Thursday, May 20, 2010

SAP ECC

SAP ECC stands for ERP Central Component.

Back in 2005, SAP AG, the company that provides the enterprise resource planning solution upgraded SAP package and launched it as SAP ECC 6.0.
ECC6.0 is the latest version and it is the next generation of the SAP R/3. It supports NetWeaver component and also modules like BI,XI, and EP.

SAP APO

APO stands for Advanced Planner and Optimizer.

This is a large component of SAP's New Dimension products. APO is an entire suite of supply chain planner applications that increase overall knowledge of the supply chain and provide forecasting, planning and optimization.

There are eight application levels within SAP APO:

1. Network design
2. Supply network planning
3. Demand planning
4. Production planning and detailed scheduling
5. Transportation planning
6. Vehicle scheduling
7. Global availability and
8. Supply chain collaboration.

SAP APO always requires a backend ERP system for execution functions. In most cases, the backend system is an SAP R/3 system.

The benefits of the SAP APO, is that it provides the basis for an end-to-end supply chain management solution, seamlessly linking all key processes from order generation to production planning to transportation.

SAP APO offers functionality for:

1. Demand planning
2. Supply network planning
3. Production planning
4. Detailed scheduling Available to promise.

SAP Business One

SAP Business is a business management software specifically for SME(small and midsize enterprises). It integrates all business functions across sales, distribution, and financials, all in a single flexible and responsive system.

SAP Business One has following modules.

1. Accounting and Financials: Handle all financial transactions and budget tracking and reporting. Tracks all banking processes and generates easy-to-use financial reports.

2. Customer Relationship Management (CRM): Manages the entire sales process and forecast revenue potential with web based interface to customers to log inquiries and check order status in real-time.

3. Operations and Distribution: Generate price quotes, enter customer orders, update stock levels, and manage all billing and accounts receivables.

4. Administration and Reporting: Handle inventory levels, item management, transfers between warehouses, and stock transactions. Manages production material requirements and predict demand based on forecasts.

SAP LES Module

LES stands for Logistics Execution System.
SAP LES is a core module of SAP R/3 or SAP ERP.
The main components of SAP LES are the warehouse management SAP WM (Warehouse Management) and the material flow control SAP TRM (SAP Task and Resource Management). SAP LES is the most widely used application for warehouse management and control worldwide with about 5000 installations.

Application of SAP LES completely replaces external warehouse control systems (WMSs/MFCs) for automated and manual warehouses.

SAP LES facilitates management of information and processes at all stages of the supply chain ranging from procuring raw materials to distributing finished products. SAP LES connects SCM processes involved in procurement, order processing, production, storage, inventory management, shipping, and sales.

SAP FI/CO Module

SAP FICO stands for SAP Finance and Control.

SAP FICO is not an independent module of SAP ERP but a combanition of SAP FI and SAP CO modules of SAP R/3.

The SAP FI Module deals with accounting and finance while the SAP CO module deals with cost and revenue for the purpose of planning, reporting, and monitoring the operations of an enterprise.

As SAP modules have real time functionality and are automatically updated as events occur, using the FI module one can review the financial position of a company on real-time basis as compared to conventional systems where there is no real-time reporting.

The FI Module is integrated with other SAP Modules such as SAP MM , SAP PP, SAP SD, etc.

SAP SRM Module

Supplier relationship management is a comprehensive approach to managing an enterprise's interactions with the organizations that supply the goods and services it uses. The goal of supplier relationship management (SRM) is to streamline and make more effective the processes between an enterprise and its suppliers just as customer relationship management (CRM) is intended to streamline and make more effective the processes between an enterprise and its customers.

SRM includes both business practices and software and is part of the information flow component of supply chain management (SCM).

SRM practices create a common frame of reference to enable effective communication between an enterprise and suppliers who may use quite different business practices and terminology. As a result, SRM increases the efficiency of processes associated with acquiring goods and services, managing inventory, and processing materials.

SAP SRM simplifies and automates procurement. The SAP SRM process integrates supplier qualification, negotiation, and contract management more tightly and cost-effectively with other enterprise functions and their suppliers’ processes – through a single framework with support for multichannel suppliers.

SAP BW Module

Due to of increasing competition amongst corporations it has become mandatory to make quick and sound crucial business decisions based on analysis of business critical data. This is the point where data warehouses come into play. For them SAP’s Business Information Warehouse (BW) provides a complete information factory solution. BW is the central component in the SAP suite of applications with an added advantage of being a software package that can be used in both SAP and non-SAP environments.

SAP Business Information Warehouse (SAP BW) is the name of the Business Intelligence, analytical, reporting and Data Warehousing (DW) solution which is one of the major enterprise software applications produced by SAP AG. It was originally named SAP BIW, (Business Information Warehouse), but is now known as SAP NetWeaver BI.

For the modern enterprise, time wasted due to data loss and inconsistencies is unacceptable, particularly when this can often be remedied easily through the use of a data warehouse.

SAP introduced Business Warehouse Information Systems (BW) in the first half of 1997. This system approach consolidates the external and the internal sources of data into a single repository and provides preconfigured data that aids the organizations and enterprises in dealing with the data management and archiving.
The SAP environment therefore expanded its horizon with the introduction and implementation of SAP BW to encompass new applications for the SAP R/3 administrators responsible for administering and maintenance of these data reserves.

SAP QM

Quality management is a method for ensuring that all the activities necessary to design, develop and implement a product or service are effective and efficient with respect to the system and its performance.

Quality management is the comprehensive solution that supports the company throughout the product life cycle and along the supply chain. It offers a wide range of functions and collaborative services, which are fully integrated into SAP ERP, for assuring and managing the quality of products and assets. It also focuses on prevention and continuous process improvement through collaboration and sustained quality control.

