Capacity Requirements Planning (CRP): New Function (SAP Library

Capacity Requirements Planning (CRP): New Functions in Capacity Leveling

Description

This release note describes functions that are new in capacity leveling for Release 3.0. You can find more information in the capacity planning manual.

1. Link to other applications

In addition to the application areas for which capacity leveling was already possible in Release 2.2, this function has been added to Human Resources Planning (PD) and to the Process Industries (PP-PI) in Release 3.0. As a result, requirements from PD orders and process orders can be taken into account during capacity leveling. Capacity leveling is also possible for assembly orders (SD/PP) directly from the sales order.

The functionality of existing links to other applications was enhanced. For example, you can call up the planning table directly from production order maintenance. In the planning tables you can also display and plan requirements generated by planned orders.

1. Planning table as a new planning tool

In Release 3.0, the planning table was developed as a further planning tool. In the planning table individual capacities (for example, work center groups, single machines or persons) can be committed for specific points in time and at the same time the capacity requirements can be displayed continuously through time in their processing sequence.

The planning table consists of several charts in which the available capacity (operating time) and the capacity requirements (execution time of the operations) can be represented on a common time axis.

Each chart is made up of a table section and a diagram section. While the objects displayed in the diagram section (operations, capacity requirements) are described by means of fields in the table section, the available capacity and the capacity requirements are displayed graphically in the diagram section on a virtual time axis according to their start and finish dates.

You can plan capacity requirements manually (dispatching, deallocating or rescheduling) by selecting the relevant requirements and placing the object in the required time interval. You can dispatch the capacity requirements taking into account planning strategies adaptable to individual customers.

Please refer to the CRP manual for more information on the planning table.

1. New view in planning table (tabular form)

In addition to the standard view of the planning table (tabular form) for Release 2.2 where, for the various capacities at a work center, detailed information on the available capacity, the capacity requirements already dispatched and the pool of orders/operations for the capacity requirements not yet dispatched is displayed for a period, you can call up a second view in Release 3.0. In this view, you can display the remaining available capacity for several work centers and capacities for each period.

If you want to change to the other view in the planning table (tabular form), choose the menu options Settings -> Change view.

1. New planning functions in capacity requirements planning

For Release 3.0, new planning functions were developed which are mainly defined in the strategy profile in CRP Customizing.

Specification of dispatching sequence:

You can specify how individual operations are sorted in the pool of orders/operations and in what order selected operations are to be automatically dispatched on the two types of planning table.

You enter a sort key in the strategy profile in Customizing for capacity leveling to determine the dispatching sequence. You use this sort key to specify which fields the system is to access for sorting and for determining the dispatching sequence.

You can also define a user exit to determine the dispatching sequence. Please refer to the User Exit section for more information.

Dispatching:

Finite scheduling:

Unlike lead time scheduling, where the load situation of the work centers affected is not considered, finite scheduling schedules the operations taking into account the current capacity loads at the work centers. The processing is as follows:

1. For each operation to be scheduled, the system checks whether sufficient capacity is available on the date calculated for it. If the operation has sub-operations relevant to scheduling, these are also included in the search for remaining available capacity.

2. If there is sufficient remaining available capacity the operation is dispatched.

3. If there isn´t enough remaining available capacity, the operation is moved to a date when it can be processed without capacity problems. You can specify the search direction for this in the strategy profile in CRP Customizing. The period in which the system searches for remaining available capacity (time fence), is specified in the time profile in Customizing.

4. The system then carries out midpoint scheduling for the order during which the other operations in the order are scheduled.

Finite scheduling is only possible at capacity level, that is, finite scheduling is not carried out for individual capacities.

If you want to carry out finite scheduling you must set the Relevant to finite scheduling indicator in the work center for the corresponding capacities and the Finite scheduling indicator in the strategy profile in Customizing for capacity leveling.

Manual planning determination:

If you only want manual rather than automatic dispatching to be carried out on the two types of planning table, set the Date entry on dispatching indicator in the strategy profile. After selecting the planning table function "Dispatch" the system displays a dialog box in which the user can enter a target date or target work center.

Special planning functions for the two types of planning table:

Use of operation floats and order floats:

When dispatching an operation you can specify whether the operation float or the order float is to be taken into account in dispatching. That is, you can configure the strategy parameters in such a way that an operation is dispatched within the floats which were assigned to it by order scheduling.

If you want the system to take order floats or operation floats into account when dispatching, set the indicators Use operation floats and Use float bef.prod. or Use float aft. prod..

