C_TS422_2023 SAP Certified Associate - SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition, Production Planning and Manufacturing Questions and Answers

Lead time scheduling is a method of scheduling production orders that calculates the start and finish dates of each operation based on the operation duration, interoperation time, and other time elements. The time elements that are relevant for lead time scheduling of a production order are:

Setup time: The time required to prepare the work center for the operation, such as changing tools, adjusting machines, or cleaning the work area.

Processing time: The time required to perform the operation, such as machining, assembling, or testing the product.

Teardown time: The time required to restore the work center to its original state after the operation, such as removing tools, resetting machines, or disposing of waste.

Interoperation time: The time between two consecutive operations, such as transportation, waiting, or inspection time.

Float before production: The time buffer before the scheduled start date of the production order, which can be used to compensate for delays or changes in the production plan.

Float after production: The time buffer after the scheduled finish date of the production order, which can be used to compensate for delays or changes in the production plan.

The opening period and the total replenishment lead time are not relevant for lead time scheduling of a production order. The opening period is a parameter that defines the earliest possible start date of a production order, based on the material availability date and the planning time fence. The total replenishment lead time is a parameter that defines the total time required to procure or produce a material, from the time the requirement is identified until the time the material is available for use.

References: [Production Planning with SAP S/4HANA], pages 177-179; [SAP Help Portal: Lead Time Scheduling].

The Advanced Planning flag is a field that indicates whether a data object is relevant for planning with Production Planning and Detailed Scheduling (PP/DS) in SAP S/4HANA. PP/DS is a component of Advanced Planning that provides more precise and flexible planning capabilities for critical products and resources. You can set the Advanced Planning flag for the following data objects:

Work Center: This is a master data object that represents a location where operations are performed. A work center can have different capacities, such as machine, labor, or power, that are used for scheduling and capacity planning. You can set the Advanced Planning flag for a work center to enable it for PP/DS planning. This means that the work center can be used as a resource in PP/DS and its capacity can be optimized by PP/DS heuristics or optimization tools.

Material: This is a master data object that represents a product or a component that is produced, procured, or consumed in a business process. A material can have different views, such as basic data, MRP, sales, or production, that contain different attributes and parameters for planning and execution. You can set the Advanced Planning flag for a material to enable it for PP/DS planning. This means that the material can be planned with exact times and quantities in PP/DS and its availability can be checked by PP/DS pegging.

The production version (B) and the plant (D) are not data objects that can have the Advanced Planning flag. The production version is a master data object that defines the combination of a bill of material (BOM) and a routing or a production process model (PPM) for a material. The production version does not have a separate flag for PP/DS, but it inherits the flag from the material and the work center. The plant is an organizational unit that represents a physical location where materials are produced or stored. The plant does not have a flag for PP/DS, but it is assigned to a location in PP/DS that represents thegeographical or logical grouping of plants for planning purposes. References:https://blogs.sap.com/2018/02/12/ppds-for-sap-s4hana-advanced-planning-a-powerful-planning-and-scheduling-tool/

https://learning.sap.com/learning-journeys/explore-integrated-business-processes-in-sap-s-4hana-/advanced-planning_ae824eb6-4bf8-4720-a48f-ba86929a14de

 Infinite planning is a method of material requirements planning (MRP) that creates new orders without checking the capacity availability of the work centers. This means that the capacity requirements of a new order are created regardless of the existing capacity load or constraints of the work center. Infinite planning assumes that the required capacity can be increased or adjusted as needed. Infinite planning is suitable for situations where the capacity supply is flexible and the demand is urgent or unpredictable. However, infinite planning can also result in capacity overloads or unrealistic schedules that need to be resolved later by capacity leveling or rescheduling. References: SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing II, Unit 1: Material Requirements Planning; [SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing Certification Guide], page 77.