The QM (Quality management) application component in SAP R/3 System supports tasks associated with quality planning, quality inspection and quality control. In addition, it controls the creation of quality certificates and manages problems with the help of quality notifications.
The companies can use the Complaint Management for achieving their quality goals.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quality_management

SAP PP Module

Manufacturing in any company has at its disposal various resources. The nature and the constraints of these resources are determined by some strategic decisions. The day-to-day running of manufacturing rests with Production Planning and Control (PP&C) The purpose of PP&C is to ensure that manufacturing runs effectively and efficiently and produces products as required by customers.

SAP R/3 has a highly integrated Production Planning System. The PP module is divided into two Sub-modules: 1. PP-PI and 2. Production General.
PP-PI sub-module is designed for process industries like Oil and Gas.

The Production Planning module of SAP takes care of Master data needed like Bill Of Materials, Routings and Work Centers and stores it in one separate component.

Various stages of the planning system can be planned by using components like

1. Sales and Operation Planning
2. Long Term Planning
3. Demand Management
4. Materials Requirement Planning, etc.

SAP SCM

Supply chain management (SCM) is the oversight of materials, information, and finances as they move in a process from supplier to manufacturer to wholesaler to retailer to consumer. Supply chain management involves coordinating and integrating these flows both within and among companies.
It is said that the ultimate goal of any effective supply chain management system is to reduce inventory (with the assumption that products are available when needed). As a solution for successful supply chain management, sophisticated software systems with Web interfaces are competing with Web-based application service providers (ASP) who promise to provide part or all of the SCM service for companies who rent their service.

Supply chain management flows can be divided into three main flows:

1. The product flow
2. The information flow
3. The finances flow

Product flow includes the movement of goods from a supplier to a customer, as well as any customer returns or service needs.

Information flow involves transmitting ordersand updating the status of delivery.

Financial flow consists of credit terms, payment schedules, and consignment and title ownership arrangements.

The SAP Supply Chain Management (SAP SCM) application offers companies not only planning and execution solutions to manage operations but also helps boost visibility and collaboration to extend their operations beyond corporate boundaries.

SAP SCM empowers companies to adapt their supply chain processes to an ever-changing competitive environment, transforming traditional supply chains from linear, sequential processes into an adaptive supply chain network in which communities of customer-centric, demand-driven companies share knowledge, intelligently adapt to market changes and proactively respond to shorter, less predictable life cycles.

SAP SCM provides three cornerstones which forms the foundation of the adaptive supply chain network:

1. Synchronize supply and demand.
2. Sense and respond with an adaptive fulfillment network.
3. Network-wide visibility, collaboration and analytics.

SAP SD Module

SAP SD stands for Sales & Distribution Module. SAP SD handles sales activities and distribution activities, also called as shipping.
The main activities are to handle the sales order, and the distribution of shipments to customers. Also the billing process, customer invoice, delivery, and risk management is handled from the SD module.

For further reading:

http://www.sap-img.com/sap-sd.htm

SAP MM Module

SAP MM is the materials management module of the SAP ERP software package from SAP AG that is used for Procurement Handling and Inventory Management. Materials management is integrated with other modules such as SD, PP and QM. Materials management is used for procurement and inventory management.

The module has two important master data - material and vendor. Broadly, the various levels that can be defined for a SAP MM implementation are: Client, Company Code, Plant, Storage Location and Purchase Organization.

SAP Materials management covers all tasks within the supply chain, including consumption-based planning, planning, vendor evaluation and invoice verification. It also includes inventory and warehouse management to manage stock until usage dictates the cycle should begin again. Electronic KANBAN/Just-in-Time delivery is supported.

SAP MM is all about managing the materials i.e the resources of an organization. These resources include man, manpower and materials. The main functionality within MM includes purchasing, Inventory management, valuation and assignment, batch management and classification.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAP_MM

SAP PM Module

Preventive maintenance (PM) Module Keeps track of PM inspections and jobs, including step-by-step instructions or check-lists, lists of materials required, and other pertinent details. Typically, the CMMS schedules PM jobs automatically based on schedules and/or meter readings. Different software packages use different techniques for reporting when a job should be performed.

Asset management: Recording data about equipment and property including specifications, warranty information, service contracts, spare parts, purchase date, expected lifetime, and anything else that might be of help to management or maintenance workers.

Inventory control: Management of spare parts, tools, and other materials including the reservation of materials for particular jobs, recording where materials are stored, determining when more materials should be purchased, tracking shipment receipts, and taking inventory.

Safety: Management of permits and other documentation required for the processing of safety requirements.
SAP R/3’s PM module functions as a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) and is used to plan and schedule ongoing, daily facility maintenance.

The SAP Plant Maintenance comprises of the following activities such as inspection, to measures and establish the actual condition of a technical system, preventive maintenance to measures and maintain the ideal condition of a technical system, repair to measures and restore the ideal condition of a technical system and other measures that need to be taken using the maintenance organization.

SAP PM is closely integrated with other modules (for example, Materials Management, Production, Sales and Distribution, Personnel Management, and Controlling) the data is always kept current and processes that are necessary for Plant Maintenance and Customer Service are automatically triggered in other areas (for example, a purchase requisition for non-stock material in the Materials Management/Purchasing area).


Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computerized_Maintenance_Management_System

SAP HR Module

SAP HR is the HR resource management system SAP HR solution is one of the largest modules in the SAP R/3 system which consists of many sub-modules:

1.Organizational Management
2.Personnel Administration
3. Recruitment Time Management
4. Payroll Benefits Compensation
5. Management Personnel Cost
6. Planning Budget
7. Management Personnel
8. Development Training & Event Management
9. Travel Management

Many of these sub modules are further sub divided into many components.
For e.g., Time Management can further be sub-divided into Time Administration, Shift Planning, Incentive Wages and Time Sheet.
Environment Health & Safety can be further sub-divided into Occupational Health & Industrial Hygiene & Safety.

With the advent of mySAP , SAP HR was then called mySAP HR . What got added with my(mark this word)SAP was the web services like ESS (Employee Self- Service) and the MSS Manager's Self Service) which gave empowerment to the employees and managers, employees to better manage their own data and managers to better manage their own departments/divisions. This became the turning point for SAP HR to shift from being a data repository to a strategic tool where the HR departments now focused more of strategic tasks than administrative ones which were now offloaded to the employees and managers using these self services.

The SAP HR module enables customers to effectively manage information about the people in their organization, and to integrate that information with ''other SAP modules'' and external systems.

Source:

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Human-Resources-2866/Need-information-SAP-HR.htm

SAP AM Module

SAP AM Module - AM stands for Asset Management

Enterprise asset management (EAM) means the whole life optimal management of the physical assets of an organization to maximize value. It covers such things as the design, construction, commissioning, operations, maintenance and decommissioning/replacement of plant, equipment and facilities. "Enterprise" refers to the management of the assets across departments, locations, facilities and, in some cases, business units. By managing assets across the facility, organizations can improve utilization and performance, reduce capital costs, reduce asset-related operating costs, extend asset life and subsequently improve ROA (return on assets).

Asset intensive industries face the harsh realities of operating in highly competitive markets and dealing with high value facilities and equipment where each failure is disruptive and costly. At the same time, they must also adhere to stringent occupational safety, health and environmental regulations. Maintaining optimal availability, reliability and operational safety of plant, equipment, facilities and other assets is therefore essential for an organization's competitiveness.

On the operations side, EAM caters to increased efficiencies of all assets including inventory, regulatory compliance and human resources by combining the salient goals of investment, maintenance, repair and operations management. Simultaneously, EAM addresses business challenges that include productivity enhancement, maximizing asset life cycle, minimizing total cost of ownership and support of the technology and supply chain infrastructure.

SAP Service and Asset Management is the only integrated solution that allows to manage service and maintenance from end to end. It can handle service sales and marketing, manage service-level agreements, oversee service call centers, track warranties and claims, and provide customer self-service over the Web. It can also perform field service, in-house maintenance and repair, depot repair, service parts management – including execution and planning – and service performance and financial analysis.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enterprise_asset_management

SAP CO Module

The SAP CO (Controlling) Module provides supporting information to Management for the purpose of planning, reporting, as well as monitoring the operations of their business. Management decision-making can be achieved with the level of information provided by this module.

Some of the components of the CO(Controlling) Module are as follows:

1. Cost Element Accounting
2. Cost Center Accounting
3. Internal Orders
4. Activity-Based Costing ( ABC)
5. Product Cost Controlling
6. Profitability Analysis
7. Profit Center Accounting

Cost Element Accounting component provides information which includes the costs and revenue for an organization. These postings are automatically updated from FI (Financial Accounting) to CO (Controlling).

Cost Center Accounting provides information on the costs incurred by your business. Within SAP, you have the ability to assign Cost Centers to departments and /or Managers responsible for certain areas of the business as well as functional areas within your organization. Cost Centers can be created for such functional areas as Marketing, Purchasing, Human Resources, Finance, Facilities, Information Systems, Administrative Support, Legal, Shipping/Receiving, or even Quality.

Internal Orders provide a means of tracking costs of a specific job , service, or task. Internal Orders are used as a method to collect those costs and business transactions related to the task.

Activity-Based Costing allows a better definition of the source of costs to the process driving the cost. Activity-Based Costing enhances Cost Center Accounting in that it allows for a process-oriented and cross-functional view of your cost centers. It can also be used with Product Costing and Profitability Analysis.

Product Cost Controlling allows management the ability to analyze their product costs and to make decisions on the optimal price(s) to market their products. It is within this module of CO (Controlling) that planned, actual and target values are analyzed.

Profitability Analysis allows Management the ability to review information with respect to the company’s profit or contribution margin by business segment.

Profit Center Accounting provides visibility of an organization’s profit and losses by profit center. The methods which can be utilized for EC-PCA (Profit Center Accounting) are period accounting or by the cost-of-sales approach.

Source:

http://www.thespot4sap.com/IntroTo/SAP_CO_Module_Introduction.asp

SAP FI Module

The SAP FI Module has the capability of meeting all the accounting and financial needs of an organization. It is within this module that Financial Managers as well as other Managers within your business can review the financial position of the company in real time as compared to legacy systems which often times require overnight updates before financial statements can be generated and run for management review.

The real-time functionality of the SAP modules allows for better decision making and strategic planning. The FI (Financial Accounting) Module integrates with other SAP Modules such as MM (Materials Management), PP (Production Planning), SD(Sales and Distribution), PM (Plant Maintenance),and PS (Project Systems).

The FI Module also integrates with HR(Human Resources) which includes PM(Personnel Management), Time Management, Travel Management, Payroll.Document transactions occurring within the specific modules generate account postings via account determination tables.

The FI Module includes following sub-modules as follows:

1. Accounts Receivables
2. Accounts Payable
3. Asset Accounting
4. Bank Accounting
5. Consolidation
6. Funds Management
7. General Ledger
8. Special Purpose Ledger
9. Travel Management

Accounts Receivables records all account postings generated as a result of Customer sales activity.

