What happens if data is entered wrong

On the above picture, the left side shows an example where the calibration data has been entered manually on a paper form. Possibly some numbers have been entered incorrectly, it is difficult to read some of them, manual error calculation is difficult, is that tick a pass or a fail, who signed that, and so on. On the right side you can see the same calibration with a Beamex MC6 documenting calibrator.

It is obvious that there are errors in manual data entry. We can argue about what the real error rate is, but we can all agree that there are always errors in manual data entry. The error rate can grow quickly if the data to be entered is complicated, if the user is tired or in a hurry, and for many other reasons. To reduce errors, companies can train employees, highlight accuracy over speed, double-check the work, ensure optimal working conditions, and naturally try to automate their processes and get rid of manual data entry.

Calibration data includes a lot of numbers, often with many decimals. The numbers also typically fluctuate up and down with the decimals changing all the time. This makes it challenging to manually enter the data correctly. When calibrating a process instrument, for example a transmitter, the input and output data should be captured at the same time, which is difficult. If the values are drifting, additional error will be introduced if the numbers are not recorded at the same time.

This already makes 10 calibration data points. Other data also needs to be entered during the calibration, such as the reference standards used, environmental data, date, time, signature, etc. On average we can say that 20 data points need to be entered during the calibration process.

Every fifth calibration? Why is that? Because if one calibration includes 20 data points then five calibrations include data points. So, every fifth calibration will include a faulty data entry.

The above is true if the data is entered manually only once. But as discussed earlier, often the data is entered manually twice, first on paper in the field and then when it is transferred from the paper to the system in the workshop. This means that there are double the number of data entry points, with one calibration event having 40 data points instead of 20 to be entered. So, this means almost half of these calibrations will include faulty data.

Let that sink in for a while. In a typical process site that performs 10, calibrations annually, all manually entered using the two-phase data entry process, statistically they will have 4, calibrations with faulty data! Naturally, the calibration process may be way more complicated and may contain many more data points. If the manually entered calibration data is wildly inaccurate it is likely going to be noticed at some point.

For example, if the nominal 4 mA zero point of a transmitter is entered as But what to do then? Do you consider that it is ok to move the decimal and assume it is then correct, or does the calibration need to be repeated — which means going back to field and doing the calibration again.

If the error is small enough, it may not be noticed anywhere in the process. This leaves the transmitter in the process continuously measuring with a too-large error. So, in the worst-case scenario, human error in manual data entry will lead to a situation where a faulty calibration is considered being passed! It is anyhow not totally impossible that sometimes the calibration data would be intentionally entered incorrectly. Manual data entry gives the opportunity to falsify results, and it is almost impossible to stop that.

This gives them the ability to get a better idea of where they stand with payment, deliveries, and other information.

Also having that open line of communication between suppliers and other departments makes almost every process and function much smoother and less prone to error. Finally, sometimes suppliers give businesses an early payment discount. With your system streamlined and costs cut back, you can take advantage of these savings which will save your business even more! Interested in learning more about what automated AP can do for your business?

Contact Datamation or give us a call at today. Tell us about your project and one of our representatives will get back to you within two business days. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Youtube. February 12, Contact Us. In the screen shot below, error alerts have been turned off, to allow multiple selections from a drop down list.

However, there is a Error Checking alert, for a data validation error, because the cell is in a table. Or, you could turn off all the data checking for tables, by following the steps below. Please note that:. Get a zipped Excel file with the data validation message examples.

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Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. The Back Story I work for a consulting firm, and we've developed a piece of software that allows a company to manage their real estate. They rent out around 1, apartments and houses, and the software tracks what's rented by whom, who owes what and what for, it tracks the properties and rental units owned, and maintenance reports. It also manages the billing. The company we created it for makes a point of paying minimum wage for their jobs and hires only females and does not require computer literacy.

They also won't waste money on training new hires because they usually only last a few months. Therefore, the software was commissioned to have a "fisher-price" interface, and it should be as simple as McDonald's interface is.

The only problem is, McDonald's probably spent millions designing theirs, and McDonald's has a more simplistic business model, and they train their users. Despite all this, I feel I have built a fairly intuitive interface, and I've had some guys in the office do user tests for me. The results are good, I've fixed a few things that I wouldn't have seen because of my closeness to the software, but overall, the achieved all or nearly all the tasks in the user test without training.

However, there is one user in particular at this company that cannot figure out how to use the system. Two months ago she changed around 50 tenant's lease dates. I corrected that in the database and all was well for a little while. Last month we got reports that the system was reassigning people to new living quarters, but it was her changing them.

So I put a lock on that, so you can't change the tenants living quarters without clicking a big "Unlock" image button. That seemed to fix the issue. Then two weeks ago we got a report that the system always the system's fault was renaming properties.

It turned out the user thought she could search from the Property Name textbox labeled "Property Name", there is a button with a magnifying glass that says "Search" far away from it. So now the form to manipulate properties is locked in the same way tenant's is. Yesterday, the system was once again changing lease dates, and the logs showed it was the same user.

They want me to lock down the lease date the way I have property name and tenant living quarters, but I think it has gone too far. If I make the change they request, they will continue to blame the software and the consulting firm and not take responsibility for their lack of training and skill in their users. It also wouldn't actually solve anything, until every input field was required to be unlocked before it could be edited.

They won't pay for documentation such as a user guide or help files to be created, which is the only way I am seeing that it can be fixed. The Problem An untrained user is continually entering bad data in nonsensical locations such as phone number in the license plate field. She deletes or changes critical system data that she normally has to edit. The customer has requested I add an additional click to editing the data, but I feel that won't solve the problem, just make it move to another field.

This is a very common problem actually. It's not obvious to your users that they are changing the record. You a mixing display of data and modification of data - not very "Fisher Pricey". Only when clicking "Modify this record", the fields should be editable - and the edit should be modal: don't allow any other commands but "Save Changes" or "Cancel". It's hard to give recommendations without knowing the app and the actual business procedures, but here's what I'd throw in roughly:.

Although this might seem counter-intuitive, this user may be a blessing in disguise. One "bad" user can give you more information on a site than 10 "good" users. Especially if you are trying to design for the lowest common denominator. If the goal of the system is to create a way for untrained people to work with it, you have to take into allowance for this user. For instance, locking the logs sounds like an interesting idea that would help prevent inexperienced users from making errors.

This goes back to good interface design principles. Mainly, the "interface is complete when the user says it is. Her problem when trying to "search from the Property Name textbox labeled "Property Name", there is a button with a magnifying glass that says "Search" far away from it " may be a usability issue right there. Based on your description, it seems reasonable that she could make an error.

Have you tried talking to the person that making these errors? I suggest sitting down with her and actually watch her work with the system.

It seems that she might be able to give you some insight as how she uses the program. It is always better to see what they are doing because people don't tell the whole story they may feel embarrassed, tell you what you want to hear, or simply forget. The information you get from actually seeing her in action will dictate what steps you need to take.