SAP Material Master - 1

Material Master Concepts - 1

In this article, the material master record is introduced as one of the central master
records in logistics. The structure and maintenance (creation, extension, changing, and
display) of the material master record is discussed. In this article focus will be to:
Explain the significance of material master records
Create and maintain material master records
ame the organi!ational le"els that are important for the maintenance of material
master records
This article emphasi!es on the following points:
#ll the data on a material that is independent of specific "endors, customers, or
production routings, for example, should be stored in a central master record.
Each user department does not ha"e to create its own material master record as
this would result in unnecessary data redundancy.
In order for indi"idual departments to be able to access the data rele"ant to their
needs as easily as possible, the data should be grouped according to area of use.
This can also mean that a piece of information (data field) is displayed in different
"iews.
In addition, due to different re$uirements within the enterprise, you must be able
to enter data depending on the organi!ational le"el
%or example & materials planning: In plant #, the material is re$uired for production
purposes, whereas in plant ' it is only used as a spare part. #s a conse$uence, different
()* procedures must be used for the material, depending on the plant.
The material master record is an enterprise+s main source of material&specific data. It is
used by all areas of logistics in the ,#* )-. system. The integration of all material data
in a single database ob/ect eliminates the problem of data redundancy. #ll areas, such as
purchasing, in"entory management, materials planning, and in"oice "erification, can
/ointly use the data stored.
The data stored in the material master record is re$uired for many purposes, including the
following:
*urchasing data is re$uired for ordering purposes
In"entory management data is needed to post goods mo"ements and carry out
physical in"entories
#ccounting data is re$uired for material "aluation
(aterials planning data is needed for material re$uirements planning
,ince different user departments within an enterprise wor0 with one material, and each
department enters different information relating to it, the data in a material master record
is subdi"ided according to area of use. Each user department thus has its own "iew of a
material master record and is responsible for maintaining the data co"ered by this "iew.
SAP Material Master - 2
Material Master Concepts - 2
The data screens used to process material master records can be subdi"ided into the
following types:
Main data
These are the screens for the indi"idual user departments, such as basic data, materials
planning, and so on.
Additional data
These are the screens on which you find additional information, such as alternati"e units
of measure, material short descriptions, and consumption "alues. The data maintained
within a "iew may be "alid for different organi!ational le"els.
,ome material data is "alid for all organi!ational le"els, while some is "alid for certain
le"els only. ,o that the material data can be administered centrally, without unnecessary
load on the database due to redundant information, the material master is organi!ed in
such a way that it reflects the structure of an enterprise.
Data at client level
1eneral material data that is "alid for the whole enterprise is stored at client le"el.
Data at plant level
#ll data that is "alid within a plant and for all storage locations belonging to it is stored at
plant le"el.
Data at storage location level
#ll data that is "alid for a particular storage location is stored at storage location le"el.
The data for a material is structured by area of use and organi!ational le"el and is also
apparent in material master record maintenance. 2hen processing material master
records, you ha"e to negotiate se"eral dialog screens before you can actually start to
maintain data.
3n the initial screen, you will see two successi"e dialog boxes. In the first dialog box,
you specify the "iews you want to process. In the second one, you specify the rele"ant
organi!ational le"els. #fter this, the data screens appear. 4ou can influence the standard
screen se$uence with pre&settings.
,ome screens are not integrated in the standard screen se$uence. 4ou can only access
these screens by choosing them specifically from the menu bar. 2hen creating a new
material master record, you must choose a material type and an industry sector to which
the material is to be assigned.
SAP Material Master - 3
Material Master Concepts - 3
Material Type
(aterials with the same properties are assigned to the same material type. Examples of
material types are raw materials, semi&finished products, and finished products.
#mong other things, the material type controls:
The type of number assignment (internal or external)
The permissible number range inter"als
2hich screens appear and in which order
2hich user&department&specific data is suggested for entry (in "iews)
2hich procurement type is allowed for a material (that is, whether the material is
produced in&house, procured externally, or both)
#long with the plant, the material type determines a material.s in"entory management
re$uirement (whether $uantity changes are continuously recorded in the material master
record and-or "alue changes in the stoc0 accounts of financial accounting). %urthermore,
the material type determines which accounts are posted when a receipt of a material into
(or an issue from) the warehouse is boo0ed.
