31/08/2016

Revisitingthebasics:returnablecontainersex...|SCN

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SAPERPSalesandDistribution(SAPSD)

Revisitingthebasics:returnablecontainersexchange
scenariowithemptiestracking
PostedbyVeselinaPeykovainSAPERPSalesandDistribution(SAPSD)on25Sep201520:29:05
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AfterseveralyearsasaSAPconsultant,sometimesIfindmyselfguiltyoftryingtotackleaseeminglydifficultproblem
byfirstgoingthroughSAPnotes,thensearchingtheonlinedocumentationandcheckingSMODforapossible
solution.Backinthedays,whenIdidnothaveanypreviousprojectexperience,armedonlywiththe.CHMSAPhelp
version,Imighthavehandledthesituationdifferentlyandsurprisinglybetter.Itmayseemillogicalatfirst,butgaining
moreexperiencecouldactasablindspotandinsteadofgoingthroughSPROandmasterdata(asyouprobablydid
asajunior),youfindyourselfrushingtoanABAPerwithanewdevelopmentspecification,whichlooksstunningly
similartothespecificationsyouwroteduringyourprevious5projects.

Returnablecontainersexchange,whichIwilluseasanexample,isaverycommonscenariointhebeverage
business.Insomecompaniesitisrealizedbycomplexdevelopments,inothersitisleftoutasapurelymanual
process.Thereisagoodreasonbehindeachofthepossiblemethodsexternalsystemsinvolved,agreedproject
scopeandbudget,availabilityofresources,projectdeadlines,thelevelofprocessstandardizationinthecompany,the
possibilityofchangemanagementandsoon.

Thereisalsothisreallysimpleandcheapalternativethatajuniorconsultantcouldhavecomeupwith.
Ajuniorconsultantdoesnotrefertothepersonspositionneitherimpliesinferiorskillsitdescribesapersonwhois
relativelynewtoacertainarea.
Businesscase:
Theusageofrefillablecontainersforproducedproductsinbeveragesindustryhasnotonlyenvironmentalbenefits,
butalsosubstantiallyreducesthecostsperfillingcomparedtoonewayRGBbottles,onewayPETbottles,carton
packaging.Incaseaproductinreturnablecontainerissold,thecompanychargesadeposittothecustomer,whichis
returnedonreceivingbacktheemptycontainers.Averycommonbusinesspracticeisaftertheinitialdeliveryto
establishaprocesswherethecustomerreturnsthesamequantityandtypeofemptycontainersasthequantityof
purchasedproducts.

BenefitsfortheproducingcompanyinRCexchangescenario:
Timelycollectionofcontainerswhichcanbeusedforfurtherrefilling
Reductionoftransportationcosts(theemptycrateswhenreturningfromcustomervisitoccupythesamespaceas
thedeliveredFG).

Benefitsforthecustomer:
Aftertheinitialdeliveryheisbasicallychargedonlyfortheliquid.Depositsfromcustomersperspectiveare
moneythathecannotuseforinvestinginhisownenterprise.

Challenges:

IfthecompanyisnotabletodelivertheFGontime(insufficientstockortemporarycreditissue)noseparatevisitsfor
emptiescollectionandforFGdeliveryshouldbescheduledthecurrentordershouldbefullyrejectedandanew
orderforemptiesreturnshouldbecreatedandplanned(asapartoftheordercleaningprocedure).Thereason
behindthedecisionfornoseparatevisitsistohaveabetterutilizationoftruckcapacityandlowertransportationcosts.
Thecompanyneedstotrackthecontainerspertypebothbyvalueandquantityforeachdomesticcustomerandtobe
abletoperformreconciliationbetweenthequantityandvalueofthecontainersandthebalancesonthedeposit
account/accounts.
ThisideaaimstominimizetheeffortinERPduringorderentryandroutesettlementprocessandtocovermostofthe
describedcompanyrequirementswithoutanadditionaldevelopment.
Thepurposeofshowingsomeofthecustomizingsettingsisnottocreateageneralhowtoconfiguretheprocessand
therearenorevolutionarydiscoveriespresented(youwouldnotexpecttoomanyrevolutionarydiscoveriesfroma
fresher,anyway).TheysimplyillustratewhatyoucanachievebyapplyingsomebasicSAPknowledgeinaslightly
differentmannertoaddressacustomerrequirementsomethingthatajuniorconsultantcoulddo.

