MM - Managing Material Master Data

MM - Managing Material Master Data

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Version

Prepared for R/3 Release 2.2. August 1994

Copyrights

~1994 SAP AG. All rights reserved.

Neither this documentation nor any part of it may be copied or reproduced in any form or by any means or translated into another language, without the prior consent of SAP AG.

SAP AG makes no warranties or represenations with respect to the content hereof and specifically disclaims any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for any particular purpose. SAP AG assumes no responsibility for any errors that may appear in this document. The information contained in this document is subject to change without notice. SAP AG reserves the right to

make any such changes without obligation to notify any person of such revision or changes. SAP AG makes no commitment to keep the information contained herein up to date.

Material Master

In this section you will learn about some of the basic features of the material master. The material master contains all the information on all materials in a company. This section provides an overview of the

¯ functions and use of the material master ¯ data structure in the material master

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Functions and Use of the Material Master

The material master contains all the information on all materials that a company procures, produces, stores, and sells. It is the company’s central source for retrieving material data. The material master is used by all components in the SAP Logistics system.

The integration of all material data in a single data base object eliminates redundant data storage. Areas such as purchasing, inventory management, material requirements planning, invoice

verification, and so on, can all use the same data.

The data in the material master is used to perform the following functions in the SAP Logistics system:

in purchasing for purchase order processing

in inventory management for goods movement postings and physical inventory management in invoice verification for posting invoices

in sales for order processing

in production planning and control for material requirements planning, scheduling, and work scheduling

Data Structure of the Material Master

The material master has a hierarchical structure resembling the organizational structure of a company.

How a Company is Organized in the SAP R/3 System

The SAP R/3 System can be organized flexibly to suit individual company needs. When the system is installed, its organization is tailored as precisely as possible to your company structure.

Basic Concepts of the Company Structure

The SAP R/3 System represents your company structure using the following organizational units:

Client

A client is a legally and organizationally autonomous user of the system; a grouping and/or collaboration of legal, organizational, commercial, and/or administrative units with a common

purpose.

Example: group Company code

A company code is a legally independent unit within a client.

The balance sheet and profit and loss account are drawn up at company code level, in accordance with legal requirements. The R/3 System can manage several companies at the same time in one client.

Examples: company, subsidiary Plant

A plant is an operating unit or place of business within a company.

Examples: production site, branch office, field office Storage location

A storage location is the total of all storage bins in a plant that are managed together.

Purchasing organization

A purchasing organization is an organizational unit that procures materials and/or services for all organizational units situated beneath it in the company structure, and negotiates general

purchasing conditions with vendors.

Sales organization

A sales organization is an organizational unit that sells materials or services and negotiates sales conditions.

The market can be divided up on the basis of sales organizations into, for example, geographical regions or specific industries. All sales events and transactions are processed within a particular sales organization.

A sales organization can be further subdivided into distribution channels and divisions.

Warehouse number

A warehouse number represents a complex warehouse management system consisting of different organizational and technical units (that is to say, storage types).

Storage types subdivide a complex warehouse (that is to say, a warehouse number) into separate areas that differ with regard to their storage method, organizational form, and/or function.

Examples: goods receipt, picking, and replenishment stocks

How the Organizational Units Are Linked to Each Other

The company structure as modeled in the SAP System is hierarchical. The client is the top level, which can include several company codes. Several plants can be allocated to a company code, and a plant can include various storage locations.

The following figure illustrates these relationships graphically.

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Plants must always be consecutively numbered across all company codes. Thus, plants belonging to different company codes cannot have the same number. By contrast, storage location numbers can be repeated as long as they are in different plants.

A purchasing organization groups together any combination of plants. The allocation of plant to purchasing organization is not fixed; that is, a purchasing organization may supply to several plants and a plant may be supplied by several purchasing organizations. However, a purchasing

organization is always allocated to one company code. The figure below illustrates these relationships graphically.

Client 001

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0002

0003

0004

A sales organization groups together any combination of plants. The allocation of plant to sales organization is not fixed; that is, a sales organization may sell for several plants and a plant may supply to several sales organizations. However, a sales organization is always allocated to one company code.

The figure below illustrates these relationships graphically.

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The warehouse number and the storage type are only relevant if you use the SAP Warehouse Management system (WM).

Only one storage location per plant can be allocated to a warehouse number. However, storage locations belonging to different plants can be managed under the same warehouse number.

One warehouse number may exist for several physical warehouses, and these are represented as storage types in the Warehouse Management system. Storage types differ according to

organizational and technical criteria (for example, high rack storage area and block storage area). One storage type groups together several storage bins. A storage bin is the smallest physical unit the system can address.

A plant may have storage locations that are not managed using the Warehouse Management system.

How the Company Structure is Represented in the Material Master

Some material data is valid at all organizational levels, while other data is valid only at certain levels. We have designed the material master so that it reflects the hierarchical structure of a company and can manage material data centrally without amassing redundant information. Client level

General material data applicable to the entire company is stored at client level. This includes, for example, material group, base unit of measure, material descriptions, and conversion factors for alternative units of measure.

Plant level

All data that is valid for a particular plant as well as for the storage locations belonging to it is stored at plant level. This includes, for example, MRP and forecast data.

Storage location level

All data that refers to a particular storage location is stored at storage location level. This applies mainly to storage location stocks.

Sales organization level

All material data relevant to sales is stored at sales organization level. This includes, for example, grouping terms such as product hierarchy, account assignment group, and price reference material.

Warehouse number level

All material data specific to warehouse management and relating to a particular warehouse number is stored at warehouse number level. This includes, for example, data on palletizing, stock placement, and stock removal.

Storage type level

All material data specific to warehouse management and relating to a particular storage type is stored at storage type level. This includes, for example, fixed storage bins as well as maximum and minimum storage bin quantities.

