Setting Up Value-Added Services

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to use Value-Added Services

Value-Added Services

Value-added services (VASs) enhance the value of a product in the warehouse.

A value-added service order (VAS order) is used to perform these services in the warehouse through VAS activities, and document the services. Typical VAS activities include assembling products, packing products, labeling, or kitting. Here, both the goods receipt process and the goods issue process in the warehouse change. Ideally, you can then use process-oriented storage control to execute interim steps before final putaway or before staging in the goods issue area. In these interim steps, the VAS order defines which product processing must be performed by warehouse employees in the work centers. You can also use a VAS order in the goods issue process to assemble kits for your customers, and to pack them on a customer-specific basis using the VAS order.

The graphic illustrates value-added logistics services, highlighting order processing, inventory management, and warehouse operations in the supply chain.

Performing Value-Added Services

The VAS order is an instruction to perform a value-added service for one or more products with reference to a delivery item. It links delivery items to a packing instruction and contains details from within the delivery and packaging specification. With this document, you can inform warehouse employees about the work they must perform, and on which products. You can also use VAS orders to log completed tasks.

Value-Added Service Instructions

You must always create a VAS order on the basis of a delivery and a packaging specification.

Work Centers for Value-Added Services

The VAS activities are completed at work centers that are designed specifically for these kinds of activities.

Illustrates the process flow for value-added services: defining packaging specifications, creating service orders, and completing tasks at the work center.

Value-Added Service Process

Value-added services can be used in inbound or outbound processes. In the outbound process, you can also use a VAS order to assemble kits at the work centers (Kit-to-Order).

As a prerequisite, an inbound delivery or an outbound delivery order must exist, along with a valid packaging specification. Then, the system can create a VAS order. If you want to map the automatic creation of warehouse tasks as an interim step in the system for work centers, where you are executing value-added services, you must have already configured process-oriented storage control in Customizing.

Depending on how you use storage control, the following options are available in the goods receipt or the goods issue process for performing value-added services using a VAS order.

Value-Added Services with Process-oriented Storage Control

If you are using process-oriented storage control, the system proceeds as follows:

  1. For each item, the system determines the corresponding packaging specification.

  2. The system creates a VAS order based on the inbound delivery or the outbound delivery order.

  3. The system then creates warehouse tasks that contain a work center as the destination storage location in accordance with the VAS order. Here, each VAS activity represents a separate process step with a corresponding warehouse task. Depending on the direction and the sequence, these are product or HU warehouse tasks. You can define as many interim steps as required. All of these interim steps are deemed VAS possible.

  4. After completing all value-added services, the products reach the goods issue area or the final storage bin.

Illustration of process-oriented storage control with value-added services, showing steps from packaging specification and goods receipt to VAS processing and shelving.

Value-Added Service with Process Step

If you have only defined the individual process steps, and are not using process-oriented storage control, the system proceeds as follows:

  1. For each item, the system determines the corresponding packaging specification.

  2. The system creates a VAS order based on the inbound delivery or the outbound delivery order.

  3. The system then creates product warehouse tasks that contain a work center as the destination storage location in accordance with the VAS order. Each VAS activity represents a separate process step with a corresponding warehouse task. You can define as many interim steps as required.

  4. After completing all value-added services, the products reach the goods issue area or the final storage bin.

Illustration of a value-added service (VAS) process where goods are received, packaged per specifications, processed by workers, and stored, without process-oriented storage control.

Value-Added Service without Process Step

If you are not using process-oriented storage control, and you have not defined any process steps, the system proceeds as follows:

  1. For each item, the system determines the corresponding packaging specification.

  2. The system creates a VAS order based on the inbound delivery or the outbound delivery order.

  3. You print out the VAS order and the warehouse employees perform the VAS activities at the work centers manually.

  4. When the VAS activities are completed, you enter a confirmation in the system. The product is then moved to the final storage bin or the goods issue area.

The graphic illustrates a value-added service (VAS) workflow where goods are received, processed according to packaging specifications, and moved to storage without additional steps.

Limitations for Value-Added Services

There are some limitations for a value-added service process, which need to be considered:

  • The VAS order is no cost collector. It can not be used to forward any costs to controlling or to bill a customer for a value added service. For cost calculation or charging the cost to a customer, you could use Warehouse Billing though.
  • The process is not controlled by the VAS order and the VAS order is not controlled by the physical process. When using a warehouse process, as described in the option "Value-Added Services with Process-Oriented Storage Control", it is necessary to process the VAS order and to complete the process step for the HU separately. One does not confirm the other at the same time.
  • The system does not control if what is planned in the VAS order is really done. If the VAS order foresees to pack a product with a certain packaging material or with a certain quantity, there is no error when a different packaging material is used or a different quantity is packed.

Auxiliary Product Consumption Posting

For the value-added services performed at the work centers, you can record which auxiliary products you used for particular activities, and in what amounts.

Required settings for the consumption posting are as follows:

  • You have set the Consumption-Relevant for VAS indicator in the storage data of the product master for the products for which you want to record consumption posting.

  • You have assigned a storage bin to the VAS work center from where you post the auxiliary products in the goods issue. The stock of the auxiliary products is located in this storage bin, and this stock is then also consumed by this storage bin as part of the value-added services.

  • You have maintained a packaging specification and have assigned auxiliary products to the packaging specification levels (such as preservation or packing into individual containers).

  • If you want to use customer-specific movement types in the SAP ERP system, you can define these in Customizing.

If you do not define your own, the standard movement types 291 and 292 are used for consumption posting in the SAP ERP system.

Standard Movement Types 291 and 292 used for Consumption Posting in the SAP ERP system

Determine Quantity of Auxiliary Products

The system uses the following criteria to automatically determine the quantity of the respective auxiliary products that is to be posted:

  • The status confirmation for a VAS order
  • The VAS activity confirmation
  • The quantity confirmation for a VAS activity

The system determines the respective quantities by using quantity ratios in the packaging specification of the products being processed. However, you can also manually overwrite the quantity determined by the system (such as for unplanned overconsumption or underconsumption).

When you save the confirmation, the system performs consumption posting for the auxiliary products. You can also change the quantities of auxiliary product that have already been posted. If you enter a negative value for the quantity of auxiliary product being posted, the consumption is reduced and the system increases the stock in the storage bin. If you enter a quantity to be posted additionally, you can increase the consumption at a later time.

Learning

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