Warehouses

Topic overview

A warehouse is a logically or physically defined area in which item inventory is maintained. If the Storage location control is activated in the Customizing application, then every warehouse must have a warehouse organization that defines the structure of the warehouse. If the Storage location control is not activated, then only the warehouses without structure are permitted.

This article describes the structure of how the warehouses are displayed in the system and how the application of the same name is structured. The article also lists the relationship between a warehouse and other applications and business entities and how it is connected with the business processes.

Instructions for handling the Warehouses application, for instance for creating or editing warehouses, have been provided in the document Procedures: Warehouses.

Definitions of terms

Owner of inventory

The inventory owner is the company that owns the inventory. The inevntory owner is used in inventory management processes, e.g. for inventory counts and inventory valuation. For certain business processes, it may be necessary to specify the inventory owner in order to determine whose inventory is used or considered in a process.

Inventory management server

The inventory management server is responsible for ongoing recording of the current warehouse inventory quantities and for maintaining the moving average prices in the warehouses assigned to it. In warehouses subdivided into storage locations, the inventory management server has additional tasks, such as reserving storage locations and inventory, and reconciling inventory count differences. When an inventory management server is launched, a batch job is generated. If a warehouse is subdivided into storage locations, then the data relevant for storage location control is loaded into a  cache, to minimize access time.

Warehouse organization

Warehouse organization determines the structure of a warehouse or warehouse zone. Using warehouse organization, warehouse structures such as simple warehouses, high rack storage areas, and bulk storage can be mapped.

Warehouses

A warehouse is a logically or physically defined area in which item inventory is maintained. A warehouse can be
subdivided into storage locations if Storage location control is activated in Customizing. The exact structure of the warehouse is defined by the warehouse organization

Storage location

A storage location is the exact point in a warehouse where items can be stored. A storage location within a warehouse always lies in a warehouse zone and is determined precisely on the basis of a row, a level, and a storage location
number. Each storage location has a storage location category that establishes the use of the storage location. The availability of storage locations is essential for storage location control.

Storage strategies

The storage strategy is an essential component of storage location management. It consists of several individual strategies that together control the behavior of put-away and withdrawal for storage location-managed warehouses. These strategies include the picking strategy and the filling strategy.

Storage restrictions

A storage restriction consists of a put-away and a withdrawal restriction. It sets which storage locations are excluded when determining storage locations and item inventories in put-away and withdrawal. A storage restriction can also
specify the sequence in which the individual warehouse zones of a warehouse are considered. Using the withdrawal restriction, inventory units can be specified in which withdrawal is allowed or prohibited.

Warehouse zones

If storage location control is activated in the Customizing application, a warehouse can be subdivided into warehouse zones. A warehouse can have any number of warehouse zones.

Quality assurance status (QA status)

A quality status or quality assurance status (QA status) can be defined for the warehouse and warehouse zone levels,in parallel also for the identifier level. Inventory can be analyzed and utilized specifically according to QA status. If QA status is defined for certain inventory both at the warehouse level and for the identifier level, the inventory has the lower QA status.

Application description

With the help of the Warehouses application, you can create and edit warehouses and warehouse zones. Entering and editing warehouse zones is only possible if the Storage location control function is active in the Customizing application.

The application consists of an identification area and a work area.

Identification pane

The identification pane contains the fields that uniquely identify the warehouse as well as other generally applicable data.

Detailed description of the fields:

  • Warehouse – this field contains the identification of a warehouse. The identification of a warehouse is unique within an OLTP database. It can consist of any text with a maximum of ten characters. TAfter saving the warehouse for the first time, the identification cannot be changed anymore.
  • Description – the description is an additional name for the warehouse. It can consist of any text. Meaningful descriptions simplify the search of a correct warehouse for the user.

Note
When using special characters, please note that for technical reasons these are converted into the following placeholders in a character string to be searched for:

  • Asterisk (*) to underscore (_)
  • Question mark (?) to percent sign (%)

The use of an underscore in a search feature would not only search for the underscore, but for any character. The percentage sign is evaluated in the same way, which then corresponds to none, one or more characters. The use of underscores and percent signs in character strings should therefore be avoided as far as possible, as other and more objects may be found than intended.

