Material Interchangeability -PIC01

Hi guys,
Do anybody knows how to maintain Material interchangeability in PIC01(t-code). This function will able the system to check the superseded material availability in SD and MM site.
Case example:
User order 'A' item but vendor supply 'B' item and they can still proceed with GR.

Hi Experts,
I am facing the same question:
Does PIC01 Supersession kick into SD Sales Order without APO? Or do I definitely have to maintain SD Material Determination (VB11) and IS-AU MM Supersession (PIC01) parallel? Because Sap Help indicates that PIC01 Supersession does kick into MM AND SD functions.... But I tested it in two ECC with IS-AU systems but I wasn't able to make it work.
Sap help is not a quiet good source of information in this point ò_ó
Thanks in advance for professional answers.
PS: I do not mean FFF or MPN Supersessions....

Similar Messages

How to implement fully interchangeable parts?

In the scenario we have the next sequence takes place:
1) There is a PO with 10 items of material A
2) In GR material B is entered (also 10 items) instead of A, and material B should be fully interchangeable with A (the relation is like this A<->B )
As I understood from help.sap.com we must maintain full material interchangeability for this process. So how can I do this, I'm quite new with SAP and don't know how to start?

You didn't get me!
I have the PO which next information:
-material: A, QTY: 10 items.
Then goes th GR where instead of material A can be material B, and it will be for example like this:
-material B, QTY: 10 items.
I need to configure my system so that material B is interchangeable with A (relation is A<->B). And finaly I need that my system thought that PO (which has material A) is totaly fulfilled with GR (which has material B as a full equivalent for A).
HOW SHOULD I CONFIGURE FULL INTERCHANGEABILITY FOR MATERIAL 'A' AND 'B' ?

Significance of Follow-Up Material in MARC with Interchangeability

Dear All,
We have a field 'Follow-Up Material' (NFMAT) in the MARC table in R/3. Can we use this field in our APO Interchangeability.
(ie.) Maintain the replaced product in this field and use it as Predecessor product in our super session chains (in APO).
Please clarify.
Thanks,
Siva.

Hi anyway I tested the BOM master data like this
F/G 1 Master Box
|--- A 10 PCS Alt Group Z1 Priority 1 Usage 100% Strategy 2 (100% Check)
|--- B 10 PCS Alt Group Z1 Priority 2 Usage 100% Strategy 2 (100% Check)
|--- C 10 PCS Alt Group Z1 Priority 3 Usage 100% Strategy 2 (100% Check)
Stock A is depleted
Stock B enough
stock C enough
Expected result F/G only used B 10 PCS
Actual result is
F/G 1 Master Box
|-- A 10 PCS
|-- B 10 PCS
|-- C 10 PCS
Do ou have ides how should the percentage in BOm is maintain?
Best regards,
Fred

Part interchangeability with FFF class and FFFC - HERB material type

Experts-
Have you worked with Part interchangeability with FFF class and FFFC or HERB material type?
I am looking for cross-reference functionality for interchangeable materials from maintenance/service perspective. We have users changing manufacturer's part number as and when needed and maintaining cross-reference via classification. Maintaining SAP part number and HERS is too much data maintenance, so we are looking for simple solution.
We are in standard ECC 6.0. (No APO). I checked OSS 181764, but it doesn't help us in instructions for enhancement.
If this needs activation for DIMP or A&D, do you know enhancement for this?
Thanks for your help.
RP

Hi
I have been involved with a client who is interested to know the implementation of FFF functionality. Can you share your experience in a bit more details.
The client is interested in using parts where multiple models are available in the market and few of them are interchangeable. They would like to purchase it as an asset and then manage the inventory as non valued material. How does it work throuh the APO for forecasting and demand planning functionalities.
Thanks in advance.

Stock analysis based on vendor material number

Hi
Is there any report which can show the total stock of a material with split on vendor material number (I am entering different vendor material numbers upon goods receipt) or any query I can write to get the above result?
The requirement is as follows: I will order an item with name say X and vendor supplies the item with different name say Y. So I am maintaining vendor specific name in vendor material number. Now I want to see the stock X with what quantity of it is Y.
Thanks