# number of different material types are supplied in standard ,#* )-.. If your enterprise
needs additional material types, you can define these according to your re$uirements in
Customi!ing.
Industry Sector
5i0e the material type, the industry sector also has a control function. 2hen you create a
material master record, the industry sector determines:
2hich screens appear and in which order
2hich industry&specific fields appear on each screen
The industry sector you assign to a material cannot subse$uently be changed. In
Customi!ing, you can define new industry sectors and maintain the field reference for
field selection control according to your enterprise&specific re$uirements.
(ost data in the material master record can be maintained directly by the user. 'ut some
information is automatically updated by the system. 2hen you enter goods mo"ements,
for example, the system updates the stoc0 and consumption data. ,tatistical information,
such as the date of original creation and that of the last change, can be in"o0ed with ,
with the $uic0&info text Information on material.
,ome data in the material master is used for information purposes only, for example,
description, si!e, and dimensions. 3ther material data has a controlling function in an
application. %or example, the ()* type controls the ()* procedure and the price
control indicator determines which material "aluation procedure is used.
Industry Sector
SAP Material Master - 4
Material Master Concepts - 4
Extending Material Master Record
3nce a department has created data for a material, the material master record exists in the
database. If someone from another department later wishes to enter data, he or she does
ha"e not ha"e to create the material master record from scratch, but only has to extend
the existing record by adding the information from his or her department. # material
master is also extended when data pertaining to the material is stored for further
organi!ational le"els
4ou use the transaction Create material master (((67) to extend a material master
record by adding missing "iews or organi!ational le"els. 2ith the Change (aterial
transaction (((68), you can only change the data of already maintained "iews and
organi!ational le"els.
#ny changes you ma0e to data in a material master record (using the Create or Change
transactions) are logged in a change document. This means that you can trace and "erify
the change history at any time.
SAP Material Master - 5
Material Master Concepts - 5
%or master data maintenance, different functions can be used to simplify the data entry.
This article co"ers entry aids for the "endor master record and the material master record.
(ass maintenance is also explained with a simple example.
To supplement the "endor master record and material master record maintenance topics,
this article discusses ways of simplifying material and "endor maintenance. (ass
maintenance is also co"ered in this article as a central tool for maintaining master data
and documents.
#n entry aid for maintaining the "endor master record is copying the data from a "endor
master record. This is "alid for extending a master record with additional organi!ational
le"els, and for the creation of a new "endor master record. 9endor&specific data such as
the address and ban0 data is not adopted.
To help you create a "endor master record, you can use an existing "endor as a reference.
The system copies the master data from the reference. :owe"er, the system does not
copy all data, such as the address. The system prompts you to maintain the data (for
example, address). The control data is copied from the reference, but you can o"erwrite
it.
The transfer depends on se"eral factors:
The system copies only data that is not "endor&specific. The address and bloc0ing
indicator are therefore not copied from the reference.
The transfer of reference data depends on the data you ha"e already entered for
your "endor. It is generally true that maintained data is not o"erwritten by the
reference data.
This means that the following happens:
If you ha"e already created the general data (name, address and phone number),
only the company code data is adopted when you enter the company code data.
4ou must also specify the reference company code. 2hen you create the data for
the purchasing organi!ation, the system adopts only the corresponding data from
the reference.
If you ha"e not yet created the general data, the system adopts only the language
and country from the reference address data.
In addition, you should specify the areas to be adopted from the reference. %or
example, if you do not specify a purchasing organi!ation, the system does not
adopt the purchasing data.
SAP Material Master -
Material Master Concepts - 6
2hen you maintain material master records, different functions are a"ailable to simplify
and accelerate your wor0. The following entry aids facilitate material master
maintenance:
Settings
(any pre&settings can be used to a"oid entering or selecting the same data more than
once. 4ou can preset the "iews that you are responsible for in the ,elect 9iews dialog
box. 4ou can also decide whether the dialog box is displayed only if you specifically
re$uest it. ,imilar pre&settings are also possible for the 3rgani!ational 5e"els. In the
transaction Industry sector to specify the Create material ((67, you can choose
;efaults< industry, and then hide this field. The default "alues specified li0e this are
user&specific and can be o"erwritten or reset at any time.
