Special Considerations for Summarizing from Local Systems 

Use

A summarization database can summarize data from a number of local (decentralized) systems (R/3 Systems, R/2 Systems and non-SAP systems). Using this method, you can improve reporting in a corporate group, for example. Summarization reports can be run in the central Info System of your corporate headquarters, even if the objects being reported on are in different local systems. The local system might belong to a subgroup or a subsidiary of the corporate group.

Summarizing from Local Systems

Features

You are able to output investment program information from one system or client to a file, and then import this file to a central system or client. During the output to a file, the system can access current information on the investment program, as well as data from a summarization database that was generated in the local system or client. This last feature makes it possible to summarize in increasing steps over a number of levels in the group.

Investment Program Structure and Positions

The summarization database always relates to an investment program. Therefore, you have to make sure that the positions of the central investment program are also there in full in all local systems. When the local systems are also SAP R/3 Systems, then the complete investment program in the local systems has to have the identical structure to the investment program in the central system.

The function module BAPI_INVPROGRAM_GET_LEAVES can be used for transferring investment program positions to non-SAP systems.

Local Entities

Special care must be taken when you supply the summarization database with investment program data from external systems. You have to make certain that any entities that are managed only in the local systems are also available to the central summarization database. For example, for a summarization report based on profit centers, the profit centers of the local system have to be in the summarization database, along with their keys and short texts.

For this reason, there is a function for exporting the keys and short texts of the entities from the local SAP R/3 system to a file. You can then import this dataset into the summarization database (Investment Programs ® Periodic processing ® Summarization). The system recognizes the following entities:

All other entities that can be used as characteristics for reporting have to be defined identically in the central system and in the local systems. The system assumes that the following characteristics have a globally valid definition:

Other characteristics (such as company code, business area, and so on) have to be defined in the central system also, even if they are only significant for the local system.

Uniqueness of Local Characteristics

In order to be able to uniquely identify the local characteristics, the system assigns these characteristics to a unique, global characteristic:

Appropriation request/measure ® Company

Profit center/cost center ® Controlling area

Plant/functional location ® Original system

You have to ensure that each local characteristic is unique within the global characteristic. The system then manages the system-dependent characteristics in the summarization database combined with its assigned global characteristic. This procedure guarantees that the characteristic is treated as unique in the central system.

There is another option for solving this problem without using the global characteristics as described above. Instead you can use a customer enhancement. SAP provides two customer enhancements for this purpose:

Both SAP customer enhancements contain function module EXIT_SAPLAIC2_001. The system calls this function module, when the customer enhancement is active, before the data to be summarized is exported to a file (or before the selection within a client). You can program the changing of the keys in the function module.

Currencies

The system translates the currency of all key figures that come from local systems into the investment program currency of the central system. The central system has to have the necessary exchange rates and exchange rate types to make this conversion.

Data Structures

In order to import data from non-SAP systems to an SAP R/3 summarization database, you have to retrieve the data and import it in the correct files (refer to Summarization ). The files have to be structured according to the following R/3 ABAP Dictionary structures:

There has to be a separate file for each structure. You import these separate files.