The Warehouse Management (WM) application provides flexible, automated support to assist in processing all goods movements and in maintaining current stock inventories in warehousing complex.

The SAP Warehouse Management module allows:

• Definition and mapping of the physical warehousing structure in the system
• Processing goods movements like – receipts, issues, and stock transfers
• Maintain up to date stock inventories in the Warehousing complex at storage bin level

The Warehouse management is integrated with Material Management (MM), Sales & Distribution (SD), Quality Management (QM) modules. The base document for the material movement will be generated either in the MM or SD or QM modules. For all the Goods receipt (GR) from the vendors and other plants, the base document will be generated in MM module. For Goods Issue (GI) for either to production or to other plants, the base document will be generated in MM module.

As quality management is active in the organization, all the materials will pass through the quality inspection process during the GR and GI and post change document (change in the stock type of the material stock i.e. either from quality inspection stock to unrestricted etc) will be generated in quality management for the placement or removal of material in warehouse.

During the GR quality inspection process and online inspection process during production, the base document to return the material to the vendor will be generated in QM module. For the delivery of goods against sales order, the delivery document will be generated in SD module for the removal of the material from the warehouse. For handling the customer return materials, the base document will be generated either in SD module. The inventory will be managed both in storage location level in Inventory management (IM) level in MM module and at bin level in Warehouse Management. WM module also has RFID & Barcode reading functionality. These can be explored & implemented in future as a separate project.

 

SAP Warehouse Management Module Process Flow is as follows:

• Define and manage complex warehousing structures
• Optimize material flow using advanced putaway and picking techniques
• Process goods receipts, goods issues, and stock transfers quickly and easily

The Warehouse Management application is fully integrated into the SAP R/3 system. Transactions that are initiated in other SAP components result in corresponding tasks in WM which activate the actual physical transfers within the warehouse.

A few of these activities include:

• Material movements and changes in material status, such as releasing goods from inspection
• Material staging to production supply areas
• Picking and shipping goods for sales orders

Warehouse management (WM) helps to identify the stock status of a material at bin level. It is a tool to assist in processing all goods movements and maintaining inventories. Warehouse management (WM) process are initiated by inventory management. Apart from that, it is integrated with SD, QM & PP to function as one ERP system.

Download the document on Warehouse Overview which covers some of the core warehouse concepts, terminologies, movement types and some of the strategies to manage warehouse efficiently.

Warehouse Management Project Approach

This document on Warehouse Management Functions provides a How to approach for the project implementation of warehouse management. Contains requirement gathering on warehouse management, enterprise structure, putaway strategies, picking strategies, business process on GR, transfer and GI and the next one on Warehouse Management Stock deals with procedures in managing Continuous Inventory, Physical inventory, Configuration element and unit testing on Warehouse management.