Accounts Payable records account postings generated as a result of Vendor purchasing activity.

Asset Accounting is utilized for managing your company’s Fixed Assets. SAP allows you to categorize assets and to set values for depreciation calculations in each asset class.

Bank Accounting allows for management of bank transactions in the system including cash management.

Consolidation enables the combining of financial statements for multiple entities within an organization.

Funds Management allows management to set budgets for revenues and expenses within your company.

General Ledger is fully integrated with the other SAP Modules. It is within the General Ledger that all accounting postings are recorded. These postings are displayed in real-time providing up-to-date visibility of the financial accounts.
Special Purpose Ledger is used to define ledgers for reporting purposes. Data can be gathered from internal and external applications.
Travel Management provides management of all travel activities including booking trips and handling of expenses associated with travel.

Source:

http://www.thespot4sap.com/IntroTo/SAP_FI_Module_Introduction.asp

SAP CRM Module

Customer relationship management (CRM) is a broadly used term that covers concepts used by organizations to manage their relationships with customers and stakeholders to reduce costs and increase profitability by solidifying customer loyalty.

CRM brings together information from all sources within and outside an organization to give one, holistic view of each customer in real time.

There are three aspects of CRM which can each be implemented in isolation from each other:

Operational - automation of customer processes that offers support to a company’s sales or service representative. E.g., SFA(Sales Force Automation)
Collaborative - the program communicates to customers without a company’s sales or service representative (self service)
Analytical - analysis of customer information for multiple purposes(e.g., so as to increase sales by focusing on the different segment of customers differently).

CRM Market:

According to AMR, market for CMR will grow to $19.2 billion through 2011, a 9% compound annual growth rate.SAP is a market leader in CRM followed by Siebel and Oracle.

Gartner says CRM software spending grew to $5.81 billion last year, an 11.5% increase, and predicts that software spending will grow between 11% and 12% for the next five years.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Customer_relationship_management

Cost of SAP Training

There are only two authorized SAP Training partners in India from where you can get SAP Certification. These are the following.

1. Genovate.
2. Siemens.

These institutes will charge Rs. 2,75000 for training. Rs. 2,50000 is the the training fees and Rs. 25,000 for Certification. You need to have 70% marks in the Certification exam, which is a bit hard. You can appear at most three times paying 25,000 each time.

But there is no placement guarantee even after Certification from these institutes with only 1/4 Certified consultants getting placed.

Apart from these two training centers, there are numerous other institutes in all the major cities of India, which offer SAP training at cheap rates. The fees for SAP courses in these institutes ranges between 10-30K. Here on the blog, you can find the address of some of these institutes which have good repute among the student community. There are people who took training from these small institutes and are now placed in MNCs with hefty pay packages. So all that matters is the amount of hardwork and dedication one applies that will land him a job in SAP.

You can also visit on the SAP site to get documentation on SAP. It’s a good resource and a library of SAP training material.

For more details check:

http://help.sap.com/

SAP Certification Cost

For UK and Ireland

For the Consultant Certification the following three price groups apply:
Certifications on Associate level (£350)
Certifications on Professional level (£430)
Certifications in the SME products SAP Business One + SAP Business All-In-One (£60).

For more information check:
http://www.sap.com/usa/services/education/index.epx

For India

For each SAP attempt Rs 25,000/= (Approximately USD $ 625 at current US Dollar Indian Rupee exchange rates) will be charged by them. Service Tax of around 12.36 % would be extra on all above charges.

For USA

Check:
http://www.sap.com/usa/services/education/certification/index.epx

SAP Future

SAP is a global leader in ERP followed by Peoplesoft and BAAN. SAP integrates all the IT systems of an enterprise into one system, and hence enhances the productivity of an organization. Implementing SAP is an costly affair for any organization. And also it takes long time to Implement SAP in any organization.

In India, SAP controls a market share of about 57% in ERP. Most of the big comapnies in India have implemented or are in the proces of implementing SAP ERP and now SAP AG is targeting SME(small and medium scale enterprises) in India and hence more jobs will be available in the upcoming future.

As peer the recent news, globally there would be a shortage of 40,000 SAP professionals. In India, SAP AG will be doubling the headcount to 8,000 by 2010, which is an indication of increased opportunities for SAP professionals.

How to learn SAP - How to get into SAP

How to learn SAP - How to get into SAP:

Getting into SAP requires domain experience, if you are a programmer then you can go for technical module. If you are looking for functional modules then you should have relevant domain experience of at least two years.
There are various institutes offering SAP courses with good ones like Siemens, Genovate, BCPL, etc.

Basic training costs around $5000.

Some institutes offer online SAP courses which are also becoming popular now a days.

acm.org computer society has lots of courses on SAP. You can browse the training catalog course titles before joining, $109/year.

com2learn.com has some courses, $500 plus for $149 you can login to actual SAP system to try what you learned.

books24x7.com has 90 or so books with SAP in title you can read online, and several hundred with references to SAP products. This is a subscription site. There's an ABAP simulator you can buy from an Australian company.

You should also visit to the sites with sap articles such as sapinsider, etc.

Completing SAP certification does’t mean that you will get the job confirmed. After completing the SAP certification companies will ask for the relevant job experience in that particular domain. And if you have the domain experience then even some companies may also ask for the implementation experience of atleast say 1years.

