Value Columns in a Column Layout 
Three types of text codes distinguish value columns. A value in the column layout can be derived from the database (__) or from a formula (FO) using other value columns as variables.
The third text code, WE, can be used both for database values and for formulas, but this value column is not printed. This text code can be used, for instance, for splitting a formula into two sub-calculations, or when you want to include a certain database value only in a formula, but not print it on the report. For the text code WE, either the following explanation for formulas or for database values applies.
Formulas
You can use formulas to perform any calculation between value columns, such as differences, totals or percentage rates.
- Enter the formula itself in the Column Layout Maintenance detail screen.
- The following elements are allowed in a formula:
- constants, e.g., 100
- variables, e.g., L0030
- arithmetic operators, e.g., + - * /
- parentheses, e.g., 100*(L0020+L0030)
- the substitution symbol $PR for inserting the period from the report痴 request screen
- You can use variables that start with "L" followed by a four-digit number to refer to other value columns. The four-digit number refers to the sequence number of the value column to be accessed.
If a formula (A) contains a sequence number, which represents another formula (B), you must ensure that the sequence number of formula B is smaller than the sequence number of formula A. Formulas are calculated in order of their sequence numbers in Column Layout Maintenance. At this point, all values of the variables being referred to in the formula must be available, otherwise the value is considered as being zero. Recursions and iterations are therefore not supported.
- A formula can include the period of the report痴 request screen by means of the symbol $PR. This allows for calculation previews (for example, the accumulated value of the period * 12 / current period) among other things.
- A formula is calculated to precisely four decimal places. During output, however, you can manipulate the numbering unit as well as the number of decimal places with the fields Scaling and Decimal places. For instance, scaling of 3 with 2 decimal places results in the output in units of thousands with two decimal places (e.g., 1.50 as opposed to 1500.0000).
- The maximum output length of a value is limited to 17 digits, that is, a value is output with a maximum length of 17 digits starting from the print position determined by line and column. You can reduce this maximum length by the distance of two adjacent columns or by explicitly specifying the number of characters in the Lngth of output field. If no length is specified in this field, the program determines the distance to the next print position and uses this for the limitation. Please note that the value columns are output right-justified, unlike text columns.
None of the other fields in Column Layout Maintenance are linked to formulas.
Database values
Entries must be made to the fields Valuation and Value type for value columns that refer to a database value.
One of the following valuations can be entered in the Valuation field:
H1 |
Item value from individual financial statements (local valuation) |
GB |
Standardizing entries at the company level (posting level 1) |
H2 |
Item value at corporate valuation |
KB |
Consolidation entries (posting levels 2, 3 and 4) |
H3 |
Consolidated value, (individual financial statements value plus all adjustments) |
LB |
Entries in local currency (posting level 1) |
L1 |
Local valuation in local currency |
L2 |
Corporate valuation in local currency |
SB |
Sum of all entries (posting levels 1,2,3,4) |
If you leave the Valuation field blank in column definition, you can specify the valuation you require in the totals report request screen. If you do not specify a valuation in the column definition nor the report request screen, the system defaults to the valuation H3.
With the value type, you can create suitable combinations of the key terms version, fiscal year and period or range of periods. The value type is particularly useful for comparisons. You can define it in the Implementation Guide program
Define reports under Extras
®
Column layout
®
Value types.- Specify a freely definable value type ID with a maximum of five digits in the Value Type Maintenance argument.
- If no version is specified for the value type, this key term is dynamically supplied by the report program. Generally, you must only make a corresponding entry in this field for value types that are used in version compares.
- To run comparisons of multiple fiscal years, you can specify a number of years in the Delta years field by which the fiscal year (entered on the request screen) is to be adjusted towards the future or the past, depending on the field S (for +/- sign).
- The range of periods field lets you request a single period, a quarter, a half-year or an entire fiscal year. The "from"/"to" values can be dynamically derived from the request report if no entry is made.
As with the fiscal year, you can also adjust the periods towards the future or the past by entering a +/- sign as the first character of the period; this determines the direction of the adjustment. The following two digits of the period field specify the number by which the period from the request screen is to be adjusted. The range of -11 to -09, for instance, means that the fourth quarter preceding the requested period is to be evaluated. This method, for example, could be used for listing the last four quarters in a comparison report.
- In regards to transaction types, we had mentioned the possibility of depicting product groups by using transaction types . You can use a transaction type set to combine several product groups into divisions and adhere them to a value type; in this case the set must contain transaction type groups.
In addition to the entries in the two fields Valuation and Value type for value columns (as mentioned above), you can make further specifications for determining values in Column Layout Maintenance.
