Lesson 3 of 5
QM controls in procurement
10 min
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QM in procurement does more than inspect what arrives. It can decide whether a supplier may be used at all, require documents before stock is released, move the inspection to the supplier's site, and reduce inspection for proven suppliers. These controls live in a few objects, and their configuration is owned by QM specialists, but every procurement and quality key user should know what they do.
The quality info record
SAP Learning describes the quality info record for procurement as control information for a combination of material and supplier (in SAP GUI typically maintained with QI01). It holds a release date (the latest date the material can be ordered from that supplier), a release quantity (the maximum that can be ordered, totaled across purchase orders), a block that stops selected functions such as creating a purchase order or quotation for quality reasons, and an inspection control tab for source inspection. Some settings only work if the material's QM control key requires them.
- Does the material's QM control key require a supplier release?No → purchasing is not checked by QM · Yes → next question
- Is there a quality info record for this supplier and material?No → the purchase order is refused or warned · Yes → next question
- Is the record blocked, past its release date or over its release quantity?Yes → purchasing gets a message and cannot proceed as configured · No → the order can be created
Certificates
In regulated industries, suppliers must send a quality certificate with or before the goods. The certificate type required is set in the material's QM view. Receipt can be recorded against the purchase order item, or confirmed during goods receipt. SAP Learning describes the control: if receipt is not confirmed, the system blocks the usage decision with an error; once confirmed, the engineer can decide.
Source inspection, skips and dynamic modification
| Control | What it does | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Source inspection | Inspect at the supplier before shipment; lot start date = PO delivery date minus inspection lead time from the info record | Catches problems before transport; optional indicator avoids a second lot at receipt, so transport damage can be missed |
| Inspection skip for certified suppliers | Goods receipt inspection bypassed for material and supplier combinations with a certified QM system | Less effort; relies on the supplier's system |
| Dynamic modification | After accepted lots, skip a set number of inspections or reduce the sample | Saves effort; a rejection must restore full inspection |
Ways to move or reduce inspection effort, as described by SAP Learning.
These controls are powerful and easy to break silently. A conversion that loses the QM control key on a material, or a supplier record that is not migrated, removes a control without any error message. Make the list of controlled material and supplier combinations an explicit test object.
What would you do?
A buyer complains that a purchase order for rotors from a second supplier was refused "for quality reasons". Grace asks whether this is a defect. What is the best first step?
| Control | Maintained in | Transaction / app (examples) | Test that proves it |
|---|---|---|---|
| QM control key and certificate type | Material master, QM view | MM02 or Manage Product Master Data | PO and GR behave as the key requires |
| Quality info record | Per material, supplier and plant | QI01 / QI02 | PO over release quantity stopped |
| Inspection types active | Material master, QM view | MM02 or QA08 for mass activation | Lot created at the right event |
| Dynamic modification rule | Inspection plan or material | Inspection plan (QP01) | Skip after N accepted lots; full inspection after a rejection |
Where QM procurement controls live and how to prove each one.
- The QM control key in the material's QM view switches procurement controls on.
- The quality info record holds release date, release quantity, block and source inspection settings.
- Missing certificate confirmation blocks the usage decision.
- Source inspection, skips and dynamic modification move or reduce inspection effort.
Check your understanding · not graded
Lesson check
1. What does the release quantity in a quality info record limit?
2. What happens to the usage decision if certificate receipt is not confirmed?
3. What is a risk of skipping goods receipt inspection after a source inspection?
4. Which transaction is commonly used to activate inspection types for many materials at once?