Exploring the Capabilities Of SAP Procurement Fiori Tiles: Tips, And Alternatives

[RaviDave]

Introduction: In this blog, I will demonstrate three essential procurement Fiori tiles, what are some of the limitations/unsupported functionalities which SAP is working on, and alternative options.

SAP Fiori enables you to access business applications on any device. That's the SAP roadmap, and SAP is continuously building a new Fiori application or enhancing the functionalities of the existing one. In this blog, I will explain three Fiori tiles with some limitations that one needs to know as an SAP Material Management consultant and the alternatives.

1. Manage Purchasing Info Record (App ID: F1982):

Use: This is one of the most important and commonly used Fiori tiles for a buyer. This app lets you view and manage purchasing info records (info records). You can also determine which material can be procured from a specific supplier at a defined price for a certain validity period. To create an info record using this app, you must store a material or a material group and its supplier details at a plant or a purchasing organization level.

Manage Purchasing Info Records

Scales - Manage Purchasing Info Records

Current Limitation:

• First and foremost, you can only maintain the Gross Price condition. If you have any other dependent conditions, this tile doesn't support them.


• Within the Gross Price condition also, if users want to maintain scales prices, there is a limitation. Note: I have opened a customer influence request: 296914 for this functionality.


• Managing text like "Info Memo" or "Purchase Order Text" is unavailable.

Alternatives:

• GUI Fiori tile: Display Purchasing Info Record by Supplier (T-code: ME1L) or Display Purchasing Info Record by Material (T-code: ME1M) are still powerful GUI Fiori tiles to overcome the above limitation.


• You can maintain multiple condition records with or without scales with any Fiori tiles.


• Users can also maintain the text.

2. Manage Purchase Requisitions / Process Purchase Requisitions (Fiori App: F1048):

Use: With this app, you can display purchase requisitions. In addition, you can use this app to assign sources of supply to the purchase requisition items and to create follow-on documents such as contracts, RFQs, or purchase orders.

Manage Purchase Requisitions_Process Purchase Requisitions

Current Limitation:

• While it's preferable and more potent for Fiori tile to convert the purchase requisitions to purchase orders, tile cannot group the records only by one criterion. If buyers want to group purchasing requisitions by Fixed Vendor and Materials (across multiple plants) or even by delivery date, that option is unavailable.

Note: I discussed this with SAP, and per SAP, it's standard behavior. According to SAP, Only one grouping level is supported in a responsive table. So, for example, if you have specified multiple levels through a PresentationVariant, only the first level is applied. It is impossible to group by multiple criteria, only one at a time. What you are experiencing is standard behavior. Please review the following documentation regarding grouping on tables in SAPUI5: https://sapui5.hana.ondemand.com/sdk/#/topic/d344c5aa5c81483482dbbed5b3abb142.html.

Alternatives:

• Typically buyers want to convert purchasing requisitions to purchase orders manually because they are the first ones to consolidate and message the purchase requisitions to get the better price or prepaid freight etc.


• If the requirement is to convert purchase requisitions into purchase orders after the buyer reviewing and load building it, then use the Fiori tile: Display Purchase Requisitions (T-code: ME5A) and then message the purchase requisitions and select purchase requisitions and convert them using Fiori Tile: Automatic Creation of Purchase Orders from Requisitions (T-code: ME59N).

3. Manage Purchase Order (Fiori App ID: F0842A):

Use: With this app, you can create, manage, and search purchase orders to ensure you get the ordered items on time, at the correct location, and in the required quantity. As a purchaser, you can manually order materials as well as services. The list of purchase orders displayed is based on the header level of the purchase order (PO), so the information shown relates to the entire PO. On the overview, you can immediately see the number of overdue items for each PO. The item categories Standard, Consignment, Subcontracting, Third-party, and Limit (both for unplanned materials and for unplanned lean services) are supported.

Manage Purchase Order

Display Purchase Order

Current Limitation:

• While it's preferable and future roadmap tile from SAP's perspective to manage and create a purchase order, this tile has restrictions not to allow SC supplier, which eventually doesn't allow vendor drop shipping to subcontracting vendor. Note: I have opened a customer influence request for this functionality.

Alternatives:

• If the requirement is to manage/change purchase orders, then use the Fiori tile: Display Purchasing Documents by Number (T-code: ME2N) can be used.

Conclusion:

• Fiori tiles: Manage Purchasing Info Record (App ID: F1982), Manage Purchase Requisitions / Process Purchase Requisitions (Fiori App: F1048), and Manage Purchase Order (Fiori App ID: F0842A) are powerful Fiori tiles with many additional functionalities but at the same time, SAP is still working on to make improvements.


• Knowing the limitation, a consultant should be able to suggest and guide to client's requirements.

 

If you find my blog useful, please like and share your feedback in the comments below and follow me for more content like the above.

Please follow my profile for future posts (ravidave2)

Topic Page (find the most relevant one –  https://community.sap.com/topics/)

Ask questions about MM (Materials Management) and follow ( https://answers.sap.com/tags/477297786799213261950044802925335)

Read other MM (Materials Management) blog posts and follow ( https://blogs.sap.com/tags/477297786799213261950044802925335/)