User-defined error management allows you to alter the message type of messages. The system contains the following message types:

• Information message (I)
• Warning message (W)
• Error message (E)
• Termination message (A)

When a message is issued on an object during the execution of a function, you can recognize from the message type whether the object was processed successfully. The message type often determines whether the object can continue to be processed or not.

User-defined error management allows you to change the message type. For example, you can change a message from an error message to a warning message.

User-defined error management can be used in Cost Object Controlling in the following functions:

• Preliminary costing for product cost collectors
• Preliminary costing for manufacturing orders
• Preliminary costing for sales orders (sales order cost estimate and order BOM cost estimate)
• Actual cost distribution and variance calculation for cost object hierarchies
• WIP calculation for product cost collectors and manufacturing orders
• Variance calculation for product cost collectors and manufacturing orders
• Results analysis in Product Cost by Sales Order and in the Project System

Use user-defined error management in Customizing for Cost Object Controlling.

The following steps are available there:

• Specify User-Defined Message Types for Preliminary Costing of Product Cost Collectors
• Specify User-Defined Message Types for Cost Object Hierarchies
• Specify User-Defined Message Types for WIP and Results Analysis
• Specify User-Defined Message Types for Individual Processing/Variance Calculation
• Specify User-Defined Message Types for Collective Processing/Variance Calculation
• Specify User-Defined Message Types for Preliminary Costing of Manufacturing Orders
• Assign Messages to a Responsibility Area

Read the documentation available at each step before executing the function.

After executing a function, you normally then examine the message log. From the list of messages in the log, you can view all messages that can be altered by user-defined error management.

The following information should be mentioned before the effects of user-defined error management on the Schedule Manager are described:

• Some messages are issued with different message types based on the object to be processed. Different processing statuses are set in the Schedule Manager.

If you are using the multilevel worklist of the Schedule Manager, the objects with the processing status Error for a processing step are not processed in the subsequent step. In many - if not all - cases, the processing status Error is set because a message was issued with the message type "E" (error). When calculating variances, you can use user-defined error management to influence the message type for a large number of messages In the worklist of the Schedule Manager, this can result in a different processing status being updated to the processing step. This enables you to ensure that objects are processed in the subsequent processing step, for example.

For information on the use of user-defined error management in variance calculation, see below and in the following sections:

User-defined error management can be used in the variance calculation process in cases such as the following:

In the standard system, when scrap variances are determined the system checks whether the cost estimate used to calculate target costs is based on the same task list type, task list group, and group counter as those in the routing specified in the production version (in repetitive manufacturing) or manufacturing order (in order-related production and process manufacturing).

If you want the system to check whether the task list type and the task list group are the same, but not the group counter, assign the message type "blank" to error message KV 181. If the task list type and task list group do not match, messages KV 179 and KV 158 are issued. The system always checks whether the task list type and the task list group match. In the standard system, KV 179 is issued as an information message, and KV 158 as an error message.

In the standard system, the system checks the following when scrap variances are determined:

If you don’t want the system to check the correspondence of reporting point structures or milestone structures, define error message KV 158 as a warning message or information message, or assign the message to the message type "blank." If KV 158 is no longer an error message, variance calculation will continue to run. However, no scrap variances can be calculated.

If KV 181 and KV 158 are issued as error messages and you are using the worklist of the Schedule Manager, the relevant objects receive the processing status Error in the Worklist of the Schedule Manager. The cause of the error must be eliminated and the function performed again. Because no data were updated to the object, you cannot transfer data to other application components when you settle (such as to Financial Accounting).

If you assign messages to a lower message type (such as a warning message), the object (such as the product cost collector) is not listed in the worklist of the Schedule Manager as a faulty object.

No target costs are calculated in situations such as the following:

• No goods receipt was entered and there are no lot-size-independent costs in the cost estimate used to calculate the target costs (lot-size-independent costs are always reported as target costs)
• No standard cost estimate exists (with target cost versions 0 and 2)
• No preliminary order cost estimate exists (with target cost version 1)

The system issues message KV 151.

If the message is issued as an error message, remaining variances are reported.

If the message is issued as an information message or warning message, all variance categories are reported.

If more than one manufacturing order is assigned to a product cost collector, a faulty manufacturing order can prevent the processing of a product cost collector to which a large number of manufacturing orders are assigned.

In the standard system, the following messages are defined such that they do not prevent the processing of the product cost collector in the Schedule Manager. This ensures that the messages in the standard system are issued with message type "W" (warning) even if target cost version 0 is calculated. In the worklist of the Schedule Manager, the object does not receive the processing status Error in the relevant processing step. This ensures that the object enters the next processing step. If you want the processing status Error to be issued for the object and processing step, change the message type to "E" (error).

• KV 158
• KV 181
• KV 161
• KV 164
• KV 175
• KV 189
• KV 190

The following sections contain a detailed description of how the message type influences the processing status in the worklist, on the basis of messages KV 158 and KV 181 and the processing of product cost collectors.

If you have defined messages KV 158 and KV 181 as error messages and have assigned multiple manufacturing orders to a product cost collector, no work in process or scrap variances can be calculated for any of the subsequent manufacturing orders from the point the error message is issued for a manufacturing order. For this reason no work in process can be calculated and no scrap variances can be updated for a product cost collector, even if only one manufacturing order does not meet the requirements.

If messages KV 158 and KV 181 are issued with a low message type, work in process or unplanned scrap can be calculated in the above case on the basis of all other manufacturing orders assigned to the product cost collector. A partial scrap variance is reported for the product cost collector. This partial scrap variance can be settled to other application components.

In the standard system, messages KV 158 and KV 181 for the product cost collector are issued as a warning message.

This list is not necessarily complete. A complete list of messages available in user-defined error management for the relevant function can be found in Customizing for Cost Object Controlling (see under Prerequisites).