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Setupforstandardsalesorder
Itemcategories:
Itemcategoryofthemainitem(FG)
Notablefields:theitemispricingandbillingrelevant,schedulelinesallowed=X,creditactive=X,structurescope=
Bandapplication=SD01)(IwillusemultiBOMexplosionandsalesBOM)createdeliverygroup=A(toensure
thatbothimpliedandreturnedemptiesarekepttogether).

Schedulelineassignment=CP.

Itemcategoryfortheimpliedempty:

Importantfields:theitembillingrelevant,pricingforempties,creditexposureshouldbeupdated,schedulelinesare
allowed.
Assignmenttoscheduleline=ZXnogoodsmovement,noATP,norequirementstransfer,relevantfordelivery.The
itemisusedtocollectthedepositandtrackemptiesatthecustomerspremises.Thegoodsissueforimpliedempties
isperformedduringproductionorderconfirmation.

Itemcategoryforreturnempty:

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Notablefields:pricingforempties,noweight/vol.relevance,billingrelevant,schedulelinesallowed,returns=X,
updatecreditexposure.
Incompletionprocedureassignment:copyof20withoutweightchecks.
Schedulelineassigned=DN(movementtype651,noATP,norequirementstransfer,relevantfordelivery).

Itemcategoryassignment:

(ZARNisusedforBOMrelevantproductswith%discountbasedonmanualsettingofKVGR1toaspecificvalue).

Pricing:
Mainitemrelevantforbaseprice,discounts,VAT.
Impliedemptyrelevantonlyfordeposit,valuecollectedinCMPRE.
Returnemptyalsorelevantfordeposit,valuecollectedinCMPRE.
Pricingrequirementfordepositconditionchecksforpricingrelevance=A(tobeonthesafeside).

Creditmanagementsettings:

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Deliveryitemcategoriesspecifics:
Mainitem:relevantforpicking,determinestoragelocation,storagelocationrequired,checkquantity0,checkover
deliverydismissedwitherror.
Impliedemptynostoragelocationrequired,nopickingrelevance,checkquantity0andcheckoverdelivery
dismissedwitherror.
Returnemptydeterminestoragelocation,storagelocationrequired,checkquantity0andcheckoverdelivery
dismissedwitherror,notrelevantforpicking.
CopycontrolVTLA,VTFLforallitemcategories.
Thetrackingofreturnablecontainersisachievedbyusingemptiesupdatefunctionalityinbilling.
Prerequisite:youneedtohaveEACPactiveinSFW5touseemptiesupdate.
ThesettingsrelevantfortheprocessareinSPRO>SalesandDistribution>Billing>EmptiesUpdate.

Emptiesmanagementsettings:

1.MaterialtypesthatdetermineemptiessetthematerialtypeusedforRC(inthestandardsystemthisisLEER,in
mycasethisisaseparatematerialtypefornonvaluatedmaterialswithquantityupdateforthevaluationarea).
2.Billingtypeswithoutemptiesupdatemaintainallproformatypesandintercompanybillingtypestoavoid
incorrectemptiesmovementregistration.
3.MaintainemptiesaccountholderSAPsuggestsachoiceforaccountholderbetweenpayer,soldto,shipto,
billtopartyasaccountholder,butitisalsopossibletosetacustompartnerfunctionandinthiswaytobeableto
groupseveralcustomersforreportingpurposes.Ichosetouse3ACustomerchain,whichIhavesetupasa
levelinthecustomerhierarchy.Thispartnerfunctionistransferredtotherespectivesalesdocumenttypes.

Logemptiesupdateausefulfeaturetotrackeachstepofemptiesupdateinagreaterdetailduringthetestphase.It
shouldbeswitchedoffforproductiveenvironment.Thelogisintable/BEV1/EMLGFS:

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4.ManageemptiesfieldsthedefaultsprovidedbySAParesufficientformostcompanies,butincaseyouhavea
requirementforamoredetailedreporting,youcanuseadditionalquantityandvaluefields.

5.Calculationmatrixforemptiesthisiswherethemainlogicforemptiesbalanceisdefined.Itisextremelyimportant
incaseyoudefineadditionalemptiesfieldstoupdatethemcorrectlyintotherespectiveformula,otherwiseitwillbe
impossibletoperformreconciliationbetweentheemptiesregisterandthedepositaccountbalance.