Forecasting is the process of predicting future demand for products or services based on historical data, market trends, and other factors. Forecasting is an essential component of supply chain planning, which aims to optimize the flow of materials, information, and money across the supply chain network. SAP offers various applications that can be used for forecasting in supply chain planning, such as:

Integration Business Planning (IBP): IBP is a cloud-based solution that provides end-to-end visibility and integration of planning processes across different business functions, such as sales, finance, operations, and logistics. IBP enables collaborative and real-time forecasting, scenario analysis, and decision making based on advanced analytics and machine learning. IBP supports various forecasting methods, such as statistical, causal, and demand sensing, and allows users to adjust and refine forecasts based on changing market conditions and business priorities12.

Supply Chain Management (SCM): SCM is an on-premise solution that covers the entire supply chain process, from demand planning to delivery and invoicing. SCM includes various modules, such as Advanced Planning and Optimization (APO), Extended Warehouse Management (EWM), and Transportation Management ™, that enable efficient and flexible planning and execution of supply chain activities. SCM supports various forecasting techniques, such as exponential smoothing, trend analysis, and seasonal adjustment, and allows users to monitor and control forecast accuracy and performance34.

The other two options are not SAP applications, but rather concepts or processes related to supply chain planning:

Capacity Requirement Planning (CRP): CRP is the process of determining the available and required capacity of resources, such as machines, labor, and materials, to meet the production plan. CRP helps to identify and resolve capacity bottlenecks, optimize resource utilization, and balance supply and demand. CRP can be performed using various SAP applications, such as MRP, Production Planning and Detailed Scheduling (PP/DS), or IBP5 .

Material Requirement Planning (MRP): MRP is the process of calculating the quantity and timing of materials needed to fulfill the production plan. MRP helps to optimize inventory levels, reduce costs, and improve customer service. MRP can be performed using various SAP applications, such as ERP, SCM, or IBP . References: SAP Integrated Business Planning | SAP, Forecasting | SAP Help Portal, SAP Supply Chain Management | SAP, Forecasting | SAP Help Portal, Capacity Requirements Planning (PP-CRP) | SAP Help Portal, [Capacity Planning | SAP Help Portal], [Material Requirements Planning (PP-MRP) | SAP Help Portal], [Material Requirements Planning | SAP Help Portal]

 Multiple commitments occur when several operations are scheduled to start or finish at the same time on a work center. This can happen for different reasons, depending on the settings of the strategy profile and the work center. Two possible reasons are:

The Finite Scheduling indicator is NOT set in the strategy profile. This means that the system does not consider the capacity availability of the work center when scheduling the operations. The system only checks the basic dates and the relationships between the operations. Therefore, the system can schedule multiple operations at the same time on the same work center, resulting in multiple commitments.

The work center has several individual capacities. This means that the work center can perform several operations simultaneously, depending on the number and type of individual capacities. The system assigns the operations to the individual capacities based on the capacity category and the priority. However, if the individual capacities have the same capacity category and priority, the system can assign multiple operations to the same individual capacity, resulting in multiple commitments.

References: Scheduling | SAP Help Portal, Strategy Profile | SAP Help Portal, Individual Capacities | SAP Help Portal.

Phantom assemblies are assemblies that have their own product structure, but whose assembly does not actually physically exist. The components of the phantom assembly are incorporated directly in the superordinate product. The product structure of the superordinate product contains a reference to the phantom assembly. You can use phantom assemblies for the following purposes:

To simplify the structure of bills of material: Phantom assemblies allow you to group components that belong together logically or functionally, without creating an additional level in the product structure. This can make the product structure easier to maintain and understand.

To reduce the number of material masters: Phantom assemblies do not require a material master record in SAP S/4HANA, as they are not physically produced or stored. This can save storage space and reduce the effort of creating and updating material masters.

To reduce the number of changes required in bills of material: Phantom assemblies can be used to represent common subassemblies that are used in multiple products. This way, you only need to maintain the product structure of the phantom assembly once, and any changes will be reflected in all the products that reference it.

Phantom assemblies do not increase the number of planning levels, as they are not considered as separate planning objects. They also do not make the assignment of components easier, as the components are assigned to the superordinate product, not to the phantom assembly. References: Phantom Assembly | SAP Help Portal, Phantom Assembly | SAP Help Portal, Planning Phantom Assemblies | SAP Help Portal.

