Topic overview

Availability rules determine the evaluation and notification procedures concerning the availability of an item. You can define multiple availability rules. Different process stages can involve different availability rules. For example, the availability check in the course of a purchasing recommendation is subject to different rules than the availability check within a sales order.

This article describes the structure of the Availability rules application. For instructions concerning handling of availability rules, please refer to Procedures: Availability rules article.

Definitions of terms

Blocked inventory
Blocked inventory is the inventory of an item with the Blocked quality assurance status (QA status). Blocked inventories are usually created when the user assigns the Blocked QA status to an identifier. Blocked inventories can be also created when the inventory of an item is put away in a warehouse zone with the Blocked QA status. The availability rule can indicate if blocked inventory should be considered as available in the course of the availability check.

Quarantined inventory
Quarantined inventory is the inventory of an item with the In quarantine QA status. Quarantined inventories are normally checked and then blocked or released, as necessary. Quarantined inventories are usually created when the user assigns the Blocked QA status to an identifier. Quarantined inventories can be also created when the inventory of an item is put away in a warehouse zone with the In quarantine QA status.

Back orders
Back orders are order line items with open quantities for delivery whose delivery date lies in the past.

Status
A status describes a state. A status can be specified for various factors in the system, such as an order, order line item, or picking order. Depending on the utilization, a status can be set by the system or manually.

Availability
Availability is the forecasted inventory of an item at a current or future date. Availability is calculated using the availability rule and consists of the current inventory plus planned receipts and issues. Any back orders can also be included while calculating the availability.

Application description

The Availability rules application is used for creating and processing of availability rules. The application consists of an identification pane and a work pane. In the identification pane, the properties of the availability rule are defined. In
the work pane, you can specify e.g. the categories and types of orders to be affected by the availability rule

Identification pane

The identification pane contains the relevant fields for explicit identification of the availability rules and additional generally applicable data.

The contents of the fields and parameters are described in detail below:

Availability rule – enter a unique and unused identification for an availability rule in this field. The purpose of the identification is to allocate the correct availability rule in other applications. It consists of up to 15 characters. After saving the availability rule for the first time, the identification cannot be modified anymore.

Description – the description constitutes an additional identification feature. It can consist of any text selected. Choose a meaningful and possibly distinct name in order to facilitate any subsequent search.

Include quarantined inventories – with this check box, you can choose if in quarantine inventory should be taken into account or not when calculating the current inventory during the availability check. If you enable the function, inventory with the In quarantine Quality Assurance status (QA status) will be taken into account during the availability check.
Quarantined inventory means the inventory of an item with the In quarantine QA status. Quarantined inventories are typically verified and then, if need be, blocked or released. Quarantined inventories are usually created when the user assigns the In quarantine QA status to an identifier. However, quarantined inventories can also be created when an item is transferred to a warehouse zone with the In quarantine QA status. Goods issued or received in future (for example, in the form of relocation of an identifier with the In quarantine QA status) are taken into account for the availability check irrespectively of this function.

Include blocked inventory – with this check box, you can choose if blocked inventory should be taken into account or not when calculating the current inventory during the availability check. If you enable the function, inventory with the Quality Assurance status (QA status) Blocked will be taken into account during the availability check. Blocked inventory is the inventory of an item with the Blocked QA status. Blocked inventories are usually created when the user assigns the Blocked QA status to an identifier. Blocked inventories can also be created when an item is transferred to a warehouse zone with the Blocked QA status. The availability rule can indicate if blocked inventories should be  considered as available during the availability check. Goods issued or received in the future (for example, in the form of relocation of an identifier with the Blocked QA status) are taken into account for the availability check irrespectively of this function.

Include replenishment lead time – with this check box, you can choose if the replenishment lead time should be taken into account during the availability check of the availability dialog (sales orders, sales quotations and distribution orders). The date of shipment or, in case of sales quotations, the date of delivery, will be compared with the replenishment lead time. If the date is a date occurring after the replenishment lead time, the availability dialog does not open; otherwise, the forecasted inventory is taken into account for the dialog displayed, based on the availability check.

Work pane

The work pane consists of a list with which you need to choose how the availability should be checked and displayed for the following order categories:

• Sales quotation
• Sales order
• Production order
• Inventory requisition
• Purchasing RFQ
• Purchase order
• Distribution order
• Delivery order
• Picking order

You can also create other lines, specifying the method for calculation and presentation of availability for a specific type of orders within the order category. During the availability check, such entries have precedence over general entries without specification of the type of orders.