Reference material
2hen you create a material master record, you can also adopt the data from an existing
master record. 3n the initial screen, enter the number of the reference material in the
corresponding field. 3n the dialog box for entering the organi!ational le"els, you will
then recei"e additional fields to specify the organi!ational le"els of the reference
material. If you want to copy the purchasing data for a material, then determine the
following:
2hether only purchasing data that is "alid cross&client is to be copied from the
reference. In this case, do not enter a plant for the reference.
2hether the plant&specific data of a particular plant is also to be copied from the
reference. In this case, you specify a plant (for which the reference material is
created).
Profiles
If a material is to be automatically planned or forecasted, you must create data in the
material master record. To simplify entry of this data, you can use ()* and forecast
profiles. # profile is a 0ey you can use to store ()* or forecast parameters
independently of the material master record. This means that a profile is a collection of
information for the configuration of material master records. The information stored in a
profile is standard information that is re$uired for maintaining different materials again
and again in the same or a similar constellation. If you create ()* or forecast data for a
material, you can enter the profiles in the 3rgani!ational 5e"els dialog box.
Collective entr of storage location data
3ne material can be stored in different storage locations. To sa"e storage location&
specific data for a material master record, you must create or extend the material master
record for each storage location that is affected. If the material master record already
exists, it can be extended manually or automatically with the storage location&specific
data:
Manually
:ere you enter the storage locations for a material master record using collecti"e entry.
This is much faster than entering the data indi"idually for each storage location. In the
(aterial master menu, Enter ,torage 5ocations (transaction ((,C). the function is
under 3ther<
Auto!atically
:ere the system automatically extends the material master record with the storage
location data after the first goods receipt posting. #ll data that refers to the storage
location affected is updated in the material master record. The system must be configured
accordingly in Customi!ing for In"entory (anagement and *hysical In"entory under
Create ,torage 5ocation #utomatically.
Mass !aintenance
2ith a special mass change function, you can change se"eral material master records at
the same time (for example, if existing data has to be changed due to new circumstances).
:owe"er, only experienced users should execute this function.
SAP Material Master - "
Mass Maintenance - 1
(ass maintenance is a generic (cross&application) tool that can be used to change large
data $uantities or to create new data. 2ith mass maintenance, you can change many
ob/ects at the same time. This tool should therefore be used only by users with the
corresponding experience. These people must also ha"e 0nowledge of the field names
and tables used in ,#* )-..
4ou can change the data in the material master records $uic0ly and easily in one simple
step. 4ou ha"e the option of changing the purchasing group or ad/usting the 1)
processing time in particular materials.
4ou can perform mass maintenance in dialog mode or in the bac0ground. If you want to
change many ob/ects at the same time, choose bac0ground mode to a"oid system strain.
In this case, the system issues a log with the changes executed and any errors that
occurred.
The system executes a consistency chec0 for the changed data. The system does not
execute changes that would lead to data inconsistencies, but notes them in the log.4ou
can find the mass maintenance Central %unctions. 4ou use the ob/ect type to decide
which tool under 5ogistics< application you want to use it for. If you access mass
maintenance from the menu of an application, the correct ob/ect type appears
automatically (for example, (ass (aterial< (aterial (aster< (aterials
(anagement< 5ogistics< (aintenance).
2hen you ha"e selected the ob/ect type, the system displays the rele"ant tables and
fields. ,elect the tables in which you want to change data. ,elect se"eral tables only if
you want to ma0e the changes in all tables at the same time to 0eep the data consistent.
3therwise, edit the tables one at a time to a"oid poor system performance. 4ou can select
the fields with the "alues you want to change on the initial screen. :owe"er, the fields
can be determined only at a later point in time.
SAP Material Master - #
Mass Maintenance -2
(ass maintenance is a generic (cross&application) tool that can be used to change large
data $uantities or to create new data. 2ith mass maintenance, you can change many
ob/ects at the same time. This tool should therefore be used only by users with the
corresponding experience. These people must also ha"e 0nowledge of the field names
and tables used in ,#* )-..
To limit the number of ob/ects to be changed, enter the rele"ant selection criteria. 2ith
Choose selection fields, you can choose more fields for which you want to enter selection
criteria. 2ith , with the $uic0&info text Execute, you start the selection of data records.
;epending on the number of selected data records, the system as0s if you want to execute
the changes online or in the bac0ground.