 If you have created a new MRP-relevant material that supports both in-house production and external procurement, you need to specify the procurement type for the material in the material master record. The procurement type determines how the material is procured, either in-house, externally, or both. If you do not specify the procurement type,the MRP run does not consider the material, and it has to be planned interactively using the MRP Live app or the MD04 transaction. In interactive planning, you can manually assign a procurement type to the material and create the corresponding order proposals, such as planned orders or purchase requisitions. Alternatively, you can maintain a production version for the material, which defines the procurement type and the BOM and routing to be used for in-house production or external procurement. The production version can be assigned to the material in the material master record or in the MRP Live app or the MD04 transaction. The production version allows the MRP run to plan the material automatically based on the specified procurement type123. References: Procurement Type | SAP Help Portal, Production Version | SAP Help Portal, Material Requirements Planning with SAP S/4HANA, page 79-80.

Mode selection is a feature that allows the system to choose the best mode for an activity based on the mode priority and the available capacity of the resources. A mode is a combination of a resource and a formula that determines the duration and quantity of an activity. An operation can have multiple activities, each with multiple modes. Mode selection can be used when an operation contains several activities, each of which is assigned several modes for different resources, and the system needs to determine which resource to use for each activity. Mode selection can also be used when an activity has several modes for the same resource, and the system needs to determine which formula to use for the activity. Mode selection can be performed during the planning explosion or during the interactive planning. References: Mode Selection | SAP Help Portal, Mode Selection | SAP Help Portal

You can achieve planning only for specific resources in Advanced Planning (PP/DS) by using a resource group. A resource group is a collection of resources that share the same characteristics and can be used interchangeably for production. You can assign a resource group to a product or a production version, and then use the resource group as a selection criterion in the planning board or the product view. This way, you can restrict the planning to only those resources that belong to the resource group. References: SAP S/4HANA Manufacturing for Planning & Scheduling - Implementation Guide, page 25; [SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing Certification Guide], page 79.

The order-type-dependent parameters are configuration settings that control various aspects of production order processing, such as number range, scheduling type, availability check, costing variant, confirmation parameters, and so on. These parameters are assigned to a production order type, which is a key that defines the characteristics and business rules of a production order. The order-type-dependent parameters affect the following business processes:

Check material availability: The availability check determines whether the required materials and capacities are available for the production order. The availability check is controlled by the checking rule and the checking group, which are defined in the order-type-dependent parameters. The checking rule specifies which stocks, receipts, and issues are considered in the availability check. The checking group determines how the system responds to the availability situation, such as issuing a warning or an error message, or rescheduling the order.

Schedule production orders: The scheduling of production orders calculates the planned dates and times for the operations and the order. The scheduling is controlled by the scheduling type and the scheduling parameters, which are defined in the order-type-dependent parameters. The scheduling type determines whether the system performs forward or backward scheduling, and whether it considers the basic dates or the production dates. The scheduling parameters determine how the system calculates the operation durations, interoperation times, and floats. References: [SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing Certification Guide], page 123; [SAP Help Portal: Order-Type-Dependent Parameters].

 In make-to-order production, the production planning is initiated only when a sales order is received. The system does not perform a net requirements calculation between individual sales orders or with the make-to-stock warehouse stock1. Therefore, option B is correct. Additionally, production orders are created with sales order reference, which means that the costs and revenues of the sales order are settled at the end of the production process2. Therefore, option E is also correct. The other options are not valid for make-to-order production. Storage location MRP areas are not required for sales-order-specific stock, as the stock is managed at the sales order level3. The reduction of make-to-order stock and requirements does not occur on delivery, but on goods issue to the sales order1. Sales orders do not have to be ATP-confirmed to be saved, as the availability check is optional and can be performed later. References: 1: Strategies for Make-to-Order (MTO) Production | SAP Help Portal(https://help.sap.com/docs/SAP_S4HANA_CLOUD/2bba750d1e124e1ea2a039bb1cd9b6c5/3b24bf53d25ab64ce10000000a174cb4.html) 2: Outlining Make-to-Order Production - SAP Learning(https://learning.sap.com/learning-journeys/discovering-the-basics-of-sap-s-4hana-manufacturing/outlining-make-to-order-production_be788c36-6fd4-4f1e-b054-635435247918) 3: Storage Location MRP Areas | SAP Help Portal. : Availability Check and Requirements in Sales andDistribution Processing | SAP Help Portal.

