Mass Conversion in the Menu 

Use

In the Production Planning menu, you can execute a mass conversion for Supply Network Planning (SNP) orders and Capable-to-Match (CTM) orders. In a mass conversion, the system converts orders that start in the conversion horizon. You can execute the conversion online or schedule it in the background.

The system uses a report for the conversion: When SAP APO 4.0 is installed new, a different report is available to the report that is available after an upgrade to SAP APO 4.0.

Features

Mass Conversion in the Menu After a New Installation of SAP APO 4.0

If you have installed SAP APO 4.0 new, the conversion is based on the report /SAPAPO/RRP_SNP2PPDS2. You specify the following in the report settings:

·        The products for which you want the system to perform the conversion

·        The heuristic you want the system to use for the conversion

You specify a heuristic based on the algorithm /SAPAPO/RRP_SNP2PPDS2. The heuristic SAP_SNP_SNGL is available in the standard system.

·        Whether you want the system to display the orders being converted

If you set the Display Selection indicator, the system displays the receipts view at the start of the report with the orders that correspond to the selection criteria. To convert orders, select them and choose  Convert SNP Orders. For more information, see Individual Conversion in the Order View.

·        Whether you want the system to execute the conversion in the parallel processing mode

If you want to use parallel processing, you need to have defined the destinations for parallel processing in Customizing for Production Planning and Detailed Scheduling (PP/DS).

In the heuristic settings, you need to have defined all additional settings for controlling the conversion, such as the selection criteria for the order type or the strategy settings for scheduling the PP/DS orders.

Mass Conversion in the Menu After an Upgrade to SAP APO 4.0

If you have upgraded to SAP APO 4.0, the conversion in the menu is based on the report /SAPAPO/RRP_SNP2PPDS, which was available in SAP APO 3.1.

 

Menu Entry	Use	Notes
Conversion of Supply Network Planning → Production Planning	Online mass conversion	You cannot work with variants in this case.
Conversion of Supply Network Planning → Production Planning in Background	Background mass conversion Online mass conversion	You can define and use variants in this case. You can schedule the mass conversion in the background under Program → Execute in Background

 

In the report settings, you define all settings for the conversion. You specify a strategy profile to control the scheduling of PP/DS orders. If you do not specify a strategy profile, PP/DS uses the strategy profile you entered in Customizing for Production Planning and Detailed Scheduling (PP/DS) to schedule the orders. You entered the profile under Maintain Global Parameters and Defaults in the Conversion SNP -> PP/DS field. To ensure that the PP/DS orders are scheduled successfully, you should use strategies that are not very restrictive, such as infinite scheduling.

If you want to execute a mass conversion based on the conversion heuristic, you call the report /SAPAPO/RRP_SNP2PPDS2 using the transaction SE38 (see above) or you use the conversion in the production planning run. 

Package Creation

The system groups the SNP or CTM orders into packages and processes the packages sequentially. A package comprises the orders from five pegging areas as standard. If the conversion of an order in a package is not successful, the system does not convert all the orders in the package.