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Setting up DC1 Multi Distribution Centre (MDC)

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What this document contains:

Pre-setup

The DC1 Multi Distribution Centre application has to be installed.

To receive MDC invoices, DC1 Financials must be installed.

In order to process MDC sales orders, purchase orders and invoicing, the following information must have been established:

Tables/Files Setup description
Work with companies Activate the DC1 Multi Distribution Centre (MDC) application in both the Supplying and Demanding company.

To receive MDC invoices, the DC1 Financials (FIN) application must be activated.
DIS control file When the MDC application is activated, you must access this file in order to allow the system to automatically build the data queue files necessary for transferring information between the MDC companies. This is accomplished by simply opening the DIS control file and going through all of the panels by clicking OK.
Interface type table A record must be created in this table in the Demanding company with the following parameters:

    Document type
    ‘ ‘ (three underscores). The document types defined for FPI, FPC and FPZ are retrieved from the System document type table and the document type connected to them must be defined with a number series which handles automatic numbering.

    If both the supplying and demanding company is set up for MDC automatic matching, then document types defined for MDI, MDC and MDZ are retrieved from the System document type table and the document type connected to them must be defined with a number series which handlesautomatic numbering.

    Identity
    MD
    System id
    A/P

What both MDC companies need to agree upon

In order to establish the communication parameters necessary for processing MDC orders, you must first exchange the following information with the other DC1 based company that you will be interacting with, before you begin to set up the MDC application.

Database files

You need to know the name of the library the other company uses to store their DC1 database in.

Items

You have to identify the items that you will be buying/selling from each other. Then you have to agree on common codes for these items. These items will have to be defined in each company’s Item file with the same item code and stock unit. Both the MDC demanding company and the MDC supplying company must create the common item in their respective Item file.

Business partner file

You will need to know how the other company identifies your company in their Business partner file, i.e. what your company’s customer/supplier number is in their DC1 system. You will also need to provide that company with their customer/supplier number as defined in your Business partner file.

Once you have exchanged the above preliminary information with your future MDC customers/suppliers you can proceed with the set-up. See Set up the MDC company control file.

Set up the MDC company control file

The MDC company control file is where all of the companies that will be interacting with each other via the DC1 Multi Distribution Centre application are defined and the communication parameters necessary for sending and receiving MDC transaction information are established.

An MDC company must be defined for every MDC customer/supplier that you have. These MDC companies are then linked to your MDC customers/suppliers via the Business partner file (see Set up MDC customers and Set up MDC suppliers).

Note: You can have several suppliers/customers using the same MDC company.

Your MDC customers/suppliers must, in return, also validate your company in their DC1 system’s MDC company control file.

Tables/Files Setup description
MDC company control file You must create a new company in this file. Click Add and complete the following fields on the detail panel:

    Company
    Mandatory entry. Enter a unique code to identify the company.
    Name
    Mandatory entry. Enter the name of the company.
    Release
    This field is applicable if you plan on communicating between two DC1 companies with different release (PTF) levels.
    MDC has been “prepared” to handle companies with different PTF levels. All communication between two DC1 companies within MDC is handled by unique transactions sent through data queues. The PTF levels supported in standard include:

    Demanding company Supplying company
    500E 800A
    550L 800A
    600I 800A
    800A 500E
    800A 600I

    Enter the release (PTF level) of the MDC company. The MDC transaction mapping control file holds information regarding all transactions whose layout has been changed and is not identical for two different PTF levels. The result is as follows:

    • When an MDC transaction is to be sent and different PTF levels have been defined for the two companies in this MDC company control file, a check is made against the mapping file to see if a record exists for the transaction number and from-to PTF level.
    • If a record is found, a new mapping program (defined in the mapping record) is called before the transaction is sent. This mapping program will adjust the differences for the transaction. The adjustment can be to initiate a new value that the receiving company expects to get or to not send certain information if that has been removed in the receiving company’s transaction layout.
    • When the mapping has been done, the transaction is sent according to the layout defined for the receiving company’s PTF level.
    • If no record is found in the mapping control file, even though different PTF levels have been defined in this MDC company control file, then the layout of that particular transaction has not been changed and can be sent without any extra mapping.
    • If no PTF levels are defined in MDC company control file, it is assumed that the two companies have the same PTF level and no mapping at all is needed.