Dear Praveen
You could use the following;
Input and Output Conversion of Material Numbers
Use
Like every other part in the SAP system, an inventory-managed manufacturer part has an SAP-specific material number that uniquely identifies it. If this material number is uncommon or unknown to the vendor, you should consider the following (especially in the purchasing process):
·        You can enter a part with its Manufacturer Part Number (MPN) and its External Manufacturer, and not just with its material number. This is possible because of the input conversion of material numbers.
·        The system displays this part with its Manufacturer Part Number and the External Manufacturer in lists and screens. This is possible because of the output conversion of material numbers.
You have to increase the maximum field length for input and output values in the Output Length for Material Numbers field to enter and display the MPN and the manufacturer code in one field
Prerequisites
You have made the following settings in Customizing:
·        You have activated the conversion exit for material numbers.
·        You have maintained a delimiter. The delimiter separates the MPN and the external manufacturer when they are entered or displayed in one field.
·        You have specified a maximum output length for material numbers. This means that the fields for the long material number are scrollable, and the output columns for lists are wider.
You configure and activate the conversion exit for material numbers in Customizing by choosing Logistics - General ® Interchangeability of Parts ® Set Up Conversion Exit for Material Numbers.
Features
Input Conversion
If you have activated the conversion exit, you can enter the relevant MPN instead of the material number in the relevant input fields.
If the MPN is not unique, you enter the external manufacturer in the same field, separating the MPN and the external manufacturer by the delimiter defined in Customizing.
You have defined: as the delimiter.
Enter 45L700W:36121 (Manufacturer Part Number, Delimiter,and External Manufacturer) for the part, instead of material number 1011. If the MPN is unique, you only have to enter 45L700W (the Manufacturer Part Number).
You can now scroll the input field for the material number. This allows you to enter the maximum output length for material numbers, which has also been defined in Customizing.
Input conversion gives you an alternate and additional input option. You can still enter the ERP material number to identify a part.
The system determines the correct material number from your input, and passes it to the program logic. The system handles your input as follows:
·        If your entry contains the delimiter, the system splits the entry at the delimiter, interprets both parts of the entry as the Manufacturer Part Number and the External Manufacturer respectively, and searches for a part corresponding to these entries
·        If your entry does not contain a delimiter, the system interprets your entry as an (ERP) material number, and searches for the corresponding part in the material master. If this is unsuccessful, the system interprets your entry as an MPN, and searches for the corresponding part.
If the system cannot determine a part clearly, or the search is unsuccessful, it issues an error message.
Value Range for MPN on the Selection Screen
The system converts the MPN into a material number internally.
To ensure that the system correctly interprets the value range for an MPN that is entered as selection criteria, when the conversion exit is activated, the system provides both the material number and the MPN as selection criteria in the selection screen.
Output Conversion
If the conversion exit is activated, the output conversion ensures that the system displays the MPN and the external manufacturer on screens and in lists, separated by the delimiter in the field or column that usually displays the ERP material number.
If the Output Length for Material Numbers field in Customizing is not long enough to display both the MPN and the external manufacturer, the system displays the MPN, if it is unique.
If the MPN is not unique or the output length too short, the system displays the ERP material number.
The system displays parts with the output length defined in Customizing. In addition:
·        You can scroll the output field for the material number on screens.
·        The system adjusts the layout of lists to the output length.
List Formatting
If you use the inventory-managed MPN, you have to change the list formatting as follows:
·        Variable length of the material number in reports
In cases of the automatic conversion of the material number into an MPN and external manufacturer, the system takes account of the Output Length for Material Numbers field (defined in Customizing) when it structures the lists for selected reports. This ensures that columns are aligned, line breaks are correct, and the lists can be read.
·        Adding a field for the external manufacturer
The external manufacturer should also be displayed in lists because the MPN, into which the material number is automatically converted, is not always unique.
In Customizing, you have defined whether the external manufacturer should be displayed with the MPN. The system adds the field for the external manufacturer immediately after the field for the MPN in lists and on the screen.
You can display the external manufacturer with or without an active conversion exit.
·        Sorting by MPN, not by material number
You can sort some lists by material number.
You can sort by MPN in cases where the MPN is displayed instead of the material number.
with kind regards
Sundar

Material Determination in Sales Order BOM

Dear Gurus,
We would appreciate any solutions and/or suggestions you can provide for our problem below:
Background:
Part XYZ is a sales BOM which contains 3 components: A, B, and C. Component B has a material determination (product substitution/interchange) with material B1, B2 or B3.
Requirement:
When a customer orders part XYZ, and if component/material B is not available in stock/shortage, then any or all of the product interchanges may be used to fulfill the order until the full order quantity is confirmed.
Problem:
We are able to explode the BOM to its components but unable to generate the product interchanges for component B in the sales order.
Could you please help? Thank you very much.
Best regards,
Michael SA

SAP Note 486680
SAP Note 549341
Please check the above notes.
Regards
Sai

Material exchane ,copy pricing and conditions from main item to sub item.

Hi All,
We are using parts exchange/interchangeability in the transaction ME22N,
While using ME22N we are exchanging main item with interchangeable part and while doing so we want to copy pricing and conditions from main item to sub item.
But its not happening.
As per sap help its possible, details describe below.
http://help.sap.com/erp2005_ehp_04/helpdata/en/c2/0a5288b77d11d3bcce00105ab03aee/content.htm
Price Determination by Copying from Main Item
In the case of price determination by copying from the main item, the net price of the originally ordered part is still used for the superseding part in a part exchange.
The system copies all conditions from the main item to all sub-items and takes into account the order quantity for the main item when calculating scale prices. It does not take into account the conditions and scale prices that exist for the interchangeable part.
You cannot change the conditions, which have been copied from the main item, at sub-item level. It is possible, however, to define additional conditions for each sub-item.
Prerequisites
A calculation schema, which can be altered on an individual basis in Customizing, has been supplied for the price determination.
In the vendor master record, you have set the schema group 09 (interchangeable material).
But in customizing I didnu2019t find value 09 for schema group .
Can any buddy through some light on missing pieces which need to be set?
Thanks
Regards
Ritesh