Material Master Records

This section describes material master records. These are what the material master is made up of. You will learn about:

¯ the different types of data that a material master record can contain ¯ the statuses that a material master record can have

¯ how material master records are numbered

Also explained is the importance of the material type, industry sector, and profiles for material master records.

The final section tells you what factors determine the sequence in which screens appear and which fields are displayed when you process a material master record.

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Data in the Material Master Record

All the information your company needs to manage a material is stored in a data record in the material master, the material master record. Thus, a material master record contains all the main data on a material, sorted by various different criteria.

What Type of Data Does a Material Master Record Contain?

You can enter and change the majority of data in a material master record yourself.

However, some information can only be updated by the system. For example, the system updates the administrative data when you process a material master record, and stock balances when goods receipts or goods issues are posted.

Moreover, the data in a material master record can be divided into two categories: ¯ Data of a purely descriptive nature

This is data with an information content such as name, size, or dimension. ¯ Data that the system uses to perform a control function

This is data such as MRP type and price control.

What Departmental Data Does a Material Master Record Contain?

Since different departments in a company work with the same material but each department uses different information on that material, the data in a material master record can also be subdivided in terms of the departments to which it belongs. Every department has its own view on a material

master record and is responsible for the correctness of its data.

Below is a list of the different user departments or views, as they are called in the R/3 System. The information that can be stored for them is illustrated with examples:

Work scheduling

Data required for production scheduling. Examples: tolerance data and in-house processing times.

Accounting

Data relating to material valuation and automatic account determination. Examples: price control, standard or moving average price, valuation class.

Material requirements planning

Information on material requirements planning. Examples: MRP type, safety stock, and planned delivery or production time for a material.

Purchasing

Material data provided by the purchasing department. Examples: purchasing group responsible for the material, overdelivery and underdelivery tolerances, and purchase order text.

Production resources/tools

Information on the use of a material as production resource/tool. Examples: use in particular task list types, grouping keys, default values for task lists and production orders.

Costing

Data needed for costing purposes. Examples: product/unit costing indicator, costing lot size, default valuation data.

Classification

Typical material classification data. Examples: assignment to one or more classes, valuation of characteristics, standard class.

Engineering/design

Technical specifications for the engineering/design of a material. Examples: Document Management data, International Article Number (EAN), and dimensions.

Storage

Information on storage and transportation. Examples: storage conditions and packaging sizes. Warehouse management

Information on stock placement and stock removal. Examples: storage type for stock placement and stock removal, and loading equipment quantities.

Forecasting

Information used to predict material requirements. Examples: forecast model and forecast period.

Quality management

Data relating to quality management. Examples: technical delivery terms, certificate type requirement, quality inspection data (one type for each event).

Sales

Information on sales and shipping. Examples: product hierarchy, account determination group, pricing reference material, sales text.

Maintenance Status of a Material Master Record

When a user department creates its data for a material, the material master record acquires a maintenance status.

The maintenance status is important for finding out which data has already been maintained and which data still needs maintaining. A material master record also needs a status so that other SAP components can work with it. For example, accounting data must exist for a material before

inventory management can become active.

The table below shows the possible maintenance statuses of a material master record.

User department Maintenance status

Accounting B

Classification C

Costing G

Engineering/design K

Forecasting P

Material requirements planning D

Plant stocks X*

Production resources/tools F

Purchasing E

Quality management Q

Storage L

Storage location stocks Z*

Warehouse management S

Work scheduling A

* This data is used for display purposes only; it cannot be modified manually.

Interdependency of User Department and Organizational Levels/Profiles

You may need to enter additional organizational levels and control parameters, depending on which department you are in. One important factor is the organizational level at which the data is

managed.

The table below shows you which data you must specify/can specify, and when.

Select the user department

Accounting

and fill in the fields The entry is ...:

Plant mandatory

(if valuation at plant level)

Company code mandatory

(if valuation at company code level)

Classification None

Costing Plant mandatory

Engineering/design none

Forecasting Plant mandatory

Forecast profile optional

Material requirements Plant mandatory

planning 1+2+3 Storage location optional

MRP profile optional

Production Plant mandatory

resources/tools

Purchase order text none

Purchasing Plant optional

Quality management Plant mandatory

Sales 1+2 Sales organization mandatory

Distribution channel dep. on sales org.

Sales text Plant optional

Sales organization mandatory Distribution channel dep. on sales org.

Sales/plant data Plant

Sales organization Distribution channel

mandatory mandatory dep. on sales org.

Storage Plant optional

Storage location optional

Warehouse Plant optional

management Warehouse number mandatory

Storage type optional

Work scheduling 1+2 Plant mandatory

How Is a Material Master Record Numbered?

For every material your company uses, you must create a material master record in the material master. This record is uniquely identified by a material number.

You can assign mnemonic keys or non-mnemonic keys as material numbers, depending on the method your company prefers. The SAP R/3 System distinguishes between two types of number assignment:

¯ external number assignment ¯ internal number assignment

If your company uses mnemonic keys (these are normally alphanumeric), you enter the character string you want to use as the material number when you create the material master record. This

process is called external number assignment.

If your company uses non-mnemonic keys, you do not enter a material number when creating a material master record. The system fills the field with the material number Internal when you save the material master record. The system then assigns a consecutive number automatically. This

process is called internal number assignment.

The type of number assignment allowed depends on the material type selected and is defined in Customizing by the systems administrator.

The systems administrator can also set the material number length (in Customizing) to suit the needs of your company. A material number may contain up to 18 characters.

KMaterial Types

Materials with the same basic features are grouped together and assigned to the same material type. This allows you to manage different materials in a uniform manner that conforms to your company’s requirements. Examples of material types are raw materials, semi-finished products, and finished products.

When creating a material master record, you must assign a material type to the material. The material type determines certain features of the material and has important control functions.

