Complex DAX Formula Using CROSSJOIN, UNION, and CALCULATETABLE

Objective

Create a DAX formula that leverages the functions CROSSJOIN, UNION, and CALCULATETABLE to perform an advanced table manipulation. This example will demonstrate combining data from multiple tables and applying specific filters to derive the final dataset.

Example Scenario

We have two tables, Sales and Returns, and we want to create a table that:

1. Combines all unique product sales and returns.
2. Applies filters to include only the entries where the sales amount is greater than a defined threshold and the return amount is non-zero.

DAX Formula

CombinedTable =
var SalesTableFiltered = 
    CALCULATETABLE(
        Sales, 
        Sales[SalesAmount] > 500
    )
var ReturnsTableFiltered = 
    CALCULATETABLE(
        Returns, 
        Returns[ReturnAmount] > 0
    )
var UnionTable = 
    UNION(
        SalesTableFiltered,
        ReturnsTableFiltered
    )
return
    CROSSJOIN(UnionTable, Product)

Explanation

1. SalesTableFiltered: Filters the Sales table to only include rows where the sales amount is greater than 500.
2. ReturnsTableFiltered: Filters the Returns table to include rows where the return amount is greater than 0.
3. UnionTable: Uses the UNION function to combine the filtered Sales and Returns tables into a single table.
4. CROSSJOIN: Creates a Cartesian product of the UnionTable and the Product table.

Practical Illustration

Assume the following simple structured tables:

Sales Table

Returns Table

Product Table

Resulting CombinedTable

The resulting table will include only rows where sales amounts exceed 500 and returns are greater than 0, then joined by the Product table:

Conclusion

The provided formula demonstrates a method to combine and filter data from multiple tables using CROSSJOIN, UNION, and CALCULATETABLE. This advanced manipulation can be applied to various complex reporting needs.

For further learning, consider exploring advanced courses on the Enterprise DNA Platform to deepen your understanding of these DAX functions and their practical applications.