Then choose the fields you want to change using , with the $uic0&info text Choose fields,
and enter the new "alues in the corresponding columns. ,elect the column header and the
data records to change, and choose , with the $uic0&info text *erform mass change. 4ou
also ha"e the option of changing a field entry only when it has a particular "alue. To do
this, choose )estrictions and enter the new "alue in the first line and the "alue to be
replaced in the second line. %inally, sa"e your changes. The system then executes the
consistency chec0.
SAP Material $aluation %asics - 1
This series of articles gi"e an o"er"iew of the determination of "aluation le"els for
materials using the "aluation area, and the two possible procedures for material "aluation.
These articles will also explain:
The significance of the "aluation area
The function of the "aluation class
(aterial "aluation with the mo"ing a"erage price
(aterial "aluation with the standard price
In a company, most of the externally procured materials are stored before they are
re$uired for production or sales. The warehouse stoc0s of materials must be updated on a
$uantity and "alue basis.
Material $aluation &eneral
In most goods mo"ements in In"entory (anagement, the stoc0 $uantity and therefore
also the stoc0 "alue "ary. In goods receipts, the stoc0 "alue increases= in goods issues, the
stoc0 "alue decreases. The $uantity and "alue of the material stoc0 and the material price
(>"aluation price) are updated in the material master record. 4ou therefore also need a
material master record for warehouse material. The material "aluation determines and
maintains the stoc0 "alue of a material. The following formula is used to calculate the
stoc0 "alue:
,toc0 "alue > stoc0 $uantity ? material price
%rom this formula it follows that the stoc0 "alue changes when the stoc0 $uantity or
material price changes.
;uring the "aluation of a goods mo"ement, not only the total "alue and, if necessary, the
"aluation price are updated in the material master record, but also the accounts in
#ccounting. (aterial "aluation demonstrates a connection between (aterials
(anagement ((() and %inancial #ccounting (%I) because material "aluation accesses
1-5 accounts in %inancial #ccounting and updates them. (aterial "aluation is essentially
controlled by two factors:
,ystem setting (Customi!ing)
(aterial (aster )ecord
The material "aluation is ad/usted with ,#* )-. settings to meet the needs of your
department. %or system configuration, the following $uestions are defined:
3n which le"el are materials "aluated@
2hich types of goods mo"ements are rele"ant for "aluation@
2hich accounts are posted to during a transaction@
The following sections co"er the $uestions about the "aluation le"el and the settings in
the material master record. The mo"ement type determines which types of goods
mo"ements are rele"ant for "aluation. The settings for automatic account determination
determine which accounts are posted to during a transaction.
$aluation 'e(el
The "aluation area is the organi!ational le"el at which material is "aluated. 4ou can
decide whether the "aluation area is determined at company code or plant le"el.
,#* (( (aterial 9aluation 5e"els
%igure ,#* (( (aterial 9aluation 5e"els
$aluation area ) co!pany code
The "aluation data of a material is created separately for each company code. The price
control and "aluation price of a material are "alid for each company code. The material is
therefore "aluated consistently in all plants of a company code.
$aluation area ) plant
The "aluation data of a material is created for each plant. The price control and "aluation
price of a material are "alid for each plant. The same material can therefore be "aluated
differently in different plants. ,#* recommends that you "aluate material at plant le"el.
9aluation at plant le"el is mandatory if you want to use either the *roduction *lanning or
*roduct Cost #ccounting components or if your system is a my,#* )etail system.
;efining the "aluation le"el in Customi!ing is a fundamental setting, and is "ery difficult
to re"erse. (Customi!ing < Enterprise ,tructure < ;efinition < 5ogistics 1eneral<
;efine 9aluation 5e"el)
SAP Material $aluation %asics - 2
Material Master Record Accounting *ata
In the material master record, you enter the necessary "aluation data for a material in the
accounting data. ;epending on the "aluation area, you must specify either the company
code or plant when maintaining the accounting data. 2hen entering the accounting data,
you must answer the following $uestions:
In which 1-5 account should the stoc0 "alue of this material be managed@
Is the stoc0 of a material to be "aluated at a constant price or should the price be
ad/usted to match the fluctuations of the cost price@
The material type you selected when creating a material determines whether the material
is to be "aluated at all. The material type controls whether the stoc0 is to be managed on
a $uantity and-or "alue basis and whether this update can be controlled at "aluation area
le"el.
