Quartz 4

Material

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Material

What is this?

A Material in SAP S/4HANA represents any physical or non-physical item that a company:

  • Purchases
  • Stores
  • Produces
  • Sells

It is the central master record for all product-related data.

Why it exists?

Every transaction in logistics depends on knowing:

  • What the item is
  • How it behaves
  • How it is valued

SAP stores this in one unified object instead of scattered tables.

The material master acts as a central repository of all material information used across the enterprise. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}

Structure

Material data is organized into views, not one flat structure.

Each view corresponds to a business function.

1. Basic Data (Core Identity)

  • Description
  • Unit of measure
  • Material type

This is shared across the system.

2. Purchasing View

  • Procurement type
  • Order unit
  • Vendor-related data

Used in procurement (P2P)

3. Inventory / Plant Data

  • Storage location
  • Stock data
  • MRP settings

Defined at plant level

4. Accounting View

  • Valuation class
  • Price
  • Costing data

Drives financial impact

5. Sales View (if applicable)

  • Sales org data
  • Pricing
  • Delivery settings

Key Concept: Views

Different departments maintain different parts of the same material.

SAP separates data into views so:

  • Procurement sees purchasing data
  • Finance sees accounting data
  • Planning sees MRP data

This avoids duplication and ensures consistency across functions. :contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1}

In Oracle

Typical structure:

  • Item master tables
  • Separate inventory, procurement, and costing data

Problems:

  • Data duplication
  • Weak integration
  • Inconsistent definitions

In S/4HANA

  • One Material Master
  • Multiple views (by function + org level)
  • Fully integrated across:
    • Procurement
    • Inventory
    • Production
    • Sales
    • Finance

Material data is reused across all logistics processes. :contentReference[oaicite:2]{index=2}

Organizational Levels

Material data is maintained at different levels:

Client Level

  • General material data (global)

Plant Level

  • MRP, procurement, inventory

Storage Location Level

  • Stock quantities

Example:

  • Same material
  • Different plants → different planning data

Mapping Logic

→ Material_Mapping

Core idea:

  • Oracle Item → SAP Material
  • But: → Must enrich with missing context (plant, valuation, MRP)

Process Impact

→ P2P_Procure_to_Pay

Material is used in:

  • Purchase Orders
  • Goods Receipt
  • Inventory management
  • Invoice verification

If Material is wrong: → Quantity errors
→ Valuation errors
→ Inventory chaos

Validation

→ Material_Validation

Critical checks:

  • Unit of measure consistency
  • Material type correctness
  • Plant extension completeness
  • Valuation data accuracy

Common Issues

→ Material_Issues

Typical failures:

  1. Missing plant extension
  2. Incorrect unit conversions
  3. Wrong material type
  4. Incomplete accounting data
  5. Duplicate materials

Key Takeaway

Material is NOT:

→ Just an item record

It is:

→ The definition of how a product behaves across the entire system

If this is wrong:

  • Procurement fails
  • Inventory breaks
  • Finance becomes unreliable

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