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 Generation and Update of Confirmation Requests

Use

SAP Supply Network Collaboration (SAP SNC) can automatically generate confirmation requests in Extended Confirmation Management (ECM). The customer uses confirmation requests if he or she is expecting confirmations from the supplier for specific purchase order schedule lines or release schedule lines and explicitly wants to document, monitor and evaluate those requests in the system. The confirmation history displays confirmation requests, and the supplier delivery performance rating (SDPR) in service parts planning in SAP Advanced Planning and Optimization (SAP APO) can evaluate confirmation requests. The customer cannot generate confirmation requests manually.

There are different confirmation request types in ECM, and you can set the type that SAP SNC is to generate depending on customer, supplier, and product. For example, SAP SNC can generate a confirmation request for a schedule line if it is overdue or if the ordered product is specially classified in service parts planning (as a new model, for example). When a purchase order or a release arrives for such a product, SAP SNC generates a confirmation request for each request schedule line. SAP SNC can automatically close obsolete confirmation requests for which the supplier has not created confirmation data (confirmed quantity and confirmed date) and replace them with new confirmation requests.

Prerequisites

The following prerequisites must be met for SAP SNC to generate confirmation requests:

  • In compliance with confirmation control, confirmations are either optional (default setting) or mandatory. For more information, see Confirmation Control .

  • The characteristics of the purchasing document or schedule line permit confirmations.

  • ECM is active.

  • In Customizing for Supply Network Collaboration , you have set which confirmation request types are to be generated (depending on customer, supplier, and product, if required).

    You make the setting under Start of the navigation path Delivery Next navigation step Extended Confirmation Management (ECM) and Location Product Confirmations Next navigation step Set Creation of Confirmation Requests End of the navigation path .

    For confirmation requests for specially classified products in service parts planning, additional settings are required in the product master or the location master (see below).

Features

Displaying a Confirmation Request on the Confirmation Screen

The Confirmations tab page in the release details of release processing and the confirmation screen display one row for a request schedule line. If there is a confirmation request for a request schedule line, the row contains the following data:

  • Confirmation request type (for example, Overdue Schedule Line for an overdue request schedule line)

  • The status Request

If the supplier creates a confirmation for a schedule line by entering the confirmation data (confirmed quantity and confirmed date) and saving, the status of the request changes to Draft or Published . The confirmation request has become a "normal" confirmation. If SAP SNC closes an obsolete confirmation request without confirmation data, the confirmation request receives the status Closed .

Generating Confirmation Request Types

SAP SNC generates the different confirmation requests types as follows:

  • Recall, Warranty, Goodwill, New Model, or Distribution

    These confirmation request types are only relevant for service parts planning in SAP APO. If a product is classified accordingly in service parts planning, SAP SNC automatically generates a confirmation request for each request schedule line of that product when a purchase order or a release arrives.

    The prerequisite for this is that you have maintained the following data in the location master and the product master of SAP APO as follows:

    • For recall, warranty, and goodwill , you must have entered the relevant validity period in the product master on the Properties SPP tab page. SAP SNC generates a confirmation request for a schedule line if the delivery date of the schedule line is in the validity period.

    • For new model , you must have set the New Model indicator in the product master on the Properties SPP tab page.

    • For distribution , you must have set the Special Distribution indicator in the location master on the Properties SPP tab page.

      When a new release or a changed purchase order arrives, SAP SNC automatically closes the confirmations for schedule lines that have changed or that no longer exist. If a changed schedule line is still within the validity period, SAP SNC automatically generates a confirmation request for the schedule line.

  • Overdue Confirmation

    An overdue confirmation is a confirmation that has no ASN quantity assigned to it, or the assigned ASN quantity is too small, and whose shipping date lies in the past. The assigment of ASNs is done by a report (see Update Confirmations Based on ASNs ). The report closes overdue confirmations and generates new confirmation requests.

  • Overdue Schedule Line

    These confirmation request types are only relevant for service parts planning in SAP APO. An overdue schedule line is a request schedule line for which the supplier has still not created a confirmation and whose shipping date lies in the past. Confirmation requests for overdue schedule lines are generated by the planning service SPP: Overdue PO, Delivery Schedule ( SPP_REP_DUE). For more information, see the documentation for SAP APO in Start of the navigation path Service Parts Planning (SPP) Next navigation step Master Data and General Functions for SPP Next navigation step Use of the Planning Service Manager for SPP Next navigation step PSM Services for Analysis, Reporting, and Monitoring End of the navigation path .