6Assignitemcategoriesforemptiessettingsfortheexchangeprocess:

Hereonlytheassignmentforsomeoftheitemcategoriesfortheprocessisdisplayedyoualsoneedtoassignthe
itemcategoriesfordebit/creditmemos(onlyforvaluefieldsupdate),freedeliveriesandreturnstogetanaccurate
representationintheemptiesregister.
7.Youcanmaintainemptiesgroupsincaseyouwishtogroupseveralmaterialswiththesamedepositpricefor
reportingandprintingpurposes.

Howemptiesmanagementworks?

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Emptiesupdateisperformedatthetimeofbillingdocumentgeneration,whencertainrequirementsarefulfilled.
1.Thebillingtypeshouldberelevantforemptiesupdate.Ifitisnotrelevantforupdate,thebillingdocumentis
storedintable/BEV1/EMLOGFSwithLGOF=Fsuppressionofupdateusingbillingtype.
2.Thepartnerfunctionforaccountholdershouldbepresentinthebillingdocument.Incaseofmissingpartner
functionthedocumentisrecordedintable/BEV1/EMLOGFSwithLGOF=Psuppressionofupdateaspartner
notfound.
3.ItispossibletorestrictemptiesupdateforaspecificcustomerbysettingtheindicatorEmptiesUpdatefrom=X.
Suchbillingdocumentsarerecordedin/BEV1/EMLOGFSwithLGOF=Dsuppressionofupdateusing
indicatoroncustomer.

4.Thematerialtypeoftheitemshouldbespecifiedasemptiesmaterial.
5.Theitemcategoryforemptiesshouldbeassignedtothefieldsforquantity/value.
Whenalloftheprerequisitesarefulfilled,thebillingdocumentitemscontainingemptiesarestoredin
/BEV1/EMLGBDPwiththeQandVfieldsupdatedwiththelogicfromtheemptiesmatrixandthepricingdataofthe
document,referencedocumentsforthebilling,billingdateetc.
InadditionthedatafromVandQfieldsisstoredinaggregatedformin/BEV1/EMLGBSDperaccountholder,
monthandmaterialnumber.Itisusedtoprepareemptiesbalanceconfirmationsforthecustomerandforinternal
reportingpurposes.
Calculationexample:

ZARisexcludedfromthecalculationbasedonmaterialtype.
ZAIandZRUarecheckedagainsttheassignmenttoemptiesfields.
ZAIshouldupdateQ1andV1.
ZRUshouldupdateQ2andV2.
Q1,Q2,V1andV2arepartoftheformulasdefinedin/BEV1/EMMATRIX_V(calculationmatrixforempties).
ZAIupdatesV13differencedel./returnedvalue
AsV13ispartofthecalculationofV14individualprice/vsquantity,weareupdatingitaswell,similarlogicfor
V16totalvaluefordeliveredemptiesinthenewperiod.
ZAIalsoupdatesquantitiesQ13forcalculatingdifferencebetweenreturnedanddelivered,
Q16totaldeliveredquantityforthenewperioditinfluencestheresultinV14(alsointhequantitypartofthe
calculation).
Resultin/BEV1/EMLGBWDPforRECHNR=billingdocumentnumber:

Inadditiontotheemptiesaccountholdernumber,thepayer,shiptoandsoldtopartiesarealsorecordedinthe
table,whichallowsperformingalsodetailedanalysisforemptiestransfers.
Updatesin/BEV1/EMLGBSD:
Foreachcombinationofemptiespartner,soldto,shipto,billto,payerandmaterialnumberforaspecificsales
areaaseparatelineisrecordedperperiod(MMYYYY).ThereareseparateV*andQ*fieldsforthebalancesof
theoldandnewperiod.Mycustomerisanewone,soIhavezeroesfortheoldperiods(nonzerovaluesonlyin
TO*(total)andBN*(newbalance)fields:

Note:EmptiestrackingingeneralwillnotworkverywellwiththestandardapproachforAdvancedReturns
Management,sinceitreliesonbillingdocumentsforemptiesregisterupdates.Stillitispossibletorecordthe
returnedcontainersbyusingadedicatedbillingtypewithoutFIpostings(withtheassumptionthatARMisusedas

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originallyintendedreturningofproductsfromthecustomerforthefinishedproduct(e.g.duetoqualityissues)
andnotforvalueadjustmentsofthereturnablecontainers).

