Unit 4: Master Data in Procurement

Lesson 1 · Maintaining Business Partner Master Data

Key concepts

Master data is long-lived data stored centrally and shared by several applications, which avoids redundant entry. In procurement the most important objects are the supplier (business partner), the material master and the purchasing info record. When a document is created, data flows from them into the document:

In SAP S/4HANA suppliers and customers are maintained as business partners (BP) using transaction BP or the Fiori app Manage Business Partner Master Data. In SAP ERP vendors and customers were separate objects (XK01/MK01, XD01); these transactions are redirected to BP in S/4HANA.

Data levels of a supplier

Customer/vendor integration (CVI)

Accounts payable still uses vendor accounts technically (subledger), so each BP that acts as supplier must have a synchronized vendor record. CVI does this in the background: when you create or change the BP, the corresponding vendor fields are created or updated automatically. In Customizing you assign BP groupings to vendor account groups and configure synchronization control.

Reconciliation account

Each supplier has a number that is also its subledger account number; per supplier the open liabilities are tracked. In the company code data you must enter a reconciliation account – a G/L account that collects the liabilities of many suppliers in the general ledger (e.g. "Payables domestic"). When an invoice is posted to the supplier, the system automatically posts to this G/L account in parallel.

Partner roles (partner functions)

The supplier fulfils several roles in one process: ordering address, goods supplier, invoicing party and payee. These can be different business partners – e.g. orders go to supplier A, goods come from subsidiary S, invoices come from headquarters C. Such deviating partners are defined in the purchasing data and proposed in documents.

One-time suppliers (CpD)

No PO or invoice is possible without a supplier master record. For suppliers used once or rarely, a collective one-time account (CpD – Conto pro Diverse) is created with a special BP grouping. It holds only non-specific data (language, currency, reconciliation account); name, address and bank details are entered in each document.

Lesson 2 · Maintaining Material Master Data

Key concepts

The material master is the single central source of material data for all logistics areas (purchasing, inventory management, MRP, invoice verification, sales, accounting). Data is grouped into views per department, e.g. Basic Data, Purchasing, MRP 1–4, Plant data/storage, Accounting, Costing, Sales, Quality Management, Warehouse Management. Next to the main data screens there are additional data screens (alternative units of measure, descriptions in other languages, consumption values).

When maintaining a material you first see two dialog boxes: choose the views, then the organizational levels. The default can be preset (Defaults › Views / Org levels).

Material type and industry sector

Extending a material

Adding a new view or a new organizational level (e.g. a second plant) is an extension and is done with the create transaction (MM01), not with change (MM02). Change only modifies views/levels that already exist. Every creation or change is logged in change documents (display via MM04).

1. MM01: enter material number (if external numbering), industry sector, material type.
2. Select views (Basic Data, Purchasing, Accounting, Plant data/Storage …).
3. Enter org levels (plant, storage location, valuation area).
4. Fill the data screens and save. Use MM02 to change and MM03 to display; Fiori: Manage Product Master Data.

Material valuation

Stock value = stock quantity × valuation price. Valuated goods movements update both the material master (quantity, value, possibly price) and the G/L accounts, which makes valuation the bridge between MM and FI. It is governed by Customizing and by the Accounting view of the material.

The valuation area is the level at which material is valuated: plant (SAP recommendation, mandatory for PP/Costing) or company code. This is a fundamental setting that is very hard to change later.

Price control

Example: current price 20, GR of 10 pcs at PO price 25. With V: stock +250, GR/IR −250. With S: stock +200, price difference +50, GR/IR −250.

Valuation class

The valuation class (Accounting 1 view) groups materials for account determination: it decides which stock G/L account is posted, so you do not need a separate account per material. Which valuation classes are allowed depends on the material type (via the account category reference); one valuation class can be allowed for several material types.

Lesson 3 · Maintaining Purchasing Info Record

Key concepts

The purchasing info record is purchasing master data that stores what you know about a supplier–material (or supplier–material group) combination. Its contents are proposed into POs and help buyers compare sources.

• Current and future prices and conditions (gross price, discounts, freight, scales)
• Delivery data: planned delivery time, over-/underdelivery tolerances, minimum quantity
• Supplier-specific data: supplier material number, supplier subrange
• Number of the last PO (last document)
• Texts: info record memo (internal, copied to the PO item, not printed) and purchase order text (copied and printed)

Org levels: general data at client level; purchasing data per purchasing organization, optionally per purchasing organization + plant.