    If the PTF level does not support the actual transaction, then the transaction is not sent. See the MDC between different DC1 releases (Technical reference) for more information.

    Internal
    Mandatory entry. Set this field to YES if the company is internal to your DC1 system. Set this field to NO if you are defining an external company. Note: If an internal company is defined you cannot use the same code that is assigned to your active company, (i.e. in Company code in Work with companies).
    External
    Mandatory entry. Set this field to YES if the company is external to your DC1 system. Set this field to NO if you are defining an internal company.
    Current comp release
    This field is applicable if you plan on communicating between two DC1 companies with different Release (PTF) levels. Enter the Release/PTF level of the current company.
    Automatic matching
    Indicate if the automatic invoice matching functionality should be activated for the company. See Set up MDC automatic matching for more information.

    Data queues
    The fields below denote the data queues used during the communications link with the other MDC company. These values are automatically built by the system.

    Data file library
    Mandatory entry. Enter the name of the library used to store the Data queues in the other company’s system. This cannot be the same name as your active company’s file library. Note: This is part of the preliminary information that must have been exchanged with your customer (see What both MDC companies need to agree upon).
    Wait seconds
    Mandatory entry. Enter the number of seconds your DC1 system must wait for a reply from this company. If an answer has not been received within this allotted time, the link will be considered inactive and the communication will not be established.

    After you have created an MDC company for each company that you will be interacting with, you are then ready to link these to your MDC customers/suppliers. Follow the instructions detailed in Set up MDC customers and Set up MDC suppliers.

Set up MDC customers

Since the MDC application allows your company to receive MDC purchase orders, you must set up the MDC parameters that will allow your DC1 system to identify the customers (i.e. the MDC demanding company) that sent them to your company.

Prerequisites
You must have determined which customers your company will receive MDC purchase orders from and have exchanged the preliminary information with them as detailed in What both MDC companies need to agree upon. An MDC company that will represent this customer in the MDC company control file must also have been defined (see Set up the MDC company control file).

Tables/Files Setup description
Work with business partners Basic data panel:
Complete the following fields:

    MDC
    Set this field to YES to denote that this customer is of type MDC.
    Sundry
    Set this field to NO for MDC customers.

Customer file (second) panel:
Complete the following field:

    Order fulfilm rule
    Set this field to 1 for MDC customers. Automatic dispatch date (OFR 2) or quantity adjustment (OFR 3) or split of lines (OFR 4) are not supported for MDC customers in a supplying company.

MDC customer file panel:
This is where you connect the MDC customer to the communication parameters that you established for it in the MDC company control file. Complete the following fields:

    Company
    Mandatory entry. Enter the code that you defined to represent this customer in the MDC company control file.
    Supplier
    Mandatory entry. Enter your supplier number as defined in your customer’s Business partner file. (This is part of the preliminary information that must have been exchanged with your customer as described in What both MDC companies need to agree upon). This is the number that identifies your company (as the MDC supplier) in the MDC customer’s DC1 system. This information will be linked to the purchase order in your MDC customer’s DC1 system identifying your company as the supplier.
    Sales order type
    Mandatory entry. Enter the MDC sales order type to be used when the sales orders are automatically generated from the purchase orders that are received from this MDC customer. The sales order type must produce a pick list printout (for more information see Set up the MDC sales/purchase order types).
    Credit order type
    Mandatory entry. Enter the MDC credit order type to be used when the return orders are received from this MDC customer.
    Handler
    Mandatory entry. Enter a code from the Work with DC1 user profiles file indicating the person responsible for the MDC sales orders.
    Compressed invoice
    Mandatory entry. Indicate if the MDC invoice that will be sent to this customer should be compressed. This means that one invoice will be printed per line.
    Transfer prices
    Mandatory entry. Indicate if the sales price from the order line in the MDC supplying company should automatically be transferred to the MDC demanding company. If this field is set to YES, the sales price from the order line in the MDC supplying company becomes purchase price in the corresponding purchase order line of the MDC demanding company. See Create an MDC sales order using transfer pricing for more information.