Emptiesmanagementfunctionalityobservations

Thegoodpart:
ItisextremelyeasytosetupemptiesmanagementupdateinSDandfulfillthecustomerrequirementsyouneed:
tounderstandthedifferentpropertiesofitemcategoriesinthesalesprocesses(basicSDknowledge)
knowledgeofbasicarithmeticoperations(skillobtainedduring1st2ndgradeatschool)
onlythestandardauthorizationsgrantedtofunctionalconsultants.
AniceALVreportforemptiesbalance(mostuserspreferthistypeofrepresentation).
BalanceconfirmationprintoutSAPScriptisdeliveredbydefault,itistechnicallypossibletouseasmartformoraPDF
formaswellforemptiesbalanceconfirmation(withanadditionaldevelopment).
Archivingfunctionalityisprovided.
Itiseasytocorrecttheemptiesbalanceincasethereasonisamissingpartnerorincorrectlyassigned/notassigned
itemcategory.
Despitewhatthenamesuggests,youcanusethisfunctionalitytotracknotonlyreturnablecontainers,butalsoall
kindsoffixedassetsatthecustomerspremiseswithouthavingequipmentmasterdatainthesystem.

Thebadpart:
Theideabehindandthefunctionalityforemptiestrackingisgood,butdoesnothavethelookandthefeelofafinished
product.Whilemostofthecustomersrequirementscouldbecoveredbywhatisprovidedasstandard,itwouldbe
goodtohavetheoptiontoswitchonloggingofemptiesupdateforaspecificpartnerintheproductiveenvironment
withoutfloodingthedatabasewiththousandsofrecordsforallotherpartners(whenyoucannotreproducesomeissue
inthedevelopmentclient).
YoucannotgetemptiesupdateforNLCCoriginatingdocumentsperemptiescodewithoutanadditionaldevelopment
(becausePO/STOBOMexplosionisnotprovidedinstandard).Itseemsastrangedesigndecisiontodeliverasample
BAPIforBOMexplosionwithhardcodedaccountassignmentsinsteadofprovidingsomecustomizablelogicthatcan
beusedoutofthebox.

Thereallybadpart:
Incaseyouneedtochangeemptiescalculationmatrixaftertheinitialimplementationintheproductiveenvironment,
theprocessisextremelydifficult(whenitispossibleatall),notstraightforward(youhavetofigureitoutbyyourself
consideringwhatyouchange,whennumberofdocumentsaffected,archiveddata,usageofbalanceconfirmations,
whatisthecurrentandthefuturesetup).EvenSAPadvisesnottodothat,becausethiswillcauseinconsistenciesin
thedatabase.
Intheunlikely(ornotsounlikely,judgingbythenumberofnotesandavailablecorrectionreports)eventofcorruption
oftheemptiestables,thereconstructionprocesstakesalotoftime,involvesrunningseveralreportsinacertain
sequencewithspecificselections,youhavetoensurethatnoemptiesupdatesoccurinthemeantime(thisessentially
meanstostopallbillingactivities,whichisconsideredasaseriousbusinessdisruption).
605075DocumentationforreconstructionBeverageemptiestables

Q:CanwesimplyachievethistraceabilitywithalistofallbillingitemswithspecificitemcategoriesinaSQ*
query?Youdonotneedadevelopertodothat.
A:Yes,butitwillbeslow,becausethedataisnotaggregated.Andyouwillnothavebalanceconfirmationprintouts.It
wouldbebettertouseBWforsuchkindofreportinginsteadofqueries.
Q:CouldthisbeachievedwithLIS?
A:Yes.Youwillstillneedadevelopertoproducesomeprofessionallylookingbalanceconfirmationforms,though.The
formsarequitesimple,sotheeffortestimationwillnotbereallyhigh.
Q:Couldthisbedonewithacustomdevelopmentinstead?
A:Yes,youcancreateyourownlogictopopulateztables,createreportsandprintbalanceconfirmationsthatusethe
datafromtheseztables,setauthorizationsforthenewtransactions,createservicereportsforthesupportteamtofix
potentialproblemsetc.Youwillneedtoconsiderthearchivingaspectandaswell.Dependingontheskillofthe
developerandthequalityofthesolutionproposal,theendproductcouldbeareallygreatandreliablefunctionality.It
willalsobeaveryexpensiveone,whichrequiresalotofeffortindevelopmentandtesting.