Order category – in this field, choose the order category which the additional information in the line refer to. Possible order categories include:

• Sales quotation
• Sales order
• Production order
• Inventory requisition
• Purchasing RFQ
• Purchase order
• Distribution order
• Delivery order
• Picking order

An availability rule must have exactly one general entry for each order type without specifying an order type. When entering a new availability rule, one line per order type is automatically proposed.

An availability rule must have a general entry for each order category without specification of the type of order. When creating a new availability rule, a line per order category will be displayed automatically.

Type – you can indicate a type of orders within an order category in this field. During the availability check, lines with a type of orders have precedence over general entries without specification of the type of orders.

Calculation – for each order category or type, you can specify the status with which order line items should be taken
into account for the availability check. Possible item statuses include:

• In progress
• Released
• Blocked

If you wish to take the order line items into account with all statuses that are available for selection, enable the (All) check box. You cannot make a status-depending selection for the Inventory requisition, Picking order or Delivery order types. Only a check box is displayed. Enable the check box if inventory requisitions, picking orders or delivery orders are to be taken into consideration. Disable the check box if inventory requisitions, picking orders or delivery orders are not to be taken into consideration.

Back orders – in this field, you specify for each order type or order type the status for which the backorders are to be taken into account in the availability check. If the back orders are not to be taken into account for a certain status according to your selection, they are neither calculated nor displayed, even if the other settings allow this. Back orders are order line items with open quantities for delivery whose delivery date lies in the past (before the current date). Possible item statuses include:

• In progress
• Released
• Blocked

If you wish to take the back orders into account with all statuses that are available for selection, enable the (All) check box. You cannot make a status-depending selection for the Inventory requisition, Picking order and Delivery order types. Only a check box is displayed if inventory requisitions, picking orders or delivery orders with a past creation date or, in the case of picking order, with a past generation date (before the current date) are to be taken into account. Disable
the check box if such inventory requisitions, picking orders or delivery orders are not to be taken into consideration.

Display – in this field, you specify for each order category or order type the status for which the order items should be displayed in the Origin view of the Availability query application. Basically, the Origin view of the Availability query application always displays those order line items that correspond to the selection in the Calculation field. If you apply additional statuses in this field, order line items with such statuses will be displayed in the work pane, but they will not be included for calculation of availability. Possible item statuses include:

• In progress
• Released
• Bocked

If you wish to display the order line items with all statuses that are available for selection, enable the (All) check box.
You cannot make a status-depending selection for the Inventory requisition, Picking order and Delivery order types. Only a check box is displayed. Enable the check box if inventory requisitions, picking orders or delivery orders are to be taken into consideration. Disable the check box if inventory requisitions, picking orders or delivery orders are not to be taken into consideration.

Data for multiple inventory owners – specify how the availability data for planned issues across all inventory owners is taken into account during the availability check. The following options are available:

• Do not include – planned issues without stating the owner do not reduce the availability of the specific inventories.
• According to the inventory owner sequence – the definition of the inventory owner sequence is used to determine which inventory owner will use which quantity for the planned issue.
• Always include – planned issues without an inventory owner being specified affect the availability of the inventories of all owners in the sequence.

This definition cannot be set for the order types Purchasing RFQ, Purchase order and Inventory order. 

Customizing

In the Availability rules application, in Customizing, the Multi-site, Storage location control, Production and Multiple inventory owners functions are of relevance.

• Availability rules for the Distribution order order type can be set only if the Multi-site function is active
• Availability rules for the Inventory requisition order type can be set only if the Storage location control function is active for the OLTP client
• Availability rules for the Picking order order type can be set only if the Production function is active for the active OLTP client
• The Data for multiple inventory owners column is only visible if the Multiple inventory owners function is activated.

Business entities

For the Availability rules application, the following business entity is of relevance, used e.g. in order to:

• assign authorizations,
• set up activity definitions or
• import or export data.

Availability rule: com.cisag.app.inventory.obj.AvailabilityCalculationRule

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

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

Authorizations

Authorizations are allocated to an organization both with the use of authorization roles and in the form of assignment. The authorization concept is described in the technical article Authorizations.

Special capabilities

There are no special capabilities for the Availability rules application.

Organization assignments

If the Content-based authorizations function in the Customizing application is allowed, a person can use the Availability rules application only if they have an organization allocated in the partner master data that is integrated in at least one of the following organizational structures:

• Inventory management

Special features

The Availability rules application is not released for internal representatives.

Authorizations for business partners

The Availability rules application is not released for business partners.