Maintaining Quote Message/Award Integration-Specific Cross-Reference Parameters​

Cross-reference Parameters in the Managed Gateway integration project control how specific data values from the SAP system are interpreted, transformed, or routed when exchanged with SAP Ariba solutions. Unlike Lookup Tables, which map lists of values, Cross-Reference Parameters handle single, scenario-specific configurations that influence integration behavior. They define system-level or document-level rules that guide how the SAP system and SAP Ariba solutions handle specific values when processing procurement and sourcing documents. Cross-reference Parameters control processing behavior and determine how Managed Gateway interprets or transforms fields.

They handle customer-specific variations, such as different SAP configurations, text IDs, document types, and settings like Allow Negative Quantity, Send Payment Terms, and Show Tax Details At Item Level. Cross-reference Parameters allow the integration to adapt to these variations without code changes, enabling document-level decision-making, such as deciding whether a Quote Message should create a Purchase Order, Contract, or Scheduling Agreement in the SAP system, or use a specific document type when creating a Purchase Order. Instead of making ABAP changes or implementing IF/ELSE logic, these configurable parameters let you set behavior directly in the Managed Gateway, reducing the effort required for customization. Cross-Reference Parameters act like integration settings, defining system behavior and data-handling rules, and ensuring consistent document processing across SAP and SAP Ariba solutions.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to maintain Quote Message/Award-specific Cross-Reference Parameters in the integration project on the Managed Gateway portal.

Before starting, you should already be able to:

• Enable the Managed Gateway from your SAP Ariba Strategic Sourcing site or realm and create an Integration Project.
• Choose Product = Ariba Sourcing in the Basic Information of the integration project.
• Define Connection information to establish connectivity between the Managed Gateway and your SAP on-premise system.
• Define Cross Reference Parameters for one or more document types based on your requirements:
  • Quote Message for Purchase Order (Doc Type – QuoteMessageOrder)
  • Quote Message for Material Contract (Doc Type – QuoteMessageContract)
  • Quote Message for Service Contract (Doc Type – QuoteMessageContractServices)
  • Quote Message for Scheduling Agreement (Doc Type – QuoteMessageSchedulingAgreement)
• Define Cross References for UOM (Unit of Measures)
• Define Cross Reference lookup table for the following document types based on requirements: Quote Message for Service Contract (Doc Type – QuoteMessageContractServices) and Quote Message for Scheduling Agreement (Doc Type- QuoteMessageSchedulingAgreement).
• Assign Realm IDs
• Confirm, test, and deploy the integration project.

All these activities are discussed in the course Deep-dive into SAP Integration Suite managed gateway for Spend Management and SAP Business Network of the Learning Journey Administering SAP Integration Suite, managed gateway for spend management and SAP Business Network.

In this lesson, we’ll focus on configuring the Cross-Reference Parameters specific to the Quote Message/Award integration. Define values in the parameter fields you want to map. The SAP Ariba administrator adds the transactions and related parameters. Set parameter values when creating a project for Ariba Sourcing or on the My Configuration page.

When creating the project for the first time, set up the parameters and lookup table values. You can still edit the project while it’s in the Testing status, defining values for both test and production environments.

Follow these steps to maintain the Cross-Reference Parameters for the Quote Message/Award:

1. Navigate to the Managed Gateway for Spend&Network portal> Create or edit the Integration Project created for integration with Ariba Sourcing> Traverse to the Cross Reference Configuration Parameter tab.

   Here, you need to maintain the Cross-Reference Parameters for one or more of the following document types based on your requirements:

   • Quote Message for Purchase Order (Doc Type – QuoteMessageOrder)
   • Quote Message for Material Contract (Doc Type – QuoteMessageContract)
   • Quote Message for Service Contract (Doc Type – QuoteMessageContractServices)
   • Quote Message for Scheduling Agreement (Doc Type- QuoteMessageSchedulingAgreement)
   
2. From the Select Document Type field dropdown, select QuoteMessageOrder and choose the Add button.
3. Select the Pencil icon of the added entry for the QuoteMessageOrder document type to maintain the parameters.
4. On the QuoteMessageOrder;0;cXML popup screen, maintain the parameters based on your business requirements.
5. Once all the necessary entries are maintained, select the Save button.

   For guidance, refer to the table provided in this lesson.

   Uncheck Use same values if you want a different value in the PROD Environment.

Accounting details are missing from Quote Messages/Awards sent to the backend SAP system. These details are needed to create Purchase Orders or Contract (Outline Agreements) in the SAP system.

To populate the accounting information, maintain default values for fields like Account Assignment Category, GL Account, Cost Center, WBS Element, Asset, etc. If not, the document will be created with the Account Assignment Category U (Unknown). Access the document in the SAP system to change the accounting details.

Text IDs differentiate between various text/comment types. In the SAP system, multiple text/comment fields exist at both the header and line-item levels. A unique Text ID identifies each field.

Pricing conditions in the SAP system determine how prices, discounts, surcharges, taxes, and freight are calculated for purchasing documents. They form the basis of the SAP Pricing Procedure, which calculates the final price of a material or service.

During the awarding process in SAP Ariba Strategic Sourcing, enter values in pricing-related fields like Gross Price for Item, Surcharge amount, Discount amount, Surcharge percentage, and Discount percentage.

When a Quote Message/Award is sent to the backend SAP system, these SAP Ariba pricing elements must align with SAP condition types. Maintaining the Cross-Reference mappings ensures the correct translation of SAP Ariba pricing elements into SAP pricing condition types, preventing integration failures.

Maintain Cross Reference Parameters for all necessary document types, as per your requirements.

The SAP Integration Suite, Managed Gateway for Spend Management, and SAP Business Network Configuration Guide provide more information on setting up Cross References for different document types supported for Quote Message/Award.

Navigate to Cross References Setup on SAP Integration Suite, Managed Gateway for Spend Management, and SAP Business Network>Setting Up Cross References for SAP Ariba Strategic Sourcing and SAP Ariba Contracts>Setting Up Cross References for QuoteMessage. Refer to the tables under the Procedure section for different document types.

To learn about maintaining Cross-Reference Parameters in the Managed Gateway project, refer to the learning Journey, Administering SAP Integration Suite, managed gateway for spend management and SAP Business Network:

• Course: Deep-dive into SAP Integration Suite managed gateway for spend management and SAP Business Network
• Unit: Creating a Project in SAP Integration Suite, managed gateway for spend management and SAP Business Network
• Lesson: Defining Cross References for Parameters, UOM Mappings, Lookup Values, and Realm ID