Processing Warehouse Orders in EWM

Objectives

After completing this lesson, you will be able to:

Process warehouse orders with resources
Work with a mobile device
Execute quality management processes

Putaway Process for Inbound Deliveries

An example is shown of a putaway process for a warehouse.

Depending on your requirements and settings, the materials received are either moved into the selected destination storage bins directly, or they are moved into an interim storage bins or work centers first. This is done for example when a quality inspection is needed first. When materials are delivered by truck, a first step could be the unloading of the materials and then the posting of these materials into the goods receipt area. After that, the materials could be moved to a quality inspection work center or a work center for re-packing. After this, they could be moved further towards their final destination bins. All these movements are controlled with separate warehouse tasks and warehouse orders, and various resources can be involved in the whole process.

Putaway Process

To control such a process with multiple movements inside of the warehouse, a functionality can be used in EWM called Process-Oriented Storage Control. There is a more warehouse layout oriented version of this available that is called Layout-Oriented Storage Control. Process-oriented storage control is used to define process steps like unloading, quality inspection, or packing. Layout-oriented storage control is used for example to set-up a material flow system.

An example is shown of a putaway process.

During the movement of goods through a warehouse, several workers can handle the same handling unit one worker after the other, based on the tasks that need to be executed. All the warehouse tasks and warehouse orders in such a process are related to each other, but each individual movement (that is, warehouse order) can be executed by a separate resource.

Resources in the Warehouse

A photo of a warehouse is shown with some drawing next to it of a truck delivering goods and some boxes on a pallet that need to either put away or were just picked onto the pallet.

When working with mobile devices, warehouse orders are always processed by resources. A resource can be a person which moves goods on a cart, a forklift, or an element of an automated part of the warehouse. The user who logs onto a mobile device then also enters the (SAP) resource that logs on. This determines then the following:

What warehouse orders are assigned to this resource (when in the set-up of the warehouse, warehouse order are assigned automatically to resources)
Where this resource can go to
What types of handling units this resource can process

Note

Resources can also be used when working paper-based, but several features are only supported when mobile devices are used.

Warehouse orders are assigned to a resource either automatically by using a queue, manually by a person responsible, or manually by a selection of the end user (that is, the resource itself). A queue is a logical file to which warehouse orders for processing are assigned. Queues represent different movements in the warehouse for which the total amount of work is managed and assigned to the individual persons/users in the warehouse. An example of this is as follows: both an inbound queue and an outbound queue could be defined for a specific warehouse.

There are various ways of assigning a warehouse to a resource: the system can do it for you, you can do a manual assignment or you manually select which orders to assign to which resources.

Assign a Warehouse Order to a Resource

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Mobile Devices

A picture is shown of a paper-based warehouse. Another picture is shown of a warehouse where mobile devices are used.

Warehouse tasks can be executed in a warehouse either through paper-based working or by working with a mobile device. Paper-based means that the instruction is printed (like a pick list): the warehouse worker marks on the piece of paper what he or so she has done and also any deviations if needed. Someone later enters this information in the SAP S/4HANA system. This way of working has certain limitations and disadvantages. For example, the delay between the actual processing of the materials and the entering of the information in the system might make it impossible to react timely to issues. If a worker manually selects another bin than instructed (for whatever reason) and notes this information on the piece of paper, then this is not known to others until the information is entered in the system. Other people executing other processes could thus be triggered to start their processing based on wrong information.

When working with a mobile device, the system can react directly to information entered by the user, so, for example, when the originally assigned bin cannot be used, the system can determine the next available bin. It is also a way to avoid errors which can happen when transferring the information from paper into the system. There are also special processes in SAP EWM that are only available when the users work with mobile devices.

Types of Mobile Devices

There are different types of mobile devices which can be used in combination with SAP EWM. In general a mobile device is a device that can be carried by the user and connects the user directly to the system. It can also represent a (bigger) device that is installed on a forklift or a cart, but would use specialized transactions and different screens than a desktop application would use to process the same tasks.

Pictures are shown of various types of mobile warehouse devices, like glasses.

Traditionally, mobile devices have a small screen and mobile devices often support scanning capabilities. The user sees the relevant information on the screen and uses the scanner to confirm the different steps like the source or target bin, the material, and so on. Other information like quantities, can be entered using a keyboard which is usually part of the device.

SAP S/4HANA uses the RF (Radio Frequency) Framework when connecting mobile devices to the system. This framework supports also the usage of pick-by-voice. Pick-by-voice means that the user wears a headset (instead of looking on a display) and the task-related information is then audible and confirmations are done by speech input.

Another technology available for SAP EWM is the use of Smart Glasses in combination with the SAP Augmented Reality Warehouse Picker app. This combines the advantages of a display and a scanner with the pick-by-voice functionality.

Process a Warehouse Order with a Mobile Device

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Quality Management During Goods Receipt

Note

See the following video to get introduced to quality management processes during a goods receipt:

Processing Quality Management in the Warehouse

The actual quality inspection of the materials will usually not happen immediately when unloading the materials from the truck or in the goods receipt area. Usually, a sample of the materials which need inspection are brought to a lab and the inspection there might take some time. The rest of the delivered quantity could for example be putaway already; there might be not enough space to keep the product in the goods receipt area. It is also possible that the complete quantity of the delivery will be brought to a special work center, where the products gets unpacked and inspected.

Several variants of these quality inspection processes can be set-up in the SAP S/4HANA system. Extended Warehouse Management can use Process-Oriented Storage Control to support these processes. It is for example possible to model not just one movement related to quality inspection for materials during a putaway process, but to model that materials are moved through various points in the warehouse during an inspection and that different actions need to take place.

An example is shown of what a movement through a warehouse could look like when a quality control step is included.

Integration with Quality Management processes is just one example for the use of Process-Oriented Storage Control. A process can also include steps like unloading and have steps which are processes on a work center (like Value-Added Services (VAS)).

Process-Oriented Storage Control always requires a handling unit (HU). For an inbound process this means that packing (manually or automatically) is required before the warehouse tasks are created.

Process an Inspection Lot

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Confirm Putaway

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