Hi,
Can you check few more things and tell me?
- In this exit, does XVBPA and XVBAP contains all the line items. ( main and sub items ).
- In Sales order creation time, do these table have VBELN populated when this exit triggers.
- If you modify XVBPA or XVBAP in this exit, do they get overwritten after that.
Try this code. See if it works. Let me know if you still have a problem.
DATA: wa_hvbpa LIKE vbpa,
      wa_xvbpa like vbpa.
CLEAR: wa_hvbpa, wa_xvbpa.
* check if HVBAP and VBAP line items are not same
IF vbap-posnr <> hvbap-posnr.
* read the ****-to partner from main-item
READ TABLE xvbpa INTO wa_hvbpa WITH KEY posnr = hvbap-posnr
                                          parvw = 'WE'.
IF sy-subrc = 0.
*   read the line item data for sub-item based on main item
    READ TABLE xvbap WITH KEY posnr = vbap-posnr
                              uepos = hvbap-posnr.
* See if current line is the child of that BoM parent
    IF sy-subrc = 0.
      MOVE wa_xvbpa-kunnr TO xvbpa-kunnr.
      MOVE xvbap-vbeln TO wa_xvbpa-vbeln.
      MOVE xvbap-posnr TO wa_xvbpa-posnr.
      MOVE 'WE' TO wa_xvbpa-parvw.
      MODIFY vbpa FROM wa_xvbpa.
    ENDIF.
ENDIF.
ENDIF.
Regards,
RS

Materialized view not properly refreshing

Hi,
As materialized view is not refreshing properly. we compare the sum of hashcode materialized view with the sum of hash code of the base view or table the materialized view is defined. If it's found equal then materialized view got refreshed succesfully else not.
But in below example the column value is interchanged in between the row eventhough hashcode is same.
Is there any other way to find the materialized view got refreshed successfully or not.
SQL> create table temp as select object_name, subobject_name from user_objects where rownum<3;
Table created
SQL> select * from temp;
OBJECT_NAME SUBOBJECT_NAME
ATP_BN_I_1
ATP_START_END_DATE_I_2
SQL> create materialized view mv1 as select * from temp;
Materialized view created
SQL> select * from mv1;
OBJECT_NAME SUBOBJECT_NAME
ATP_BN_I_1
ATP_START_END_DATE_I_2
SQL> select sum(nvl(ora_hash("OBJECT_NAME"||"SUBOBJECT_NAME"),0)) from temp;
SUM(NVL(ORA_HASH("OBJECT_NAME"
4852176374
SQL> select sum(nvl(ora_hash("OBJECT_NAME"||"SUBOBJECT_NAME"),0)) from MV1;
SUM(NVL(ORA_HASH("OBJECT_NAME"
4852176374
SQL> UPDATE TEMP SET OBJECT_NAME=SUBOBJECT_NAME,SUBOBJECT_NAME=OBJECT_NAME;
2 rows updated
SQL> COMMIT;
Commit complete
SQL> select * from mv1;
OBJECT_NAME SUBOBJECT_NAME
ATP_BN_I_1
ATP_START_END_DATE_I_2
SQL> select * from temp;
OBJECT_NAME SUBOBJECT_NAME
ATP_BN_I_1
ATP_START_END_DATE_I_2
SQL> select sum(nvl(ora_hash("OBJECT_NAME"||"SUBOBJECT_NAME"),0)) from MV1;
SUM(NVL(ORA_HASH("OBJECT_NAME"
4852176374
SQL> select sum(nvl(ora_hash("object_name"||"subobject_name"),0)) from temp;
select sum(nvl(ora_hash("object_name"||"subobject_name"),0)) from temp
ORA-00904: "subobject_name": invalid identifier
SQL> select sum(nvl(ora_hash("OBJECT_NAME"||"SUBOBJECT_NAME"),0)) from temp;
SUM(NVL(ORA_HASH("OBJECT_NAME"
4852176374
Any help really appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

unique wrote:
Is there any other way to find the materialized view got refreshed successfully or not.You can look at the last_refresh_date and staleness columns of all_mviews: http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B19306_01/server.102/b14237/statviews_1105.htm#REFRN20139
Or maybe use the all_mview_refresh_times view: http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B19306_01/server.102/b14237/statviews_1104.htm#sthref1068
Regards,
Rob.