Masterdataspecifics:

Customermasterdata:
EmptiesUpdatefromshouldbewedonotneedexceptionsfromemptiesupdateforanytradecustomers.
Creditmasterrecordexistswithriskcategorymaintainedforthecreditcontrolareaanddocumentcreditgroupwith
activateddynamiccreditcheck.
Materialmasterdata:
FGseparateitemcategorygroupforBOMrelevantmaterialsinordertodetermineadifferentitemcategorythan
TAN.
TheimpliedemptyusesLEERitemcategorygroup.
Thematerialsinvolvedshouldbeextendedfortherelevantplantsandstoragelocations.
BOMsetup:
Thereare2billsofmaterialusedfortheprocess.Botharewithusage5SalesandDistribution.
FGBOMwithimpliedemptycode:
MaterialcodeFGproduct,componentimpliedemptycodeforsortedbottles.Fortheimpliedemptyweneedto
havequantitycorrelation.

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BOMforexplodingthereturnedemptycode:

Materialcodesortedimpliedempty.
Item1:thesamematerialcodeforsortedbottles(recursivenessallowed=X).
Incasethecustomerreturnsunsortedemptiesofthesamesizeandthesamedepositprice,youcanuseaseparate
materialcodeforthesecondBOMthenrecursivenessisnotneeded.

Documentprocessing:

Orderentry:
UponenteringthematerialcodeoftheFG,theimpliedemptyandreturnemptyareexplodedwithquantitydependent
oftheFGquantity.
Defaultview1:1exchange

Processingvariant1:firstfillornoavailableemptiesforreturndeletetheZRUitem

Creditcontrol:
Incaseofcreditblocktheexposureisnotupdatedatall.
IncaseofpartialconfirmationthecreditpricefortheFGistakenfromtheconfirmedquantity,ZAIandZRUwith
material122offseteachother(sothefactthattheyarenotrelevantforATPdoesnotcauseaproblemforcreditprice).

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Deliverycreationresult:

Duetothecorrelationthequantityofmaterial122isadjustedtotheFGquantity.
Asallitemsarerelevantfordelivery,thevaluefromS066(openorders)ismovedtoS067OLIKW(opendelivery
quantity).
OnlytheFGisrelevantforpicking.
Nospecificsforthisprocessrelatedtotransportationplanning.
TheprocessisintendedtobeusedmainlyinthecontextofpaperbasedDSDpresalesscenario.
Whensellingproductsdirectlyfromtheplantthereisnotaverysignificantbenefitofusingsuchtechniqueapartfrom
theinitialcreditpricecalculation,sincethewarehousepersonnelcouldupdatedirectlytheactuallyreturned
containersasamanualitemintheoutbounddeliveryuponcustomerarrival,postgoodsmovementandhandlethe
finalinvoice.

Deliveryexecution:
IntheDSDprocessatshipmentcompletionnomaterialdocumentsareposted.
ShipmentoutputDSDPisusedtotriggertheprintoutsoftheoutbounddeliveries,whichareassignedtoproforma
billingtype(thisisusedtoprintvaluateddeliverynotes,whichincaseofnochangestothedeliveryexecutionarethe
officialdocumentsreceivedbythecustomer.
Theproformabillingtypesareexcludedfromupdatingtheemptiesregister.

Routesettlement:
Thesettlementclerkreceivescopiesofthevaluatednotessignedbythedriverandthecustomer,whichservealsoas
acceptanceprotocols.Incaseofchangestothedeliveryquantitiesindicatedontheprinteddocuments,theitemsare
updatedmanuallyinthedeliveryexecutiontab.
DuringFSR(finalsettlementrun):
1.Newordersarecreatedortheoriginalordersareupdated(forexamplethebillingblockisreset,newitemsare
addeddependingonthesettingsofthedeterminedcustomersalestransactiontype).Formycasetheoriginal
ordersareupdatedwithcorrectionitemsandthebillingblockisreset.
2.Newdeliveriesforcorrectionpostingsarecreated.
3.Goodsmovementispostedforallselecteddeliveries(originalandnew).
4.Billingisexecuted.
5.Incaseofcashcollectionclearingisalsoperformed.
Atpoint4theemptiesregisterisupdated.
ImportantnoteonDSDCSTTdeterminationwithsapnote1701162IncorrectprocessingofreturnsitemsSAP
changedthelogicfordeterminationofwhetheradeliveryitemchangeshouldbetreatedasanincreaseordecrease
andconsiders/DSD/HH_RADELITTA_CODEvalues(whichaffectsthecustomizingrelatedforRCexchange).
RelatedsapnotesforDSD:
1819489Incorrectprocessingofnewreturnsitems
1823436Nocustomersalestransactiontypefornewitems
1971555DSD:Incorrectprocessingofnewreturnsitems

Billing:

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Reportingforreturnablecontainers:
Balancesforthedepositaccount(FS10N):

Emptiesevaluationreport(/BEV1/EMS):

Detailsperaccountholder/material:

Documentswithoutemptiesupdate(table/BEV1/EMLOGFS)

Thetablecanalsobeusedasabasisforcreatingaquerywithanoptionalauthorizationcheckpersalesarea.Itis
usedincasediscrepanciesarediscoveredbetweenFS10Nand/BEV1/EMS.