A production version is a combination of a BOM and a routing that defines how a material is produced. For a production version to be valid and consistent, the following requirements must be fulfilled:

The deletion flag must NOT be set for the BOM or the routing. The deletion flag indicates that the BOM or the routing is no longer used and should be archived. If the deletion flag is set, the production version cannot be used for production planning or execution.

The lot size range must be within the lot size range of the assigned routing. The lot size range specifies the minimum and maximum order quantity for which the production version is valid. The lot size range of the production version must match or be smaller than the lot size range of the routing, otherwise the system will not find a suitable routing for the production order.

The assigned routing and BOM must be valid in the entire validity period. The validity period defines the time frame for which the production version is valid. The validity period of the production version must be within or equal to the validity periods of the routing and the BOM, otherwise the system will not find a consistent BOM and routing combination for the production order. References: [SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing Certification Guide], page 113; [SAP Help Portal: Production Version].

Make-to-stock production (10) is a planning strategy that supports the production of a finished good based on a forecast and without any reference to sales orders. This strategy is used when the finished good has a stable and predictable demand, and the company wants to maintain a certain level of safety stock to meet customer orders. If customers order more than the forecasted quantity, this does not affect the production program, as the system does not generate any additional planned orders or purchase requisitions for the finished good. Instead, the system reduces the planned independent requirements by the sales order quantity, and the excess demand is covered by the safety stock or the available stock. This strategy allows for a smooth and continuous production process, and avoids frequent changes in the production plan. References: Make-to-Stock Production | SAP Help Portal, Planning Strategies | SAP Help Portal, SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing Certification Guide, page 52.

The subitems of a bill of material (BOM) are the components that make up the product or assembly. You can maintain the following data for each subitem:

Quantity: This is the number of units of the component that are required for one unit of the product or assembly. You can specify the quantity in different units of measure, such as base unit, order unit, or alternative unit. You can also use variable quantities, such as percentages or formulas, to calculate the quantity dynamically based on the product or assembly characteristics.

Scrap percentage: This is the percentage of the component that is expected to be wasted or lost during the production or assembly process. You can specify the scrap percentage for each component to adjust the quantity accordingly. For example, if the quantity of a component is 10 and the scrap percentage is 5%, the system will increase the quantity by 0.5 to account for the scrap.

The installation point (A) and the item type (B) are not data that you can maintain in the subitems of a BOM. The installation point is a field in the equipment master record that indicates where the equipment is installed. The item type is a field in the sales document item that determines the processing and pricing of the item. These fields are not relevant for the BOM subitems. References:

https://sapstack.com/pp/bom-in-sap-bill-of-material/

https://skillstek.com/bill-of-material-in-sap/

 Planned independent requirements (PIRs) are demand elements that represent the sales or production program for a material. They are used to plan the production or procurement of finished products or assemblies in advance, based on the expected demand from customers or internal sources. Some benefits of planning with PIRs are:

Reduced delivery times: By planning with PIRs, you can ensure that the required materials and capacities are available when the actual sales orders arrive. This reduces the lead time for fulfilling the customer orders and improves the delivery performance.

Option to forecast planning for production resources: By planning with PIRs, you can use forecasting methods to estimate the future demand for a material based on historical data and trends. This allows you to adjust the production or procurement plan accordingly and optimize the utilization of production resources, such as machines, labor, and materials. References: [Production Planning with SAP S/4HANA], page 144; [SAP Help Portal: Planned Independent Requirements].