Pls send material for idocs in ECC 6.0

Pls send material for idocs in ECC6.0

Hi sitaram s ,
IDoc
- IDoc (for intermediate document) is a standard data structure for electronic data interchange (EDI) between application programs written for the popular SAP business system or between an SAP application and an external program. IDocs serve as the vehicle for data transfer in SAP's Application Link Enabling (ALE) system. IDocs are used for asynchronous transactions: each IDoc generated exists as a self-contained text file that can then be transmitted to the requesting workstation without connecting to the central database. Another SAP mechanism, the Business Application Programming Interface (BAPI) is used for synchronous transactions.
A large enterprise's networked computing environment is likely to connect many geographically distributed computers to the main database. These computers are likely to use different hardware and/or operating system platforms. An IDoc encapsulates data so that it can be exchanged between different systems without conversion from one format to another.
IDoc types define different categories of data, such as purchase orders or invoices, which may then be broken down into more specific categories called message types. Greater specificity means that an IDoc type is capable of storing only the data required for a particular transaction, which increases efficiency and decreases resource demands.
An IDoc can be generated at any point in a transaction process. For example, during a shipping transaction process, an IDoc may be generated that includes the data fields required to print a shipping manifest. After a user performs an SAP transaction, one or more IDocs are generated in the sending database and passed to the ALE communication layer. The communication layer performs a Remote Function Call (RFC), using the port definition and RFC destination specified by the customer model. The IDoc is transmitted to the receiver, which may be an R/3, R/2, or some external system.
Archiving Processed IDocs
IDoc archiving is a two-step process:
1. Archive the IDoc.
2. After that another job will be generated. You can see in your SARA for your trigger to delete those archived IDocs.
Have a look at transaction WE47, set "Archiving - Possible" for all statuses to be archived. Use transaction SARA with object IDoc to archive. If the above is set then all IDocs are archived the same way.
Transaction SARA works in the following way:
On the main screen enter IDoc as the object. Click on Customising -> Technical settings. This shows the logical filename (configured via transaction FILE & SF01) that will be used to get a filename when writing the archive files. It also shows the document type (that links to an archive via transaction 0AC0) or the archive, depending on SAP version. You can also set the size of the archive files and whether the deletion and storage jobs should execute automatically or not.
On the main screen there are, amongst others, buttons for ARCHIVE, DELETE and MANAGEMENT. When you click on ARCHIVE you will go to a screen where you can create variants, and set the parameters for the archiving job. The EXECUTE button will schedule this job. If the "start automatic" tic for the deletion program was not set in customising, you will need to go to the DELETE button on the main screen to schedule the deletion jobs, after the archive job has finished. This schedules a job per archive file. In MANAGEMENT you will be able to see the statuses of each archive run.
SAP Integration Using ALE(Application Linking and Enabling)
- IDOCS -
http://www.thespot4sap.com/Articles/SAP_ALE_IDOCS.asp
Updating IDoc data in segments,Changing a control record of an IDoc,Getting IDocs linked to Application documents,
Displaying and IDoc in a report,Read IDoc from Database,Creating and sending an IDoc,Update IDoc status on the database
ALE Inbound Pre-Processing
http://www.erpgenie.com/sapedi/idoc_abap.htm
cheers!
gyanaraj
reward points if u find this helpful

Study material on ALE and IDOCS

Hi
If anyone has some study material on ALE and IDOCS ,if you can please send it across to me , it would be very helpful to me .
My mail id is : [email protected]
Thanks in advance
Ankit