What Is the Function of a Material Type?

When you create a material master record, the material type you choose determines ¯ whether the material number can be assigned internally or externally

¯ from which number range the material number comes ¯ which screens appear and in what sequence

¯ which departmental data you may enter

In addition, the material type determines the material’s procurement type, that is, whether a material is manufactured in-house or procured externally, or whether both are possible.

The material type together with the plant also determines the material’s inventory management requirement, that is:

¯ whether changes in quantity are updated in the material master record

¯ whether changes in value are also updated in the stock accounts of financial accounting

Furthermore, the accounts affected by a material entering or leaving the warehouse depend on the material type.

The systems administrator defines these control functions centrally in Customizing.

What Material Types Are There?

The following table shows you what material types exist in the standard SAP R/3 System, and what their different roles are.

Material type

Services

Finished goods

Definition

Services are procured externally and cannot be stored. A material

master record of this material type can always contain

purchasing data.

Finished goods are produced by the company itself. Since they are not ordered by purchasing, a material master record of this material type does not contain purchasing data.

Semi-finished products Trading goods Operating supplies Non-stock material Raw materials Non-valuated materials Production resources/tools Packaging materials

Semi-finished products can be procured externally and/or manufactured

in-house. The company then processes them further. A material master record of this material type can contain both

purchasing and work scheduling data. Trading goods are procured externally and then sold. A material master record of this material type can contain

purchasing and sales data. Operating supplies are procured

externally and required for the manufacture of other products. A material master record of this material type can contain

purchasing data but no sales data. This is material that is not held in

stock because it is consumed immediately. Raw materials are always procured externally and processed further. Since

raw materials cannot be sold, a material master record of this material type contains no sales data.

A material of this material type is managed on a quantity basis, not by value.

These materials are procured externally and used in the production of

further materials. A material master record of this material type contains purchasing data, but no sales data. It is managed on a quantity basis. Examples of production

resources/tools are apparatus, equipment, and measuring and testing devices.

Packaging materials are used to transport goods and are delivered with the goods free of charge. A material

master record of this material type is managed both on a quantity basis and by value.

Competitive products Materials of this type have their

own material master records, created from the Engineering/Design view. The

competitor’s number, which is stored here, assigns the material to one particular competitor.

Specifying a Material Type

You specify a material’s material type when you create a material master record. There are two ways of doing this:

¯ From the menu screen of the material master, select Material--> Create special --> <Material

type>. This takes you to the initial screen for creating a material of the material type just

selected.

Use this method when you want to create several materials of the same material type in one session.

From the menu screen of the material master, select Material --> Create general. This takes you to the initial screen for creating a material. Enter the material type in the Material type field.

Use this method when you want to create several materials of different material types in one session.

Changing a Material Type

Consider your choice of material type carefully, since it is not always possible to change it. In certain circumstances, however, a change in the material type may be necessary. For example, a

material that was always procured externally in the past and whose material type allows only external procurement is to be produced in-house in the future. A material type that allows in-house

production must therefore be assigned to the material.

Since the material type influences the way transactions are processed in the SAP R/3 System, the system checks any change to the material type to see whether it is allowed. The following cases are possible:

¯ The material type can be changed without restrictions if no stocks, reservations, or purchasing documents exist yet for the material.

¯ The following conditions must be met if the material is already in stock, or if purchasing documents or reservations exist for it:

- The stock values of the material of the new material type must be updated in the same G/L account as the stock values of the material of the old material type.

Quantities and values of the material of the new material type must be updated in exactly the same way in all plants as quantities and values of the material of the old material type.

If the new material type does not allow purchasing to maintain the material data, but purchasing and similar documents already exist, the system displays a message to this effect.

If there is a transfer request for the material and if quants of the material are available, the new material type must also allow Warehouse Management to maintain the material data.

When you change from a material type that allows only in-house production to a material type that allows only external procurement, or vice versa, the system converts the procurement type

accordingly.

¯ When you change to a material type that allows different departmental data than the old material type

all fields for a user department that no longer exists are reset to their initial value - the fields of a user department that become required entry fields as a result of the new

material type are displayed in a list; you can maintain these fields with Material -~ Change.

Example:

You want to produce a material that until now was procured externally and belonged to the material type "ROH". You now need to assign it the material type "HALB". In our example, no stocks exist yet for the material. This is what you do:

1. From the menu screen of the material master, select Material ~ Change material type. The initial screen for changing the material type appears.

2. In the Material field, enter the number of the material whose material type you want to change, and in the New material type field enter halb.

When you press Enter, the system fills the Old material type field with the old material type. 3. Select Actions -~ Execute. The following message appears:

You are changing material type from ROH to HALB.

4. Confirm this message by pressing Enter.

If the two material types are linked with different accounts on the basis of their valuation classes, a pop-up window appears asking you to enter a valuation class that is valid for all plants or company codes with the new material type.

5. Confirm or change the valuation class and press Enter. The following message appears:

Industry Sectors

In addition to classifying materials according to material type, you must also assign an industry sector to every material. You specify the industry sector when you create a material master record.

Like material types, industry sectors have control functions in the SAP R/3 System. Once an industry sector has been assigned to a material, it can no longer be changed.

Read the section Screen S~quer~ce and Ei~!~! Se!ec~i~r).

What Is the Function of an Industry Sector?

When you create a material master record, the industry sector you specify determines ¯ which screens appear and in what sequence

¯ which industry-specific fields appear on the screens

What Industry Sectors Are There?

You can see what industry sectors there are in the standard SAP R/3 System from the following table.

Industry sector Industry key

Plant engineering and construction Chemical industry Mechanical engineering Pharmaceuticals A C M P Setting a Default

If you repeatedly assign the same industry sector to your materials, you may find it useful to predefine this in the system; that is, to set a default industry sector. This value is then proposed automatically whenever you create a material master record.

