Managing variable sized items for planning and purchase

Question

Dear All,
We have the following situation, kindly help in resolving the same:
Some of the raw materials are variable sized (for example plates). These items come in the Semi-finished/finished BOM as Raw Materials. Now whenver the requirement for SFG/FG is there MRP creates requirement for the variable sized items as well.
We have defined the unit of measure for variable sized items as M2 (meter square). Stock for these items display total area present in the Storage Location. Since these items are cut and used it might be possible that the requirement generated by MRP can be theoretically satisfied against the available stock but cant be practically satisfied against the actual physical stock.
For example in stock we have a sheet of 4m X 5m = 20 M2. The requirement from MRP comes to be 10 M2 but with dimensions 1mX10M. The stock shows available qtty as 20M2, required qtty as 10M2 and hence No PR is generated. But in actual we need to create a PR as dimensions are different.
So to manage this we are giving MRP type of raw materials as ND (No planning). Therefore the system is not creating any PR (even if requirements exceed available stock) it only creates DepReq for the RM. Now we create manual PRs after studying the DepReq. But it seems that it is easy to loose track and difficult to know that for which DepReq the PRs are already created.
Is there any way to relate the manual PRs to the DepReq created by MRP?
If yes, then whenever DepReq will be converted to OrdRes will the above relation still be valid?
Is there any other way of resolving/mapping the above scenario?
Thanks
Vineet

Answer 1

We cant maintain separate material codes as the sheet required varies in size and shape. Right now I have come up with the following solution:
1. SAP: Materials which are variable sized will have MRP Type: ND (No Planning)
2. SAP: These items will be in the BOM of FG/SFG with their dimension details
3. SAP: The requirements for the Variable Sized items will be created by the MRP although no planning will be done, i.e.  Dependent Requirement against sales order(through FG/SFG) will be created but no PRs/Planned Orders will be generated for these items
4. SAP: List of Requirements in the form of Dependent Requirements and Order reservations can be seen through T-Code MD04.
5. MANUAL: Manual PR is to be created against dependent requirements after checking the quantity and dimensions of the stocks available.
6. MANUAL: Maintain an excel sheet to record the materials and PR numbers created for them with quantity and dimensions. Also keep a record of sales order number from which the requirement has come. Sales order number for a requirement can be viewed through the MD04 T-Code itself. Also the dimensions required can be easily seen by navigating from MD04 to the corresponding production order component list. (Instead of Excel an SAP Table can be developed to maintain the data, the only advantage would be central maintenance of data)
7. For PRs created manually above dimensions will be  manually entered in PR as "PO Text".
8. Whenver PRs are created manually the records maintained in point number 6 will have to be checked to avoid duplication of creation of PRs
9. A separate column in excel sheet (refer point 6) can be maintained for the POs created against each PR.
Dependent requirements will automatically be converted to Order Reservations in MD04 view once the Planned order of assembly is converted to a Production Order.
10. Order reservations will automatically be removed from MD04 view once the GI of variable sized material is done to Production Orders.
Do we have a better alternative to this?
Thanks
Geravine