The master data in SAP TM can be described as a transportation network.
To support proper transportation planning and execution, several master data elements are needed. When combined, these elements outline a transportation network:
In this area, you can define objects that allow you to define a transportation network:
• Locations (customers, vendors, shipping points)
• Transportation zones and zone hierarchies
• Transportation lanes (routes)
• Schedules
A location is given a name and assigned a type. Locations are used to identify a point where the product is handled or inspected.
Figure 45: Integrated Location Types
Locations are objects that are used for further definitions, such as transportation lanes and so on. You can define the following types of location in SAP TM:
• Production plant (1001)
• Distribution center (1002)
• Shipping point (1003)
• Stock transfer point (1006)
• Storage location MRP area (1007)
• Customer (1010)
• Vendor (1011)
• Transportation service provider (1020)
• Terminal (1030)
• Store (1040)
Note: In addition to the location types above, business partners can be created via CIF functions. Business partners can assist companies in the integration of data transfer and/or exchange.
Transportation zones and zone hierarchies are used to group together a number of locations, as required by transportation and logistics processes. Again, transportation zones are in turn used to define other objects such as transportation lanes that define legitimate supply routes. To improve master data maintenance, the zones are also part of a zone hierarchy. The zone hierarchy is used in functions like transshipment locations and optimizer transportation lane definition.
Transportation lanes are defined between two locations, two zones, or a combination of these objects. Lanes are used when planning and procuring transportation services.
If needed, schedules can be created to define fixed times of departure or arrival schedules for certain means of transport, such as vessel sailing schedules or airline flight schedules. Due to the immense infrastructure requirements, capacity is limited and at a premium. Defining schedules then helps determine transportation proposals and optimization.
Dangerous Goods Management
Dangerous Goods Management allows you to identify hazardous goods in Transportation Management processes that may require additionally planning and handling requirements.
To support Dangerous Goods Management, the following objects are required:
• Dangerous goods master
• Utilities
• Phrase management
The dangerous goods master allows a company to manage dangerous/hazardous goods master data in TM. The dangerous goods master, assigns the dangerous goods regulation applicable to the products and all the other attributes for dangerous goods movements, for example: classification, substance rating, substance properties, labeling requirement, transportation restrictions, printed texts, provisions, and transport approvals.
Utilities are necessary to provide change documents, the dangerous goods product import log, and also allow you to delete this log. The Phrase Management area allows you to manage phrases for dangerous goods.
TM Master Data
To support advanced planning features and ensure consistency with the execution process, TM requires additional master data to support its own internal processes.
The master data elements or features that support master data in TM are:
• Business Partners
• Carrier Profile
• Product
• Mass Maintenance
• Where-Used
Business partners represent a person, organization, group of persons, or group of organizations in which a company has a business interest. This business object is used for a variety of business transactions. You create and manage your business
partners (BPs) and the roles they assume for your company centrally. You define the general business partner data once and assign business partner roles (BP roles) to the business partner. Specific data is stored for each business partner role. In this way, you do not store redundant data, since the general data is independent of a business partner’s function or application-specific extensions. When you first create a business partner in the system, the BP role General Business Partner is automatically assigned to the business partner In an integrated system landscape with SAP Enterprise Resource Planning (SAP ERP) and SAP Transportation Management (SAP TM). The ERP system is frequently the leading master data system. In this case, the customer and supplier master data is maintained in the ERP system, from where it is transferred to SAP TM as locations and business partners using the SAP Core Interface (CIF).
A carrier profile identifies the transportation capabilities of a carrier. Carriers are business partners with the role “Carrier”. Within the carrier’s profile, you can define characteristics like freight code sets, transportation lane and carrier-specific parameters, product freight groups, transportation groups, equipment groups, equipment types, and so on.
A product or product master allows your company to edit products that have been transferred from ECC. You can also generate new products here, but we always recommend you keep a leading system, like ECC. In an integrated system landscape with SAP ERP and SAP TM, the ERP system is frequently the leading master data system. In this case, the product master data is maintained in the ERP system, where it is managed as materials and transferred to SAP TM via the SAP Core Interface (CIF).
Mass maintenance allows your company to maintain the following objects en masse: transportation lanes, locations, products, and resources.
Where-used features allow your company to find the following objects and see where they are used: calculation sheet, hierarchy, location, location/product, product, product-specific transportation lane, rates, resources, scales, transportation service provider, transportation lane, and transportation zone.