You set an industry sector default as follows:

.

From the initial screen of the application function Create material, select Defaults --> Industry. A window appears.

2. Enter the desired industry key.

If you do not want the Industry field to be displayed on the initial screen when a material master record is created, select the indicator Suppress industry sector on initial screen. The industry sector will not reappear on the initial screen until you cancel this selection.

Profiles

A profile is a collection of information used to configure certain objects. It stores standard

information that you need repeatedly in almost identical combinations when maintaining different objects. Thus a profile simplifies data entry and data management.

In a profile you specify

¯ which fields are filled with values when data on an object is entered ¯ which values these fields contain

¯ which of these values can be overwritten (default values) and which cannot be overwritten (fixed values)

In the material master, the objects are the material master records and the object data is the MRP or forecast data. There are two kinds of profile:

¯ MRP profile ¯ forecast profile

You can assign a profile to a material master record when you create it. This has the effect that fixed values that are copied from the profile into a data screen cannot be changed in the material

master record. By contrast, you may overwrite default values. The values are written to the material master record when you save it.

The following functions are available for profiles: ¯ create profile

¯ display profile ¯ change profile ¯ delete profile

In the following section you will learn how to create, display, change, and delete profiles in the material master. MRP and forecast profiles are processed according to identical principles. The following section describes this procedure for both profiles.

Creating a Profile

This is how you create a profile in the material master:

1. From the menu screen of the material master, select Profile ~ MRP profile or Forecast profile

~Create.

The initial Create Profile screen appears. 2. Enter the key you want to assign to the profile.

If you want to use an existing profile as a reference, enter the name of this profile in the

Reference field so that the system can copy its values to the new profile.

3. Select Goto ~ Selection screen.

The selection screen appears. It shows all the fields that can be copied to the MRP or forecasting screen of the material master record.

You must also decide whether each field will be copied to the material master record as a fixed value or a default value.

5. Select Goto --~ Data screen.

The data screen appears. Only the fields you marked on the selection screen are presented for you to fill in. The fixed and default values are displayed in different colors. All fixed values are

required entry fields except where the field can also accept the value Blank. 6. Enter your data and save the profile with Profile --> Save.

You now return to the initial screen where you can create another profile.

Note

The MRP profile data is spread over two screens. You can switch from one screen to the other with

Goto --> Screen 1 or --> Screen 2.

The system runs a number of checks when you create a new profile:

¯ When you go from the selection screen to the data screen, the system checks whether the selected fields form a reasonable combination and are allowed to appear in the same profile.

Example:

The Fixed lot size and Maximum stock level fields may not be combined in one MRP profile. ¯ When you save the data on the data screen, the system checks

- whether the values you have entered are valid, for example, whether they are defined in the appropriate table

- whether the values you have entered are compatible with each other

Example:

If the Maximum stock level field appears in the profile, you must also specify a Lot size that can give the highest stock level.

If the system detects inconsistencies or errors, it asks you to change the fields selected on the selection screen and/or correct the values.

Displaying a Profile

This is how you display a profile in the material master:

1. From the menu screen of the material master, select Profile -~ MRP profile or Forecast profile

--> Display.

The initial Display Profile screen appears. 2. Enter the name of the profile.

3. Select Goto --~ Selection screen.

The selection screen appears. In display mode, only the fields that are defined in the profile are displayed.

4. Select Goto --~ Data screen.

The data screen appears. You see the values that are defined in the profile. Select Goto --~ Back to return to the initial screen and continue.

When you change a profile, the system not only updates the changed values in the profile; it also generates a batch job which updates all material master records that have this profile assigned to them. However, this applies only to changes that affect fixed values. A change document is created automatically for all materials where such changes have occurred.

This is how you change a profile in the material master.

1. From the menu screen of the material master, select Profile -~ MRP profile or Forecast profile

--~ Change.

The initial Change Profile screen appears.

2. Enter the name of the profile and select Goto --~Selection screen.

The selection screen appears. All the fields already included in the profile are selected. 3. Make the desired changes:

- Select new fixed values or default values.

- Change fixed values to default values or vice versa. - Cancel selections that are no longer needed.

.

Select Goto -~ Data screen 1 or 2 (in an MRP profile) or Goto -~ Data screen (in a forecast profile).

The data screen appears.

5. Enter the changed values and save the profile with Profile --~ Save. You now return to the initial screen and can continue.

The same checks are run as when you create a profile. See "Creating a Profile" in .?rofi!es

In addition, the system automatically creates the batch job PROFILE to update the material master records, and runs it overnight. It generates one batch job only, even if you change several profiles on the same day.

If errors occur as a result of data incompatibility, the details are recorded in a log. The next day, you can check the log to see which material master records were affected by these errors, and then edit them manually.

If the batch job terminates for any reason, you must request an update of the material master

records for the coming night manually. You do this by creating a batch job for program RMMM0001. You can use PROFILE again as your job name or job group; no variant is necessary.

Deleting a Profile

The system also generates the batch job PROFILE when you delete a profile. The job is run

automatically in the evening. It cancels the profile in every material master record with that profile assigned to it; that is, the profile assignment disappears, but the values themselves remain stored in the material master record.

If errors occur while the job is being run, they are recorded in a log. The next day, you can check the log to see which material master records were affected by these errors, and then edit them

manually.

This is how you delete a profile in the material master:

1. From the menu screen of the material master, select Profile --~ MRP profile or Forecast profiles

The initial Delete Profile screen appears.

2. Enter the name of the profile you want to delete and press Enter. A pop-up window appears.

3. Position the cursor on Yes and press Enter.

Screen Sequence and Field Selection

When processing a material master record, you work through its screens in a set sequence (the screen sequence). Certain fields on these screens are needed for some processes, but not for others (field selection).