,#* (( (aterial 9aluation Classes
%igure ,#* (( (aterial 9aluation Classes
In automatic account determination, the ,#* )-. system wor0s with "aluation classes.
The "aluation class is used to determine which stoc0 account is to be updated during the
goods mo"ements of a material.
4ou can use the "aluation class to combine materials for assigning 1-5 accounts so that
you do not ha"e to manage a separate stoc0 account for each material. 4ou maintain the
"aluation class in the #ccounting "iew of the material master record. The "aluation class
allowed for a material depends on the material type and can be configured in
Customi!ing. # "aluation class can also be assigned to se"eral material types. %igure
,#* (( (aterial 9aluation *rocedure
The price control procedure set in the material master record determines the "alue used to
"aluate the goods receipt of a material. In ,#* )-., material "aluation can be carried out
according to the standard price (, price) or the mo"ing a"erage price (9 price).
Standard price
;uring the "aluation using the standard price (price control A,B), there are many stoc0
postings to a price determined in the material master record, the standard price. 9ariances
to this standard price are posted to the price differences accounts. %or statistical purposes,
the system also calculates the mo"ing a"erage price for materials that are "aluated at
standard price in the material master record. This means that you can spot ma/or
differences between the current procurement price and the standard price, and react
accordingly. The system calculates the total stoc0 "alue for materials with standard price
control as follows:
Total (alue ) standard price +per ,ase unit o- !easure. / total stoc0
Mo(ing a(erage price
In "aluation using the mo"ing a"erage price (price control A9B), the system "aluates
goods receipts with the purchase order price and goods issues with the current mo"ing
a"erage price. The system automatically calculates the mo"ing a"erage price for e"ery
goods mo"ement as follows:
Mo(ing a(erage price ) total stoc0 (alue 1 total stoc0 2uantity
#ny differences from the purchase order price that occur during the in"oice receipt are
posted directly to the stoc0 account during stoc0 co"erage, and the system determines a
new mo"ing a"erage price.
SAP Material $aluation %asics - 3
The following figure A,#* (( (aterial 9aluation of 1oods )eceiptB clarifies both
"aluation procedures in a single example.
,#* (( (aterial 9aluation of 1oods )eceipt
%igure ,#* (( (aterial 9aluation of 1oods )eceipt
Material 3 $ price 24 E5R
The goods receipt for a purchase order of 76 pieces at 8C ED) is "aluated with a
procurement price of 8C ED). #n amount of 76 at 8C ED) > 8C6 ED) is posted to the
stoc0 account. The offsetting entry for the same amount is posted to the 1)-I) clearing
account
Material 3 S price 24 E5R
The goods receipt $uantity must be "aluated with the standard price. The result of the
goods receipt for the purchase order of 76 pieces is an amount of 76 at 86 ED) > 866
ED). This amount is posted to the stoc0 account. The difference of C6 ED) from the
actual procurement "alue (76 at 8C ED) >8C6ED)) is posted to a price differences
expense account. The offsetting entry with an amount of 76 at 8C ED) > 8C6 ED) is
posted to the 1)-I) clearing account.
Material $aluation Exa!ples
The figures in this section describe the postings in %inancial #ccounting and the updates
in the material master record for a simple procurement process, once for the 9 price and
once for the , price procedures. Initial stoc0 $uantity and "alue are displayed in the
Initial situation column. Then a goods receipt for a purchase order of 766 pieces at 8.E6 is
posted (second line). The process is completed with an in"oice receipt of 766pieces at
8.86 (third line).
,#* (( (aterial 9aluation ,T; *rice
%igure ,#* (( (aterial 9aluation ,T; *rice
,#* (( (aterial 9aluation ,T; *rice 1oods )eceipt
%igure ,#* (( (aterial 9aluation ,T; *rice 1)
;uring goods receipt, the system updates the stoc0 "alue and stoc0 $uantity at standard
price. It updates the 1)-I) clearing account at the purchase order price. It posts the
difference between the purchase order price and the standard price to the price difference
account.
