Units & Bounds Panel
This article explains the Units and bounds panel in Model Reef.
You will learn:
How to control units for a variable.
How to set sensible bounds for manual inputs.
How units and bounds affect validation and display.
Units and bounds help keep inputs understandable and prevent extreme or accidental entries from distorting the model.
Where the Units and bounds panel appears
You normally access the Units and bounds panel from:
The Variable Editor side panel.
Sometimes from the Driver Editor when the driver is treated as a configurable assumption.
The panel shows current unit settings and any minimum or maximum bounds that have been configured.
Choosing display units
Display units control how values are shown, not how they are stored.
Common options include:
Whole units.
Thousands.
Millions.
Percentages.
For example, you might store revenue in whole currency units but display it in millions for readability. Changing display units does not alter underlying calculations.
Setting bounds for inputs
Bounds are soft rules that define allowed ranges for manual inputs, such as:
Minimum and maximum values for prices, volumes or percentages.
Typical ranges for growth rates.
Upper and lower limits for staff headcount or wage rates.
When bounds are set:
Inputs outside the range can be flagged or rejected.
You reduce the risk of typographical errors, such as entering 5000 instead of 50.
Bounds are especially useful when many different collaborators will be editing the model.
Units, bounds and validation
The panel supports validation by:
Providing visual cues when values are outside configured bounds.
Helping you keep related variables in consistent units.
Making it clear to reviewers what scale each assumption uses.
Validation does not replace judgement, but it catches many common data entry mistakes.
Best practices
To get the most from units and bounds:
Set display units to match the audience, for example thousands or millions for board reporting.
Use bounds on key assumptions that are easy to mistype.
Keep units consistent across related variables, such as all revenue lines in the same currency and scale.
Document any unusual unit choices with notes so they are not misunderstood later.
Good unit and bounds configuration improves both model safety and readability.
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