How the information related to Material

Master is organized
updated Dec 21, 2007 7:01 pm | 2,256 views

How the information related to Material Master is organized

The material master record is a company's main source of material-specific data. It is used by all
components in the R/3 Logistics System. The integration of all material data in a single database
object prevents the problem of data redundancy. Every area, such as Purchasing, Inventory
Management, Materials Planning, and Invoice Verification can use the data stored. Descriptions
of the individual materials used in an enterprise are stored in material master records. The data
contained in the material master record is required for many functions within the R/3 Logistics
System, for example:

 Purchasing data for ordering

 Inventory management data for posting goods movements and managing physical
inventory
 Accounting data for material valuation
 MRP data for Material Requirements Planning

Since materials are processed by various user departments within a company and each
department stores different information for the materials, the material master is subdivided into
information grouped by user departments. Each user department has a different view of the
material master record and is responsible for maintaining the data to support its function.

The data maintained within a view may be valid for more than one organizational level. Some
material data is valid for all organizational levels, while some is only valid for certain levels. The
material master is designed to reflect the structure of your enterprise so that you can manage the
material data in your enterprise centrally, without overloading your datasets with redundant
information.

Material data is always organized in the same hierarchical fashion. From the Purchasing
viewpoint, a material master record contains the following organizational levels: client,
purchasing organization, plant, and storage location.

1. Client - general data - This level contains the data applicable to all individual group
companies, all plants, and all warehouses/stores belonging to an enterprise (corporate group).
Examples of general data are details on a material's design (CAD drawings, for instance) and
storage conditions (temperature range, whether the material is explosive or perishable, and so
on).

2. Plant - This level contains the data for each branch or plant location within a certain company.
The data important to Purchasing is stored at this level. Examples of this data are the maximum
and minimum order quantities of a material and the reorder point. You access the plant data by
entering the plant key.

3. Storage location - This level contains the data specific to a storage location. Stock levels are
an example of the data maintained for each storage location. You access the storage location data
by entering the plant and storage location keys.

This data structure facilitates the organization of material-related information within the entire
enterprise. It prevents redundant storage of material data when the same material is used in more
than one plant or stored at more than one storage location. Suppose the same metal casting is
stored at two different locations. The design and purchasing data for this material would be