Lookup yielding #N/A when linked to another sheet

[bh24524]

Hi so I am trying to help one of the Superintendents here at my job fix a problem with one of his spreadsheets. He has a lookup formula on a daily attendance sheet that will bring up an employee's name and what type of job they hold if you type in the 3 digit number corresponding to that employee. Now mind you its not a Vlookup of index match formula, just simply lookup if that helps. That formula is linked to another workbook that is the source of that information. Overall, the formula is working for everyone when you type in their number on that attendance sheet, it will bring up their info. There is one person however that it is NOT working for. When we type in that number, it yields #N/A. When I open the source file that the attendance file is linked to, it shows his name, but not when it s closed. I'm not sure why it seems to display everyone else's name when closed but not his. Any thoughts as to how this can be fixed? Do you need more info?

 

[oldbrewer]

check in the look up area if that number has a leading or trailing blank

 

[bh24524]

If you mean when I type the employee number on the attendance sheet, I don't see a space or anything. When I type that same number into rows below it, it gives the same result. If it helps, here is the formula in the attendance sheet:

=IF(A28=0,"",LOOKUP(A28,'X:\Group\Warehouse\Management\Perishable\[SENORITY.xls]SENIORITY'!$A$1:$A$999,'X:\Group\Warehouse\Management\Perishable\[SENORITY.xls]SENIORITY'!$B$1:$B$999))

Oddly enough, it is posting his job in the next cell that also has a lookup, but not his name

 

[bh24524]

the user's number is 736. I put in some other numbers surrounding that number just to test it and for some reason, it doesn't like 735 or 736. I looked at those cells in the source sheet for those numbers and I can't see anything that is different in those cells from everyone else who is working correctly.

 

[oldbrewer]

type in users number, copy it, go to the lookup table and paste it in there to replace whatever is there - the fact that 735 and 736 do not work either suggests dextra spaces - OR - 735 is entered as text and not as a number....

 

[bh24524]

type in users number, copy it, go to the lookup table and paste it in there to replace whatever is there - the fact that 735 and 736 do not work either suggests dextra spaces - OR - 735 is entered as text and not as a number....

I went to the source sheet and saw that every person's name appeared as text format, including those two numbers. Just for curiosity sake, I changed the format of the entire column to General. This did not help, still getting #N/A. I also tried copying and pasting that user's number from the source sheet into the attendance sheet. Again, the name will display for him when the source sheet is open, but when I close both and just open the attendance sheet, I get #N/A. Is there another solution perhaps?

 

[Gerald Higgins]

Do either of these slight variants work ?

If ONE of them does, then that should shed some light on the problem . . .

=IF(A28=0,"",LOOKUP(A28+0,'X:\Group\Warehouse\Management\Perishable\[SENORITY.xls]SENIORITY'!$A$1:$A$999,'X:\Group\Warehouse\Management\Perishable\[SENORITY.xls]SENIORITY'!$B$1:$B$999))

=IF(A28=0,"",LOOKUP(A28&"",'X:\Group\Warehouse\Management\Perishable\[SENORITY.xls]SENIORITY'!$A$1:$A$999,'X:\Group\Warehouse\Management\Perishable\[SENORITY.xls]SENIORITY'!$B$1:$B$999))

 

[bh24524]

Do either of these slight variants work ?

If ONE of them does, then that should shed some light on the problem . . .

=IF(A28=0,"",LOOKUP(A28+0,'X:\Group\Warehouse\Management\Perishable\[SENORITY.xls]SENIORITY'!$A$1:$A$999,'X:\Group\Warehouse\Management\Perishable\[SENORITY.xls]SENIORITY'!$B$1:$B$999))

=IF(A28=0,"",LOOKUP(A28&"",'X:\Group\Warehouse\Management\Perishable\[SENORITY.xls]SENIORITY'!$A$1:$A$999,'X:\Group\Warehouse\Management\Perishable\[SENORITY.xls]SENIORITY'!$B$1:$B$999))

I tried pasting both of those into column C28 (C is where that formula referencing A is) When I type 736, it is still doing the same thing, giving #N/A. What were those formulas supposed to test just out of curiosity?

 

[Gerald Higgins]

They could have tested whether the data in the lookup table was held as text or numbers.

If the first one worked, it would suggest that the data in the lookup table was held as numbers, and A28 was held as text, which the "+0" element would then force to be interpreted as a number.
Vice versa for the other one.

 

[oldbrewer]

paste the first 20 rows of your data ie where the 736 is and the lookup on here - we can copy it and test it

ie A3=736 G3=736 H3 = fred (g and h being in the lookup table