  • Classification – in this field, you can enter the warehouse classification to which the warehouse should be affiliated. Warehouses that belong to the same warehouse classification can be analyzed or queried together in
    some applications.
  • QA status – in this field, enter the QA status of the warehouse. Possible values for the QA status are:
    • Released
    • In quarantine
    • Blocked

QA statuses can be defined for warehouses, warehouse zones and identifiers. The inventories can be evaluated and used specifically according to the possible QA status. In case of varying QA status of the warehouse or warehouse zone and the identifier, the less favorable QA status is applicable, where Blocked is less favorable than In quarantine.

The value Released is displayed by default while entering a new warehouse. The QA status of a warehouse that is not classified can be changed at any time. In case of classified warehouses, the QA status is automatically set to Released. A subsequent change in the QA status is not possible.

Note
After a change in the QA status, the saving time in the affiliated warehouse can increase considerably, since item inventories that are in the warehouse must be changed to the new QA status. A relevant warning is outputted before saving the change.

  • Category – enter the category of warehouse in this field. Possible categories are:
    • Physically (internal)
    • Physical (external)
    • Virtual

    A physical warehouse is a logically or physically defined area in which item inventory is maintained.
    Physically internal warehouses are self-maintained warehouses. Functions such as Availability calculation
    or Reservations are available here.
    For external warehouses that are maintained by customers, for instance (for example VMI warehouses/consignment warehouses), some inventory management functions are not available.
    A virtual warehouse is used, for instance, to map a transit warehouse in case of distribution orders.

    Note
    The conversion of the warehouse category to another warehouse category is possible only if the warehouse has not been used yet. The check is the same as the one used for deleting a warehouse The conditions have been described under Delete warehouse in the article Procedures: Warehouses.
  • Address – in this field, you can enter the warehouse address, if required.
    For two warehouses that are assigned to the same site and also have an identical address, only one picking order is generated. However, if they have different addresses, there will be two different picking orders while generating the picking (order).
  • Warehouse organization – enter in this field the warehouse organization that is to be applied for the warehouse. Possible inventory organizations are:
    • Simple warehouse
    • High rack storage area
    • Bulk storage
    • Locations only

    If you select Simple warehouse here, you cannot enter any information for storage location control and warehouse zones for the warehouse. You can enter warehouse zones and storage locations for all other warehouse organizations.
    The field Warehouse organization is visible only if the storage location control is activated in the Customizing application. If the storage location control is not activated, you can enter only simple warehouses, which means warehouses without warehouse zones and storage locations. After saving the warehouse, the warehouse organization can be changed only if there are no warehouse zones, no inventory postings and no inventory data for the warehouse.
    For a detailed description of the possible logistics organization, see the artcile Warehouse organizations.

  • Site – enter in this field the site to which the warehouse is affiliated.
    After saving the warehouse, the site can be changed only if there are no warehouse zones and no inventory postings for the warehouse.

Work pane

The data in the work pane is summarized under tabs, which are described in the following sections:

General tab

  • Owner of inventory – enter the inventory owner of the warehouse in this field. If the warehouse is divided into storage locations, the value entered serves as the default value when entering the  warehouse zones.The owner of inventory-managed items is called the inventory owner. Inventory owners can either be companies in your own group of companies or external companies (e.g. external customers) that do not belong to your own group of companies.
    Note
    The Owner of inventory field can only be edited if storage location control has been activated in the Customizing application and the warehouse is divided into storage locations. Otherwise, the field is displayed as invalid.
  • Inventory Management server – in this field you enter the warehouse logistics server responsible for the warehouse.

The inventory management server is responsible for ongoing recording of the current warehouse inventory quantities and for maintaining the moving average prices in the warehouses assigned to it. In warehouses subdivided into storage locations, the inventory management server has additional tasks, such as reserving storage locations and inventory, and reconciling inventory count differences.
You enter the available warehouse logistics servers beforehand in the Inventory management server application.

  • Permit multiple inventory owners – this control element contains metadata and must not be deleted. Specify whether the inventories of several inventory owners can be taken into account in the warehouse. The setting is used as the default value for the setting in the warehouse data of the items. Selectable are the following options:
    • No – only the inventory of exactly one inventory owner can be taken into account in the warehouse.
    • As per to Customizing setting – If the Multiple inventory owners function is active in the Customizing application under the main function Inventory management, then the inventory of the various inventory owners is taken into account in the sequence defined under the function in the Inventory owner sequence field.
    • According to sequence – if you select this value, the Inventory owner sequence table is ready for input and the inventory of the various inventory owners is taken into account in the sequence specified in the table.

    If the Multiple inventory owners function is deactivated for the site in the Customizing application under the main function Inventory management or if the warehouse is of the type Physical (internal), the field is not ready for input.