1. What is ALE?
Application Link Enabling (ALE) is a set of business processes and tools that allow applications on different computer systems to be linked. This can be done between different SAP systems as well as between SAP and non-SAP systems.
In a single SAP system different applications are integrated via a single database (e.g. finance, sales, production, human resources). However, many companies do not have just one integrated system but a distributed environment with different applications running on different systems. To run the whole business in such an environment the distributed applications have to be linked. This can be done through Application Link Enabling (ALE).
ALE provides distributed business processes that can be used to link the applications on different platforms. There are some ALE business processes delivered in the standard SAP system. Furthermore, there are tools that can be used to change the existing ALE business processes or to implement new distributed business processes.
Besides the business processes there are special ALE services that are required to set up and control a distributed environment. These services include a distribution model, business object synchronization and tools for monitoring or error handling.
ALE is a major part of SAP's Business Framework Architecture. Besides the basis middleware, that provides the communication between components, and the interfaces (BAPIs), ALE business processes and ALE services enable the cooperation of the single components within the framework. That makes ALE the glue of the Business Framework.
2. What are the benefits of ALE?
With ALE companies get the opportunity to improve business performance and to solve organizational or technical issues.
Through distribution you can decentralize your business, enabling local units to operate independently from each other. This flexibility enables the local units to return better business results than in a centralized environment. They have the necessary flexibility to optimize business processes in different organizational units and can ensure that information systems can handle the speed of change in rapidly expanding markets. Distribution allows a high level of freedom, provided that this level of freedom has been clearly defined.
On the other hand, some companies, that already have a distributed organization with different computer systems in the local units, have the opportunity to link their units through ALE business processes. This enables them for example to provide a 'one face to the customer' approach. Another area that can benefit through ALE are virtual organizations (partnerships between independent companies, joint ventures and mergers and acquisitions).
Of course, in many cases an integrated solution based on a single system is not possible at all. Some applications used by a company can not run on the same computer system. This includes legacy systems or complementary software. It may also be possible that a company uses different SAP industry solutions or specific country solutions, which do not run on the same SAP System. If these applications run on different systems they can not be linked by a central database but have to use a special integration mechanism like ALE. In this way ALE also links SAP Core Systems to other SAP components like CRM, Business Information Warehouse or APO.
Besides the benefits of having an improved flexibility in setting up the whole business processes, ALE may also reduce costs, in particular costs of upgrading. If the whole business is run on one integrated system you have to upgrade the whole system, even if only one part of your company (e.g. human resources) requires an update. So the entire company is affected by the upgrade project and all users have to be trained for the new release. Within a distributed environment with release independent interfaces, like those provided by ALE, you can focus the upgrade project on that part of the company that has to be upgraded. The other parts of the company are not involved and need no training. This can save a lot of money. Furthermore, existing investments are protected.
Another cost factor for distribution might be communication costs. For an overseas connection it can be more expensive to provide online access to one central system (T1) than to connect distributed systems to each other (64K line).
There might also be some technical reasons for distributed systems. If some parts of the business have special requirements for security of data access (e.g. human resources), this can be set up much safer on a standalone system, which is, however, linked to other parts of the company through distributed business processes. A similar example is high availability. High availability is usually required by the operations part of the company (production, logistics) but not by other areas (e.g. financials, human resources). In a distributed environment high availability can be set up for specific parts of the environment instead of for the whole business. This can also reduce costs.
In a distributed environment you can not decrease the overall workload of the systems but you can separate the user workloads on different systems. Through this scalability you can improve performance. Another benefit of distributed systems is that if a technical failure occurs on one system, all other systems continue to operate. Only a small part of the business is disrupted by the error. On one central system such an error would disrupt the entire business.
3. When should ALE be used?
Besides the benefits of ALE there are also reasons not to distribute:
The functional scope in a distributed environment is restricted. Not all functionality that is available in an integrated SAP system can be used with distributed systems in the standard yet. Although ALE provides tools to create new ALE business processes or to enhance existing business processes, this does involve additional expenditure.
Each company needs some organizational standards and data harmonization. In a distributed environment less standards are required than on a single integrated system. However, in a distributed environment the maintenance of the standards and the data harmonization is more difficult than on a single system.
The administration of decentralized systems is more expensive. Support and service costs for hardware and software in decentralized systems are higher than these costs in a single centralized system.
ALE should be used in a company if the benefits of ALE for this company outweigh the reasons against distribution. For this you always need to carry out a company specific investigation, in which you also should consider the culture of the company. ALE is good for some companies but not for all.
4. What is the relationship between ALE and Middleware?
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is a term for the transfer of business messages between two systems. There are many such messages, the most common of these include a customer sending a purchase order message to a vendor, or a vendor sending an invoice message to a customer. Classic EDI is mainly restricted on the exchange of transactional data, no master data or configuration data. In most cases, EDI replaces the transfer of paper copies of these documents. Via the messages ALE business processes can be implemented between business partners. The EDI messages also use the ALE services.
For the communication between different types of systems special EDI messages are defined as standards for inter company communication. There are many standards for these messages - in the United States, the ANSI X.12 standard is the most prevalent, in Europe, the UN/EDIFACT standard is used. For sending EDI messages the information has to be converted into an EDI standard. With SAP systems this is done by EDI subsystems. This conversion is the only difference between EDI messages and other messages used in ALE business processes. The processing of these messages on the SAP System is the same as the processing of other ALE messages.
5. Which ALE business processes are available?
IDoc Types - Message Types
ALE business processes are integrated business processes that run across distributed systems. This can be two different SAP systems, links between SAP and non-SAP systems, SAP and Web-servers (Internet Application Components) or SAP and desktop applications. The links between the systems may be loosely (asynchronous) or tightly (synchronous) coupled. These business processes are release independent and can run between different release levels of the systems.
Many SAP applications offer ALE distribution processes. The following list gives some examples:
Master data replication (IDoc Types - Message Types - Master Data)
- Material
- Customer
- Vendor
- General Ledger accounts
- Bill of materials
Accounting (IDoc Types - Message Types -Accounting Business Processes)
- Links to logistic systems
- Distributed financial accounting
- Distributed cost center accounting
- Distributed special ledger
- Profitability analysis
- Distributed profit center accounting
- Consolidation
- Treasury
Logistics(IDoc Types - Message Types - Logistics Business Processes)
- Reallocation of materials
- Distribution of sales and shipping
- Product data management
- Purchasing contracts
- Sales and operations planning
- Warehouse management
- Links to warehouse control systems
- Links to production optimization systems
- Links to transport planning systems
Information systems (IDoc Types - Message Types - Logistics Business Processes)
- SAP Business Information Warehouse (BW)
- Exchange of data between information systems
- Web reporting
Human resources (IDoc Types - Message Types - HR Business Processes)
- Human resources as a single component
- Payroll results
- Travel expense accounting
- Links to time collecting systems
However, these standard solutions may not fit 100% for a company. There may be differentiation in the business process or a required distributed business process is not supported in the standard. If this happens, ALE provides tools that can be used to adapt a standard ALE business process or to create a new distributed business process.
6. Which ALE services are available and what do they do?
To integrate distributed systems you need more than a communication infrastructure and interfaces. Some additional services are required that are provided by ALE:
Business process harmonization:
Within system overlapping business processes multiple functions running on multiple systems are involved and connected through multiple interfaces. The processes are combinations of functions (sub-processes) running on the single systems.