LIST OF SOME SAP IMPLEMENTATION AND SUPPORT COMPANIES IN INDIA

1. Mastek - Making a valuable difference.
2. Reliance Energy formerly known as BSES Bayer.
3. Marico Industries.
4. VVF Ltd.
5. Nerolac
6. Asian Paints (I) Ltd
7. Videocon(In progrees)
8. Nicholas Piramal
9. Jindal Stainless Limited (ongoing implementation)
10. Harsha Engineering
11. John Fowler Group (John Fowler, Fowler Westrup)
12. Bharat Petroleum, Mumbai - Petroleum & Natural Gas
13. Sundram Fastners Limited, Chennai - Auto Components
14. Tractors & Farm Equipments Limited (TAFE), Chennai - Automobile
15. Hero Honda Motors Limited, Faridabad - Automobile
16. Hero Cold Rolling Division, Ludhiana - Steel
17. Indian Adhesives Limited, Chennai -Chemicals
18. Merck India
19. Novartis India
20. Tata Automotive Components
21. Tata Chemicals Ltd
22. L&T
23. John Deer
24. Colgate Palmolive India ltd
25. Crompton Greaves
26. Nike
27. Glenmark Pharma
28. Dr. Reddy Labs
29. Wipro Consumers and Lighting
30. National Bearing Corporation
31. Kalyani Break linings
32. Wheel India Ltd
33. Asian Paints
34. Parle Agro Limited, Mumbai
35. Mawana Sugars
36. BHEL
37. BEL
38. SANMAR
39. P I Industries Limited-Gurgaon
40. India Foils Limited-Kolkata
41. Goetze India Limited-Faridabad
42. Bhushan Steels and strips Limited
43. Jaishree Textiles Limited
44. Epcos ferrites Limited
45. Borocil
46. Phillips Carbon Black Limited
47. Sundaram Clayton, Chennai
48. Numeric Systems ,Chennai,
49. Calcom Cements, Kolkata
50. Automax, Gurgaon
51. Maestro Engineering Pvt Ltd, India
52. Strelite Industires
53. TVS Electronics, Chennai
54. TVS Motors, Hosur
55. Adani WIlmar, Ahmedabad
56. Hindustan Motors, Chennai
57. Siemens Automotive, Bangalore
58. Shahi exports, Bangalore
59. Pricol Industries, Coimbatore
60. Pricot, Coimbatore
61. Conzerv Systems, Bangalore
62. AXA, Bangalore
63. Ananda Bazar Patrika Ltd- Kolkata (Most lead Newspaper group in Bengal)
64. Upper India Steel Industries- Punjab
65. Prism Cements Ltd- Uttar Pradesh
66. JCB India
67. BAJAJ TEMPO LTD (FORCE MOTORS LTD) -Pune
68. JAYAHIND INDUSTRIES LTD - PUNE
69. BAJAJ AUTO LTD - PUNE
70. Roots Industries Ltd, Coimbatore
71. Stalline Garments, Tirupur
72. GAIL & NTPC are also implementing SAP.
73. BCCL (THE TIMES OF INDIA)
74. BEML
75. Eureka Forbes
76. Ibm India
77. Nike
78. Nestle

ABAP Data Dictionary

The ABAP dictionary is the central workbench repository utility which provides the data definitions and the information relationships that are used in all the business applications within R/3.

A data dictionary in computing terms is the source of information in which the system data is defined in a logical way. The data dictionary is the centralized and structured source of information for business applications.

Workbench Debugging Tools

The ABAP debugger is the workbench tool which allows you to stop a program during its execution when a particular condition is met. When the program is stopped, you can use the debugger to display the contents of the tables and variables, used by the program.
It also allows you to execute the program step−by−step, reviewing exactly the real flow of the program execution.
When developing, you can use Breakpoints and Watchpoints, which are elements that establish when to stop a particular program.

Function Builder in ABAP

The function builder is the ABAP workbench tool which allows you to
maintain, control, and perform centralized tests of the function modules.

DYNPRO Concept in ABAP

DYNPRO stands for dynamic program.
A DYNPRO refers to a screen together with its flow logic. Actually, DYNPROs should be considered synonymous with screens as created by the screen painter.
The screen painter uses a procedural programming language different than the ABAP language. This language is interpreted by the screen processor rather than by the ABAP processor.

Screen Painter in ABAP:

The screen painter is one of the ABAP workbench tools that, together with the menu painter, allows you to define and design R/3 screens and to program the behavior of the screens associated with the dialog steps of the R/3 transactions. In other words, these tools allow you to define the flow logic for R/3 screens and programs.

Menu Painter in ABAP:

The menu painter is the ABAP workbench tool for creating and maintaining user interfaces. User interfaces are independent of the screens generated by the screen painter, which means that a program can have several different user interfaces.

ABAP Editor:

The ABAP editor is the SAP workbench tool for editing the source code of different development objects such as:

1. ABAP program source code: reports, include modules, module pools, etc.
2. The editor is also used to maintain other components of an ABAP program such as variants, program attributes, documentation, and text elements.
3. Code for the flow logic for the screen painter.
4. Logical databases.
5. Function modules.

ABAP:

ABAP stands for Advanced Business Application Programming
ABAP is the language in which all the R/3 business modules are written and developed and which customers can use to extend SAP R/3's possibilities.

Before release 4.0 of R/3, the language was known as ABAP/4 (the 4 meant it was a fourth−generation language). With release 4.0B the name was changed to simply ABAP because, although the language maintains most of the best fourth−generation language features and previous syntax and keywords, many object−oriented features have been incorporated in a move to make it a fully capable object−oriented language.

ABAP is the programming language that SAP has used to develop all the R/3 business modules and applications, including the system management functions.

It is available to customers and developers to extend SAP functionality for their particular needs.

ABAP programs are created and maintained using the workbench tools.