  • Inventory owner sequence – specify the inventory owners from whom inventory is withdrawn and in what sequence. The setting is used as the default value for the warehouse data in the item master data. This means that the setting is only taken into account if no other settings have been defined for the warehouse in the item master data.Use the diamond button to the left of the input field to open a dialog box in which you can specify the inventory owners. You can change the sequence by selecting a line and moving it up or down using the arrow buttons. The first owner in the sequence is displayed in the field when the dialog box is closed. If more than one owner has been entered, the diamond button is filled in black.As a inventory owner, you can enter all suppliers and internal companies,
    • with whom either consignment agreements exist or
    • are defined for the settings for internal clearing with the company of the site.

    However, you can also exclude inventory owners from this procedure, even though agreements exist, by not including them in the table.

    The field is only ready for input if the Multiple inventory owners function is activated for the site in the Customizing application under the main Inventory management function.

  • Reservations (checkbox) – with the Reservations function, you can specify whether the items that are stored in this warehouse can be reserved.
    Reservations can be carried out only for the items in the warehouses of Physical, internal category; therefore the field Reservations is changeable only for the warehouses of this category. If the function Reservations is not selected, the settings for reservations are also not included in the Items application.
    Note
    You cannot activate the Allow negative inventory parameter if the Reservations parameter is activated.
    Note
    The parameter Reservations is visible only if the function Reservations is activated for the (active OLTP) client in the Customizing application. Storage location reservations are not affected by this function.
  • Allow negative inventory (checkbox) – use this parameter to specify whether negative inventory may be created for this warehouse after processing inventory postings. If this function is deactivated, only positive inventories are permitted. If this parameter is activated, negative inventories are permitted.
    Note
    You can activate this parameter if the Reservations function is deactivated.
    If only positive inventories are permitted at a warehouse, inventory postings that would lead to negative inventories are not processed by the system. They are either not created or stored in the posting error memory. Please note that regardless of this setting, many processes cannot be ended or started if inventories are negative. In particular, picking cannot be carried out with negative inventory.
    Note
    The Allow negative inventory parameter is only visible if the Allow negative inventory function is also activated in the Customizing application.
  • Employee responsible – this control element contains metadata and must not be deleted. In this field, enter the partner identification of the employee of your own company who is responsible for the warehouse. The partner must be entered with the Employee role and assigned to your own company.

Inventory recommendation determination grouping

  • Inventory owner – specify the priority with which the inventory owner is taken into account when determining inventory recommendations. Following options are selectable:
    • As per Customizing settings – the consideration of inventory owners is based on the settings in the Customizing application, main function Inventory management.
    • Consider at first – the inventory owner is considered first when determining the inventory to be removed from warehouse. The age of an item or an identifier is considered second. The packaging of the item or identifier is considered last. Use this setting, for example, if you want to use the external inventory of a supplier first.
    • Consider at last – the inventory owner is considered last when determining the inventory to be removed from warehouse. The age of an item or identifier is considered first, the packaging of the item or identifier is considered second. Use this setting, for example, if you want to use the batches that expire first.

    The field is only displayed if the main function Multiple inventory owners is active for the (active OLTP) client in the Customizing application. You can change the value if the main function Multiple inventory owners is also active for the site and the value No is not set for the warehouse in the Permit multiple inventory owners field.

  • Packaging – specify whether and how packaging marked as mandatory is taken into account when determining inventory recommendations. If packaging is not marked as binding, the setting is not taken into account when determining inventory recommendations. Following options are selectable:
    • As per Customizing setting – the consideration of packaging is based on the settings in the Customizing application, main function Inventory management.
    • Prefer small packaging – the recommended inventory is packed in packaging with the smallest possible quantity of items. This means that opened outer packaging and remaining quantities are used up.
    • Prefer large packaging – the recommended inventory is packed in packages containing as many items as possible.
    • Do not suggest packaging – only inventory in the requested unit is suggested. Repackaging is not taken into account.

    The field is only displayed if the Manage inventory in logistic units function is activated in the Customizing application under the function Inventory management → Warehouse inventory.

Storage location control tab

In the Storage location control tab, you can review and edit the details of storage location control of the warehouse. This tab is not available for warehouses with the Simple warehouse warehouse organization.