,#* (( (aterial 9aluation ,T; *rice In"oice )eceipt
%igure ,#* (( (aterial 9aluation ,T; *rice I)
2hen the incoming in"oice is posted, the 1)-I) clearing account is cleared at the order
price. The "endor (creditor) account is updated at the in"oice price. It posts the difference
between the purchase order price and the in"oice price to the AIncome from price
differencesB account. It does not change the total stoc0 "alue.
Posting to Mo(ing A(erage Price +Exa!ple.
,#* (( (aterial 9aluation (o"ing #"erage
%igure ,#* (( (aterial 9aluation (# *rice
;uring goods receipt, the system updates the stoc0 "alue, stoc0 account, and 1)-I)
clearing account at the purchase order price. The mo"ing a"erage price is recalculated on
the basis of the new stoc0 "alue: 9 price (for each base unit of measure) > total
"alue-total stoc0.
,#* (( (aterial 9aluation (o"ing #"erage 1)
%igure ,#* (( (aterial 9aluation (# *rice 1)
2hen the incoming in"oice is posted, the 1)-I) clearing account is cleared at the order
price. The "endor (creditor) account is updated at the in"oice price. The system posts the
difference between the purchase order price and the in"oice price to the stoc0 account. It
recalculates the stoc0 "alue based on the in"oice price.
,#* (( (aterial 9aluation (o"ing #"erage I)
%igure ,#* (( (aterial 9aluation (# *rice I)
The system redetermines the mo"ing a"erage price based on the changed stoc0 "alue. If
the stoc0 $uantity in the in"oice receipt is less than the in"oice $uantity, the system posts
part of the difference to the AExpenditure-income from price differencesB account instead
of the stoc0 account.
SAP Material $aluation %asics - 4
Stoc0 Types6 $aluation6 &R in 7are8ouse - 1
This series of articles co"er the goods receipt of ordered goods into the warehouse and
the effects that this goods receipt has on In"entory (anagement and #ccounting. The
material document and the accounting document are also discussed. (any of the goods
deli"ered to a company are first posted after receipt into the $uality inspection stoc0.
#fter a successful $uality chec0, the materials can then be released. In addition, we will
also discuss briefly the stoc0 types unrestricted&use, $uality inspection stoc0, bloc0ed
stoc0, and transfer postings.
This article uses the process shown in the figure below, A,toc0 (aterial *rocurement:
1oods )eceipt.B #fter material was re$uested from se"eral "endors and then ordered
from the most fa"orable "endor, the goods receipt is posted. ,ome of the deli"ered goods
are posted to the $uality inspection stoc0. The chec0ed $uantity is later released with a
transfer posting to the unrestricted&use stoc0.
,#* (( ,toc0 (aterial *rocurement&1oods )eceipt
%igure ,#* (( ,toc0 (aterial *rocurement&1oods )eceipt
%ollowing transaction is used for stoc0 o"er"iew.
7. < In"entory < (aterials (anagement Choose 5ogistics < ,toc0 3"er"iew
((('E). < ,toc0 En"ironment < (anagement
8. Enter material (&67 and plant 7666 to .666 and execute the selection.
.. ;iscuss the stoc0 o"er"iew displayed and the na"igation as follows:
,croll with and )ight columns or 5eft columns.
;ouble&clic0 on an organi!ation le"el to display all stoc0s in one dialog box.
< ;isplay material. Choose Extras
Change the material without ha"ing to return to the selection screen
To simplify daily wor0 in In"entory (anagement, se"eral functions and reports contain
detailed information about all materials and their stoc0
data.
The stoc0 o"er"iew is an analysis that deli"ers information about the stoc0 situation of an
indi"idual material. The material stoc0s are displayed in the stoc0 o"er"iew for each
indi"idual organi!ational le"el. Fuantities posted for a particular stoc0 type are totaled
for each organi!ational unit. 4ou can display the stoc0 o"er"iew for batches-"aluation
type and special stoc0s (for example, consignment material), as well as for organi!ational
units client, company code, plant, and storage location.
,#* (( ,toc0 3"er"iew
%igure ,#* (( ,toc0 3"er"iew
To display the stoc0 o"er"iew, choose between different display "ersions. These display
"ersions differ in the listing and se$uence of the indi"idual stoc0 types. In Customi!ing
for In"entory (anagement, the system administrator defines which stoc0s are displayed
in each column and the order in which they are displayed.