New Enhancement Packs available for Business Suite core applications
This week the next set of enhancement packages for the SAP Business Suite core applications SAP ERP (EHP 7), SAP CRM (EHP 3), SAP SCM (EHP3), and SAP SRM (EHP3) became available to our customers immediately. Enhancement packs allow benefit from functional enhancements of existing releases without doing a release upgrade reducing costs of IT. Instead only those business functions are selected within a so-called switch framework that are of interest.
The enhancement packages consolidate all innovations for the SAP Business Suite powered by HANA that have been delivered in180 quarterly shipments over the last two years. It also contains significant innovations for Commodity Management and Billing and Revenue Innovation Management.
The new enhancement packages are generally available effective immediately because most of the innovations have already been included in quarterly shipments and are already in productive use. This means that there will be no ramp-up program, but we offer customers the participation in the “SAP Business Suite on HANA Care Program” to ensure fast and smooth implementations for those who want to install the Business Suite on HANA which is possible now from these Enhancement Pack Levels. There is an exception regarding Ramp-Up: Customers who need the new Commodity Management or the new Billing and Revenue Innovation Management functionality will have to participate in a ramp-up program.
You can find more information about the innovations included in the enhancement packages in the help portal and linked release notes (SAP ERP 6 EHP 7, SAP CRM 7 EHP 3, SAP SCM 7 EHP3).
From an industry specific point of view here is my top 3 for Chemicals:
1) SCM: APO can now be deployed as Add-On to ERP as well. As of now it had to run on SCM server. Please note that some functional restrictions may apply when deployed on ERP. The release note is covering that.
2) PLM: Newly developed Recipes can now fully be handed over to Manufacturing. As of now you could synchronize Bill of materials only. Now you can hand over the process description as well so that Master Recipes in PP-PI can be created out of Recipes of Recipe Development application. Hand over means in this context transfer of data but more important resolving conflicts. Also of interest here is introduction of building blocks concept into Recipe development.
3) Global Label Management: The existing Labale management solution was enhanced by automation of label print requests, introduction of a label print workbench for better execution and enhancements on WWI server for easier creation of labels and higher print performance.
With EHP 7 for ERP upcoming versions of Best Practice for Chemicals ERP implementation template will also be available for HANA. In blogs to come I will explain the PLM improvements, the enhancements of Label management and the value of running Best Practices for Chemicals on HANA. Please stay tuned. What are your favorites for Chemicals in the mentioned Enhancement Packs?
Dear Marko
next generation of Enhancement Package regarding EHS on the road. Congratulation 🙂 😎
May be you could help english community:
Link:
http://help.sap.com/erp2005_ehp_07/helpdata/en/70/eb045eef1e4acdba8779a9b1d2550b/content.htm?frameset=/en/46/4afb86d8d551ede10000000a114a6b/frameset.htm
and
http://help.sap.com/erp2005_ehp_07/helpdata/en/ed/9db9fb587d46c8a1ac2e5cf00bd6c1/content.htm?frameset=/en/46/4afb86d8d551ede10000000a114a6b/frameset.htm
seems no to be available in english (only german).
Reading cross the new enhancement once again nice improvements are there.
As discussed in several threads: there seems still the need of improvement in GLM area (Bar Code library). If I read cross all the topics (may be I missed somehing) the Bar Code topic is supported only "indirect" by SAP and you need to use third party software.
May be in the next thread you can show the picture of SAP regarding:
a.) which application will get better suport of Adobe technology to may be support "simple" layouts
b.) as it seems to be that Component Extension can be used (not to say must be used) with out using WWI
Discussion in this FORUM showed that SAP consultants do have some "problems" in using WWI; May be you have a success story for the use of Adobe in EHS environment to share with the community?
May be you can share on the top your epxerience with the "Business Fcuntions". Are they used by companies? and if so which one are the companies interested most (and may be why). This could help audience better to decide to activate the Business Function.
Hope you can share your thoughts / ideas etc. regarding that.
C.B.