(Example: A business process for customer order management involves functions in sales, manufacturing, warehouse management, finance, and so on. It is possible that the sales functions are carried out on another system than the manufacturing, the warehouse management or the accounting. Furthermore, some information exchange with the customer, a supplier or a bank may be involved in the process.)
ALE helps to coordinate the whole business process by defining it within a global model. In this model the business rules for the distribution are defined. Via the model the sub-processes get to know which part of the overall process they have to do themselves and when they have to pass the process over to another system. Through this the whole business process gets harmonized.
Receiver determination:
For distributed business processes a sub-process on one application (client) has to start another sub-process on another application (server). It is important that the new sub-process is started on the right server. Which server is the right one can not be defined by technical values, it depends on the business content of the process.
(Example: A sales system forwards customer orders to two different production systems. To which system a special sales order is forwarded depends on the entries in the sales order (this may depend, for instance, on the ordered material or on the customer). One sales order may also be split into two or more different orders that may be forwarded to different production systems.)
To notify the client which system is the receiver of the communication (server), ALE uses a distribution model. From this model the applications get the information about the right server. There are special ALE BAPIs and function modules available for this. The receiver determination makes sure that the information is sent to the right places.
Business object synchronization (semantic synchronization):
If business processes run across distributed systems, they have to share some data to be harmonized. This is data like business information data, master data or customizing data. If this data is changed in any of the distributed systems, other systems have to be informed about the change. There has to be some kind of subscription of the data.
ALE provides a special service for this data synchronization. This service can detect data changes and distribute the information to those systems that need to know about the change. This service also defines which data is shared. You can determine which fields of a data object shall be common and which fields may vary locally.
Consistency checks:
For a business process running across two distributed applications there has to be some harmonization of the sub-processes in the single applications. For making sure that the sub processes are harmonized there are special ALE consistency check tools. These tools help to find and repair inconsistencies. By this it can be ensured that the whole ALE business process works in the right way.
Monitoring:
For the monitoring of distributed processes it is not enough to monitor all activities on the single systems. The overall business process has to be monitored. The ALE monitoring services provide detailed information about the communication process, the sub-process on the other systems and its results. Database links are created between the business objects in question on the client and the server. This is especially important for loosely coupled applications with asynchronous links. In this case the server can not give return values back to the client directly so that the ALE monitoring is the only channel for feedback.
Error handling:
Another problem with asynchronous communication is error handling. If an error occurs on the server the calling process on the client may have finished already. So the server can not return the error message to the client. A special error handling process required. This process is one of the ALE services. It uses workflow functionality to identify the error and to start the required error handling.
7. Synchronous vs. asynchronous links?
When distributed applications are linked by ALE business processes, the question often arises as to how tight the link should be. Synchronous and asynchronous links have both advantages and disadvantages.
Synchronous links have the advantage that the sub-process on the server can return values to the sub-process on the client that has started the link. Problems with synchronous links occur if the communication line or the server is temporarily not available. If this happens, the sub-process on the client can not be finished (otherwise there would be data inconsistencies).
(Example: There is a logistics system and a financial system. Every stock movement in logistics has to be posted in the general ledger of the financial system. If the link between logistics and finance is synchronous, no stock movement can be recorded in the logistics system if the communication line to the financial system is down.)
Because of this, synchronous links are usually used if the client only wants to get some data from the server and the sub-processes on the server do not have to write any data to the database.
With asynchronous links the sub-process on the client can be finished even if the communication line or the server is not available. In this case the message is stored in the database and the communication can be done later. The disadvantage of asynchronous links is that the sub-process on the server can not return information to the calling sub-process on the client. A special way for sending information back to the client is required. In addition, a special error handling mechanism is required to handle errors on the receiving side.
Asynchronous links are used if a synchronous link is not applicable. For the problems with sending return information to the client and with error handling there is some support from the ALE services.
8. Which kind of interfaces do ALE business processes use?
ALE business processes are integrated processes across distributed systems, requiring interfaces between the systems. These interfaces have to be stable to enable the communication between different releases and to reduce the impact of release changes within the distributed environment.
In SAP R/3 release 3.0 and 3.1 ALE uses IDocs as interfaces. An IDocs is a data container for transferring messages asynchronously. They are release independent. Since SAP Release 3.1G BAPIs are a new type of object oriented, stable interfaces that can be called synchronously or asynchronously. Asynchronous BAPIs use IDocs as data containers. ALE business processes can use BAPIs as well. In the future new ALE business processes will use BAPIs as interfaces. But the existing IDocs will still be supported. In time, BAPIs will be created with similar functionality to existing IDoc interfaces.
9. Why does SAP uses ALE instead of database replication or distributed databases?
Database replication is another possibility for doing business object synchronization. However, there are some major disadvantages with database replication. At the moment database replication is database dependent and release dependent within one database. This makes database replication impossible for the use with non-SAP systems and even for the replication between SAP Systems you have to make sure that all systems are running on the same SAP release and the same database release of a single database vendor. Furthermore, with database replication you cannot do things like field conversions or version changes. ALE does not have these shortcomings because it offers application driven data replication independent of the underlying database.
Another technology, distributed databases, is no alternative for ALE at the moment, either. There are some good results of distributed databases available, but the performance is far from sufficient for using it with larger applications like SAP.
10. What is the relationship between ALE and middleware?
For distributed business processes many different services are required. Most of these services are offered by SAP. For some of these services you can also use products that are provided by SAP's complementary software partners or by other companies:
The communication service for doing the pure communication is usually done via Remote Function Call (RFC). RFC is provided by SAP for most platforms both for synchronous and asynchronous communication. There are other messaging systems for the communication service available as well, like IBM's MQSeries. However, the communication between SAP and the messaging system is still done via RFC.
For the serialization of asynchronous communication the RFC provides little functionality at the moment. The serialization has to be checked by the application. ALE offers some support to do these checks. The serialization of the RFC communication will be improved in the future. Serialization services are provided by some of the existing messaging systems, but even they can not guaranty a 100% serialization of the communication, since they use RFC for the connection to SAP.
The monitoring and error handling of the communication is done via services provided by the RFC and ALE. If messaging systems are used for the communication they also offer some monitoring and error handling functionality.
If a non-SAP system is involved in the ALE business scenario and this system does not understand SAP's BAPI or IDoc interfaces, the data has to be mapped to any interface structure that this system offers. For this mapping SAP does not provide a service but it certifies mapping tools from software partners. These tools are called ALE translator. The most known product in this area is probably Mercator from TSI International Software. The same kind of mapping can also be done by 'EDI converters'.
Another type of middleware products offer process ware. This is mainly a combination of the communication service, the mapping service and a set of rules for the mapping. Some ALE translator can be used for this as well.
Receiver determination is one of the ALE services (see above). Parts of this service can also be provided by some of the messaging systems, but you cannot use these systems without using ALE receiver determination.
For the other ALE services like application monitoring, application error handling, semantic synchronization and business process harmonization, there are no middleware products available as a replacement of ALE.
ALE is open for the use of middleware products for the distribution, but in most cases the additional middleware is not necessary. In a communication between different SAP systems usually the use of additional middleware makes no sense at all. For the communication between SAP and non-SAP systems there might be some benefits, especially if the middleware is used at the company already. The only middleware tool that is really required if the non-SAP system does not understand BAPIs or IDocs is an ALE translator.
Check different sites for more information.
Regards