Need of SAP NetWeaver Portal:

1. Increased Productivity: From a business standpoint, the SAP NetWeaver Portal is able to provide tremendous business value
by providing the right information in the right format to the right user at the right time. With role-based content and by using iView techniques, the SAP NetWeaver Portal makes sure that the end user sees only the information that he or she is supposed to see and also ensures that the information is in the appropriate format.
e.g., Customer representatives can quickly address customer complaints because all the information is located in one place.

2. Business Packages-A Jumpstart to Implementation: The business package for users consists of iViews(readymade content) that provide internal and external news, travel information, information on people, and other self services. The business package for managers consists of worksets that deal with people management and budget management.

This is mainly important for team leads, project leads, and department
heads.

Using the people management functionality, team leads can assess the performance of their teams. E.g., of people management worksets are team overview, compensation planning, recruiting.

Using the budget management functionality, managers can make sure that the costs are managed properly. E.g., for budget management
are cost center monitors, budget alerts, and queries for training and travel budgets.

3. Portal Technology-Open Industry Standards: The technological platform on which the portal is built is based on open industry web service standards such as eXtensible Markup Language (XML), Universal Description Discovery and Integration protocol (UDDI), Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP), Web Services Description Language (WSDL), Java Connector Architecture, and Java Authentication and Authorization Service (JAAS).

It is a platform-independent solution that can work on most of the database/operating system combinations.

4. Integration with Applications: The reason for the implementation of SAP NetWeaver Portal by companies is its effectivety in integrating existing legacy and other backend systems.

5. SAP’s NetWeaver Technology Stack: SAP NetWeaver is the building block for almost all SAP applications and consists of
four layers:
• People integration layer
• Information integration layer
• Process integration layer
• Application platform

Aim of people integration layer is to bring together all the information and the functions that an employee needs to perform his or her work efficiently.

The information integration layer is about providing access to both structured and unstructured information in the company.

In the process integration layer, the SAP Exchange Infrastructure (XI) enables business processes to run across system boundaries in heterogeneous landscapes.

The application platform has both Advanced Business Application Programming (ABAP) and Java runtimes and is an extension of the BASIS (SAP System Administration) layer with greater focus on web-enabling applications and services.

6. SAP’s NetWeaver Product Strategy: The SAP NetWeaver Portal brings together all the different applications such as SAP applications, customer relationship management (CRM), supply chain management (SCM), product lifecycle management (PLM), and so on.

7. Single Point of Access: In today’s world, businesses requires an increasing need to provide a single point of access to various business partners such as customers, suppliers, partners, and employees. It acts as an interface not only to your own company’s applications, but also to your business partners’ applications and third-party Internet services.

8. Business Information Warehouse: The Business Information Warehouse (BW) in the portal, brings together structured, but extracted and/or processed, information.

Different flavors of Portals:

Portals come in different flavors, such as
…..Horizontal and
…..Vertical portals
Portals can be classified into different categories based on the functionalities they provide and the user populations they serve.

SAP NetWeaver Portal


SAP NetWeaver Portal:


SAP NetWeaver Portal is a technology whose aim is to solve the
complex issues and tries to bring together the different SAP Business Suite solutions.

Initially, it was born, when there was a need to provide a common user interface for various SAP products and to simplify access to end users using single sign-on.

Need of a Portal

Need of a Portal:

1. A portal provides a means by which we can improve the business efficiency of a process.
e.g., By implementing a portal, a company can provide the right information in the right format to the right person at the right time. Based on this information, the person can make a decision that is correct and quick.
2. The portal provides the required information at one place.
3. Portal increases the productivity of an employee and it also reduces the turnaround time of a given business process.
4. By implementing a portal, a customer service representative can quickly attend to customer complaints, or a sales representative can place an order at a customer site and answer customer inquiries.

Enterprise Portal

Enterprise Portal:

Some people argue that portal is just a website, while others argue that it is more than a website. An enterprise portal can be viewed as a means by which an organization tries to web-enable its applications, services, and information to its internal employees as well as its external partners.

With this, enterprise portal software become able to solve some of the complex challenges that arise out of web-enabling systems.
e.g., Using KM(Knowledge Management) functionality to integrate unstructured content such as file systems, database systems, and websites.

Now as you can see, a portal is a website, no doubt, but it is much more than just that. It is the complexity that surrounds the portal that makes it so much more interesting and worth studying.

SAP Business Suite


SAP Business Suite:


SAP Business Suite includes following five enterprise applications:

1. Customer relationship management(CRM).
2. Enterprise Resource Planning(ERP).
3. Product lifecycle management(PLM).
4. Supply chain management(SCM).
5. Supplier relationship management(SRM).

Releases by SAP

Releases by SAP:

1. SAP R/3 Release 3.0.
2. SAP R/3 Release 3.1.
3. SAP R/3 Release 4.0.
4. SAP R/3 Release 4.5.
5. SAP R/3 Release 4.6.

R/3 Client/Server Solution:

R/3 Client/Server Solution:


SAP R/3 technology is the logical evolution of the SAP R/2 system.

SAP consultants divide themselves into functional or technical categories.

Functional SAP consultants are experienced people in some business areas who have learned how to customize those modules to meet their customers' needs.

On the other hand, technical consultants get acquainted mainly with the basis system of R/3−installation, operating system management, network and database administration, and so on. Administrators fall into this category.

R/2 Mainframe Solution

R/2 Mainframe Solution:

R/2 is SAP AG mainframe software that runs on IBM, Siemens, Amdahl, and compatible equipment.

Although with the help of Application Link Enabled (ALE) technology, R/2 can be linked to R/3 systems and share online data.

About SAP

About SAP:

SAP, stands for Systems, Applications and Products in Data Processing.

After the introduction of SAP R/3 in 1992, SAP AG has become the world's leading vendor of standard application software. The reasons for SAP's success is that it is a standard package, it can be configured in
multiple areas and can be easily adapted to the specific needs of a company.