Maintenance options

• Manual: ME11 (create), ME12 (change), ME13 (display); Fiori Manage Purchasing Info Records.
• Automatic via the Info update indicator in a purchasing document:

  Source document	Effect on info record
  Quotation	Conditions and document/item number transferred
  PO, contract release order, scheduling agreement	Document and item number stored as "last document"
  Contract	If no info record exists yet for supplier/material/org level, one is created with the contract conditions; an existing one is not updated

Purchasing conditions

Conditions are agreements on prices, surcharges, discounts and freight. They can be held in quotations, info records, outline agreements and POs, and as general conditions (e.g. per supplier). From them the system calculates:

Time dependency: conditions in info records, contracts and general conditions are time-dependent (validity periods, scales possible). Conditions in POs are always time-independent (valid as long as the document). For quotations and scheduling agreements the document type's "time-dependent conditions" indicator decides. Header conditions apply to all items, item conditions only to their item.

Condition technique

• Condition type – represents one price element; defines calculation type (fixed amount, percentage, quantity-dependent) and scale basis (quantity, value, weight).
• Access sequence – search strategy listing in which order condition tables are read (specific to general).
• Calculation schema (pricing procedure, e.g. RM0000) – sequence of condition types, subtotals (net/effective price), reference levels for percentages, manual-change permissions, requirements. Different schemas can be determined per purchasing organization and supplier (schema groups).

Price determination in a PO

The system searches from specific to general: info record for supplier/material at purchasing organization + plant, then at purchasing organization level. Valid conditions in the info record take priority; if none are valid, the price from the last purchasing document stored in the info record is proposed. If nothing is found, the buyer enters the price manually. The valuation price of the material master is never proposed as PO price.

Lesson 4 · Analyzing Material Valuation

Documents

A movement is valuation-relevant only if FI is affected. A GR of raw material to stock increases current assets; a transfer between storage locations of the same plant changes nothing in FI, so only a material document is created.

Scenario: standard price (S)

Illustrative figures: standard price 2.00; GR of 100 pcs at PO price 2.40; invoice for 100 pcs at 2.20.

Scenario: moving average price (V)

Illustrative figures: opening stock 1,000 pcs, value 2,000 (MAP 2.00); same GR and IR.

If, at invoice time, less stock is on hand than the invoiced quantity (some has been consumed), only the proportional part of the difference goes to the stock account; the rest goes to the price-difference account (PRD).

Configuration (IMG)

(Transaction OBYC; key transaction keys: BSX stock, WRX GR/IR, PRD price differences, GBB offsetting entries for inventory postings.) Display documents with MB03 (material document), MIR4 (invoice), FB03 (accounting document); show price/stock values with MM03 Accounting view or MMBE.

Unit summary & exam focus

Business partner, material master and info record supply most data in purchasing documents. Conditions are evaluated via the condition technique to determine prices, and the material's price control decides how GR and IR are valuated and where price differences end up.

T-codes in this unit

Self-check questions

1. Which organizational levels are relevant for a BP in the roles Supplier and FI Vendor?
   Answer

   Client (general data), company code (FI vendor) and purchasing organization (supplier) – not storage location or purchasing group.
2. True or false: to add the Purchasing view to an existing material you use the change transaction.
   Answer

   False – adding a view or org level is an extension, done with the create transaction (MM01).
3. Name three things the material type controls.
   Answer

   Number assignment/number range, which views can be maintained, allowed procurement type, quantity/value updating (with plant), allowed valuation classes.
4. Which org levels exist in a purchasing info record?
   Answer

   Client (general data), purchasing organization, and optionally plant.
5. In which order does the system look for a PO price?
   Answer

   Valid conditions in the info record for POrg + plant, then POrg; if no valid conditions, the price of the last PO in the info record; otherwise manual entry. The valuation price is never proposed.
6. What does the valuation class determine?
   Answer

   Which stock G/L account is posted; it allows many materials to share one stock account.
7. Material with S price 20; GR of 10 pcs at PO price 25. Which accounts are posted?
   Answer

   Stock +200 (BSX), price difference +50 (PRD), GR/IR −250 (WRX). The standard price stays 20.
8. Does an internal transfer within one plant create an accounting document?
   Answer

   No; only a material document is created because FI is not affected.