Introduction
In this second part of the blog, I would like continue sharing with you differences regarding features and customizing between each deployment option available for SAP Extended Warehouse Management embedded in SAP S/4HANA and Decentral SAP Extended Warehouse Management on SAP S/4HANA On Premise edition.
The expectation, at the end this blog, is reach out more and more customers throughout the journey to SAP Extended Warehouse Management implementation that is facing this challenge, particularly on discovery phase of SAP Activate methodology, and share technical elements which somehow can support them on decision taking for the adherence enterprise architecture.
If you have not read yet the first part of the blog, you can do it, clicking on the link
Main Content
Looking at the challenges and market demands, SAP will continue to invest in automation and digitized business processes that will become even more important than before. As you have noticed, constantly SAP has been expanding on the already large scope of the mainline release with topics as Integration processes, Innovation and Simplification for SAP Extended Warehouse Management.
SAP Extended Warehouse Management was created originally as a decentralized solution, it means, running side by side with SAP ERP and, for this reason, the integration processes were designed using asynchronous communication. Also, independent data table from SAP ERP, new documents on SAP Extended Warehouse Management, such as Inbound Delivery Notification, Outbound Request and so on. With SAP S/4HANA core solution first version launched in 2015, based on foundation of HANA data base, SAP Extended Warehouse Management had the first version deployed as SAP Extended Warehouse Management embedded in SAP S/4HANA and now we are on version 2022 FPS1. On the other hand, in 2019 was launched the solution Decentral SAP Extended Warehouse Management on SAP S/4HANA based on S/4HANA stack, giving to the market a clear message that this will be the direction of SAP Extended Warehouse Management for On Premise edition.
Both deployment options has received continuous investments, but many of the differences that we can find on comparison of them, are related to the deployment itself, where the embedded solution allows to optimize integration with SAP S/4HANA, working on synchronously communication. Let’s see further details.
As planned and mentioned on blog part 1, I would like to cover in this second and last part of this blog, the following topics for SAP Extended Warehouse Management embedded in SAP S/4HANA and Decentral SAP Extended Warehouse Management on SAP S/4HANA:
- Integration with SAP S/4HANA (Part 1)
- Master Data Distribution (Part 1)
- Features and capabilities
- Customizing
Features and Capabilities
Talk about the features for SAP Extended Warehouse Management, it is a vast topic and certainly, in this blog, we should cover the more relevant that are more useful for customers. It comes from exchanging experiences with customers and the searching for the latest content.
Every new SAP S/4HANA version and packages FPS0/FPS1 brings new features or enhancements for the existing one for SAP Extended Warehouse Management and this information are available in several sources channel like, SAP Note, Simplification List, Product Release and Help.sap.com.
From the simplification processes in order to avoid redundancy documents as embedded deployment is running on same system of SAP S/4HANA, it offer a simplification content which avoid redundant customizing between SAP Extended Warehouse Management embedded in SAP S/4HANA and others SAP S/4HANA applications, because embedded has directly accesses to the existing SAP S/4HANA customizing. Here some examples:
- Catch Weight Tolerance Group
- Catch Weight Profile for Catch Weight Quantities
- Delivery Priority
- Handling Indicator
- Handling Unit Type
- Incoterms
- Packing Group
- Quality Inspection Group
- Serial Number Profile
- Shipping Conditions
- Transportation Group
- Warehouse Product Group
- Warehouse Storage Condition
Within the SAP note 3218673 - Release information and restrictions of Decentralized EWM on SAP S/4HANA 2022 FPS00 and FP..., there an enclosed file named “RIN2022_EWM_Deployment_differences_V1_2.pdf”, which contain the latest feature update for all deployment option OnPremise edition. Certainly, this is a reliable source of information which will guide you to allow compare the feature applicability.
Content from SAP Note
This file expands the universe of new features released and limitations processes for SAP Extended Warehouse management and comparison for each deployment option. which give to customers an excellent view in a nutshell what is available for SAP Extended Warehouse Management. Let’s give more details in some important features that are described and frequently asked by customers.
NOTE: For the features related to the business process SAP Transportation Management and SAP Extended Warehouse Management, there two separate Sap Notes which refers to available features and limitations of solution. For more details see the SAP Notes 1984252 - Supported functional scope of the direct TM EWM Integration for shippers and 3018355 - Supported functional scope and restrictions of the TU-based TM EWM Integration for shipper...
Quality Management Integration
The quality management and warehouse integration support scenarios where products after received from external vendor or in-house production must be inspection by quality criteria in order to comply with quality protocols required.
Manage quality for inbound warehouse processes is available for both deployment option, embedded or Decentralized, with an important optimization on the designed architecture.
The Integration QM-EWM provided for Decentralized deployment requires a Quality Inspection Engine (QIE), which is a framework which connects SAP S/4HANA with SAP Extended Warehouse Management. It’s an additional layer in this integration, where the transactional data exchanged between SAP S/4HANA and SAP Extended Warehouse Management pass thru QIE. In the other hand, SAP Extended Warehouse Management embedded in SAP S/4HANA do not require QIE framework, due to embedded solution performing on the same stack as SAP S/4HANA. It brings a simplified integration scenario.
Source: Regional Implementation Group (RIG)
Some features were simplified for embedded deployment:
- Inspection lot 01, 04, 08 and 09 using Inspection origin 17 EWM
- QM Activation without using Inspection Roles
Since SAP S/4HANA 1909 version, was released a simplification about inspection lot type which is the possibility to use only one inspection lot type on material master quality view. Previously we had to maintain on material master data two different inspection lot type value for the same product, one for Storage Location Without EWM and another inspection lo type for Storage Location EWM managed.
