You can use this function to define and assign fields and their properties to collect custom information during the manufacturing process.
Data fields created and assigned in maintenance activities appear at the following definite points in the manufacturing process when the operator does the following:
Assembles the product
Removes and replaces the components of an assembly
Places components on hold
Loads or replenishes resource slots
Logs nonconformances
Receives or maintains floor stock
Adds SFC numbers to a return material authorization (RMA) shop order
Packs the product into container
Data fields and their characteristics can be defined only once to be used in different SAP ME activities. You can use one field created in Data Field Definition Maintenance in multiple types and categories. This saves time and effort when you create fields that are used in different data categories and types, for example, Comments.
You can validate values in data fields to ensure that all required values are collected, that text and number values entered correspond to the pre-defined mask, and number and date fields correspond to the local format. For example, for the Number field, the mask may define how many digits the value shall contain, its delimiter, and where this delimiter is to be used. For more information, see Setting Up Mask Validation for Assembly Data Types.
You can create and assign any custom validation activity to validate the entry before saving the data in production activities.
You define data fields in the Data Field Definition Maintenance activity (see Data Field Definition Maintenance).
You assign these data fields to the data type and category in the Data Field Assignment Maintenance activity. The category indicates where in the manufacturing process these fields appear. For most categories, you can create multiple sets of fields (data types) to collect information (see Data Field Assignment Maintenance).