Lesson 2 of 6
Arrival, unloading and goods receipt posting
10 min
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A goods receipt in EWM is two things at once. Physically, pallets come off a truck into a staging area. In the books, inventory management records a material document and finance a journal entry for the stock. Testers need to know which EWM step triggers the posting and where the stock sits afterwards, because "goods receipt done" means different things to the dock clerk, the buyer and Dan, the finance process owner.
- 07:40Truck at door DR02Inbound delivery 180000412 found by PO number or delivery number at the dock
- 07:55UnloadingTen pallets of 120 kits moved to staging bin in 9010; handling units scanned
- 08:00Goods receipt postedMaterial document for 1,200 pc into storage location 171R; journal entry: inventory at standard, GR/IR at PO price, price difference
- 08:05Putaway tasksTasks created to bulk floor 0030
- 09:30Putaway confirmedLast task confirmed; EWM posts 171R → 171A; stock available for sale
Explicit or implicit goods receipt
SAP distinguishes two patterns. In an explicit posting, someone posts goods receipt first: in inbound delivery processing (/SCWM/PRDI, Maintain Inbound Delivery, with Goods Receipt and Save), in the physical goods receipt function at the door, from the warehouse management monitor, or for a whole transportation unit in yard processing. Explicit posting does not automatically create putaway tasks; they are created afterwards so strategies can be controlled. In an implicit posting, confirming the first warehouse task posts goods receipt, for example confirming the unloading task in a multi-step flow.
| Explicit (receipt first) | Implicit (task first) | |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | User posts goods receipt on the delivery or at the door | Confirmation of the first warehouse task, such as unloading |
| Putaway tasks | Created afterwards, manually or by follow-up action | Already exist when receipt posts |
| When stock appears in the books | Immediately after posting | When the first task is confirmed |
| Good for | Receipts checked at the dock before any movement | Fast flows where scanning the first move is the check |
Timing between EWM and inventory management
With storage locations for received-on-dock and available-for-sale, one receipt creates more than one material document: the receipt into 171R, then a posting change into 171A when putaway completes. If every task were confirmed one by one on a mobile device, many small material documents would follow. The inbound delivery's process profile carries a goods receipt mode that can hold the message to inventory management until goods receipt or putaway is complete. That reduces documents but creates a temporary difference between EWM and inventory management stock. Know which mode your project chose, because it changes what a tester sees in the stock overview halfway through a receipt.
What the receipt posts
| Result | Where to see it | Contoso example |
|---|---|---|
| Material document, movement type 101 | Material documents overview or PO history | 1,200 pc CMC-RGL-050 into plant 1710, storage location 171R |
| Journal entry | From the material document to the accounting document | Inventory debit $21,600 (1,200 × $18 standard price); GR/IR clearing credit $22,800 (1,200 × $19 PO price); price difference debit $1,200 |
| PO history | Purchase order item | Received quantity 1,200 of 1,200 |
| EWM stock | Warehouse monitor, stock and bin | Ten handling units in the staging bin of 9010 |
| Delivery status | Inbound delivery in EWM | Goods receipt complete; putaway not yet started |
| Posting change after putaway | Material documents overview | 1,200 pc from 171R to 171A |
Results of one receipt in embedded EWM.
Note the second material document. Many test cases stop at the first and declare success, while the business only cares about the second: regulator kits cannot be confirmed to aftermarket orders, and alternators cannot be confirmed to sales, until stock reaches 171A. Dan cares about neither: the value was booked at receipt, and the posting change between storage locations of the same plant does not change the inventory value.
What would you do?
Priya's team posts goods receipt for inbound delivery 180000412 and checks the stock overview: 1,200 kits in 171R. The test case expects 1,200 in 171A, and the tester wants to log a defect. What should Priya advise?
- Explicit receipt posts first and creates tasks afterwards; implicit receipt posts when the first task is confirmed.
- A receipt posts into the ROD storage location (171R); a posting change to AFS (171A) follows putaway.
- The goods receipt mode in the process profile can delay the message to inventory management; test the intermediate state.
- Evidence: material documents, journal entry, PO history, EWM stock and delivery status.
Check your understanding · not graded
Lesson check
1. In an implicit goods receipt, what triggers the posting?
2. After receipt and full putaway at Contoso, how many stock-related material documents exist?
3. Why can EWM and inventory management show different stock halfway through a receipt?
4. Does explicit goods receipt create putaway tasks automatically?