Who this is for
An office manager or small-business owner whose product, parts, asset or supplier-company list has grown from several sources and now holds the same item or organisation more than once.
The list is about to be used or moved, and the same item or organisation appears under several spellings or codes, or someone has found two different items merged into one by mistake.
The result
You receive a de-duplicated copy of the list in which each clear duplicate group is merged under written rules, a merge log showing which rows were combined and why, and a review file of uncertain pairs left separate for you to decide. Your original list is untouched.
What is included
- One list of up to 10,000 rows in one sheet with up to twelve columns, holding items, parts, assets or organisations and no personal data, handled as a copy
- Agree the match keys first, such as an exact part code or a normalised organisation name plus postcode, and which row's values win when two rows merge
- Merge only groups that meet the written rules, record every merge in a log, and keep every other row
- Put each uncertain pair on a review file with the fields that matched and those that differed, and leave both rows in the list
You receive
- A de-duplicated copy of the list
- A merge log: each surviving row, the rows merged into it and the rule that matched
- A review file of uncertain pairs, and a short note of the rules used
What is not included
- Lists of people. Names, email addresses, phone numbers and home addresses of individuals, and a sole trader's own name, are out of scope until a secure handover route exists, and this fixed job does not cover them
- Special-category data, payment details or children's data
- Contacting anyone named on the list by any route, or checking that email addresses or postal addresses exist
- Legal advice, including whether you may hold, share or use the list
- Adding outside information, or loading the list into a stock, catalogue, customer-relationship or email system
What we need from you first
- The column headings, the approximate row count and where the entries came from
- Three invented pairs you would count as duplicates and three that look similar but are not
- Confirmation that the list holds no personal data and that you hold it lawfully; no list or real entries in the first enquiry
Never send passwords, keys, customer records or confidential code in the first enquiry. Secure handover is agreed after scoping.
How we check it is done
- The number of rows in the original equals the number of rows in the cleaned copy plus the number of rows merged away, and each merged-away row appears once in the merge log with the row it was merged into.
- In an agreed test set of at least 20 true duplicate pairs and 20 look-alike pairs that are not duplicates, chosen by you, half of each kind are kept back from us until the match rules are fixed in writing. Every true pair is merged and no look-alike pair is merged, in the kept-back half and in the rest.
- Every pair that is similar but does not meet the rules appears on the review file with the matching and differing fields, and both rows remain in the cleaned copy.
- No row in the original list has been altered or deleted; the cleaned copy is a separate file.
You review the merge log and the review file, decide the uncertain pairs and sign off in writing. Payment follows sign-off.
When we would stop or decline
- The list holds personal data about individuals, special-category data or payment details
- You cannot confirm that you may share the list
- No rule can tell a true duplicate from two items that share a code, an address or a role mailbox, and you want us to decide by judgement
Questions
Will you contact anyone named on the list?
No. We only work on the file. We never contact anyone named in it.
Can you clean a list of customers, members or staff with their names and emails?
Not under this job. Lists of people are out of scope until a secure handover route exists, and no such route has been set up yet. Please do not send one.
What happens to pairs you are not sure about?
They stay in the list as separate rows and appear on a review file for you to decide. We do not merge on a guess.
Does this work for product or parts lists?
Yes, that is what the job is for. The same item can carry different codes and descriptions, so the rules are agreed first. Describe your list in an enquiry and we will say whether the same rules fit.
Price and terms
From £195 · untested offer price. The fixed price is confirmed in writing and paid after the agreed checks pass and you sign off. No payment before sign-off.
This is a new service with no published client results. The price is a starting point we have not yet tested with buyers. Nothing is ordered or charged by the enquiry. The full specification is on the Synthetic Industry catalogue.