Detailed description of the fields:

Storage strategies grouping

  • Setting storage strategies – you must define the storage strategies for a warehouse that is divided into storage locations. Therefore, for warehouses with all warehouse organizations except Simple warehouse, the value Manual is displayed in the Setting storage strategies field and cannot be changed. You can set different storage strategies for items and inventory order types in the corresponding applications.
  • Storage strategy – in this field, you can enter a storage strategy for the warehouse if required. The storage strategy is an important part of Storage Location Control. It comprises several individual strategies that together specify the procedure during put-away and withdrawal warehouses categoried in storage locations. The criteria of the entered storage strategy are transferred in the fields of the Storage strategies grouping during the tests. However, you can also specify the criteria of the storage strategy without entering an already created storage strategy. To do this, enter the criteria of the storage strategy directly in the fields of the Storage strategy grouping. If you have already entered a storage strategy, the value in the Storage strategy field is automatically deleted. You can only enter a storage strategy only if the storage organization enables the sub-division into storage locations. The storage strategy must be entered in advance in the Storage strategies application.
    For a detailed description of the possible storage strategies and the descriptions of the other fields in this grouping, see the Storage strategies.

Storage restriction grouping

  • Put-away restriction – in this field, you can enter the put-away restrictions for the warehouse, if required. With put-away restriction you can enter the warehouse zones and rows that are to be excluded from put-away. The put-away restriction can also specify the sequence in which the individual warehouse zones and rows are considered.
    For more information on put-away restrictions, see the article Storage restrictions.
    First enter the available put-away restrictions in the Put-away restrictions application.
  • Withdrawal restriction – in this field, you can enter the withdrawal restrictions for the warehouse, if required. With the help of the withdrawal restrictions, you can enter warehouse zones that are excluded from withdrawal, as well as the sequence in which the individual warehouse zones are included. Using the withdrawal restriction, inventory units can be specified in which withdrawal is allowed or prohibited.
    For more information on withdrawal restrictions, see the article Storage restrictions.
    First enter the available withdrawal restrictions in the Withdrawal restrictions application

Put away according to storage location prorities grouping

  • Used (checkbox) – if you activate the parameter  Used, you activate the put-away according to storage location priorities for the warehouse. For put-away according to storage location priorities, items are put away according to the sequence of priorities saved for the corresponding ABC classification.
    Note
    The ABC classification of loading unit is applicable for the loading unit put-aways and not the ABC classifications of the packages items. If a template has been used for packaging, then the loading unit accepts the ABC classification of the item included.
    Note
    The fields ABC classification in the delivery data grouping in the two views Sales and Purchasing in the “Items” application have no influence on the item’s put-away.
    Note
    The storage location priorities are not included in withdrawals and manual inventory postings.
  • A-/B-/C-item priorities – The assignment of inventory item classification A, B and C takes place in these fields for the corresponding storage location priorities. The storage location priorities are entered as string, where each character represents a storage location priority and the sequence of the character plays the sequence of the individual overruns.
    If, for instance, storage locations are prioritized with A to J values, then the overrun rule may appear to be:
    A-item priorities: ABCJ
    B-item priorities: DEFJ
    C-item priorities: GHIJ
    Item A is put away according to this definition on areas with priority A, then on B, C and finally on J areas, and so forth.
    Note
    The fields are changeable only if you have first activated the Used parameter.
  • Overrun search direction – in this field, enter the search direction while determining the put-away locations while using the storage location priorities. Select one of the following overrun search directions:
    • Cross-warehouse zones
    • Warehouse zones

    If there are no storage locations in a warehouse zone with the searched storage location priority,
    the system first searches for storage locations of the same storage location priority in other warehouse zones in the overrun search direction All zones. Only subsequently are the storage locations of other storage location priorities determined with the help of item priorities.
    The overrun search direction Zones on the other hand makes the system first search for substitute areas using the item priorities only in the considered warehouse zone. If no substitute area is found there, then the put-away continues with the next warehouse zone.
    The determination continues until the suitable putaway locations are found or all warehouse zones have been searched. The storage locations are included using the put-away restrictions used or according to the  warehouse zone priorities (if no putaway restriction is used) in the overrun search direction All zones as well as Zones. Only those substitute locations are determined, that are not excluded from the put-away strategy and put-away restriction used.

    Note
    The Overrun search direction is changeable only if you have first activated the Used parameter.

