Topic Covered -

Session Name: PPDS vs MRPs: Planning Advantages

1. Advantages of PPDS Over Traditional MRP
2. SAP PPDS Heuristics and Transaction Codes
3. MRP Run Process and Location Management
4. Manual Deal Creation and Procurement Key Usage
5. Queue Management and Shift Settings in Live Cache
6. Purchase Requisition and Procurement Logic in PPDS
7. SAP Early Watch Alert System and PPDS Applications
8. Production System Capacity and Cost-Based Planning

PPDs vs MRPs: Planning Advantages

Nikhil led a session on the use of PPDs in planning, discussing its advantages over traditional MRPs. He explained that PPDs are used when material is critical or when bottleneck resources are involved. He also highlighted that PPDs support specific functions like capacity planning, self planning, and characteristic dependent planning, which MRPs do not. Nikhil further explained that PPDs can be used for optimization, multi-step planning, and post-production planning. He also clarified that PPDs can be run simultaneously with MRPs, and the choice between the two depends on the planner. Nikhil also mentioned that PPDs support product interchangeability and alert-based monitoring, which MRPs do not. He concluded by explaining that the basic task of any planning tool is to consider receipt limits and requirement elements, perform net requirement calculations, and create receipt elements based on quantity restrictions.

SAP PPDS Heuristics and T-Codes

Nikhil explains the use of T-codes and heuristics in SAP's Production Planning and Detailed Scheduling (PPDS) system. He discusses the standard lot size heuristic, which determines how materials are planned, and the low-level code algorithm, which establishes the position of materials in the supply chain hierarchy. Nikhil recommends creating copies of standard heuristics for customization. He demonstrates how to run heuristics using the CDPSB0 T-code, which allows for multiple planning steps. Nikhil also covers other heuristics like demand propagation, service heuristics, and bottom-up/top-down planning. He explains that when running PPDS from RRP3, it uses the heuristic defined in the material master, while CDPSB0 allows for custom heuristic selection for multiple products and locations.

MRP Run Process and Location Consideration

In the meeting, Nikhil discussed the process of generating a forecast plan order and the creation of a dependent demand. He highlighted that the system was excluding the Sfg code, which was causing issues. Ravi suggested that the system should automatically consider all applicable parts in the location. Nikhil also demonstrated how to exclude specific locations during the MRP run. They discussed the possibility of extending a material to different locations and the need to create a part in the Gc one. Shilpi suggested using the Sdc one plant for this purpose. The team also discussed the need for different views for the MRP run, including basic views and advanced planning.

Manual Deal Creation Process Discussed

Nikhil and Ravi discussed the process of creating a manual deal for a specific procurement key. They discussed the need for a special procurement key and the possibility of creating the data automatically based on purchase information records. They also discussed the concept of cross-plant items and the interlinking of plants. Nikhil created a deal between 1710 and SGC 1, and they discussed the company code for these locations. Ravi suggested checking the company code in the AC 16 t 0 0 1 k table.

Resolving Shift Setting and Stuck Queues

Nikhil explained a process to resolve a shift setting problem. He detailed how to manually push transactions from S. 400 to live cache through Smq, and how to handle stuck queues in the system. He also discussed the creation of Tl, 3 and the execution of the Ppds heuristic run for material. Nikhil emphasized the importance of clearing stuck queues and running the Ccr and S. In. Q. 2 processes. He also mentioned that he is working on resolving an issue that is causing automatic processes to fail.

Purchase Requisition Creation Process Explained

Nikhil explained the process of creating a purchase requisition and the linkage based on delay data. He mentioned that the system creates a stock transfer order or purchase requisition if the company codes are different. Nikhil also discussed the data taken into consideration, which is the transportation data from the PPDS master data. He explained the deciding factors for procurement, which are the procurement cost and the priority. Nikhil also mentioned that these factors are usually manually updated and can be uploaded from an Excel sheet. He further discussed the creation of a purchase info record and the external procurement relationship. Ravi asked about the need to manually update the cost and priority, to which Nikhil clarified that it is specific master data related to PPDS and not related to financial cost.

SAP's Early Watch Alert System

Nikhil explains that SAP's Early Watch Alert system can be subscribed to for proactive system monitoring and issue prevention. He then recaps the session, covering the benefits and features of PPDS (Production Planning and Detailed Scheduling), including its support for characteristic-dependent planning. Nikhil provides an example of how PPDS is used in a steel company to manage specific order characteristics throughout the production process. He also mentions that PPDS supports both discrete and process industries, and that there is currently a high demand for PPDS consultants in the market.

Production System Capacity and Pricing

In the meeting, Ravi and Nikhil discussed the capacity and pricing of production systems. They clarified that the system can only handle one production version at a time and that the production version with the lowest cost will be prioritized. They also discussed the possibility of mapping vendor capacity as a dummy plant for resource networking. Ravi raised a scenario where imported suppliers often have higher batch quantities than domestic suppliers, which can cause inventory management issues. Nikhil suggested that this issue could be addressed through the standard lot size heuristic. They agreed to further discuss these topics in the next meeting.