The R in R/3 is meant for real time. When new input is made into the system, the logical application links will concurrently update related modules so that the business can react to immediate information and changes.

History of SAP AG

History of SAP AG:

SAP AG was founded in 1972 by four former IBM employees. The company headquarters are based in Walldorf.

Since its foundation, SAP has made significant development and marketing efforts on standard application software. Due to of which SAP today is a global market player with its R/2 system for mainframe applications and its R/3 system for open client/server technologies.

Supported Operating System for SAP

Supported Operating System for SAP:

SAP can be installed on the following platforms (Operating systems):

1. MS Windows NT.
2. OS/400.
3. Unix.
4. Solaris.
5. AIX.
6. HP UX.
7. Sinux.

Supported Database for SAP ERP

Supported Database for SAP ERP:

SAP is a back-end-free ERP system. That means the following Database can be used in SAP software. The functionality/programming technique is same for all database system.

1. Oracle.
2. MS SQL.
3. Informix.
4. Sybase.
5. Adabas D
6. DB2 for AIX
7. DB2/400.

Complete SAP Modules:



Complete SAP Modules:


Here is the list of complete modules:


I. SAP Basis:

II. ABAP/4 Programming

III. SAP FI (Financial Accounting)

IV. SAP CO (Controlling)

V. SAP EC (Enterprise Controlling)

VI. SAP TR (Treasury)

VII. SAP IM (Investment Management)

VIII. SAP HR (Human Resource)

IX. SAP SD (Sales and Distribution)

X. SAP Logistics Information System

XI. SAP MM (Materials Management)

XII. SAP PM (Plant Maintenance)

XIII. SAP PP (Production Planning)

XIV. SAP QM - Quality Management

XV. SAP BW (Business Warehousing)

XVI. SAP CS (Customer Service)

XVII. SAP SMB

XVIII. SAP CA (Cross Application Components)

XIX. SAP PS (Project Systems)

XX. mySAP SRM (Supplier Relationship Management)

XXI. mySAP SEM

XXII. mySAP CRM (Customer Relationship Management)

XXIII. mySAP Product Life Cycle Management

XXIV. SAP SCM (SAP Supply Chain Management)

XXV. SAP Netweaver

XXVI. SAP IS (Industry Solutions)/SAP for Industries


-------------------------------------X-------------------------------------------

I. SAP Basis:

1. Security (BC - SEC)

2. Application Link Enabling (ALE)

3. Remote Function Calls (RFC)

4. Object Linking and Embedding (OLE)

5. Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)

6. Client Server Technology (BC - CST)

7. Common Program Interface Communications (CPI-C)

8. ABAP Programming and Runtime Environment (BC - ABA)

9. Customizing (BC-CUS)

10. Network Integration (BC - NET)

11. Basis Services/ Communication Interfaces (BC - SRV)

12. Computing Center Management System (BC - CCM)

13. Upgrade General (BC - UPG)

14. Change and Transport System (BC - CTS)

15. Operating System Platform(BC - OP)

16. Database Interface, database platforms (BC - DB)

17. Front End Services (BC - FES)

18. ABAP Workbench (BC - DWB)

19. Documentation and Translation Tools (BC - DOC)

20. Controls and Control Framework (BC - CI)

21. Business Management (BC - BMT)

22. Middleware (BC - MID)

23. Computer Aided Test Tool (BC - CAT)

24. Ready to Run R/3 (BC - BRR)

25. Authorisations System Monitoring with CCMS

26. Workload Alert Monitor

II ABAP/4 Programming

1. ABAP Workbench

2. Menu Painter

3. Screen Painter

4. Data Dictionary

5. SAP Script

6. Business Workflow (BC - WF)

7. ALE

8. EDI

9. Business Connector

10. Business Server Pages

11. Internet Application Server

12. Mercator Report Painter

13. ALV reporting

14. Report writer

15. Dialog Programming

16. Repository Information System

17. ABAP 00

18. IDOCS

19. LSMW

20. Smartforms

21. EBP

22. ASAP methodology

23. ABAP Query

III. SAP FI (Financial Accounting)


1. General Ledger Accounting (FI - GL)

2. Special Ledger (FI - SL)

3. Extended Ledger

4. Accounts Payable (FI- AP)

5. Accounts Receivable (FI - AR)

6. Asset Accounting (FI - AA)

7. Bank Accounting

8. Funds Management (FI - FM)

9. Travel Management (FI-TM)

10. Consolidation

IV. SAP CO (Controlling)

  1. Cost Centre Accounting (CO - CCA)
  2. Overhead Cost Controlling (CO - OM)
  3. Activity Based Coding (CO - ABC)
  4. Product Cost Controlling (CO - PC)
  5. Profitability Analysis (CO - PA)
  6. Material Ledger (CO - ML)

V. SAP EC (Enterprise Controlling)

  1. Consolidation (EC - CS)
  2. Executive Information System (EC-EIS)
  3. Profit Center Accounting (EC - PCA)
  4. Business Planning and Budgeting

VI. SAP TR (Treasury)

  1. Cash Management (TR - CM)
  2. Loans Management (TR - LM)
  3. Market Risk Management (TR - MRM)
  4. Treasury Management (TR - TM)
  5. Funds Management (TR - FM)
  6. Information System

VII. SAP IM (Investment Management)

  1. Investment Programmes
  2. Investment Measures (orders/products)
  3. Corporation Wide Budgeting
  4. Appropriation Requests
  5. Automatic Settlement of Fixed Assets
  6. Depreciation Forecast
  7. Information System