Inventory orders tab

In the Inventory orders tab, you can view and edit entries on inventory order reports, generation and output for the current warehouse.
Detailed description of fields:

  • Report using check digit (check box) – with this parameter, you can specify whether a check digit should be determined while generating inventory orders.
    If the report using check digit is activated, then you must enter exactly the same check digit while reporting the inventory order. The check digit is generated per storage location. It is mapped from the row, level and location numbers for the storage location.
    The check digit is single-digit and can be a value between A (ASCII value 65) and Z (ASCII value 90).
    The check digit is built with the following algorithm:

    90 – ((series*3 + level + location*3) mod 26)

    Note
    This parameter is not available for simple warehouses.

Grouping and sorting grouping

  • Grouping setting – define whether the inventory order line items for this warehouse will be grouped upon inventory order generation. The following selection options are possible:
    • No automatic reporting – the inventory order line items are not grouped. One inventory order is generated per warehouse.
    • According to criteria – the inventory order line items are grouped according to the selected criteria. One inventory order is generated per group.

    Note
    The setting is taken into consideration only if the According to warehouse settings value is set for the grouping in the inventory order type that is used for generation of the inventory order.
  • Grouping criteria – select the criteria according to which the grouping should take place when generating inventory orders. The following selection options are possible:
    • Warehouse area
    • Aisle
    • Location
    • Inventory item classification 1 to 5
    • Level
    • Storage location category
    • Storage location type
    • Row
    • Warehouse zone
  • Sorting setting  – define whether the line items of the inventory orders of this type should be finally sorted upon
    generating. The following selection options are possible:

    • No automatic reporting – the inventory order line items are not finally sorted upon generating at all.
    • According to put-away/withdrawal sequence – the sorting takes place according to the putaway and withdrawal sequence that is defined by the storage restriction, zone priority and storage strategies.
    • According to criteria – the inventory order line items are sorted according to the criteria that were selected in this application.

    Note
    Sorting does not affect the sequence with which the warehouse zone and storage locations are specified. The sequence results from the storage strategies and storage restrictions used.
    Sorting is executed not sooner than after the inventory order is generated and ready.
    Note
    The option According to put-away/withdrawal sequence is not available for simple warehouses.
  • Sort criteria – select the criteria according to which sorting should take place when generating inventory orders. The following selection options are possible:
    • Aisle
    • Location
    • Inventory item classification 1 to 5
    • Warehouse area
    • Level
    • Storage location category
    • Storage location type
    • Row
    • Warehouse zone

    Note
    The field is only editable if the According to criteria value was selected in the Sorting setting field.
    Note
    For simple warehouses, only the sort criteria Inventory item classification 1 to 5 are available.

    You can save specific settings for voucher document output in the table Voucher document templates for the voucher categories Inventory order, Put-away label, and Put-away label (relocation). One or more rows with the following columns are displayed for each voucher category:

  • Voucher category – the voucher document category for which the output settings are being defined is displayed in this row. The following voucher document categories are available:
  • Medium – the output medium to which the voucher document in this row will be output in accordance with
    the voucher document template. The following output media are possible:

    • Printer (output as file is also possible)
    • E-mail
    • Fax
  • Voucher document template – in this field you enter a voucher document template for the document in this row that governs the structure of the corresponding voucher document.
    Each voucher document template applies to one of the specific supported output media (printer, email, or fax).
    A voucher document template includes settings for the output medium and for the structure and format of the document. A voucher document template for the Printer medium, for instance, contains information on single-sided or duplex printing or the number of the printed copies.
  • Recipient addressing – you can set a communication method for voucher document templates with the output media Fax and E-mail in this field. This defines which of the recipient’s fax or e-mail addresses is used when outputting this voucher.
    Communication methods refer to different ways of communicating with a partner via a particular medium such as fax or e-mail. You can, for instance, define separate e-mail communication methods for E-mail (work) and E-mail (home) and keep them separate. The specific e-mail address is indicated as communication connection.
    On the basis of the communication method defined in this field, the system determines the concrete communication connection from the relevant partner when outputting vouchers, that is, a specific fax number or e-mail address. This fax number or e-mail address is then used for outputting the voucher as recipient address.
  • Preferred (check box) – if output settings are defined for a voucher category in several lines, one of these must be marked as Preferred. This flag is transferred as a default and means that these preferred settings will be used when outputting the voucher document unless one of the other defined settings are selected manually. 3.2.4

Warehouse zones tab

In the Warehouse zones tab, you can enter the warehouse zones and review and edit the details of the
warehouse zones. For warehouse zones that are categorized into storage locations, you can also make settings for the storage strategies for the warehouse zone.