Material substitute in purchase requisition

Hi all!
I know that in SD we can manage material determination, but I'd like to know if I can do the same in MM, using for example material substitute when I create a purchase requisition.
Is it possible? Which is the best practise for this?
Thanks
Simone

Hello Simone
May be you can use 'Interchangeability of Parts' functionality for 'Material Exchange in Purchasing;. It is, I believe, meant for Mill Products industry but may be you can make use of it. Check out these links:
http://help.sap.com/erp2005_ehp_04/helpdata/EN/5b/da1f604caf11d2b437006094b9c9be/frameset.htm
http://help.sap.com/erp2005_ehp_04/helpdata/EN/5b/da1f604caf11d2b437006094b9c9be/frameset.htm
Hope this is useful. Good Luck.

Dependent demand at wrong material

For a product code, one component is replaced by another material code. Within PPDS time fence dependent demand is showing correctly at the new component. But beyond PPDS time fence, SNP:DepDmd is still showing at old component. There are 3 PPMs for this code.
How to make SNP:DepDmd beyond PPDS time fence to prevent taking old component?

Hello,
How did you generated those SNP orders? ByHeurisitc, Optimizer or CTM?
1)Heuristic
   In /sapapo/snp01, have you checked "Add products from supersession chains"?
2)Optimizer
   In optimizer profile, have you checked any selectoin in "Product interchangeability" area on "Gerneral constriants" tab?
3)CTM
   In CTM profile, have you set "Product Interchangeability" field in "Strategies" -> "Special Strategies" tab?
If you do not set corresponding settings, SNP planning won't consiter interchangeability.
Please re-check your scenario again.
Best Regards,
Ada

Idoc material needed

Hi
this is the first project iam going to work in idocs
can anybody please send me the materials
step by step process.
my requirement is we are going to use outbound idoc for material master
(matmas05) and order 03.this are the tow main idocs we are going to use
how to transfer this to middle ware.

