Maintaining Handling Units (HU)

You can use handling unit management (HUM) to reflect packing-based logistics structures in the system. Using this method, you track the movements of entire handling units (HUs) and the materials they contain rather than tracking each material individually. When you base logistics processes on handling units, goods movement processing is made easier, which in turn optimizes all logistics operations. Business benefits of using handling unit management includes the following:

• Reflect packing-based logistic structures
• Use of a unique identifier across all locations
• Track movements of packed goods in logistics more easily

A HU is a physical unit consisting of packaging materials (load carriers/packing material) and the goods contained on/in it. A HU is always a combination of products and packaging materials. All the information contained in the product items, for example, about batches, are retained in the handling units and always available.

Handling units can be nested, meaning that you can also create new handling units from several handling units as often as you like. Furthermore, handling units have unique identification numbers that can be formed according to standards such as EAN 128 or serialized shipping container code (SSCC).

Handling Unit Management (HUM) and Packaging relates to the following activities in the warehouse:

• Manual packing in outbound delivery processing
• Automatic packing in outbound delivery processing
• Manage Handling Units (HUs) in warehouse inventory
• Manual packing in inbound delivery
• Automatic packing in inbound delivery
• Planning and creation of HUs in the warehouse
• Execution of stock transfer processes in the warehouse

For a graphical overview on the business process of the scope item Handling Unit Management (4MM), refer to the SAP Signavio Process Navigator as described in the lesson The Impact of Warehouse Management.

To efficiently use handling unit management (HUM), you must create packaging materials. To automate the packing process, you must also create packing instructions.

Packaging materials are intended to enclose or hold together the materials to be packed. The material to be packed can be packed into or onto the packaging material, which can be a load carrier. Important packaging materials include boxes, wire baskets, pallets, crates, containers, and trucks.

Packaging materials are special types of materials used for packing or transporting goods. During packing, you must specify a packaging material to create HUs. This means the material to be packed can be packed into or onto the packaging material. You must maintain the material master data for each packaging material you want to use.

When you are creating material master records for packaging materials, enter the material type, VERP (packaging). The material type, VERP, contains additional packing-relevant fields (Sales: General/Plant Data screen). The gross weight and volume entered in the material master are significant for packing. When you create a HU, the system automatically copies the packaging material’s master data and uses the gross weight and volume as the tare weight and tare volume of the packaging material.

A packaging material requires the maintenance of the following data:

• Packaging material type: Grouping of packaging materials, for example the HU number assignment
• Allowed packing weight to prevent overloading
• Allowed packing volume to avoid overloading
• Allowed excess tolerances
• Closed (for example carton) vs. an open pallet.

A packing instruction serves as a template for creating a handling unit. In a packing instruction, you define the materials and packaging materials to be packed in a handling unit.

This enables you to reproduce specific customer packaging requirements in the system. You can also automate the packing process by creating a proposal for a handling unit based on a packing instruction.

The packing instruction specifies which materials and quantities are to be packed in one handling unit. This includes the packaging material (load carrier) and the materials to be packed.

There are two types of packing instructions: single-level, which describe only one packing level, and multilevel, which describe several packing levels (nested handling units). Multilevel packing instructions contain subordinate packing instructions. To create handling units with labels (identified HUs) for each packing level, you require one subordinate packing instruction per packing level.

Many materials are packed identically. If certain materials differ in only one characteristic (for example, color), maintaining a packing instruction for each results in a considerable workload. Therefore, you can create a reference material for packing, which you add to the material master of the materials to be packed identically. You then create only one packing instruction for the reference material, reducing the amount of data to be maintained and saving time.

The dimensions, weight, and volume of the handling unit are entered in the packing instruction. You can copy these entries to the HU proposal.

You assign a packing status check profile to a packing instruction. In this check profile, you assign packing statuses to the possible ways an HU proposal can vary from the packing instruction. For each variance from a packing instruction, you can define whether handling unit creation is permitted (for example, variance from the target quantity).

Customers often specify the quantity in which their goods should be packed in a specific combination of packaging materials to enable their goods receipt process to run smoothly. These specific packing procedures often cause considerable costs for the supplier.

In the packing instruction, you define what is packed and how it is packed. For every packing instruction, you must also create determination records to define under which conditions a packing instruction is used. The packing instruction determination uses the condition technique to enable the system to determine appropriate packing instructions based on various characteristics, such as material and ship-to party.

Packing instructions enable the supplier to automate the packing process. Depending on specific characteristics, the system creates proposals for handling units based on the previously defined packing instructions. Based on this proposal, the supplier can pack the materials according to customer requirements and create the HU in the system by confirming the proposal.

The supplier can even pack goods ready for shipping according to customer requirements as part of the production process.