The following fields are displayed for every specified warehouse zone:

  • Warehouse zone – enter for the warehouse a unique and unused identification of the warehouse zone in this field.
    The identification helps in finding the correct warehouses in other applications. They comprise maximum of four numbers, letters or a number-letter combination. After saving the warehouse zone for the first time, the identification cannot be changed anymore.
  • Description – enter a description of warehouse zone in this field. The description is an additional name for the warehouse zone. Meaningful descriptions for items simplify the search of the correct warehouse zone for the user. The description can be chosen and can be equivocal in the sense that several warehouse zones can have the same description. However, the use of different descriptions in each case is recommended.
  • Usage – enter the utilization of the warehouse zone in this field. The following utilizations are possible:
    • Not specified
    • Receipt of goods
    • Picking orders
    • Reserve
    • Issue of goods
    • Inventory count differences
    • Return of goods
  • QA status – in this field, specify the QA status of the warehouse zone. The QA status of the warehouse zone takes precedence over the QA status of the warehouse. The following QA statuses are possible:
    • Released
    • In quarantine
    • Blocked
    • Special inventory

    The value Released is displayed by default while entering a new warehouse zone. The QA status of the warehouse up to the issue of goods zone can be changed at any time. Only the QA status Released is allowed for the issue of goods zone. A subsequent change in the QA status is not possible for issue of goods zones.
    QA statuses can be defined for warehouses, warehouse zones and identifiers. The inventories can be evaluated and used specifically according to the possible QA status. In case of varying QA status of the warehouse or warehouse zone and the identifier, the more unfavorable QA status is applicable, where Blocked is more unfavorable than Quarantine. The simultaneous change in the QA status of identifiers and warehouse or warehouse zone is not possible and is  rejected. The following inventory update takes place with time delay, since it is executed asynchronously from the inventory management servers.

    Note
    The QA status is not included in case of put-aways and manual inventory postings.
  • Warehouse organization – enter in this field the warehouse organization that is to be applied for the warehouse zone. The warehouse organization of the warehouse is displayed as the default value. This value is preferred over the warehouse organization of the warehouse. The following warehouse organizations are possible:
    • Simple warehouse – the warehouse does not have any other subdivision. In this warehouse organization, you cannot generate and use any storage locations for the warehouse zone.
    • High rack storage area – the warehouse zone is subdivided into rows, levels and areas.
    • Bulk storage – the warehouse zone is subdivided into rows and areas.
    • Locations only – the warehouse zone is subdivided only into locations.

    Warehouse zones of the utilizations Receipt of goods, Issue of goods as well as Inventory
    count differences must be of Simple warehouse category. You can enter any warehouse organization for all other utilizations.
    If a warehouse zone has storage locations, then the warehouse organization cannot be changed anymore. If a warehouse zone of the warehouse organization Simple warehouse indicates  inventory information or inventory postings have been made for this warehouse zone, then the warehouse organization cannot be changed to a warehouse organization with storage locations anymore.
    For a detailed description of the possible logistics organization, see the article Warehouse organizations.

  • Zone type – you can enter a warehouse zone type in this field, if required. The assignment of a warehouse zone type supplements the properties of the warehouse zone.
    Note
    The warehouse zone type is not taken into account in withdrawals and manual inventory postings. This means that items for which a warehouse zone type has been entered, can also be put away in warehouse zones of another type or a warehouse zone without a given warehouse zone type.
    First enter the available warehouse zone types in the Warehouse zone  types application.
  • Owner of inventory – enter the owner of inventory of the warehouse zone in this field.
    The value specified for the warehouse is displayed by default while entering a new warehouse zone.
    The owner of inventoried items is named as the inventory owner. Inventory owners can either be companies from your own group or external companies (e.g. external customers) who are not members of your company group.
    Inventory posting can only be successfully edited, if the owner of inventory specified in the inventory posting is identical to the owner of inventory of the storage location.
    If you do not enter any owner of inventory, these zones cannot contain any storage location with the owner of inventory origin As per warehouse zone data.
    Furthermore, the information about the owner of inventory in a warehouse zone cannot be changed any more if the warehouse zone contains at least one storage location with the owner of inventory origin As per warehouse zone data. If you generate storage locations with the Generate storage locations application, it will get the
    owner of inventory saved in this field for the warehouse zone in the setting owner of inventory origin As per warehouse zone data.
  • Priority – in this field, you can issue a priority to the warehouse zone, if required. The priority indicates the sequence of the warehouse zones during put-away and withdrawal. In doing so, the warehouse zones are included in the ascending order of priority. If two warehouse zones have the same priority, then their sequence is not defined.
    If the put-away is activated according to storage location priorities for the warehouse, then the system attempts to identify a storage location in the warehouse zone with the lowest priority using the overrun rule, before a  warehouse zone with higher priority is considered.
    The priority of the warehouse zone is used only if a put-away or withdrawal restriction is not used for put-away or withdrawal. This is the case if a restriction is not saved either for the item or for inventory item classification 1 in  the warehouse.
    Note
    The warehouse zone priorities are not included in manual inventory postings.
  • Material category – this control element contains metadata and must not be deleted. For the warehouse zone usages Not specified and Reserve, you can define some material categories that may be stored in these warehouse zones. The entry selected in this field influences the items that can be stored in storage locations within the warehouse zone in question. The following values are selectable:
    • All – you can store both inventory items and equipment in this warehouse zone.
    • Inventory item – you can only store inventory items in this warehouse zone.
    • Equipment – you can only store equipment in this warehouse zone.