IntheexamplealldocumentswithbillingtypeIVareexcludedfromemptiesupdatebasedonthecustomizingsettings
foremptiesupdate.Billingdocument90038179isnotupdatedbecauseofmissingemptiespartner(thecustomerwas
notaddedyettothecustomerhierarchyatthetimeofbillingdocumentcreation).

Processvariant1:Noagreementforemptiesexchange(yet)withsomeofthe
customers

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Asthecompanydoesnothaveaunifiedapproachforaspecificprocess,thiswillbeatthecostofadditionalmaster
datamaintenance.Itispossibletocreateaseparatedocumenttype,butitwillresultinadditionaleffortforsetup
(includingtheadjustmentofauthorizationroles)andahigherlearningcurvefortheemployees.Eveninthecaseof
purecustomdevelopmenttocheckforaspecificcustomerpropertythereshouldbesomecriteriainthemasterdataor
aztablethatsomebodymaintainsandreviews.

1.CreateanewitemusageZNEXNoemptiesexchange.
2.CreateanewitemcategoryfortheFGasacopyofZARandchangeonlythestructurescope:

3.Setupitemcategorydetermination:

4.Createcustomermaterialinforecordandsetonlythenewitemusage:

Asaresult:duringsalesordercreationtheinformationisfirstreadfromtheCMIR(settinginVOV8Readinforrecord
='X').UsageZNEXisdeterminedandwegetZARXforthefinishedgoodandonlyZAIfortheimpliedempty.

Processvariant2:Emptiesexchangeprocessisacceptableonlyinsomeof
thelocations

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Somedistributioncentersdonothaveadedicatedwarehousetostoreemptycrates.Thismeansthattheagreement
foremptiesexchangecanbevalidonlywhenthecustomerordersfromaproductionlocationoraDC,whichcanstore
thereturnedempties.
WhencreatingtheBOMsfortheplant,maintainonlythefirstBOM(fortheFGandimpliedempty).
Note:incaseofCRMordercreation,theapproachcannotbeused,becauseyoucanhaveonlyoneBOMperproduct.

1524Views
Tags:exchange,empties_management,credit_management,sales_bom,deposit,item_category_determination,
customer_material_info_record

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6Comments
ShivaRam26Sep201500:04

Ineverworkedonthisarea.ButIcouldfeelyoureffortprovidingasmuchasinformation,withdetailed
explanation.Thisdocumentisnotonlygoingtohelpthefolkswhoiscurrentlyworkinginthisareabut
theones,whowillworkonthis.

Thanksforsharingyourknowledge.Keepthegoodwork!!!

Kindregards,
Like(0)

AMOLMARATHE30Sep201512:20

Hello VeselinaPeykova

Veryinformativeanddetailedblog.Thankyouverymuchforsharing.

regards,
Amol
Like(0)

TWTypewriter10Oct201510:11

Veselina,
verygoodeffort!thanks!

ZARBOM
ZAIimplicitempties
ZRUreturnempties

1.weight,Emptiesreturns:whyisweightnotrelevantforZRU?
Thesameemptiesmaterialwhichissenttocustomer,isalsoreturned,thismaterialmastercontains
theweightinformation,sowhyisitnottakenintoconsiderationinthereturnsemptiesprocess?
2.orderentry,noemptiesreturs:AsIunderstand,thesetupinT184makestheBOM(ZAR)and
explodesbothZAIandZRUintheorder.Ifreturnsemptiesisnotrequired,thenuserneedsto
manuallydeletethislineitemfromtheorder.
Howisthecommnicationsetup(maybeoutofSAP)thatforaparticularorder,emptieswillnotbe
returned(thisisbeforedeliverycreationandwarehousingactivities)?
3.stockmaintenanceforimplicitandreturnempties:
InsectionDocumentprocessing,deliverycreation,theimplicitempties(ZAI)doesnotshowmovttype
(becauseZXdoesnothavemovttype).Doesthismean,stockismaintainedforreturnemptiesand
notforimplicitempties?
4."sincethewarehousepersonnelcouldupdatedirectlytheactuallyreturnedcontainersasamanual
itemintheoutbounddeliveryuponcustomerarrival,":
Atwhattimeframedothewarehousingstaffupdate/changethequantityofreturnempties(afterfew
daysofdispatchoftrucktocustomer)?Ifthereissomequantityinorderandthatquantityischanged
indelivery,willtherebeamismatch?
5.differentprocess:
Supposecompanywantstocreateaseparatelineitemforreturnemptiesintheorder,thisisnot
possiblebecauseofcurrentT184setup.IfwedosetitupwithZRU,willtherebeanyimpactonthe
reportyouhavedescribed?

