Delineation of the Terms Planning Model and Planning Area
In SAP Integrated Business Planning for Supply Chain (SAP IBP), both the planning model and planning area are crucial components for planning and forecasting, but they serve different purposes.
Planning model: It is a data model that supports specific business functions such as demand planning, supply planning, sales and operations planning, or inventory planning. It contains master data, key figures, selling units, planning levels, and versions. It is where the business data is structured and maintained to run planning calculations and simulations.
Planning area: A configuration object within the planning model defines the scope and context of planning activities. It includes a specific set of key figures, master data types, and time periods relevant for a particular planning scenario.
The key difference lies in their functions. The planning model is a comprehensive framework or environment for all planning activities across multiple business functions, containing all the relevant elements needed for advanced planning and simulations.
On the other hand, a planning area is a subset of the planning model. It defines the planning scope by grouping together specific sets of key figures and master data for a targeted planning scenario or purpose.
In simple terms, you can consider the planning model as the playing field, while the planning area is the specific part of the field where the game is being played.
Planning Model Entities
The entities of the planning area are explained in more detail in the following table:
Planning Model Entities Explained
| Planning Model Entities | Explanation |
|---|---|
| A planning area describes the structure of a plan in terms of data and calculations. It defines how data is stored, calculated, and aggregated in the system. Key figure calculations and inputs define the structure and properties of key figures. A set of key figures is bundled under the main entity of a planning area. The planning area is often referred to as a planning model, because the key figures represent the most important constituents of a planning model. |
| These entities represent categories of information. Every master data type has one or more attributes. |
| The time profile entities are used for the time periods definition for managing planning data. |
| Attribute (field description) | Attributes are elemental building blocks that describe an individual field and data type that are used in planning. |
| Planning operator | Planning operators are the functions that are associated with a planning area. An important example of a planning operator is the supply planning operator. In SAP Integrated Business Planning for Supply Chain, you can model and plan an arbitrarily deep network of supply chain-related locations and production steps, using master data such as sourcing rules, resources, bills of material, and time series and data such as consensus demand, production numbers or capacities. This master data is modeled using master data types, and the time series are defined as key figures in planning. |
SAP Integrated Business Planning allows you to configure and customize planning models to address your unique business requirements. The apps in the Model Configuration group, which you can access from the launchpad, includes all of the features that enable you to configure a model from scratch and activate it. Many model entities, for example, planning areas, master data types, and time profiles, can also be copied and modified.
Business Requirements
The business requirement for our sample company that we implement first is the Sales Forecast Qty, determined by sales persons, and the Marketing Forecast Qty, determined by the marketing department. These are input (loaded) into SAP IBP.
Key Terms
Planning Model
A planning model is a data model designed to support specific business functions such as demand planning, supply planning, sales and operations planning, or inventory planning. The planning model encompasses all the necessary components for planning scenarios, including key figures, master data and attributes, planning levels, time periods, and versions.
Attributes
Attributes are additional descriptive pieces of information associated with master data and can be used to classify, filter, or sort master data for more detailed and customized analysis. In essence, attributes enhance the depth and flexibility of data analysis by providing additional characteristics or contextual information about master data.
Master Data
Master data refers to the consistent and uniform set of identifiers and extended attributes that describe the core entities of a business. For example, it can include information about products, customers, suppliers, materials, and sales structures. Master data remains fairly consistent over time.
Time Series Data
Time series data in SAP IBP refers to data collected or recorded at specific time intervals. In essence, time series data is like a treasure trove of insights into your business's past and present, and a peep into the future. Time series data is used in planning, forecasting, and supply chain management.
Time Profile
A time profile defines the time-based structure or perspective for planning data. It specifies the time periods or intervals (like hours, days, weeks, months, quarters, or years) at which planning activities are performed and data is recorded or analyzed.
Planning Area
A planning area is a central and crucial configurable object that defines the scope and context for most planning activities. It is a pre-structured area that brings together all relevant data for planning. A planning area contains the key figures, master data types, time profiles, and other components required for planning. All these components are interlinked within the planning area allowing for comprehensive planning and analytics.
Planning Level
A planning level defines the granularity at which planning activities are performed. It determines how data is disaggregated and aggregated in planning operations. A planning area can include one or more planning levels.
Key Figure
Key figures represent measurable quantities or numerical values crucial for monitoring and decision-making processes in business.
Key Figure calculation
Key figure calculations refer to the mathematical or logical operations performed on one or more key figures to derive other meaningful key figures.
Dimension
A dimension is a specific categorical attribute or characteristic of master data used to analyze and structure the key figures. Dimensions help organize data and give it a structure for further planning and analysis. They provide perspectives from which business operations can be viewed or analyzed.
Version
A version refers to a specific data scenario or planning iteration. It essentially represents a unique set of data in the system. This concept maintains different data models for business simulations, comparisons, or predictions.
Planning Operators
A planning operator is a predefined function or process used to manipulate or perform calculations on data, especially key figures, in planning models. These operators are instrumental in carrying out specific tasks within the planning and forecasting process.