[Storage strategies] button

You can show and hide the Storage strategies grouping with this button. You can also select individual warehouse zones and collapse or expand them with a double click.

The fields in the Storage strategies grouping:

  • Setting storage strategies – specify which storage strategies are used for the warehouse zone. The following settings are possible:
    • According to warehouse – the storage strategy settings defined for the warehouse are used for the warehouse zone.
    • Manual – the fields in the Storage strategies grouping are ready for input. You can define different storage strategies for the warehouse zone than for the warehouse.
  • Storage strategy – in this field, you can enter the storage strategy for the warehouse zone, if required. The value specified for the warehouse is displayed by default while entering a new warehouse zone.
    The storage strategy is an important part of Storage Location Control. It comprises several individual strategies that together specify the procedure during put-away and withdrawal in warehouses categorized in storage locations.
    The criteria of the entered storage strategy are transferred in the fields of the Storage strategies grouping during the tests. You can also specify the criteria of the storage strategy without entering an already created storage strategy. To do this, enter the criteria of the storage strategy directly in the fields of the Storage strategies grouping. If you have already entered a storage strategy, the value in Storage strategy field is automatically deleted.
    You can enter a storage strategy only if the warehouse organization of the warehouse zone enables the sub-division into storage locations. The storage strategy must be entered in advance in the Storage strategies application.
    For more information on storage strategies, see the article Storage strategies.

Controlling tab

In the Controlling tab, you can view and edit the controlling data of the warehouse.

Detailed description of fields:

  • Cost center – the cost center assigned in this field is considered while posting the inventory count differences. If a cost center is saved, then the cost center is not considered from the item master data. If a cost center is entered in the inventory count as well, the cost center saved there is used.
    Assignment of cost centers is possible if the Controlling function is activated in the Customizing application.
  • Cost unit – the cost unit assigned in this field is considered while posting the inventory count differences. If a cost unit is saved, then the cost unit is not considered from the item master data.
    The entry in this field is optional.
    Assignment of cost units is possible if the Controlling function is activated in the Customizing application.

Statistics tab

This tab displays storage location access annual statistics for the opened warehouse. This displays the history of access saved in the OLTP statistics in the namespace com.cisag.app.statistic.obj  of the OLTP database. The storage location access annual statistics is based on the inventory postings that have been edited by the inventory management servers and transferred to the OLTP statistics. The displayed values correspond with the status of the inventory postings at the time point of the last transfer. A possible inclusion or exclusion in the Planning utilization of the item is not considered.
The Statistics tab is used only if the warehouse is divided into storage locations and the storage location access annual statistics has been activated in the Customizing application.

Further information on storage location access annual statistics can also be found in the article Storage location statistics.

