Range and Fluctuation Metrics

Understanding Preservation Metrics helps you know how you are doing.

The following example shows a temperature and relative humidity (RH) chart that is common in environmental monitoring reports.

Instead of complex charts, you can say, "We meet our RH goal 68% of the time, and this month, we achieved 100%."

This straightforward insight helps your team quickly understand performance and focus on improving the collection environment.

In order to get the most out of these metrics you need to be intentional about the goals you set. This is possible by setting up your level profiles. Learn more: Understand Levels and Create a Level Profile.

Range and Fluctuation Calculations

The following range and fluctuation calculations are for temperature, RH, and illuminance.

% in range

% in range is indicated by the metric on the left inside a circle with a single arrow pointing up and down.

To calculate the percentage of time that your readings are within the set range:

1. All of the readings within your specified levels are counted
   Shown as green (temperature) or blue (relative humidity) bands on your analytics graphs.
2. That number is divided by the total number of readings for the chosen period.
3. That number is multiplied by 100% for the final percentage.

For a quick visual estimate, check how much of your line falls within the levels bands on the graph.

Illuminance % in range is also calculated using this formula, although it currently cannot be visualized on the graphs.

% in flux

% in flux is indicated by the metric on the right inside a circle with two separate arrows pointing in opposite directions.

The % fluctuation calculation is a little bit more complex because we add a rolling 24-hour variable. The logic for what % of the time the readings are within the maximum allowed 24h-fluctuation set by the user is the following:

For every reading within the time period the user requests, the software looks at all the readings 24 hours prior. Within that 24h period, it takes the maximum reading it finds and subtracts the minimum reading it finds.

This difference will be either under or over the maximum fluctuation the user has set (which can be found in the level profile settings). If the difference is below the target set by the user, it marks the reading as within specification.

If not, it marks it as outside specification. Once it has that in/out specification defined for every individual reading in the chosen time period, it divides all the within specification readings over the total number of readings for the period.

To visually see your % in fluctuation as a graph, see this article, Visualize Fluctuation Metrics.

Setting Levels

In this section, RH is used as an example, but the same range and fluctuation metrics apply to temperature and illuminance. These metrics depend on the levels you set for your collection spaces. The following graph helps you easily visualize your target levels, making it simple to monitor your environment's performance.

In this example, the RH range is set between 40-60% (shaded green band), with a daily fluctuation target of less than 10% (the dotted line on the 24-hour Fluctuations below).

For more information, see Set Relative Humidity Levels.

A quick look at the RH metrics (blue circles) on the right shows that you are within your target levels 0% and 100% of the time.