This lesson will discuss how buyers can configure their default transaction rules for their suppliers to require certain information when transacting.
How buyers configure transaction rules?
SAP Business Network default transaction rules control how suppliers submit transaction documents that meet the buyer’s content requirements.
Some default transaction rules can be set to require suppliers to provide certain information. Other rules control whether a supplier is allowed to include certain information or not.
SAP Business Network evaluates these rules against online, cXML, or EDI documents from suppliers. It rejects documents that fail validation, so buyers receive only documents that are compatible with their procurement system configuration.
Buyers configure default transaction rules on the Default Transaction Rules page in their SAP Business Network account (Administration＞Configuration＞Default Transaction Rules). However, they can override them for specific suppliers and supplier groups. In the case of invoices, they can also override them for the country from which the invoice is sent.
Suppliers can review the transaction rules that have been specified by the buyer in the Customer Details page of their SAP Business Network account (Customer Relationships＞Customer Details).
Rule Categories - Buyers
The Default transaction rules page has rules grouped in the following categories:
- Payment batch transmission rules
- Purchase order rules
- Blanket purchase order rules
- Scheduling agreement release setup rules
- Ariba Buyer contracts site setup rules
- Attachment file extension rules
- Attachment filename rule
- Order confirmation and ship notice attachment rules
- Quick enablement rules
- Order confirmation and ship notice rules
- Service sheet rules
- Invoice rules
- Invoice archival
- Long-term document archiving
- Sales order rule
- D-U-N-S number rule
Allow vs Require Rules - Buyers
Generally, there are two types of transaction rules:
- Allow Rules: When these rules are checked, suppliers have the option to enter values per rule setting or not. If these rules are not checked, the rule behavior is enforced.
- Require Rules: When these rules are checked, the buyer mandates that the supplier provides certain information on the document. When these rules are not checked, suppliers have the option to leave that information blank.
- Other Rules: There are some rules that don’t start with Allow or Require, but that are processed as Require rules.
Orders and releases are generated by buyer procurement applications and sent electronically to SAP Busiess Network as cXML documents.
SAP Business Network essentially functions as a hub to receive customer order documents and send (route) them to suppliers for review and order processing (fulfillment) using a supported order routing method.
Suppliers can select order and release routing methods when they set up their account, and can change them anytime afterward. When an order routing method is changed, the change takes effect immediately.
Buying organizations can view the order routing methods that the supplier configured and can request notification if they change them.
SAP Business Network supports the following order routing methods:
- Online order routing
- Email order routing
- Fax order routing
- cXML order routing
- cXML pending queue routing
- EDI order routing