Hi Christoph,
thanks for your feedback. The English version of online documentation reagrding the EH&S part in EhP7 can be found here: http://help.sap.com/erp2005_ehp_07/helpdata/en/a5/3adda043be11d188fe0000e8322f96/frameset.htm
Regarding you comments on Global Label Management. The WWI server is still the mean to create and print Labels. We discussed with customers the wish to change to Adobe Forms. But now that everybody has adopted MSDS and Lables to new GHS requirements there was not much willingness to touch everything again. So it is in the interest of keeping IT operation cost down to still continue on WWI. However the building blocks introduced with EhP 7 will make Label creation easier and print performance was also improved. We do support now barcodes on Labels as well which is another improvement coming with EhP7.
Kind rgds
Marko
Dear Marko,
Great Blog. Appreciate your valuable blog.
We want to improve our printing performance from GLM.(Sequential number printing).
Is HVP solution now part of ECC 6.0 EnhP7? Also do this support PLC5 printers?
Please suggest.
Regards
Prabaharan
Prabaharan,
Yes, EhP7 brings now a solution for High Volume printing as one of the main improvements. This includes optimizations for printing out sequence data like sequential numbering. Beside windows printer drivers there is a plug-in available for other printer drivers so that I assume that PLC5 can be supported. Once I got specific info on this I will comment on it again later .
Kind rgds
Marko
I have to correct me in regards to support of PLC5 printers. There is an interface available for printer plug-ins but the plug in needs to be programmed either as part of the project or by the printer vendor
Dear mark
I am now confirmed that PCLprinters will be supported only if we implement plugin. Can that plugin programmed inside SAP using ABAP?
Please share any technical documents for implementing the plugin. Please send it this mail id prabaasokan@gmail.com
Regards
Prabaharan
The plug in has to be programmed in C++ for windows.
A note describing the HVP Plug-In interface is in preparation,. The note number is 1900327. It is not yet released. This should be happen by October latest - please watch for the note then.
Since the plug-in will be manufactruer if not printer specific our recommendation is to ask the printer vendors to create such a plug-in.
One final remark on PLC5: You can print SAP labels on those printers but you cannot benfit from the HVP optimizations made without this Plug-In. In our experience PLC5 printers are not used for high volume label printing.
Dear marko
Thanks for your help. Will keep looking on note to step further.
One more info that I would like to bring you here is that I assume SAP generates labels in ZPL format.
Printer vendors can implement the
Plugin using their printer specific language. To add on this I have found converters that helps in converting ZPL labels to PCL labels .
http://www.printtransform.com/conversion-zpl-to-pcl-88-103.php#
I would like to know everyone's
Comments here.
Regards
Prabaharan
Prabaharan,
SAP GLM generates labels in MS Word. They can be printed to any available Windows printer. But label printing optimizations are just available through HVP and it's Plug-In. The Plug-In then transforms Windows GDI printing commands / Bitmaps to tht planguage like ZPL, PCL or whatever.
Converting ZPL to PCL probably doesn't solve any issue. Each printer vendor uses slightly different technology to optimize printing, so a generic converter prbably won't do the job.
Thanks Christian
Dear Prabaharan,
it depends if your printer supports label printing optimizations or not. Would you share information which printer you use?
Usually PCL5 printers are office printers which do not support such features.
To use these features you will probably need to ask your printer vendor to implement a Plug-In for HVP. HVP is basically the interface between the printer and GLM/WWI. The plug-in will translate Windows printing commands / Bitmaps to the printer specific printer language, plus it will receive information about the variable parts of the label like a serial number.
Regards,
Christian
Dear Prabaharan,
it depends if your printer supports label printing optimizations or not. Would you share information which printer you use?
Usually PCL5 printers are office printers which do not support such features.
To use these features you will probably need to ask your printer vendor to implement a Plug-In for HVP. HVP is basically the interface between the printer and GLM/WWI. The plug-in will translate Windows printing commands / Bitmaps to the printer specific printer language, plus it will receive information about the variable parts of the label like a serial number.
Regards,
Christian
Dear Christian
Please look on my below response
Regards
Prabaharan