Screen sequence and field selection in a material master record depend among other things on the following questions:

¯ Which SAP components does your company use?

If, for example, your company does not use the SAP Warehouse Management system, the warehouse management screens do not appear.

¯ Which industry sector does your company, and therefore your materials, belong to?

If your company belongs to the chemical industry, for example, the fields that appear on the screens will not be the same as for a mechanical engineering company.

¯ Which material type do you assign to a material?

If the material is a raw material, for example, the sales screens are not displayed in the standard R/3 System because raw materials cannot be sold.

¯ Which organizational level(s) do you want to enter data for?

If you enter data at plant level only, fields specific to storage location are suppressed.

Standard Screen Sequence

You work through the material master data screens in a set sequence. The initial screen takes you to a first and then to a second pop-up window. In the first one, you select the views you want on the material master record; in the second, you specify the organizational levels. This then takes you to the data screens.

Material

(Industry)

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eference)

Organizational

levels

-Plant

-Storagelocation

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i : Standard screen sequence (without default settings)

Datascreen(s)

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The data screens in a material master record can be divided into two types: ¯ main screens

These are the screens of the individual user departments such as engineering/design, material requirements planning, and so on. They also include the purchase order text, the sales text, and the stock views.

¯ secondary screens

These are the screens containing additional information such as units of measure, material descriptions, consumption values, forecast values, and administrative data.

A standard processing sequence is defined for the main screens. It is followed provided that all requirements such as material type, user department(s) authorization, view selection, and so on, are met. To go from one main screen to the next, press Enter.

Direct Screen Access

It is also possible to access any screen direct as long as the following conditions are met: ¯ you have an authorization for the user department concerned

¯ the user department is allowed for the material type selected

From any main screen, you can switch to another main screen of your choice using Goto --> <User

department>.

You access secondary screens from a main or secondary screen with Details --> <Secondary

Creating Material Master Records

This section tells you how material master records are created. The initial sections describe the different ways to do this:

This section also explains which data is important to each user department and what you need to bear in mind when entering this data.

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Basics

The following section tells you what you need to know before you create a material master record. When to Create a Material Master Record

You must create a material master record in the following cases:

If the material you need is not defined in the material master; in other words, if there is no material master record for that material. In this case, you create the material master record. If the material you need is already defined in the master record but the master data for your user department is missing. In this case, you extend the material master record by selecting the

create function.

If your user department data has already been entered for the material you need but not at the appropriate organizational level (for example, a different plant). In this case, you extend the material master record by selecting the create function.

Points to Consider

Before you create a material master record, consult the following checklist:

¯ Are you sure there is no material master record in the system for this material? You can check this using a matchcode or by calling up the materials list.

¯ Is there already a similar material in the system that you can use to enter data? ¯ What material number do you want to give the material?

¯ What is the material’s material type?

¯ Which industry sector does the material belong to? ¯ What description do you want to give the material?

¯ In what unit of measure do you want to manage the material?

If you enter engineering/design or purchasing data: to which material group do you want to allocate the material?

¯ If you use the SAP R/3 Classification System: to which class do you want to assign the material?

¯ If you enter MRP data:which procedure will be used to plan the material and, if applicable, what is the name of the MRP profile?

¯ If you enter forecasting data: which model do you want to use to forecast material requirements and, if applicable, what is the name of the forecast profile?

Different Ways of Creating a Material Master Record

¯ creating a material master record with a reference ¯ extending a material master record

The approach you adopt depends on what data is already in the system. In all cases, you use the

Create function.

Creating a Material Master Record

Your company may be organized in such a way that all material master records are created centrally. In this case, the minimum of departmental data is entered centrally, and users in individual departments then add to this information using the Change function. The central body

must be authorized to enter data for all departments.

Alternatively, however, your company may be organized decentrally, with each department creating its own material master records. Users are authorized to process data for one, or possibly several, departments.

In both cases, this is how you create a material master record:

.

From the menu screen of the material master, select Material --~ Create special --~ <Material

type>,

The initial screen for creating a material of a particular material type appears. 2. Fill in the initial screen:

Enter a material number if your company uses external number assignment and if the material type allows external number assignment. Otherwise, leave the field empty.

m

Note

Assign the material to an industry sector.

If you select Material--~ Create general from the initial material master screen, the screen for creating a material appears. Here, you must specify the material type to which you want to assign the material.

You reach the Select View(s) pop-up window by pressing Enter. What views appear at this point depends on the way the material type has been set up in Customizing.

3. Select the views, that is, the user departments, for which you want to enter data and press Enter. The Organizational Levels/Profiles pop-up window now appears.

4. Specify the organizational levels necessary for your departments and, if applicable, enter the profiles.

Organizational levels and profiles are explained in detail later in this section (see "Individual user departments").

You reach the data screen of the first user department by pressing Enter.

5. Enter the material description and the base unit of measure for the material in the appropriate fields.

decide what you are going to enter here.

Caution

Once you have entered the material description and pressed Enter, the only way to change it is using Details -~ Texts --~ Descriptions,

6. Enter your departmental data. You must fill in the required fields. The other fields are optional. Specific points to note are described later in this section

You reach the next departmental data screen by pressing Enter.

7. Repeat the procedure described under point 6 until you have entered the data for all user departments.

When you reach the data screen of the last department that you selected in the Select View(s) window, the system displays a message to this effect.

If you want to enter data for a department that you did not select in the pop-up window, select

Goto --~ <User department> from the data screen of any department. The system either goes

direct to the next data screen or asks you to enter the organizational levels needed for the new department. However, you can only switch to another department if you are authorized to process its data and if the material type allows this department.

8. Save the data with Material -~ Save.

You now return to the initial Create Material screen and can start creating the next material master record.

