Tuesday, December 2, 2008

SAP Modules & SAP Help - Overview of Every SAP Modules

By Patric Eva

SAP is the short form of Systems, Applications and Products. SAP is not simply the name of mankind some of the widest software development corporation but likewise the name of the software product trained by this organization. SAP AG, the official name of the enterprise since it was made in Germany, originally thought of providing customers with a tool with which they can interact with a only master data base for each and every application necessary across the organisation.

The idea of the tool became functional in the form of a financial accounting system listed SAP R/1, the introductory version of SAPs iconic enterprise software. The improved version of this application, SAP R/2, was set up towards the end of 1970s, which was mainframe founded business application software. Later, SAP AG launched a client -server version of the software called SAP R/3, after the advent of distributed client -server computing.

SAP R/3 Functionality:

SAP applications, established around their occurrent R/3 system allows R/3 to handle full procedure and management tasks throughout the corporation. That signifies, SAP R/3 offer the users with the instrument to deal financial, asset, and cost accounting, production procedures and materials, personnel, plants, and archived documents. It works on Advance Business Application Programming (ABAP), which is a fourth generation programming language. The R/3 system is compatible with different platforms including Windows 2000 and practices the client/server model.

SAP R/3 Modules:

SAP R/3 is made up of whatsoever personalized functioning software modules. These modules merge to execute all the functional and management tasks of any organisation. Every individual functioning module manages special activities on it's own, but is united to the others where applicable. The most wide used modules are - Logistics, Accounting and Human Resources.

Logistic Module:

Logistics is the method of supplementary a process from beginning to complete on invite e.g. delivering a product at its wanted location, on request. Various tasks needed in this process are Sales and Distribution, Production Planning, Materials Management, Plant Maintenance and Quality Management etc among others, every last of which are integrated by Logistic module. The different components of this module and illustration of their functions are:

Logistic Module


Sales and Distribution module: Presales support, client enquiry processing, quotation processing, sales order processing, delivery working, billing and sales information system.

Material Management module: Purchasing processes, warehouse management, inventory, invoicing etc.

Production Planning module: Planning & organising production operation e.g. transport and storage of raw materials, by-products and waste etc.

Plant Maintenance module: Repair of buildings, maintenance of equipment used in the production process, data about machine usage and possible downtime etc.

Quality Management module: Each operations linked to the quality assurance of the product.

Accounting Modules:

This module performs every last financial and accounting activities or in another words this module plays all financial and accounting needs of the corporation. It is automated to offer management and reporting of ledger, receivables & payments etc. which in turn allows balance sheets and Profit & Loss (P&L) accounts to be self updated, unceasingly. Therefore, the original reward of this module is that the book reflects the real situation. The various factors of this module are:

Accounting Module Examples

Financial Accounting: Accounting functions example balance sheet, Profit & Loss statements, Compliance with accounting regulations etc.

Controlling: Controls cost as well as corporations objectives, Provides information needed for decision making and future preparation.

Enterprise Controlling: Collates internal data with market data to bring out issues in marketing strategies.

Treasury: Corporate banking, Money, budget management etc.

Capital Investment Management: Assists finance organisations in their capital investments and tracking.

Project System: Project Management I, Project budgeting, Project execution/integration, Info system, Operative structures, Project planning etc.

Human Resources Modules

As the words itself specifies, Human Resource Modules leaves a accomplished HR management system, handling fields such as personnel preparation and enlisting, personnel and salary administration, payroll and personnel development.

Beginning, SAP implementations as well as its training were organised on module lines. For instance, in a training course on Logistics, you would see many things about SD such as SD-MD, SD-GF, SD-SLS etc but not much about the remaining of the SAP system and how SD fits into it. So, the integration between modules was entirely absent. This utilised to result to that, the solutions were optimized along the modules, but lacked in integration. Therefore, to achieve that integration, programmes are nowadays being organized on the operation lines such as:

Order to Money (including parts of SD, FI-AR and probably TY as well)
Purchase to Pay (including MM-Purchasing and FI-AP)
Record to Report (FI-GL etc)

With adaptation of process lines rather of modules for answers, SAP nowadays are moving away from reporting their system as a set of modules, and now are using the term results. These Original Dimension Products can stand solely or be integrated with R/3. It's profits include elimination of duplication, discontinuity and redundancy in information and growths the return on investment made on IT implementations. It presents quality information designed for the Enterprise as a wholly Faster and cheaper which in turn delivers quality information to acquire a quality company. These solutions are:

Financials
Human Resources
Customer Relationship Management
Supplier Relationship Management
Product Lifecycle Management
Supply Chain Management
Business Intelligence

Conclusion:

SAP is an Company Wide Business Result. This implies that companies functioning SAP can effectively integrate all of its business activities taking on finance, purchasing, sales, human resources etc. This integration allows each business transactions in an organisation are easy to every last arenas of that enterprise and there is no duplicate of data in separated systems. - 16039

About the Author: