VAL Function Details
 
Syntax
  VAL(stringexpression)
 
The stringexpression is a sequence of characters that can be interpreted as
a numeric value. The VAL function stops reading the string at the first
character that it cannot recognize as part of a number. The VAL function
also strips leading blanks, tabs, and line feeds from the argument string.
For example,
 
  VAL("    -33/LP")
 
returns the value -33.