OK, while one could use formulae to retrieve all the matches for a given set of search criterion (and they're fairly complex formulae, at that), you really would need to have a separate results pane for each four sets of criteria; otherwise it'd all end up being one horrible mess.

Better still, IMHO, would be to not bother with the Search worksheet and just use filtering on the 'O&M plus' sheet. See attached.

Now, suppose you want to find all the records for a particular item (or even more than one item) in any of the columns. Select that column's dropdown filter, uncheck 'All', then scroll down to the item(s) you want an check it/them. If you only want to find the subset of those items that correspond to entries in another column, do the same there. Repeat as needed. When you're finished, simply re-check the 'select all' option for all the filtered columns.

A variation on this theme is to filter out one or more items, by unchecking only those items (ie "I'm interested in all except for ...").

The filtering approach is far more flexible than what you're proposing, doesn't require one to know the terms in use before search can be started, requires no formulae, and is not so susceptible to spelling errors (you have 'Calibration mis-spelt in column G).

Attached Files

Rev 3A.xlsx (46.2 KB, 12 views)

__________________
Cheers,
Paul Edstein
[Fmr MS MVP - Word]