Check spreadsheet formula evidence before an AI HVAC summary

Define the workbook evidence needed for the decision

For an approved estimate or office report, identify the workbook/version, sheet, relevant ranges, calculation basis and reviewer. Ask AI to organize a narrow evidence extract containing cell references, formulas where available, displayed values, units and source inputs. Use an approved tool and minimize private customer or employee information.

Do not assume that a CSV export contains the formulas, linked workbooks or hidden context of its source. If only values are supplied, the assistant may summarize those supplied values but must describe the verification limit. It should not claim to have audited an original workbook it never inspected.

Work through a fictional omitted-row total

Suppose an approved illustrative sheet lists cost extensions of $400, $500 and $600 in D2 through D4, while D5 contains =SUM(D2:D3) and displays $900. The selected formula excludes D4; the sum of all three listed extensions is $1,500. Flag the mismatch with cell references and ask the workbook owner whether D4 belongs in that total. Do not automatically rewrite the formula.

An apparent omission may be deliberate if the row is an excluded option. That is why a formula check needs the commercial definition as well as the numbers. Preserve the displayed result and candidate interpretation separately. Ask about text-formatted numbers, error values, calculation state and unavailable links only where the actual extract provides evidence of a problem.

Review exceptions before generating the narrative

Have the workbook owner resolve each exception in the normal controlled file. Recalculate with the appropriate spreadsheet application and verify the affected result before treating it as the current approved number. Keep a record of the original evidence and actual approved correction; an AI explanation is not a calculation engine or a financial sign-off.

Microsoft documents formula-error checks and notes that they do not guarantee an error-free workbook. Use those tools as part of the review, not as a blanket validation claim. Pilot the evidence sheet on fictional omitted-row, excluded-option and unavailable-formula examples. Measure unsupported audit claims and false corrections as well as useful flags. The assistant should not enable macros, open external links or alter a production workbook as part of the summary task.

Review checklist

• Record workbook version, sheet, cell and unit.
• Separate formulas from displayed values.
• Check whether apparent omissions are approved exclusions.
• Verify an actual correction before updating a narrative.

Source context and limits

Microsoft documents checks for formula inconsistencies and omitted cells, with limits. The fictional HVAC evidence sheet is our review proposal and does not establish that a particular workbook is complete or financially correct.