The standard inspection types are supported without inspection rule in SAP Extended Warehouse Management in SAP S/4HANA
01 Goods receipt insp. for purchase order
04 Goods receipt inspection from production
08 Stock transfer inspection
09 Recurring inspection of batches
For the quality management and warehouse integration without using Inspection role, you can check SAP Note 2787302 - EWM-QM integration without inspection rules when using embedded EWM. All the relevant fields and information are available on material master Quality view in SAP S/4HANA. This is possible embedded deployment and it’ not necessary inspection rule document on SAP Extended Warehouse Management.
Source: Regional Implementation Group (RIG)
The feature QM Defect and Notification integrated with SAP EWM was launched for SAP S/4HANA 2020 version, it’s still available only for embedded deployment. There is on the roadmap plan to release the solution for Decentralized SAP EWM.
Source: Regional Implementation Group (RIG)
It’s possible to capture defects for products in storage bins from warehouses managed by SAP Extended Warehouse Management or production supply areas (PSA), creates the stock assignments and trigger the follow-up actions posting goods movement. For the inventories with defects can be posted status Blocked or Quality stock and after investigation it can be posted to ‘unrestricted stock’, ‘scrap to cost center’, ‘return delivery’ or ‘move stock.
The process is achieved using the following Fiori app:
- Record Warehouse Defect
- Manage Defects
- Create Quality Notification
- Change Quality Notification
- Process Quality Task
And Roles to be assigned to user profile
- SAP_BR_QUALITY_ENGINEER
- SAP_BR_QUALITY_PLANNER
- SAP_BR_QUALITY_TECHINICIAN
- SAP_BR_WAREHOUSE_CLERK
- SAP_BR_WAREHOUSE_CLERK_EWM
- SAP_BR_WAREHOUSE_OPERATIVE_EWM
Production Process Integration
Production process integration with warehouse, Kanban, Repetitive Manufacturing, Process and Production order have received a package of enhancements for process and new process integration for features which started in SAP S/4HANA 1909 and now, on latest version, SAP S/4HANA 2022 more content.
With the possibility of using synchronous communication only in SAP Extended Warehouse Management embedded in SAP S/4HANA for the goods movement, from Manufacturing to warehouse processes, which makes a lean integration and expands the simplification process, allowing the update inventories synchronized between the warehouse management and inventory management systems.
As the benefits of this improvement, customer will have better stock synchronization, avoid monitoring of asynchronous processes and queues, no use of delivery documents and mix consumption from MM-IM and EWM storage location, it means, only one material document number.
Source: Regional Implementation Group (RIG)
This improvement for manufacturing and warehouse integration is ready to use for embedded deployment, as an option. You can set in SPRO, on Production Schedulling profile. Depends on customer complexity of the manufacturing process, Asynchronous communication can still be used.
Production Schedulling Profile
Additionally, the transaction code MIGO is able to post goods movement for Goods receipt and Goods issue, Goods issue for reservation, Goods receipt for JIT and cancel material documents. Using a new item tab created into MIGO, users can drilldown into warehouse documents and confirm warehouse tasks, for example.
Warehouse Management tab
Procurement Process
As same as the lean integration processes for manufacturing described above, synchronous post goods movement for Good receipt from external procurement was designed as part of the SAP S/4HANA 2020 FPS1 released on February 24th, 2021, and the solution is available only for embedded deployment due to boundaries limitation of decentralized deployment.
This new feature supports standard procurement documents like, purchase orders, scheduling agreements, stock transfer orders, purchase orders referencing value or quantity contracts and subcontracting purchase order. Improvement of integration between SAP S/4HANA and SAP Extended Warehouse Management, synchronous updates of stock, no queues, optimized processes without Inbound delivery, mix goods receipt for MM-IM and warehouse stock in only one posting.
Additionally, the solution scope supports the following capabilities
- Goods receipt with HUs (new tab)
- Unified Package Builder (UPB) getting packaging proposal from
- Packaging Specification
- Packing Instruction
- Package Builder
- Automatic putaway WT creation
- Display and navigation to warehouse documents in transaction code MIGO
- Cancellations of Goods Receipt documents in transaction code. MIGO
As a new solution offered for embedded deployment, there are some limitations out of scope and another planned for future releases, which is important to know before design the solution for your procurement process:
- Out of scope
- Mixed HU creation
- HU for Serial numbers
- One HU for several batches of one product
- Planned for future releases
- Pre-allocated stocks
- Inspection lot creation
Before starting the last topic proposed to this blog, we are able to identify the most relevant and useful features and difference for SAP Extended Warehouse Management embedded in SAP S/4HANA and Decentral SAP Extended Warehouse Management on SAP S/4HANA for On Premise edition, and this reflects also on customizing differences.
Another difference for embedded deployment, which is running in S4CORE release, the customizing for set control parameters has changed. Now you must set up on the delivery process profile for the delivery type document.
SPRO/SCM Extended Warehouse Management/Extended Warehouse Management/Cross-Process Settings/Delivery - Warehouse Request/Process Management and Control/Define Process Profile for Document Header.
Take a look on SAP note 2753619 - Control Parameters for ERP Version Control in S4CORE to get more details
I hope you have enriched you knowledge, getting more background to support your customers or implementation project.
FIND OUT MORE!
SAP EWM Community -> https://www.sap.com/community/topics/extended-warehouse-management.html
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