Applying Documents, Milestones, and Mass Change

The easiest way to name WBS elements, network activities, or other objects is to assign a short description to them (in other words, a short text). For example, the investment project has the key I-00## and the short text Nellos System Implementation. Depending on the system configuration, these short texts can also be defined in different languages. This means that users who log on in English see the English short text, while their German colleagues see the German short text.

If a short text of 40 characters is insufficient, you can also enter a more comprehensive text. This text can be of any length. To maintain this text, choose (Text) beside the short text. Short and long texts are object-specific (that is, short and long texts cannot be linked to another object). For example, the long text of the WBS element A cannot be linked to the WBS element B.

1. Documents
2. Short text and long text
3. PS texts
4. Milestones

PS texts are user-definable, useful for repeated usage, and managed in a PS text catalog. The texts are grouped according to the text type and can be created in several different languages. You can create PS texts in the SAPscript format or by using Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint, or Microsoft Excel. The files in question are stored in the SAP database. You can assign PS texts to one or more WBS elements or activities. You can assign PS texts in most transactions for maintenance of projects. For example, in the Project Builder, you can navigate to a WBS element and select PS Text Overview.

In the document management system, you can assign multiple original (external) documents that are in various formats, such as XLS, DOC, PPT, BMP, TIF, CAD, and so on, to a document info record (SAP internal). You can use the SAP Document Management system in the SAP PS to assign document info records to WBS elements and activities. In the SAP PS, you can display the document info records and the corresponding original documents.

You can assign documents in most transactions for the maintenance of projects. In the Project Builder, navigate to the WBS element and choose Document Overview.

You can assign milestones to WBS elements, and, thereby, document events that are particularly important in a project. Milestones can be used in many ways. For example, they can be used for milestone billing in Sales and Distribution (SD). Another option is to use milestones to determine the project progress.

They can also be used purely for information purposes or for analysis in various reports.

You can use the mass change transaction to make cross-project changes to the master data fields of project definitions, WBS elements and milestones. The same authorization objects used for individual changes are used for mass changes.

If you make a mass change, this could mean that many objects are changed simultaneously. In many cases, you cannot undo the changes. For this reason, always be particularly careful when you use this transaction. You can use the CNMASS mass change transaction directly. Alternatively, you can start a mass change from the Project Builder, the Project Planning Board, or the structure overview. In addition to the master data, you can also change the status values for several projects using the CNMASSSTATUS mass change transaction. The transaction supports the change of system status values and the change of user status values.

The restrictions are the same as for the master data mass maintenance. That is, you cannot undo the changes made. However, you are able to do a test run before the productive run. Note also that a status change might trigger other activities like the generation of assets under construction.