Formula Grid Overview: Plan, store, and track formulas

The Formula Grid allows you to plan, store, and track your formulas. Here you can plan your experiments in a format similar to Excel while enriching the experience with interconnected data. The Formula Grid can be found within the Formulation section of a Project and is directly linked with the Inventory module, creating bidirectional links between your projects, formulations, and real-time Inventory. 

Navigating the Formula Grid

Each column of the Formula Grid represents a new product, and each row represents an Inventory item. Clicking on an Inventory item or a Formula within the Grid will open up that item or formula.  

The below information can be found within the Formula Grid:

• Name, Manufacturer, and Batch Instructions for each Inventory item
• Cost of a formula based on its raw materials and intermediate products
• Any Hazard Communication Standard Pictograms associated with the formula

Creating New Formulations and Editing Existing Formulations

When you start a new project, the Formula Grid will be empty. You can create new formulations or edit existing formulations by navigating to the Formula Grid within your desired Project. From there, you can add new raw materials, intermediate products, or formulas to your formulation.

For more information on editing your Formula Grid, navigate to this help article. 

Formula Grid Statuses

The formulas in your project Formula Grid can have one of three different statuses (Incomplete, Completed, Locked). The status of the formula determines the commands that are available to work with this formula and are defined as follows:

• Incomplete: The initial status of each formula is incomplete. Adding raw materials and their concentration and completing the "Purpose" field will change the status of a formula from Incomplete to Complete.
• Complete: Complete formulas contain raw materials with a concentration, and the purpose is defined. Complete formulas can be used in Batch or Property Tasks, and can be modified. 
• Locked: A locked formula has either been used in a Batch Task, or was added to the list of raw materials as an intermediate product and can no longer be edited.

For more information on changing the status of your Formulas, navigate to this help article. 

View all Property Tasks and Data Associated with a Formula

To view all Property Tasks and data that are associated with a formula, navigate to the desired Formula Grid. From there, select the "Property Tasks & Data" button in the bottom righthand of the screen.

Bulking a Formula Up / Down

The Bulk Up / Down function is available to assist you in normalizing your formula to 100%. To bulk a formula up or down, navigate to the Formula Grid within the desired Project. Click the three dots next to the desired formula and select "Bulk Up/Down". Select the raw material(s) that should stay constant, and Albert will normalize the remaining raw materials. The original values will be visible on the left side and the adjusted ones on the right. Click "Save" to confirm and save your changes.

Note that you will only be able to bulk up/down unlocked formulas that have values associated with them.

Copy Raw Materials and their Concentrations to a New Project

Albert offers a function that quickly allows you to copy raw materials and their concentrations from a previous project to a new one. To copy raw materials and their concentrations to a new project, navigate to the Formula Grid within the new Project. Clicking the three dots next to the desired formula and selecting "Copy from Existing" will open the modal below: 

From there, you can type in a formula to pull the information from or select a formula from the dropdown. A new column with the copied formula will then populate the Formula Grid. 

Quickly Copy Raw Materials and their Concentrations within a Project

Albert offers a function that quickly allows you to copy raw materials and their concentrations to a new formula within a Project. To copy raw materials and their concentrations within a project, navigate to the Formula Grid within the new Project. Clicking the three dots next to the desired formula and selecting "Copy to New" will open the modal below: 

From there, enter the number of formulas to copy. The designated number of columns will then populate the Formula Grid with the copied formula. 

Compare Raw Material Costs in the Formulation Grid

Pricing is automatically calculated for you within the Formula Grid based on the raw materials added to the formula. To see the total calculated raw cost for the formula, click on the price of the formula. Albert will show you how each component contributed to the overall cost of this formula. To hide the raw cost, click on the price again. 

Tip: You can add similar raw materials to compare the costs for your formula.