Insert operation:

You can insert operations between others that have already been dispatched at a work center. The operations already dispatched are moved. Their sequence remains unchanged and the direction in which they are moved depends on the planning direction. To do this, set the Insert operation indicator in the strategy profile.

Dispatching at the earliest date:

During automatic scheduling, an operation can be dispatched as early as possible in the planning horizon without taking the date of earlier operations in the order into account. To do this, set the Scheduling at the earliest date indicator in the strategy profile.

Considering loads from other periods:

In the planning table (tabular form), you can transfer overloads to subsequent periods. For example, a 200% utilization of a period leads to no capacity requirements being scheduled in the following period. However, this is only the case if the Overall capacity load indicator is set in the strategy profile.

Checks

Date check of operation: The system checks whether

the operation is within the basic order dates.

the operation is within the floats calculated by order scheduling.

the operation overlaps with preceding or subsequent operations in the order.

overlapping with preceding or subsequent operations occurs when it is not permitted.

compulsory overlapping with preceding or subsequent operations are not adhered to.

If you want these checks to be carried out, activate the Operation date check function in the strategy profile.

Material availability check: For dispatched operations the system checks whether the required material is available at the planned start time.

If you want this check to be carried out, activate the Material availability check function in the strategy profile.

Deallocating:

The gaps in the commitment caused by deallocating and rescheduling operations can be filled by moving the nearest operations in the planning direction into the gap which has arisen. The sequence of the operations remains the same. To do this, maintain the Close gaps key in the strategy profile.

Planning log:

Error messages and relevant events are logged during finite scheduling and can be called up after the planning run. Errors during finite scheduling can also cause a termination of the planning run if the parameters in the strategy profile are set to do this.

1. Splitting and allocating

Any amount of labor from the Human Resources System (PD) or individual capacities can be assigned to each capacity (depending on the capacity category) within the work center or capacity maintenance.

You can maintain the available capacity of labor in the Human Resources System (PD), while the available capacity of the individual capacities is maintained in the work center or the pooled capacity. If no available capacity is maintained in the individual capacity, its available capacity is calculated using the operating time of the capacity.

For the purposes of capacity leveling the available capacity of the capacity can be determined by cumulating the available capacities of the individual capacities dynamically. In this case, you must set the Available individual capacity indicator in the evaluation profile in CRP Customizing.

Capacity requirements can be completely or partially assigned to individual capacities. These individual capacity requirements can be dispatched/deallocated and rescheduled both automatically and using the planning tables. However, the system does not carry out finite scheduling.

On the planning table, the overall capacity requirements can be assigned to labor or to individual capacities using the drag and drop function. The actual available capacity of labor is taken into account in this case.

To define splits, that is, subdivisions of capacity requirements (quantity, work or duration) and to allocate splits to individual capacities or labor there are special dialog boxes available for maintenance both in order maintenance and on the planning tables.

A split is defined by specifying the following data:

Internal processing operations:

Latest start date

Duration

Work

Operations which are divided into operation segments:

Latest start date

Split quantity

Standard values for split

If the standard values are copied from the operation (for operations with operation segments) and if the split quantity is changed, this is referred to as a quantity split.

If you copy the quantity from the operation and if the standard values are changed, this is referred to as a standard value split.

The same applies to internally processed operations.

A split is stored as an individual capacity requirement record which is identified by a split number. This split number allows completion confirmation at split level.

If a split is allocated and the indicator D is set in the strategy profile in Customizing for capacity leveling, the split is also automatically dispatched and receives the status Dispatched .

Splits that were not allocated to individual capacities or persons can only be scheduled using one of the planning tables.

1. Cumulating the available capacities of individual capacities

In Release 3.0, you can cumulate the available capacities of the individual capacities that belong to the same capacity category. If you want to cumulate the available capacities, set the Cumul. indiv. cap. indicator in the evaluation profile.

1. Planning at individual capacity level

If you want to specify that planning is to take place at the level of individual capacities that are allocated to a selected capacity, set the Planning for indiv. caps. indicator in the selection profile.

1. Hierarchy explosion in planning tables

With the two types of planning table, by entering via a hierarchy work center you can display the subordinate work centers to which operations can be dispatched. If the work centers that are subordinate in the hierarchy are to be displayed, you must set the Explode hierarchy indicator in the strategy profile in CRP Customizing.

1. Selecting the version of available capacity of a work center for planning tables

You can specify the version of available capacity at a work center that is to be displayed on the planning tables in the selection profile in CRP Customizing. This need not to be the same as the active version of available capacity in the work center which is important for the cumulation of available capacity.