Creating a Material Master Record with a Reference

When you create a material master record using a reference, you refer to a similar material that is already defined in the data base. The system copies the "reference material" data into the new

material master record where you can overwrite it if necessary. This is what you do:

. From the menu screen of the material master, select Material -~ Create special -~ <Material

type>.

The initial screen for creating a material of a particular material type appears. 2. Fill in the initial screen:

If your company uses external number assignment and if the material type allows external number assignment, enter a number. Otherwise, leave the field empty.

- Assign the material to an industry sector.

In the Material field under Reference, enter the number of the material whose data you want to copy as a reference into the new master record.

Note

If you select Material-~ Create general from the initial material master screen, the screen for creating a material appears. Here, you must in addition specify the material type to which you want to assign your material.

The Select View(s) pop-up window appears when you press Enter. 3. Select the departments for which you want to create data and press Enter.

The Organizational Levels/Profiles pop-up window appears.

.

.

In the Reference column, enter the organizational levels of the desired reference material (see also "Setting Default Organizational Levels and Profiles" in ~ctio0,s ).

If you do not enter an organizational level in the reference column, the system proposes the client values from the reference material.

Press Enter.

The reference material data is now copied to the new data screens. These values can be overwritten.

Save the data with Material -~ Save.

You now return to the initial screen, where you can start creating the next material master record.

Extending a Material Master Record

If a department creates data for a material, the material master record exists in the data base as from this date. If you work in another department and want to enter data on the same material, you do not have to create another material master record. Instead, you just extend it to include the information relevant to your own user department. You also extend a material master record if you want to store data on a particular user department at further organizational levels.

The following section describes how you extend a material master record to include the data needed by your own department. Follow the same steps to extend a material master record to include new organizational levels. You extend an existing material master record using the Create function.

1. From the menu screen of the material master, select Material --~ Create special --~ <Material

type>.

The initial screen for creating a material of a particular material type appears. 2. Fill in the initial screen:

Enter a material number.

This number is mandatory, even if only internal number assignment is allowed in your company, because you are adding data to an existing material master record. If you do not enter a number, you will create a new material master record.

- You do not need to enter an industry sector. The system will copy this value from the existing material master record. Moreover, if you have selected Material -~ Create general from the initial material master screen, you do not need to enter a material type. This value, too, is copied from the existing material master record.

3. Press Enter.

If you have entered an industry sector and a material type that differ from those already entered by another user department, the system issues a warning that you confirm with Enter. If you have not entered any values, you confirm the message that appears with Enter.

The Select View(s) pop-up window appears.

4. Select the user department whose data you want to add to the material master record and press Enter.

The Organizational Levels/Profiles pop-up window appears.

5. Specify the organizational levels and, if applicable, the profile you need for your user department and press Enter.

.

The data screen of your user department now appears with the message Material exists and is

being extended.

The data that has already been entered and is valid for all user departments has been copied to your data screen. This includes, for example, the material description and the base unit of

measure. You cannot change such data. You can only make entries in fields that have not already been filled by other departments.

Enter the data for your user department and save it with Material -~ Save. You now return automatically to the initial screen.

Material Data" the Engineering/Design View

The following section deals in detail with material master records from the Engineering/Design view. It is assumed that no data has yet been created for any other view or user department.

Organizational Levels

Since engineering or design data is valid for the entire group, you cannot specify organizational levels for this department. The Organizational Levels pop-up window does not appear.

Engineering/Design Data

On the Engineering/Design screen, you enter data that is also used by other user departments or views:

Material description and base unit of measure

This information is mandatory and identical for all departments. Talk to the other users to decide what you are going to enter here.

Material group

A material group allows materials with common features to be classifed under one heading. Product hierarchy

Key that groups together materials for analytical and pricing purposes through the combination of various features.

The most important data in the General data box is: Gross weight and unit of weight

The gross weight and its unit are always stored in relation to the material’s base unit of measure.

Volume and unit of volume

The volume and its unit are always stored in relation to the material’s base unit of measure. EAN/UPC

This field contains the International Article Number (EAN) or Universal Product Code (UPC), which is always stored in the system in relation to the material’s base unit of measure. The

system determines the EAN/UPC automatically if you enter a suitable number category in the

EAN category field.

EAN category

You specify an EAN category if you want the system to assign the EAN (International Article Number) or UPC (Universal Product Code) internally. The EAN category you choose also determines the EAN’s test digit algorithm. Like the EAN itself, the EAN category refers to one packed or wrapped base unit of the material.

For more detailed information on EAN management, please see the section "EAN Management" in ~..I=yn£t!.o.n§..

¯ If your company does not use the SAP Document Management System, you can enter data on drawings directly on the EngineeringlDesign screen.

¯ If your company does use the SAP Document Management System and there is no link to a drawing, the No link field is active; if several drawings exist for the material, the Several documents field is active.

To create links to documents, select Details -~ Further details --~ Document data. For more information on document management, please see _S_#ecial Functions.

Material Data: the Purchasing View

The following section tells you about material master records from the Purchasing view. It is assumed that no data has yet been created for any other view or user department.

Organizational Levels

You can enter a plant here, but this entry is optional since not all purchasing data is plant-specific. Note, however, that what you enter here will determine which purchasing data is displayed.

Purchasing Data

You can enter the following data on the Purchasing screen: Material description and base unit of measure

This information is mandatory and identical for all departments. Talk to the other users to decide what you are going to enter here.

Order unit

You only need to make an entry if the unit in which the material was purchased differs from the base unit of measure.

Purchasing group

In this field, enter a key for a buyer or group of buyers responsible for procuring the material. Purchasing analyses can later be selected on the basis of this entry.

Material group

A material group allows materials with common features to be classifed under one heading. MM/PP status

Specify the material status from the materials management/production planning view to limit the usability of the material for certain activities. The material status determines:

- the neighboring application areas such as material requirements planning and bills of

materials, where the material may be used.

