Material Master Data – Overview

We need to discuss briefly how the material records are organized in the SAP Materials Management system.

What is the Material Master Record?

The material master record contains all information about the materials a company procures, manufactures, stores and ships. The data stored in the material master is not only used by Warehouse Management (WM), but also by other application components, such as Inventory Management (IM), Production Planning (PP), Quality Management (QM) and Shipping (SDSHP). The integration of all information about a material into a single record eliminates redundancy and makes it possible to store material data for all relevant system components in a single database.

Views in the Material Master Record

You maintain and display material master records using views. Just as data in the material master record is maintained for specific departments, such as quality assurance, sales or product planning, some of the data is used specifically by the Warehouse Management (WM) application. For example, when you maintain material data from the viewpoint of warehouse management, the system displays only the data that is relevant for the storage of the material in the warehouse. General data that is relevant for more than one view (for example, the material’s description, its weight, and its volume) appears in several views.

Also see: SAP Simple Procurement Cycle

Organization Level for Data

There are two organizational levels that can be defined for WM. In the WM view of the material master record, all the indicators and fields that are used for the entire warehouse number are entered at the warehouse number level. There is also a storage type level with all the indicators that apply to a single storage type but do not for the entire warehouse. If you enter a storage type for a material on the initial screen for the WM view, the system displays an additional section in which you can enter, for example, a fixed storage bin or a control quantity. These fields only apply to the storage type and not to the entire warehouse.

Defining Warehouse Data in the Material Master

Since it is possible to use the Materials Management system without interfacing to Warehouse Management, other views may already exist when you create the WM view in the material master record. For example, data from other system components (such as purchasing, quality management, accounting and storage) may already exist in the material master. To define warehousing data in the material master:

1), Choose Logistics → Logistics Execution → Master Data →Material →Material →Create→Immediately from the SAP menu. To change data in the material master, choose Logistics→Logistics Execution →Master Data → Material →Material →Create → Immediately. The steps for changing data are basically the same as those described below. Using this function, you can overtype existing data in the material master record.

2), Enter a material number, industry sector code, and material type and choose Select view.

3), Choose Warehouse Management and any relevant additional views and choose Org.levels.

4), In the organization level window, you must enter a warehouse number as a minimum. You can also enter the plant and storage type. Enter a storage type only if you need to enter storage type data for fixed bins or special processing.Choose ENTER. If you selected only the Warehouse Management view, the system immediately displays the warehouse data screen.

5), As a minimum, you must enter a descriptive text about the material and the base unit of measure. If you entered a storage type on the organizational level screen, additional fields are displayed under the Storage bin heading, such as the maximum and minimum quantity that can be stored in a bin and replenishment quantities. Linking the Material Master Record to a Hazardous Material Record These steps only apply if hazardous material management is active.

6), To link this material to a hazardous material record, enter the number or designator of the hazardous material in the Hazardous material number field.

7), Save the data about the material to the data base. In the material status table, two fields are taken into consideration in Warehouse Management that make it possible to limit processes permitted for materials:

(I) Transfer Requirement Instruction: Based on the material status, the system issues a notification message when transfer requirements are created manually or via function modules. The system does not issue a notification when transfer requirements are created via the normal IM _ WM interface. Warnings are suppressed when the system creates transfer requirements via function modules.

(II) Transfer Order Instruction: Based on the material status, the system issues a warning message or an error message when transfer orders are created. When you confirm a transfer order, the system does not issue a notification. Warnings are suppressed when the system creates transfer orders via function modules. The material status field is located in the “MRP 1” view of the material master record. To make changes to the material status table, see the Implementation Guide for Logistics.

Displaying the Material Master Record

The material master record can be displayed from various system components. For example, in the Inventory Management component, you can display the same views of the material master as is possible with Warehouse Management (WM). To display information about a specific material assigned to your warehouse in the Warehouse Management view

1), Choose Logistik →Logistics Execution → Master Data →Material →Material → Display →Display Current Status from the SAP menu.

2), Enter a material number and choose Goto → Select view(s).

3), Choose the Warehouse Management view 1.To enter the plant, warehouse number and storage type data, choose Org. levels.

4), As a minimum, you must enter a warehouse number. You can also enter the plant and storage type. To display fixed bin or replenishment information about a material, you must enter a storage type.

5), Choose ENTER.

Also See: Make to Order & Make to Stock an Overview