SKU Horizon Methods 1 and 2 

Use

This function is important for both MRP and the availability check. (see SKU Horizon in the Availability Check). It can be required that you plan requirements and assign them to the stocks at this level, considering their specific characteristics, colors and sizes. In this case you can use SKU horizon method 1. You might also get requirements at SKU level, but you want to assign them to the stock at an aggregated level, that is at material level. This can increase the performance in the planning run. Here you can use SKU horizon method 2. That means that the order proposals are created without sizes and colors and that they are already planned in MRP.

The assignment of requirements to stock is carried out according to the scope of check that you have defined within the availability check.

Features

SKU Horizon Method 1

Using the SKU horizon method 1 you specify the SKU horizon in workdays. You can use this method for the coverage of requirements that are within a short-term period. If the requirements date is within the SKU horizon, the requirements are assigned to the stock within this period at SKU level. This is carried out during MRP. Outside of the SKU horizon MRP only assigns the requirements to the stock at SKU level, if the stock is available in the corresponding size. If there is no stock available in the corresponding size, the system assigns the requirement to the stock at material level outside of the SKU horizon.

According to the SKU horizon method 1, a requirement that is outside the SKU horizon cannot be assigned to stock that is within the SKU horizon.

You receive a requirement (sales order) for 800 pieces of a material with grid value M. The requirements date is outside of the SKU horizon 1. According to the SKU horizon method 1, you cannot assign this requirement to the incoming stock of 300 pieces in size M (incoming stock 2) during the MRP run, because this stock is within the SKU horizon 1.

Since the requirements date is outside the SKU horizon 1, the requirement can only be covered by the incoming stock that is also outside the SKU horizon 1. The requirement for 800 pieces in M is therefore temporarily assigned to the incoming stock of 400 pieces in size L (incoming stock 3) at material level (status 7). It is also assigned to the incoming stock of 200 pieces without a grid value (incoming stock 4). This assignment is also temporary at material level (status T).

The MRP only creates a new planned order or a new purchase requisition for the remaining requirements quantity of 200 pieces, if this quantity has already been confirmed by the availability check and has not been rejected (that means that the ATP check included the replenishment lead time). The planned order / purchase requisition created does not contain any grid values.

SKU Horizon Method 2

The SKU horizon method 2 is an enhancement of the SKU horizon method 1. It is used for the coverage of requirements far in the future. Here, MRP assigns the requirements to stock in two assignment phases.

Within the first assignment phase, MRP searches for available stock at SKU level and assigns it to the requirement. If the system does not find further stock at SKU level, it aggregates the SKU data in assignment phase two and assigns the requirement to the stock at material level.

In contrast to SKU horizon method 1, you can assign requirements that are outside of the SKU horizon to stock within the SKU horizon.

You receive a requirement (sales order) for 800 pieces of a material with grid value M. The requirements date is outside of the SKU horizon 2. In this method, the MRP first looks for stock or incoming stock with the correct SKU (assignment phase 1). In this case, the incoming stock of 300 pieces in M (incoming stock 2) and 200 pieces in M (incoming stock 4) will therefore be temporarily assigned to the requirement (each in status 7).

Since this stock is not enough to cover the requirement in the entire quantity, the MRP looks for additional incoming stock outside of the SKU horizon 2. It only considers this additional stock at material level. Therefore, the stock of 500 pieces without a grid value (incoming stock 3) can be used to cover the remaining requirements quantity.

In the ATP you can use the indicator on timeline to control whether the two phases should be reduced to one phase. That means that all the stock outside of the horizon will be considered at dimension level if they are allowed to be "raised" to material level.

As a result of this setting, a better date can be confirmed because an earlier stock element (with a different size) is preferred to stock with the same size.

In Customizing you decide for each plant whether you want to use SKU horizon method 1 or 2 in the MRP.

You specify the length of the SKU horizon 1 or 2 in the material master for each material. In MRP, your entry in the material master has higher priority than the entry per plant.

The end (time-wise) of the SKU horizon is displayed in the AFS MRP list in the column additional information.

In Customizing for ATP you can set which stock elements can be brought up to material level and which cannot. Physical stock, third-party stock, and reservations can never be raised to material level. You cannot make a setting for MRP. All the stock types except for physical stock, third-party stock, and reservations are raised to material level.

For SKU horizon method 1 you define the SKU horizon only by storing a number of workdays in the material master in the AFS MRP view. Your entry is then valid for the MRP as well as for the availability check in the sales document.

To use the SKU horizon method 2 in MRP, you must specify the desired horizon in workdays in the material master. In addition, you activate the SKU horizon method 2 for this material by selecting the field Activate SKU Horizon Method. When you use method 2, your settings for the SKU horizon in the material master are only valid for MRP. You control the SKU horizon 2 in the availability check in the ATP check rule.

You can use different horizons for the availability check and MRP with SKU horizon method 2. ATP and MRP results can then be different, if this is desired. For clarity, the horizons in MRP and the availability check should match.

Due to the different setting options in ATP and MRP, you can at any time create constellations in Customizing that might lead to serious problems in the process. To avoid this, you can use the report /AFS/MRP_HORIZONS_CHECKREPORT, which carries out consistency checks.