- the type of error message the system issues when the material is used in these application areas.

Variable order unit

Set this indicator to activate variable order unit processing. This means that the order unit you specify in a purchase order may be different from the one given in the purchasing info record. Purchasing value key

You specify reminder and tolerance data, shipping instructions, and order acknowledgement requirement using the purchasing value key. After you have entered a key, the system fills the fields with the values defined in Customizing.

The lower box on the screen contains general data fields that can also be accessed by other departments. Talk to the other users before you enter values here.

Goods receipt processing time

Enter the number of days required for the acceptance, further processing, and placement of the material into stock.

Select this field if you want to manage the material in batches. Critical part

Select this field if you want to indicate that the material in question is essential to production.

Creating a Purchase Order Text

The purchase order text is a text that describes the material in detail. It is automatically copied into purchasing documents, such as purchase requisitions or purchase orders, where you can change it if necessary. You can store it in the material master record in as many languages as you like, although only one text is possible per language. It is stored at client level, that is, it is valid at all organizational levels below the client level. You can use SAP’s SAPscript word processing functions to enter the purchase order text.

This is how you enter a purchase order text for a material:

. . .

From the purchasing data screen, select Views --~ Purchasing --~ Purchase order text. The Purchase Order Text data screen appears.

Enter a key in the Language field. This stands for the language in which you want to store the purchase order text.

In the Long text area, enter a text specific to the material. This text will later be used as a purchase order text when a purchasing document is created and printed.

You can obtain additional space to enter text by accessing the SAP word processing functions with Edit --> Long text --> Long text screen. When you have finished, select Back to return to the

purchase order text data screen.

Part or all of your text is visible in the text entry area. If the More long text field is selected, this indicates that the purchase order text includes more lines than displayed here, or that the lines extend further. If the text fits into the area, the field is empty.

4. To enter a purchase order text in another language, select Edit -~ Long text --> Create text. You will be presented with another (at present, empty) text area that you can edit as described

above.

5. Select any menu option or press Enter to continue. Otherwise, save the purchase order text with

Material -->Save.

Material Data: the Material Requirements Planning View

requirements planning (MRP). It is assumed that no data has yet been created for any other view or user department.

Organizational Levels

Since a material is planned at plant level, you must enter the appropriate plant in the Organizational Levels/Profiles pop-up window.

If you want to enter material data specific to a storage location, you must specify the storage location. You must specify a storage location if you intend a material to be included in storage location MRP. Storage locations are considered as independent units for the purposes of material requirements planning.

Thirdly, you enter an MRP profile on this window if you want to create MRP data using a profile. Further information on this subject can be found in the section "MRP profile" and in Material Master Records.

MRP Data

MRP data is distributed over three screens. On the first screen, you will find cross-departmental information as well as data relating to the material’s MRP procedure.

Material description and base unit of measure

This information is mandatory and identical for all departments. Talk to the other users to decide what you are going to enter here.

Procurement type

This information is defined automatically, on the basis of the material type you have chosen. If a material’s material type makes it suitable for both in-house production and external

procurement, but you want to opt for just one of them, enter the appropriate indicator here. Special procurement

This allows you to store further information on the procurement types "in-house production" or "external procurement". For example, you can specify that the material is externally procured by means of a consignment order.

If you do not use an MRP profile when creating a material master record, certain entries are mandatory. In our example, these are:

MRP type

This determines how a material is planned. In this case, choose forecast-based planning. MRP controller

In this field, enter a key for the MRP controller or group of MRP controllers responsible for planning the material. MRP analyses can later be selected on the basis of this entry. Scheduling margin

The system uses this key to calculate order scheduling times. Lot size key

This determines which lot-sizing procedure the system uses to calculate the lot size (that is, the order quantity) for material requirements planning.

Note

Depending on how requirements of the material are planned and which values you enter in which fields, you may find it useful or necessary to fill in other fields. Examples:

¯ You must enter the Reorder level and the Safety stock for a material that is planned using the reorder point procedure.

¯ If you enter an optimum lot-size indicator in the Lot size key field, you must also fill in the Lot

size independent costs and Storage costs fields.

The second MRP data screen also contains data of a general nature: Material description and base unit of measure

This information is mandatory and identical for all departments. Talk to the other users to decide what you are going to enter here.

Availability check

This indicator controls among other things

- whether the system generates individual or summarized requirements if you enter sales orders for this material

which MRP items (such as purchase orders or reservations) the system includes in the availability check

whether availability checks are run only until the end of the replenishment lead time, or for as long as the MRP items exist

Use the from the materials management/production planning view to limit the usability of the material for certain activities. The material status determines:

- the neighboring application areas such as purchasing, bills of materials, and so on, where the material may be used.

- the type of error message issued by the system when the material is used in these application areas.

The screen also contains other basic data as well as information on forecast processing and requirements explosion.

Note

In the case of automatic reorder level procedures and forecast-based planning, you must enter a service level for the material, so that the system will be able to calculate safety stock when it carries out material requirements planning.

The third MRP screen contains further basic data: Material description and base unit of measure

This information is mandatory and identical for all departments. Talk to the other users to decide what you are going to enter here.

Repetitive manufacturing

Set this indicator if you want to allow repetitive manufacturing for the material. Version indicator

The system sets this indicator automatically if production versions of the material exist. For detailed information on production versions, please see ,Sj#ecial Functions.

quantities with actual customer requirements.

If you create the material master record for a specific storage location, you can specify in the

Storage location MRP box whether you want the material to be planned at storage location level

(storage location MRP). MRP indicator

This indicator determines how stock at this storage location is handled during a planning run. Reorder level and replenishment quantity

These values are valid at storage location level and must be defined for storage location MRP.

MRP Profile

The MRP data of a material can be entered with or without reference to an MRP profile. An MRP profile contains typical MRP data for a particular procedure.

