Product Allocations Settings
Purpose
You make all the relevant settings to carry out product allocations in SAP Advanced Planning and Optimization (SAP APO).
Process
Before you make the settings for product allocations, you must first analyze the business process on which this check is based. You should ask the following questions:
...
1. Which criteria are used for assignments or allocations?
Examples: Sales organization, customer or distribution channel
2. Do unused quantities from earlier periods, which could be used in an availability check for the current period, exist?
If yes, how long is the consumption period? How many past and future periods should be included in the current product allocations check?
3. Should product allocations be carried out in one or more steps? Example:
1. Step: Evaluate product allocation quantities at plant level
2. Step: Evaluate product allocation quantities at customer level
We recommend that you group the periods and consumption periods together as described in the following example in order to obtain consistent results between the individual steps. Note: the flexibility of the product allocations check is increasingly restricted with each step. The steps must be sorted in descending order – similar to a funnel – according to the length of the consumption period. The periodicity is thereby insignificant.
Example
01.01.98 |
Periodicity |
Consumption Period |
STEP 1 |
Monthly |
from -1 to +3 (12/97-4/98) |
STEP 2 |
Weekly |
from -2 to +5 (50/97-6/98) |
STEP 3 |
Daily |
from –4 to +4 (27.12.97-05.01.98) |
4. For more information, see Example of Product Allocation Calculation.
5. For which period should the allocation be active?
Example: 01.01.99-31.05.99.
The planning areas should be structured similarly to the product allocation groups. Planning areas may be more detailed, but not rougher in structure than the product allocation groups.
Before planning begins, you should prioritize the product allocations (that is, decide which characteristics combinations receive what percentage of the total product allocation quantity).