Hi Arun,
Check this info.
Data Creation in Idoc
IDocs are text encoded documents with a rigid structure that are used to exchange data between R/3 and a foreign system. Instead of calling a program in the destination system directly, the data is first packed into an IDoc and then sent to the receiving system, where it is analyzed and properly processed. Therefore an IDoc data exchange is always an
asynchronous process. The significant difference between simple RFC-calls and IDoc data exchange is the fact, that every action performed on IDocs are protocolled by R/3 and IDocs can be reprocessed if an error occurred in one of the message steps.
While IDocs have to be understood as a data exchange protocol, EDI and ALE are typical use cases for IDocs. R/3 uses IDocs for both EDI and ALE to deliver data to the receiving system. ALE is basically the scheduling mechanism that defines when and between which partners and what kind of data will be exchanged on a regular or event triggered basis. Such a set-up is called an ALE-scenario.
IDoc is a intermediate document to exchange data between two SAP Systems.
*IDocs are structured ASCII files (or a virtual equivalent).
*Electronic Interchange Document
*They are the file format used by SAP R/3 to exchange data with foreign systems.
*Data Is transmitted in ASCII format, i.e. human readable form
*IDocs exchange messages
*IDocs are used like classical interface files
IDOC types are templates for specific message types depending on what is the business document, you want to exchange.
WE30 - you can create a IDOC type.
An IDOC with data, will have to be triggered by the application that is trying to send out the data.
FOr testing you can use WE19.
How to create idoc?
*WE30 - you can create a IDOC type
For more information in details on the same along with the examples can be viewed on:
http://www.netweaverguru.com/EDI/HTML/IDocBook.htm#_Toc8400404
http://help.sap.com/saphelp_erp2005/helpdata/en/0b/2a6620507d11d18ee90000e8366fc2/frameset.htm
http://www.sappoint.com/presentation.html
http://www.allsaplinks.com/idoc_search.html
http://www.sapgenie.com/sapedi/idoc_abap.htm
http://www.erpgenie.com/sapedi/idoc_abap.htm
To Create Idoc we need to follow these steps:
Create Segment ( WE31)
Create Idoc Type ( WE30 )
Create Message Type ( WE81 )
Assign Idoc Type to Message Type ( WE82 )
Creating a Segment
Go to transaction code WE31
Enter the name for your segment type and click on the Create icon
Type the short text
Enter the variable names and data elements
Save it and go back
Go to Edit -> Set Release
Follow steps to create more number of segments
Create IDOC Type
Go to transaction code WE30
Enter the Object Name, select Basic type and click Create icon
Select the create new option and enter a description for your basic IDOC type and press enter
Select the IDOC Name and click Create icon
The system prompts us to enter a segment type and its attributes
Choose the appropriate values and press Enter
The system transfers the name of the segment type to the IDOC editor.
Follow these steps to add more number of segments to Parent or as Parent-child relation
Save it and go back
Go to Edit -> Set release
Create Message Type
Go to transaction code WE81
Change the details from Display mode to Change mode
After selection, the system will give this message The table is cross-client (see Help for further info). Press Enter
Click New Entries to create new Message Type
Fill details
Save it and go back
Assign Message Type to IDoc Type
Go to transaction code WE82
Change the details from Display mode to Change mode
After selection, the system will give this message The table is cross-client (see Help for further info). Press Enter.
Click New Entries to create new Message Type.
Fill details
Save it and go back
Check these out..
Re: How to create IDOC
Check below link. It will give the step by step procedure for IDOC creation.
http://www.supinfo-projects.com/cn/2005/idocs_en/2/
ALE/ IDOC
http://help.sap.com/saphelp_erp2004/helpdata/en/dc/6b835943d711d1893e0000e8323c4f/content.htm
http://www.sapgenie.com/sapgenie/docs/ale_scenario_development_procedure.doc
http://edocs.bea.com/elink/adapter/r3/userhtm/ale.htm#1008419
http://www.netweaverguru.com/EDI/HTML/IDocBook.htm
http://www.sapgenie.com/sapedi/index.htm
http://www.sappoint.com/abap/ale.pdf
http://www.sappoint.com/abap/ale2.pdf
http://www.sapgenie.com/sapedi/idoc_abap.htm
http://help.sap.com/saphelp_erp2005/helpdata/en/0b/2a60bb507d11d18ee90000e8366fc2/frameset.htm
http://help.sap.com/saphelp_erp2005/helpdata/en/78/217da751ce11d189570000e829fbbd/frameset.htm
http://www.allsaplinks.com/idoc_sample.html
http://www.sappoint.com/abap.html
http://help.sap.com/saphelp_erp2004/helpdata/en/dc/6b835943d711d1893e0000e8323c4f/content.htm
http://www.sapgenie.com/sapgenie/docs/ale_scenario_development_procedure.doc
http://edocs.bea.com/elink/adapter/r3/userhtm/ale.htm#1008419
http://www.netweaverguru.com/EDI/HTML/IDocBook.htm
http://www.sapgenie.com/sapedi/index.htm
http://www.allsaplinks.com/idoc_sample.html
http://www.sapgenie.com/sapgenie/docs/ale_scenario_development_procedure.docs
Hope this resolves your query.
<b>Reward all the helpful answers.</b>
Regards

Excise Output Material Type

Hello Experts ,
In Material Master or J1id , do i have to maintain output material type??
If yes ... picture this ...
My client has 2 lac raw material , which can be interchangeably used to produce 1lac finished goods.
One particular material can be used to make more than one finished goods . Can I ...
1. Define a dummy finished material & put it as output material type in material masters for all ROH materials?
2. Put any arbitrary finished material as output type for ROH ?
3. Can i by any means put more than one finsished materials for one particular raw material in masters?
Pls pass the gyaan
Thx
Rgds,
Anis

hey kunal !
thanks as always ...
My clients is a make to order scenario...
n the raw material is highly generic ...
assigning any particular finished goods is not fine...
A) Can u tell me where does this output type material hv implication in mandatory excise reports /forms ...???
And also does this o/p mtrl have any accounting effect??
As i understand .. while filing annual returns (ER6) the client (manufacturer) has to show that X units of raw material was used to produce Y units of finished goods. This is just a snapshot n contains no details.
There r basically 3 classes ( material grps ) of finished goods produced from 4 classes ( material grps ) of raw material .
Ref to point A, if there r no a/c financial implications of the field , can i assign any arbitaray or dummy o/p mtrl ???
Hope i have made my "q" clear ...
pls guide ...
Regds ,
Anis
Rgds,
Anis
Edited by: anis bazmi on Oct 17, 2008 3:56 PM

Material exchange in a PO for a parent child relationship

Hi ,
Please advise if there are SAP provide any solution for material exchange in a PO for a parent child relationship? I.e the two materials are NOT maintained as interchangable materials.
Thanks.
Regards,
Clarice

hello
Do you mean exchange agreements/contracts where two parties are buyer & seller both to each other. This is well supported by Std SAP.
Pls correct me, if I am not getting it correct.
Ganesh...

Material Interchangeability -PIC01

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