Omid - Challenge 224

data-challenges
advanced-exercises
🔰 Question Result ID MN-123-98-24 XMN-0-0-23-2 MN-B-10-12 NHJ-A-B-I23 I-XX-MN1
Published

March 24, 2026

Illustration for Omid - Challenge 224

Challenge Description

🔰 Question Result ID MN-123-98-24 XMN-0-0-23-2 MN-B-10-12 NHJ-A-B-I23 I-XX-MN1

Solutions

library(tidyverse)
library(readxl)

path = "files/CH-224 Column Splitting.xlsx"
input = read_excel(path, range = "B2:B7")
test = read_excel(path, range = "D2:E7")

result = input %>%
  separate(
    col = "ID",
    into = c("ID1", "ID2", "ID3", "ID4"),
    sep = "-",
    extra = "merge"
  ) %>%
  unite(col = "ID.1", ID1, ID2, sep = "-", na.rm = TRUE) %>%
  unite(col = "ID.2", ID3, ID4, sep = "-", na.rm = TRUE)

all.equal(result, test)
# [1] TRUE

  • Logic:

    • Reads the workbook ranges needed for the challenge

  • Strengths:

    • The R solution stays close to the workbook rule and keeps the transformation compact.

  • Areas for Improvement:

    • The code assumes the sheet structure and source ranges remain stable.

  • Gem:

    • The strongest part of the solution is choosing the right intermediate representation before shaping the final output.
import pandas as pd

path = "CH-224 Column Splitting.xlsx"

input = pd.read_excel(path, usecols="B", skiprows=1, nrows=6)
test = pd.read_excel(path, usecols="D:E", skiprows=1, nrows=6)

result = input["ID"].str.split("-", expand=True)
result.columns = ["ID1", "ID2", "ID3", "ID4", "ID5"]

result["ID.1"] = result[["ID1", "ID2"]].apply(lambda x: "-".join(x.dropna()), axis=1)
result["ID.2"] = result[["ID3", "ID4", "ID5"]].apply(lambda x: "-".join(x.dropna()), axis=1)

result = result[["ID.1", "ID.2"]]

print(result.equals(test)) # True

  • Logic:

    • Reads the workbook ranges needed for the challenge

  • Strengths:

    • The Python version follows the same rule in a direct dataframe-oriented implementation.

  • Areas for Improvement:

    • The code assumes the workbook layout remains stable, so any sheet redesign would require small adjustments.

  • Gem:

    • The implementation stays close to the original workbook rule instead of adding unnecessary abstraction.

Difficulty Level

This task is moderate:

  • The business rule is readable, but the workbook still requires careful implementation to reach the expected layout.