Detailed description of fields:

  • Level of consolidation – the storage location annual statistics can only be displayed per warehouse. You cannot modify the level Warehouse in this field.
  • Month – the storage location annual statistics can only be displayed per calendar year. This is the reason the
    field “Month” is not considered for displaying the annual consumption statistics and the field is blocked for input.
  • Value 1 – enter in this field the reference quantity to be displayed in the storage location access annual statistics.
    You can choose from the following reference quantities:

    • Put-aways
    • Withdrawals
    • All

    In both cases, the number of accesses is displayed with inventory postings. The quantities in the inventory postings are irrelevant. If, for instance, a loading unit is interrupted and withdrawn into two separate procedures, it also shows as two accesses in the storage location access annual statistics.
    The basis of the storage location access annual statistics is the inventory postings successfully edited by an inventory management server and those that are transferred to OLTP statistics. A possible inclusion or exclusion in the Planning utilization of the item is not considered.
    The attribute (category) is relevant for the analysis. The attribute specifies whether an inventory posting is a receipt, issue, receipt transfer posting, issue transfer posting, receipt revaluation, issue revaluation or correction. Only the inventory postings of receipt and issue process are considered for the storage location access annual statistics.
    If you change the value in Value 1 field, select the [Refresh] button in the work pane to display the storage location access annual statistics for the new reference quantity.

  • Year 1 – enter in this field the reference year for displaying its corresponding storage location access annual statistics. You can choose from the following reference years:
    • Current year
    • Previous year
    • Year before last
      If you change the value in Year 1 field, press the [Refresh] button in the work pane to display storage location access annual statistics for the new reference year.
  • Value 2 – you can display another reference quantity of the storage location access annual statistics at the same time in this field. This way, the number of put-aways is matched with the number of withdrawals.
    You can choose between the same reference quantities as in the field Value 1. Each reference quantity is  displayed in a separate column and color. You can also select the value (empty). In this case the storage location access annual statistics are displayed only for the reference quantity in Value 1 field.
    If you change the value in Value 2 field, select the [Refresh] button in the work pane to display values for the new reference quantity.
  • Year 2 – you can display another reference year at the same time in this field. This facilitates information such as whether the number of accesses have decreased or increased in comparison with the previous year.
    You can choose from the following reference years:

    • (No selection)
    • Current year
    • Previous year
    • Year before last

    If you change the value in Year 2 field, select the [Refresh] button in the work pane to display values for the new reference year.

Statistics table and diagram

The available data is displayed in the table under the Statistics tab according to the selected criteria for the  statistics structure. The statistics are completed by clicking on the [Refresh] button in the table and diagram header.
The statistics are displayed next to the table in a diagram. You can select the type of diagram in the diagram header. Depending on the level of consolidation selection, following diagram representations are available in the system:

  • 2D bar chart
  • 3D bar chart

Authorizations tab

This tab is available if the Content-based authorizations function is activated in the Customizing application, Base function. See the chapter Organizational assignments and the article Content-based authorizations.

Customizing

If the Storage Location Control function is deactivated in the Customizing application under the main function Inventory management, then only warehouses of the warehouse organization Simple warehouse can be entered, i.e. without warehouse zones and storage locations.

Using the Generate OLTP statistics parameter under the Data warehouse and statistics function → Put-away/withdrawal grouping determines whether the put-away and withdrawal statistics are to be generated and displayed under the Statistics tab in the Warehouses application.

The settings in the Voucher document templates table under the Storage location control tab override the settings of the corresponding table in Customizing under Inventory management/Documents function.

Business entities

This control element contains metadata and must not be deleted. The following business entity is relevant for the Warehouses application. It is used, for example, to perform the following:

  • to assign authorizations,
  • provide activity definitions or
  • import or export data.

Warehouse: com.cisag.app.inventory.obj.StorageArea

The business entity is part of the following business entity group:

Warehouse master data: com.cisag.app.inventory.MasterData

Authorizations

Authorizations can be assigned by means of authorization roles as well as by assigning an organization. The authorization concept is described in the technical article Authorizations.

Special capabilities

This control element contains metadata and must not be deleted. The Warehouses application has no special  capabilities.

Organizational assignments

If the Content-based authorizations function is activated in the Customizing application, a person can only use the Warehouses application if an organization that is linked to at least one of the following structures has been assigned to him or her in the partner master data:

  • Inventory management

The Warehouses application includes the Authorizations table. In order for a person to be able to use a warehouse, he or she must be assigned in the partner master data to at least one organization entered in the Authorizations table of the warehouse.

Note
The table is only visible if the user has been assigned an authorization role that grants the Display authorizations capability for the associated business entity. In order to be able to edit content-based authorizations, the user  dditionally requires the Change authorizations capability.
In addition, the general capabilities for opening the respective application as well as for opening and editing the  respective business entity must be assigned to the user.

For more information on the Authorizations table and a comprehensive overview of content-based authorizations, please refer to the article Content-based authorizations.

Special features

There are no features for the Warehouses application.

Authorizations for business partners

The Warehouses application is not released for business partners.

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