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Excel 2007 : Sorting data into a series of drop-down menus

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  1. #1
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    Sorting data into a series of drop-down menus

    I have a large spreadsheet containing five columns and about 15,000 entries. Each entry is for a specific part my company uses. The five columns are "Account Code," "Vendor," "Part Description," "Part Number," and "Price."

    I want to create a series of drop-down menus to make this sheet more accessible. I want it so that a user would first select an Account Code from the first drop-down menu. Then, they would select a Vendor from the second menu. But the list of vendors available would already be filtered by that account code. Next, they would select a Part Description from the third menu, but only the part descriptions from that account code and vendor would show up. So it would basically be like a tree.

    Account Code #1
    |___Vendor #1a
    |___Part Description #1ai
    |___Part Description #1aii
    |___Vendor #1b
    Account Code #2
    |___Vendor #2a

    ...etc.

    Ideally, each sub-level would only accept entries that corresponded to that sub-level. If that makes sense.

    Finally, once a part is selected, I would like the corresponding part number and price to be displayed. I did a bit of research and people seemed to think the best way to do this was with a vlookup and the indirect() function but I have no idea how to implement these.

    Thank you in advance!
    Last edited by eleusis211; 01-18-2012 at 02:59 PM.

  2. #2
    Forum Expert royUK's Avatar
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    Re: Sorting data into a series of drop-down menus

    It might be that a PivotTable would work. Try attaching a dummy workbook

    To best describe or illustrate your problem you would be better off attaching a dummy workbook, the workbook should contain the same structure and some dummy data of the same type as the type you have in your real workbook - so, if a cell contains numbers & letters in this format abc-123 then that should be reflected in the dummy workbook. Don't upload a picture when you have a workbook question. None of us is inclined to recreate your data. Upload the workbook and manually add an 'after' situation so that we can see what you expect. In addition clearly explain how you get the results..
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    To use the main 'New Post' page, click the 'Post Reply' button in the relevant thread.

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    Hope that helps.

    RoyUK
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    Re: Sorting data into a series of drop-down menus

    I have attached a small segment of my file. For example, the first drop-down menu would contain two options: "Replacement Parts" and "Warehouse Supplies." If you select "Replacement Parts," the second drop down would show Allied, Camtec, Hillrom, Invacare, etc, but if you select "Warehouse Supplies," the second drop down would show Ecolab, Invacare, and McMaster. Finally, once the vendor was selected, you can select the part description from the available list, already filtered by the first two criteria.

    When the part description is selected, the associated price and part number will be displayed.

    Thanks!
    Attached Files Attached Files

  4. #4
    Forum Expert royUK's Avatar
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    Re: Sorting data into a series of drop-down menus

    Why not just use AutoFilter?

  5. #5
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    Re: Sorting data into a series of drop-down menus

    This needs to be completely idiot-proof. I will be distributing this sheet to guys who are almost completely computer illiterate. I have tried to explain before how to use the filters to do this, but as easy as it sound to you and I, they don't seem to get it. I figure a step-by-step breakdown of a set of products would be the easiest way. They seem to like the drop-down menus lol. I realize this may require a lot more initial work on my part but it will save me time in the long run when they can't find parts.

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