- First, the item value that has been determined by the valuation and value type, can be further delimited by a group indicator and an corresponding group (value). The following group indicators are allowed:
CO |
Company |
MT |
Transaction type group |
Sn |
Sort indicator n (n=1,2,3) from the company master record |
- Depending on the group indicator, the group痴 Characteristic value field must contain either a company ID, transaction type group or sort indicator defined in the Implementation Guide under Master data
®
Companies.
If you select CO (company) as group indicator, please note the following. If you want to enter a numerical company ID in the Characteristic value field, leading zeros must be used for IDs less than 6 digits long.
Example:
For a company with the ID 1234, you would enter
001234
in the
Characteristic value.
This procedure does not apply to alphanumeric company IDs.
Any group of companies can be evaluated by allocating the companies to a group within the three possible sort criteria in the company master record (see also
Companies). By means of the group indicator and the group, you are thus able to generate reports that, for example, display data of individual companies, divisions or groups of companies in their columns.
Only an exception in connection with the sort indicator as group indicator allows you to avoid having to specify a group in the Characteristic field. If you do not enter a group for sort indicators, all company groupings are printed in a list in the specified column in alphabetical order of sort indicator characteristics. List type 2 of the report program displays a breakdown by individual company, whereby a subtotal is output following each sort indicator.
You print the sort indicator and/or sort indicator text by using the processing indicators CN (for the sort indicator characteristic) and CT (for the sort indicator text). It is best to choose a matrix form column layout with logical lines so that the FS item appears in the first line and company grouping in the second.
- With the field Print zero, you can explicitly request the output of zeros where otherwise blanks would appear:
- A blank is always printed for standard reports without breakdown if no database value exists.
- You must specially request the output of zeros for reports with breakdown by transaction type, company or company grouping. Otherwise, blanks appear if no database value exists. In certain reports, such as an asset history sheet, it might be necessary, for reasons of visual clarity, to print a zero instead of a blank if the need arises (for example if no transfers exist).
- To create comparative standard reports at a subgroup level, you must enter a number in the detail screen of the column layout rule which represents the n-th subgroup from the report request parameter. The subgroups in the report request parameter are separated from one another by a slash (for example
SW1/SW2
). By specifying a number and not the subgroup itself in the column layout, you can vary the sequence and the composition of the subgroups within a standard report form.
- Up to now we have discussed outputting individual item values via column definitions with or without restrictions. By specifying an Item set in the column layout, however, different FS items can also be called upon in columns. In this case, you need to use totals items in the report痴 line layout.
Please note the following:
- The totals items contained in the line layout are created in Item Maintenance using a range or a set.
- The item sets in the column layout may not contain any item ranges. The value and totals items of the sets may not overlap.
The system determines the value to be output by forming an average quantity from FS items which reside in the column layout item set and in the range or totals item set in the line layout.
You could use this method, for example, for a payables/receivables aging report, where the various terms are distinguished by separate FS items. Only the totals items for the receivables and payables are listed in the line layout of the standard report.
As item sets in the column layout you could have a set for all receivables and payables items with a duration of less than one year, one for those with a duration of between one and five years and one for those with a duration of more than five years, so that you get a standard report with a total of two lines (receivables and payables) and three columns (durations of 1, 1-5 and more than 5 years).
- The possibility of calculating structure percentage rates has already been mentioned in the context of line layout definition (see also
Manually Defining a Line Layout). When you select the field Percentage rate in the column layout, the absolute column value is not printed, but instead the column value in percent for an item value which comes from the Base item field of the line layout.
| |
|
Column value |
Structure percentage rate |
= |
末末末末末末末末末末
*
100 |
| |
|
Reference item value |
Please note here that you can use the group indicator and its respective group to limit the column value as you require. The reference value, however, is always calculated only from the item value of the reference item, although the specified valuation (local valuation, corporate valuation and so on) and the value type are also taken into account.
- You can assign one or more entries in the column layout to a column group in particular to define standard reports. By specifying column groups in the Column type field of the column layout maintenance, you can suppress the output of certain value or text columns in a standard report line by line. If you specify column groups in the Column suppression field of the line layout rule, the relevant value or text columns are not output. On the other hand, column definitions which are not assigned to a column layout apply to all line layout entries. By means of this layout element, you can indent or underscore the values of selected FS items, for example.
- In certain standard reports, you may need to delimit various columns using separators. You should enter these separators (for example
I,!,:
) in the relevant field and they will be printed exactly at the position determined by column and line.
- You can request standard reports by setting a parameter in the analysis report with three different list types. With list type 2, you can breakdown a subgroup value line by line by the individual company shares which produced this subgroup value (see also
The Report Program and its Parameters). If, however, you do not want all the value columns of a standard report to be broken down by company shares, you can block this for the corresponding column value by selecting the field No comp. shares.