + formatting".
5. If the selected area is empty, the command simply merges and centres it (horizontally and vertically).

Example

A quantity breakdown has three description lines in column C that must go into a single cell of the acceptance form:

Before (C5:C7)	After Merge keep data (C5:C7)
Lean concrete 4x6 M100	Lean concrete 4x6 M100 100mm thick, 12.5 m³ Location: footings M1, M2
100mm thick, 12.5 m³	(one merged cell, wrapped)
Location: footings M1, M2

The ³ keeps its superscript formatting through the merge.

Notes

• A value starting with an uppercase letter is joined with a line break; a value starting with a lowercase letter or a digit is joined with a space. That rule is fixed.
• Ctrl+Z cannot undo the result — the other cells in the area are cleared once their text has been joined.
• Cells inside an Excel Table (ListObject) cannot be merged; the command names the table and asks you to convert it to a range first (Table Design → Convert to Range).
• Empty cells in the area are skipped, so no blank lines appear in the joined text.
• Hold ESC to stop early — the check happens at area boundaries only, so the area being processed always finishes cleanly.

Related

• Merge similar — auto-merges adjacent cells that repeat the same value, without joining text.
• AutoFit merged — sets the row height so the newly merged text is fully visible.
• Join Merged — lists the addresses of the merged cells in a selection.