Set up MDC suppliers

Since the MDC application allows your company to send MDC purchase orders, you must set up the MDC parameters that will allow your DC1 system to identify your demanding company to the supplying company that receives them.

Prerequisites
You must have determined which suppliers your company will send MDC purchase orders to and have exchanged the preliminary information with them as detailed in What both MDC companies need to agree upon. An MDC company that will represent this supplier in the MDC company control file must also have been defined (see Set up the MDC company control file).

Tables/Files Setup description
Business partner file Basic data panel:
Complete the following fields:

    MDC
    Set this field to YES to denote that this supplier is of type MDC.
    Sundry
    Set this field to NO for MDC suppliers.

MDC supplier file panel:
This is where you connect this MDC supplier to the communication parameters that you established for it in the MDC company control file. You must also enter the parameters that will allow them to identify your company to their DC1 system. Complete the following fields:

    Company
    Mandatory entry. Enter the code that you defined to represent this supplier in the MDC company control file.
    Customer
    Mandatory entry. Enter your customer number as defined in your supplier’s Business partner file. (This is part of the preliminary information that must have been exchanged with your customer as described in What both MDC companies need to agree upon). This is the number that identifies your company (as the MDC customer) in the MDC supplier’s DC1 system. This information will be linked to the purchase order in your MDC supplier’s DC1 system identifying your company as the customer.
    Auto reception conf
    Mandatory entry. Indicate if the goods reception routine should be performed automatically when your supplier confirms the pick list. When your supplier confirms the pick list the following will occur:

    • If BtB direct deliveries is set to YES: The supplying company’s DC1 system will automatically send a purchase order confirmation note to your DC1 system which will update your purchase order to status 60.
    • If BtB direct deliveries is set to NO: Although the items are not received into stock by the MDC demanding company, a mock (or “dummy”) reception must be performed to indicate to their DC1 system that the goods have arrived at the end customer. This step is essential for the invoicing routine to be performed in the MDC demanding company’s DC1 system.
    • For BtB transit deliveries, this entry has no impact. A reception of the purchase order in demanding company must always be performed. Note: Automatic reception confirmation will not be performed if the purchase order contains serial numbers or any DC1 Warehouse management controlled items. Furthermore, there is no automatic confirmation if direct delivery and landed costs are required for the purchase order.
    Import code
    Enter a code from the VAT import/export codes table to indicate the taxes that are applicable to your company when the goods are invoiced.

You are now ready to proceed with Set up MDC items.

Set up MDC items

Once you have defined the MDC customers and MDC suppliers in the system a two-way communication can be established between each DC1 system and the business of buying and selling can, therefore, begin. The type of information that can be exchanged is purchase order, sales order and invoice information.

Regardless of whether your company is sending or receiving MDC purchase orders, ultimately these should be able to automatically generate sales orders in another company for a particular item. In order to achieve this the receiving company must first interpret the item information that is included in the purchase order and then create a corresponding sales order for it. The transfer of information back and forth can only be accomplished if each system can correctly identify the items that are used in the transaction. To avoid any problem of incompatibility – or to simplify the item identification process – between the two DC1 systems, the items must be defined in each company under the same item code.

Prerequisites
You must have determined which items your company will be demanding/supplying via the MDC application and must have agreed upon (with the other MDC company) the common codes that will be attributed to the item (see the preliminary information as detailed in What both MDC companies need to agree upon). At least one MDC supplier must have been defined for this item in the Item file.

To establish MDC information for an existing item to allow the item to be used in MDC purchase orders, sales order and invoicing, do as follows:

Tables/Files Setup description
Work with items Units panel:
Mark the unit that will be used in the MDC transactions and click Change.
On the detail panel, both the MDC demanding company and the MDC supplying company must define common items at the unit level, as being Allowed on MDC. Complete the following fields:

    Allowed on MDC
    Set this field to YES to denote that this unit is valid on both MDC purchase orders and MDC sales orders.
    Package type
    Package type qty

Supplier information panel:
At least one MDC supplier must be connected to the item. Click Add to add a new MDC supplier. On detail panel, complete the following fields:

    Supplier
    Enter the supplier you want to connect to the item.
    Lead time
    Enter the number of estimated lead days. Note: This is a fictitious value that will be used when creating purchase suggestions for stock replenishment orders. It will also be used for calculating the planning time in the Time axis enquiry. When using the MDC availability enquiry the item’s lead time is retrieved from the MDC supplying company. For more detailed information regarding the planning time see About planning time).