thanksagain!
TW
Like(0)

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VeselinaPeykova11Oct201516:10(inresponsetoTWTypewriter)

1.ZRUissetasnotrelevantforweightcheck,becauseifyousetittoweightrelevant,the
totalweightandvolumeintheoutbounddelivery(whichisusedforcapacitycalculation)will
beincorrecte.g.iftheliquidweight=Aandcontainerweight=B,theoutboundweight
shouldbeA+B,butinthiscaseyouwillgetA+B+B,whichmightbeaproblemifthe
transportationplanningalgorithmconsidersthetotaldeliveryweight/volumeinaplanning
prestep.
2.Whenthecustomerordersproducts,theclerkalwaysasksthequestionaboutempties
thiswasactuallyanalreadyestablishedprocedureinthecompanysowedidnotneedto
performchangemanagement.
3.Onlytheuntiedemptiescanbeseenasstockinthewarehouseininventory
management.Whenweproducethefinishedproduct,weconsumetheemptiesasapartof
theproductionBOM.Soifyouwouldliketoknowhowmanyemptiesyouhaveintheplant,
youneedtogetthesumofalluntiedemptiesandtheimpliedemptiesfortheproductsthat
usethespecificemptycodeandarepartoftheplantstock.
4.Pickupprocessmeansthatthecustomercomestotheplantwithhisowntrucktobuy
products.Whenhearrivesattheplant,thetruckischeckedatthegateandwhateverison
thetruckisrecordedonpapers(Ibelievethisisthestandardprocedureeverywhereno
matterifyouuseSAPornot).Whenthecustomerarrivesatthewarehouse,heunloadsthe
emptiesandthewarehousechecksthemforbreakagesetc.Thentheclerkupdatesthe
outbounddeliveryforFGwiththeactualquantityofreturnedemptiesbyaddingamanual
returnitemwiththerespectiveemptiescode.TheFGareinthemeantimepreparedfor
loading.ThedeliveryisalsoupdatedwiththequantityofpickedFG.Thewarehousepost
goodsmovementandprintdocumentsforthecustomer(theprocessmayormaynotinclude
paymentatacashdeskdependingonthepaymenttermused).

Inplantsaleswehaveonlyasingletransferofresponsiblityforempties/FGbetweenthe
customerandthewarehouseemployee,whichcanberegisteredatthetimewhenwe
executethesale.IntheDSDprocessthespecificisthatwehaveseveraltransfersof
responsibilityforFGproducts/containersandtheproformasareprintedatthetimethetruck
leavestheplantpremises(wedonothavetheemptiesyetonourtruck,weexpecttoreceive
themduringthevisitatthecustomer).TheactualquantitiesofFG/emptiesareregistered
afterthetruckcomesback,checkinisperformedandroutesettlementisexecuted.With
plantsalesweskipmostofthesestepsandregisterthequantitiesdelivered/received
directly.
Itistechnicallypossibletouseemptiesexchangeforplantsales,butitisnotreallythat
useful.
IncaseofDSDchangestodeliveryexecutionsuchaslessFGaccepted/differentquantity
ofemptiesreceived,thedriverrecordsthechangesontheproformaandbothheandthe
customersignthedocument,whichservesalsoasaprotocolforreceivingproducts.The
dateofcheckin(truckcomesbacktothewarehouse)dependsontheroutedurationcan
bethesameday,inextremecasescantakeaweek.Routesettlement(thestepwherethe
actualquantitiespercustomerdeliveryarerecordedinthesystemandgoodsmovementis
postedhappensusuallyonthesamedayorthedayafterthetruckcheckin).