The planning strategy Finite Scheduling with Reverse allows you to schedule production orders backwards from the requested delivery date, taking into account the available capacity and material constraints. To allow scheduling the past, you need to specify a negative offset time in the strategy profile. The offset time defines how far in the past the system can schedule the production order start date. For example, if you specify an offset time of -5 days, the system can schedule the production order start date up to 5 days before the current date. This can help you to avoid late deliveries and reduce lead times.

References: [SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing Certification Guide], page 97; [SAP Help Portal: Finite Scheduling with Reverse]

One-off events: These are special events that affect the demand for a product, such as promotions, holidays, or product launches. You can use the one-off events function in SAP S/4HANA to create and maintain events and assign them to products. The system considers the events when generating the forecast and adjusts the demand accordingly.

Past sales order quantities: These are the historical data of the actual sales orders for a product. You can use the past sales order quantities as the basis for forecasting the future demand. The system applies statistical methods and algorithms to analyze the past sales order quantities and identify the trends, patterns, and seasonality of the demand.

Market intelligence: This is the external information that influences the demand for a product, such as market research, competitor analysis, or customer feedback. You can use the market intelligence function in SAP S/4HANA to import and integrate market data from various sources into the forecast. The system adjusts the demand based on the market intelligence data and the weighting factors that you define. References: Exploring the Steps of Supply Chain Planning; SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing II, Unit 2: Demand Management; [SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing Certification Guide], page 76.

Consumption-based planning is a planning procedure that uses past consumption data to calculate the future requirements of materials. It does not consider the dependent requirements of higher-level materials, but only the independent requirements from sales orders, forecasts, or stock transfers. Consumption-based planning is suitable for B and C materials, which have low value, low demand variability, and high availability. Consumption-based planning reduces the planning efforts for these materials, as it does not require the maintenance of BOMs, routings, or production versions. Consumption-based planning can be further divided into reorder point planning, forecast-based planning, and time-phased planning, depending on the method of determining the reorder point and the lot size12 References:

Consumption-Based Planning - SAP Help Portal

SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing Certification Guide, Chapter 3: Material Requirements Planning, Section 3.1: Planning Procedures, Page 67

The system checks the master data selection settings during the creation of planned orders and production orders in the following places:

In the bill of material (BOM), the system checks the selection ID, which determines which alternative BOM is selected for the material. The selection ID can be maintained in the material master or in the production version.

In the routing, the system checks the selection ID, which determines which alternative routing is selected for the material. The selection ID can be maintained in the material master or in the production version.

In the production version, the system checks the validity period, the lot size, and the selection profile, which determine whether the production version is valid and applicable for the material. The production version combines the BOM and the routing for a material and can be maintained in the material master or in the production version master data. References: SAP S/4HANA Manufacturing for Planning & Scheduling - Implementation Guide, page 16; [SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing Certification Guide], page 75.

Heuristics are planning functions that execute planning for selected objects, such as products, resources, operations, or line networks, using a specific procedure. Heuristics are used in interactive planning, the SAP S/4HANA Digital Core MRP_live or in the Advanced Planning (PP/DS) production planning run. In the Advanced Planning, you can execute several heuristics, which belong to both production planning and detailed scheduling, for the same products in one planning run. Heuristics can help you to solve planning problems for defined objects, such as creating feasible production plans, scheduling operations, assigning resources, or leveling capacities. Heuristics can also consider various constraints and parameters, such as lead times, lot sizes, setup times, priorities, or alternative modes12.

References:

1: SAP Help Portal: Heuristics

2: SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Manufacturing Certification Guide, Chapter 4: Advanced Planning

The consumption of planned independent requirements by other requirements, such as sales orders or stock transport orders, depends on the planning strategy and the requirements type of the materials involved. The planning strategy defines the basic procedure for planning a material and determines whether the consumption is relevant for planning. The requirements type controls the consumption parameters, such as the consumption mode (forward, backward, or bidirectional), the consumption interval (period of time in which the consumption can take place), and the consumption indicator (whether the consumption reduces the planned independent requirements or not). References: Consumption of Planned Independent Requirements | SAP Help Portal, Planning Strategy | SAP Help Portal, Requirements Type | SAP Help Portal.