When you create a material master record, you enter an MRP profile on the Organizational Levels/Profiles window to ensure that certain fields on the MRP screens are filled with values. There are two kinds of values: fixed values, which cannot be overwritten, and default values, which can be overwritten. The MRP profile simplifies data entry and data management in the

material master record.

Before you can use a MRP profile, it must be defined in the system. Further information on profiles, how they are created, and what advantages they offer, is given in the section "Profiles" in Material Master Records.

...

Resetting or Changing a Profile

Assign your material master record to an MRP profile by entering an MRP profile in the Organizational Levels/Profiles pop-up window. When you create - and when you change - a

material master record, you can

¯ reset, that is cancel, a profile if you want to overwrite the fixed values copied from it ¯ assign the material to a different profile

This is what you do:

1. From one of the MRP data screens, select Edit-~ MRP profile... A window appears.

2. To reset, or cancel, the profile, enter a blank on the line It will be assigned now. To assign the material to a different profile, enter the new profile on this line.

Material Data: the Forecasting View

The following section explains the Forecasting view on material master records. It is assumed that no data has yet been created for any other view or user department.

Organizational Levels

Since material requirements are forecasted at plant level, you must enter a plant in the Organizational Levels/Profiles pop-up window.

You can also enter a forecast profile on this window if you want to enter forecast data using a profile. Further information on this subject can be found in "Forecast Profile" in .M..a..te.r.i.a.!...D..a.ta...tb.e.. Forecastinq...Vj.ew and also in

Ma.te.r.i.aJ.M.a.s..te..r...R.e..c.o.r.d.s..

Forecasting Data

You can enter the following data on the Forecasting screen. Material description and base unit of measure

This information is mandatory and identical for all departments. Talk to the other users to decide what you are going to enter here.

Forecast Model or Automatic Model Selection

If you did not specify a profile, you must specify which forecast model the system is to take as a basis for its calculations. If you want the system to choose the forecast model, fill in the Model

selection field.

Period indicator

The period indicator specifies what time periods the consumption and forecast values are managed in. If you do not specify a value, a monthly period is assumed; that is, the system updates the consumption and forecast values on a monthly basis.

From the Forecasting data screen, you can access the screens on which you enter the

consumption and forecast values that form the basis for the initial calculation. To do this you must enter a Period indicator and select Details -~ Consumption or Details --~ Forecast details

-~Forecast values. For further information, see the sections "Entering Consumption Values" and

"Entering Forecast Values" in Material Data: the Forecastinq..y!eyv.

Forecast Profiles

You can enter forecast data for a material with or without reference to a forecast profile. A forecast profile determines how material requirements are forecasted. It contains all the forecast data typical for a particular method.

When you create a material master record, you enter a forecast profile on the Organizational Levels/Profiles pop-up window to ensure that specific fields on the Forecasting screen are filled with values. There are fixed values, which cannot be overwritten, and default values, which can

be overwritten. The forecast profile simplifies data entry and data management in the material master record.

Before you can use a forecast profile, you must define it in the system. Information on how to create and use profiles, and what advantages they offer, is given in the section "Profiles" in Material M_a_st e__[___R_e__cor_d_s.

You assign a material master record to a forecast profile by entering a profile on the Organizational Levels/Profiles pop-up window. When you create - and also when you change - a material master record, you can

¯ reset, that is cancel, the profile if you want to overwrite the fixed values copied from it ¯ assign the material to a different profile

This is what you do:

1. From the Forecasting data screen, select Edit--> Forecast profile... A window appears.

2. To reset, that is cancel, the profile assignment, enter a blank in the line It will be assigned now. To assign the material to a different profile, enter the new profile on this line.

Consumption

Consumption values are generally updated automatically in the material master record when stock is withdrawn from the warehouse. However, it is also possible to enter past consumption values

manually, which then form the basis for the initial forecast.

There are two sorts of in the material master record: total consumption and unplanned

consumption values.

Total consumption is the total of planned and unplanned consumption. With the

consumption-based planning of materials, it is always the total consumption that is updated. Unplanned consumption is updated if materials are planned using MRP provided that: ¯ goods are withdrawn from the warehouse without a reservation, or

¯ goods are withdrawn on the basis of a reservation, but the quantity actually withdrawn exceeds the reservation.

Total consumption only is updated if materials are planned using MRP and withdrawn on the basis of a reservation. Planned consumption is not displayed in the material master record. However, you can calculate it yourself by subtracting unplanned consumption from total consumption.

Entering Consumption Values

This is how you enter consumption values:

1. On the Forecasting or Material Requirements Planning screen that you have already filled in, specify whether the consumption values are managed in days, weeks, or months by filling in the

Period indicator field.

2. Check the proposed values in the area Number of periods required, and change or add to them as necessary.

3. Select Details -~ Consumption.

The consumption values entry screen appears.

4. Enter your consumption values, starting from the current period and working backwards. You can enter as many values as you want, both for total consumption and for unplanned

consumption. Switch between the total consumption and unplanned consumption entry screens with Edit --> Total consumption or Unplanned consumption.

If you want to enter more values than there is room for on the first screen, select F23 to obtain further empty lines.

5. Store the data in the system with Material--> Save.

Forecast Values

Forecast values are generally calculated by the system as part of the forecasting process, and then updated in the material master record. However, it is also possible to enter forecast values

manually, which then form the basis for the planning run. Entering

This is how you enter forecast values:

1. Once you have specified the required entries on the Forecasting data screen, define whether forecast values are managed in days, weeks, or months by filling in the Period indicator field. 2. Select Details -~ Forecast details --> Forecast values.

The forecast values entry screen appears. 3. Enter your forecast values.

You can enter as many forecast values as you want. If you want to enter more values than there is room for on the first screen, select F23 to obtain further empty lines.