5.Theemptiesreportisbasedonitemcategorysettings,soitwillworkwithootproblems.
UnfortunatelythereareseveralproblemswithadditionalmanualZRUitemifitisnotpartof
aBOMandwehavestockoutofFGforcheckB,wewillexecueavisittoreceivethe
additionalemptieswithoutdeliveringanyFGandbecausethisisnotpartof1:1exchange
wedonothaveanyreservedspaceonthetruckforthem.Itispossibleasaworkaroundto
useaseconditemintheemptiesBOMasanentryaidwithoutquantitycorrelation(quantity
=1),butitwillbequiteinconvenientandannoyingtodeletetheitemwhenitisnotneeded.
SoincaseofmanualZRUitemsusagesomebodyshouldcheckLFdeliveriesthathaveonly
ZRUitems(whichcanbetediousincaseoflargenumberofdocumentsperday,butstillcan
bedone).
ThesecondpotentialproblemwithusingZRUasanadditionaliteminastandardorderis
thatyoucanachievenegativecreditexposurebyabusingthefactthatZRUisrelevantfor
creditupdate.Alsoyouhavetoensurethatyouhavesifficientspaceonthetruckforthe
additionalemptiesbycomparingZAI/ZRUquantityforalldelveryitemsintheshipmentper
emptiestype.
Frommyperspectiveitwouldbebettertouseaseparatereturnorderanddeliveryforthe
additionalempties,notupdatethecreditexposure,reservespaceonatruck(evenifwerisk
thatitcanbeadifferentvehicle)comparedtoproblemswihauditandpossibledelaysin
transportationplanning.
Anotherpossiblescenarioisnottoplantheexcessofreturnedemptiesatallandhandle
themasanunplannedemptiesreturnduringcustomervisitincasethedriverhassufficient
spaceonthetruck.Thedriverwilladdtheadditionalreturnemptiesintheproformaasa
separateitemtoserveasaproofofreceiptandthefinalinvoice/invoicescanbesentupon
requestafterroutesettlementandbillingisexecuted.
Like(0)

LusLemos02Aug201618:38

HiVeselina,
Iwouldliketothankyouforallthisinformation.

IwouldliketoaskyousomedoubtsIhave:
1Whydon'tyouhaveamovementtypeassociatedwith122forsale?
2Howdoyoumanage,onthefinanciallevel,theempties:
a)Howdoyoucreatethebankdepositmovement?wehadthoughtontheprocess(Dbank
CSpecialclientaccount)
b)Whentheemptiesaretransferredtothecliente,howdoyouregisterthatinthe
reconciliationaccount?Wehadthoughtintheprocess(DspecialcostumeraccountC
Transitoryaccount)

http://scn.sap.com/community/erp/sd/blog/2015/09/25/revisitingthebasicsreturnablecontainersexchangescenariowithemptiestracking

13/14

31/08/2016

Revisitingthebasics:returnablecontainersex...|SCN
Thanksagain.
LL
Like(0)

VeselinaPeykova04Aug201607:44(inresponsetoLusLemos)

HelloLuis,
1Ihavementionedthereasonintheblogyouhavereducedthequantityofmaterial122
inInventorymanagement,whenyouproducethefinishedproduct.Afterthat,theimplied
(tied)empty122ispartofmaterial8042,thereisnoneedtoperformanadditional
movementinIM.
2ProbablythereissomemisunderstandingwhatemptiesdepositmeansinBeverages
industry.Theclientreceivesreturnablecontainerswhenhebuysthefinishedproduct.There
isnotransferofownershipofthecrates/bottlesatthattime(companiesstatethatonthe
customerinvoice).Youcollectadeposit(afractionofthepriceforreturnables)toensurethat
youwillgetthemback.Whenthecustomerreturnsemptycrates/bottles,youwillgivethe
moneyback(30.00inmycase).Theclientpaystheinitialdeposit,whenhesendsmoneyfor
purchasingthefinishedproduct(theliquid),thereisnoseparatetransactionforsendinga
depositforempties.
IdonotunderstandwhatyoumeantbySpecialclientaccount,thereisjustone

customeraccount,whenyoupayforproductsbybanktransfer.Ifyoumeantthe
accountholderforempties,youdon'tactuallyneedtousethatforfinancialpostings,
itcanbeevenahierarchynodegroupingseveralpayers.Itismainlyusedfor
reportingpurposes.Ifyouneedtosellemptiestothecustomer,thisisaseparate
processforsalesoffixedasset.
Like(0)

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