VIII. SAP HR (Human Resource)

1. Recruitment

2. Personnel Administration

3. Benefits Administration

4. Compensation Management

5. Personnel Development

6. Organizational Management

7. Travel Management

8. Training and Events Management

9. Personnel Planning

10. Time Management

11. Incentive

12. Wages

13. Workflow

14. Payroll

15. Internet Scenarios

16. Information System

IX. SAP SD (Sales and Distribution)

  1. Master Data
  2. Sales
  3. Sales Support
  4. Sales Information System
  5. Billing
  6. Special Business Transactions
  7. Shipping
  8. Transportation
  9. Credit Control
  10. QM in SD
  11. Internet
  12. Foreign Trade
  13. Electronic Data Interchange

X. SAP Logistics Information System

  1. Purchasing Information System
  2. Sales Information System
  3. Inventory Controlling
  4. Retail Information System
  5. Production Planning and Control Information System
  6. Plant Maintenance Information System
  7. Project Information System

XI. SAP MM (Materials Management)

  1. Purchasing
  2. Invoice Verification
  3. Logistics (General)
  4. Logistics Information System
  5. Inventory Management
  6. Inventory / Valuations
  7. Materials Planning
  8. Workflow
  9. External Services Management
  10. QM in MM
  11. Warehouse Management

XII. SAP PM (Plant Maintenance)

  1. Preventative Maintenance
  2. Maintenance Order Management
  3. Maintenance Projects
  4. Service Management
  5. Maintenance Planning
  6. Equipment and Technical Objects
  7. Structuring Technical Systems
  8. PM Processing
  9. Work Clearance Management
  10. Internet Scenarios
  11. Customising
  12. Information System

XIII. SAP PP (Production Planning)

  1. Make to Order (CR)
  2. Make to Order (PIR)
  3. Repetitive Manufacturing
  4. PP for Process Industries (PP - PI)
  5. PP - Processes
  6. Sales and Operations Planning
  7. Capacity requirements
  8. Master Planning
  9. KANBAN
  10. Production Orders
  11. Product Cost Planning
  12. Plant Data Collection
  13. Assembly Orders
  14. Information System

XIV. SAP QM - Quality Management

  1. Planning
  2. Inspections
  3. Notifications
  4. Control
  5. Certificates
  6. Test Equipment Management
  7. QM-IS

XV. SAP BW (Business Warehousing)

  1. Data Warehousing
  2. BI Suite - Business Explorer
  3. BI Platform
  4. ODS Structures
  5. Development Technologies
  6. Info Cube
  7. Design Build

XVI. SAP CS (Customer Service)

  1. Service Processing
  2. Controlling
  3. Service Contracts
  4. Workflow in Customer Service

XVII. SAP SMB

  1. SAP SMB

XVIII. SAP CA (Cross Application Components)

  1. SAP Business Workflow
  2. Application Link Enabling (ALE)

XIX. SAP PS (Project Systems)

  1. Basic Data
  2. Operational Structures
  3. Project Planning
  4. Approval
  5. Information System
  6. Project Execution and Integration
  7. Work Breakdown Structure

XX. mySAP SRM (Supplier Relationship Management)

  1. Self Service Procurement
  2. Service Procurement
  3. Plan Driven Procurement
  4. Spend Analysis
  5. Strategic Sourcing
  6. Catalogue Content Management

XXI. mySAP SEM

  1. Business Consolidation (SEM-BCS)
  2. Business Information Collection (SEM-BIC)
  3. Business Planning and Simulation (BW-BPS)
  4. Corporate Performance Monitor (SEM-CPM)
  5. Stakeholder Relationship Management (SEM-SRM)

XXII. mySAP CRM (Customer Relationship Management)

  1. CRM Enterprise
  2. Field Applications
  3. Interaction Center
  4. E-Commerce
  5. Channel Management
  6. Industry Specific CRM

XXIII. mySAP Product Life Cycle Management

  1. Document Management
  2. Engineering Change Management
  3. Enterprise Content Management
  4. Classification
  5. Basic Data for Process Manufacturing

XXIV. SAP SCM (SAP Supply Chain Management)

  1. SCM Process and Business Scenarios
  2. SAP Forecasting and Replenishment
  3. SAP Advance Planning and Optimization (SAP - APO)
  4. SAP Inventory Collaboration Hub (SAP - OCH)
  5. SAP Event Management (SAP - EM)
  6. SCM Basis

XXV. SAP Netweaver

  1. SAP Masterdata Management
  2. Information Integration
  3. Portal Content
  4. Process Integration
  5. Knowledge Management
  6. Life Cycle Management
  7. SAP Business Intelligence
  8. SAP Visual Composer
  9. People Integration
  10. Application Platform
  11. SAP Web Application Server
  12. SAP Business Information Warehouse
  13. SAP Solution Manager
  14. SAP Enterprise Portal
  15. SAP Mobile Engine
  16. Security

XXVI. SAP IS (Industry Solutions)/SAP for Industries

SAP has the following industries specific solutions:

  1. Aerospace & Defence
  2. Consumer Products
  3. Defence & Security
  4. Retail
  5. Insurance
  6. Mill Products
  7. Higher Education & Research
  8. Industrial Machinery & Components
  9. Logistics Service Providers
  10. Automotive
  11. Chemicals
  12. Pharmaceuticals
  13. Banking
  14. Telecoms
  15. Life Sciences
  16. Mining
  17. Public Sector
  18. Service Provider
  19. Media
  20. Healthcare
  21. Oil & Gas
  22. Utilities
  23. Postal Services

Besides the above functionalities, SAP also adding new features, new modules, new environment and new industry specific solutions to its ERP product continuously.