Lesson 3 of 6
Classification and batch determination
10 min
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Batches become useful when the system knows their properties and can choose the right one. Batch classification stores properties as characteristic values. Batch determination uses those values, plus dates and stock, to propose or select batches automatically in goods issues, production orders and deliveries. Both are standard SAP tools: classification is the same system used for variant configuration and other objects, and determination uses the same condition technique as pricing.
Batch classification
- CharacteristicsCreate characteristics such as BEARING_TYPE and VISCOSITY (CT04); standard characteristics such as LOBM_VFDAT (expiry date) and LOBM_HSDAT (production date) read batch fields
- Batch classGroup them in a class of class type 023 (CL01/CL02), for example CMC_RTR_BATCH
- MaterialAssign the class to the material's classification view; the material can hold target ranges
- BatchEach batch inherits the class and gets its actual values, entered at receipt or set by quality inspection
For Contoso's rotors, the batch class holds the bearing type and the result of Lakeside's test certificate. For the varnish CMC-RES-020, it holds viscosity and the expiry date. The class is the vocabulary that batch determination, quality decisions and recall searches all use, so agree it with quality before the first batch is created; adding a characteristic later leaves older batches without values.
How batch determination works
| Application | Where it runs | Strategy record (SAP GUI) | Contoso use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory Management | Goods issues and transfer postings | MBC1 | Issue of varnish to WIND-10 with valid expiry |
| Production | Production and process order components | COB1 | Rotor batches for orders at ASSY-10, oldest receipt first |
| Sales and Distribution | Sales orders and outbound deliveries | VCH1 | Customer-specific requirements, if any |
| Warehouse Management | Warehouse processes | Warehouse-specific settings | Embedded EWM for 171A has its own batch selection; check the EWM settings |
Batch determination by application. Strategy types are configured per application (for example V/C1 for sales, OPLE for production orders).
A strategy record holds three kinds of rules: selection (which batches qualify, through a selection class and characteristic values), sort (in which order to propose them, defined as a sort rule, maintained in CU70), and quantity rules (how many batches may be split and whether over-delivery is allowed). The record is found by key fields that depend on the condition table, for example material, or customer and material.
In production orders, settings decide when batch determination runs: when the order is created, when it is released, or at goods issue. Early determination reserves specific batches for the order, which helps when a batch must be inspected or staged; late determination at goods issue uses whatever qualifies at that moment, which suits backflushed components from line-side stock such as 171L. Contoso determines rotor batches at goods issue, so the backflush at ASSY-10 picks the oldest qualifying batch in 171L. Test whichever timing you choose, including the case where the proposed batch has been used up by another order in between.
Walkthrough: rotors for a production order
The batch split is the important detail for traceability: the production order now consumed two rotor batches, so every alternator from it may contain either. That is fine as long as the where-used data records both; it is the reason recall answers are often "these production orders" rather than "these units," unless serial numbers or finer genealogy add precision.
Deliveries work the same way. If a customer needs batches with particular properties, sales batch determination selects them for the delivery item, and a requirement larger than one batch creates batch split items in the delivery. At Contoso, deliveries pick from 171A, which is managed in embedded EWM (warehouse number 1710), so the warehouse process also has a say in which batch is picked. Agree with Marcus whether batches are fixed in the delivery before the warehouse task, or chosen by the warehouse at picking, and test the chosen path with split quantities.
- Does the batch choice depend on properties (test result, viscosity)?Yes → selection class with characteristic values · No → no selection class
- Does the order of use matter (oldest, earliest expiry)?Yes → sort rule by receipt date or SLED · No → default order
- May one requirement use several batches?Yes → allow splits, set a maximum · No → one batch only
- Should the user confirm the proposal?Yes → dialog in determination · No → automatic assignment
What goes wrong in testing
| Symptom | Real cause | Lesson |
|---|---|---|
| No batch proposed although stock exists | Batch lacks the characteristic value the selection requires | Test batches with missing values, not only perfect ones |
| Wrong batch proposed first | Sort rule on the wrong characteristic or direction | Test with three batches whose order is known |
| Determination works in CMQ, not in CMP | Strategy records are master data and were not created in production | Include strategy records in the cutover list |
| Split creates too many small picks | No maximum number of splits | Test a requirement larger than any single batch |
Typical batch determination test failures.
What would you do?
In CMQ, batch determination for the rotor component proposes nothing, although 700 rotors in two batches are in 171L. Both batches were received before the new batch class existed. What is the most likely cause?
- Batch classes use class type 023; batches carry actual values for the class characteristics.
- Batch determination uses the condition technique: search procedure, strategy types, access sequences, strategy records.
- Strategy records define selection, sort and quantity rules (MBC1, COB1, VCH1 by application).
- Test with unclassified batches, known sort orders and splits.
Check your understanding · not graded
Lesson check
1. Which class type is used for batch classes?
2. Which three kinds of rules does a batch strategy record hold?
3. Which strategy record transaction applies to production order components?
4. Why might determination find no batch although stock exists?