If you have not maintained a version of available capacity in the selection profile, the system takes into account the available capacity of the active version in the work center. If a version of available capacity is neither maintained in the selection profile nor activated in the work center then the standard available capacity in the work center is selected automatically.

1. Unit of display: available capacity and capacity requirements

In the evaluation profile in CRP Customizing you can use the indicator Unit of measure frm capacity to specify that the available capacities and the capacity requirements are to be displayed on the planning tables in the unit of measure that is maintained in the capacity.

If the indicator is not set, the unit which is maintained in the evaluation profile is used for the display.

1. Defining the period split using the PPC calendar

In Release 3.0 you can define the period split for capacity leveling with the planning table (tabular form) using the PPC planning calendar in the period profile in Customizing for capacity leveling.

You can define flexible period lengths using the PPC planning calendar.

1. New profiles in Customizing

In Release 3.0 the following profiles, specified in the overall profile, are new in Customizing for capacity leveling:

Planning table (tabular form) profile

Planning table profile

List profile

In the strategy profile which already existed in Release 2.2, all entries except for the Dispatching internal processing field are new.

1. Displaying the rate requirements or rough requirements for production orders

In Release 3.0 you can also display the capacity requirements for production orders generated by production rate scheduling or rough-cut scheduling in the planning tables in addition to the requirements generated by detailed scheduling.

You can specify the level at which the capacity requirements are to be displayed on the initial screen for the planning tables or in the selection profile in CRP Customizing.

1. Reducing setup time and teardown time

For example, when setting up a sequence for dispatching similar orders it may be necessary to reduce the setup time or the teardown time which was previously determined for the individual operations. You can change the times directly from the two planning tables for the individual operations. To do this, select the relevant operation and choose the menu options Functions -> Extended planning -> Reduce setup time.

1. Assigning sequence numbers

In the planning tables you can assign sequence numbers for production orders and planned orders at the level of the task list header. You can also assign sequence numbers to operations from production orders.

The sequence number assignment is used to sort operations and orders to be displayed on one of the two planning tables and to determine the dispatching sequences using the sort key, since, for example, you can sort or form a scheduling sequence using the sequence numbers entered by integrating the field into the sort key.

If you want to assign a sequence number to an order or an operation, select the object and choose, for example on the planning table (tabular form), the menu options Goto -> Order -> Change seq.number. The system displays the dialog box Sequence Number Maintenance on which you can allocate the sequence numbers.

1. Changing the strategy profile online

You can change the dispatching strategies that are specified in the strategy profile in CRP Customizing directly from the planning tables by specifying another strategy profile.

To do this, choose the menu options Settings -> Strategy on, for example, the planning table (tabular form).

1. Selecting work centers for the WBS element

In the Project System you can now select and plan all the work centers belonging to the subordinate subtree and their requirements for a work breakdown structure or a WBS element.

1. User exit

In Release 3.0, the following customer functions (user exits) are available in capacity planning:

Sequencing: Using sequencing you can define the contents of the sort criteria and the sequence in which the operations are to be dispatched. A prerequisite for the user exit is the activation of the dispatching function Sort operations to be dispatched in the strategy profile.

Change to operations: Using the change to operations function you can change operation data, such as standard values, work center, sequence number and dates.

The following enhancements are available for development class CY01:

CYPP0001: Changes to sequence criteria and sequencing

CY190001: Changing operations in the order in capacity planning.

You can maintain enhancements for a development class using transaction CMOD. Please refer to the documentation on transaction CMOD for help on the technical implementation of a customer function by customers.

1. Printing the commitment plan

You can print planning table information, for example, the commitment plan directly from the planning tables.

Installation information

During the upgrade the SAP table settings are only imported into customer tables (tables which are maintained by the customer) in client 000. If you want to copy these default values into other, already existing clients, proceed as follows:

Log on to the system in the client into which you want to copy the table settings for the capacity evaluation or capacity leveling.

Display this release note.

If you want to copy these settings for capacity leveling, execute the following function:

Proceed

To carry out evaluations in capacity planning in clients other than client 000 the sets provided by SAP for the initial screens and selection screens must also exist in these clients. If you want to copy the sets into a client other than client 000, log on to this client.

If you want to import the sets for capacity leveling into the clients and if you have maintenance authorization for tables in all clients (authorization object S_TABU_CLI) execute the two functions below.

If you do not have maintenance authorization for tables in all clients (authorization object S_TABU_CLI), please contact your system administrator.

Copy the default sets for the capacity evaluation.