Purchase prices panel:
This is where you can enter information about the cost of the item. Caution: If no purchase price is entered for the item, the system will retrieve the Cost type from the DIS control file to determine the purchase price of the item.

Once you have set up your customers, suppliers, and items then you are ready to proceed with Set up the MDC sales/purchase order types.

Set up the MDC sales/purchase order types

Prerequisites
It is assumed that you have a basic knowledge of defining sales order and purchase order types. The following does not describe the normal handling of these. Only the fields that directly pertain to the MDC application are described.

There are three types of MDC orders.

  1. BtB direct delivery to the end customer.
  2. BtB transit delivery, which means that the goods are dispatched to the MDC demanding company’s delivering warehouse before they are shipped to the end customer.
  3. Stock replenishment orders, which means that the goods are dispatched to the stock in the MDC demanding company’s delivering warehouse.

BtB orders

When a sale is entered into the MDC demanding company’s system for an end customer that orders an MDC item, an MDC purchase order is automatically generated and sent to the MDC supplying company. Once it is received, a corresponding sales order is created in the MDC supplying company’s system.

If we follow the typical MDC BtB scenario outlined in Process overview for MDC Back-to-Back (BtB) orders, there are three order types that come into play in a full MDC transaction cycle. These are underlined in the table below:

MDC demanding company MDC supplying company
A sales order is entered for an end customer that orders an MDC item.

The sales order type used is a BtB sales order type with a direct creation of an MDC purchase order.

 -> A purchase order is created and sent to the MDC supplying company.

This purchase order is based on the MDC purchase order type

 -> The MDC purchase order is received and a sales order is automatically generated for it.

The sales order type used for this transaction is retrieved from the Business partner file, MDC customer panel.

Stock replenishment orders

When a stock replenishment order is entered into the MDC demanding company’s system, an MDC purchase order is manually entered and is automatically sent to the MDC supplying company. Once it is received, a corresponding sales order is created in the MDC supplying company’s system.

If we follow the stock replenishment scenario outlined in Process overview for MDC Back-to-Back (BtB) orders, there are two order types that come into play in that transaction cycle. These are also underlined in the table below:

MDC demanding company MDC supplying company
A purchase order is manually entered and automatically sent to the MDC supplying company.

This purchase order is an MDC purchase order type.

 -> The MDC purchase order is received and a sales order is automatically generated for it.

The sales order type used for this transaction is retrieved from the Business partner file, MDC customer panel.

Set up the order types

Tables/Files Setup description
In the Demanding company: In order to process sales orders and stock replenishment orders for MDC items you must establish the following:
Work purchase order types BtB transit or direct delivery, stock replenishment orders of type MDC must be created. The following MDC information must be entered:

    Transit delivery
    Set this field to YES to denote a BtB transit delivery.
    Set this field to NO to denote a BtB direct delivery or a stock replenishment order type.
    Direct delivery
    Set this field to YES to denote a BtB direct delivery.
    Set this field to NO to denote a BtB transit delivery or a stock replenishment order type.
    MDC order type
    Set this field to YES indicating that this is an MDC purchase order.
Work with sales order types BtB sales order types that are linked to the MDC BtB purchase order types must be created. Complete the following field:

    BtB order type
    Enter the MDC BtB transit or direct delivery purchase order type that will be connected to this sales order.
In the Supplying company: The sales order type must produce a pick list printout. Note: These are the sales order types assigned to your MDC customer in the Business partner file (see Set up MDC customers).
MDC returns: For processing returns, the credit order type must be assigned to your MDC customer in the Business partner file (see Set up MDC customers).

Once you have completed the set-up the system is now ready for the entry of MDC sales orders.

Set up MDC automatic matching

The system can be set up to automatically match A/R invoices and invoice lines that are created in an MDC supplying company with purchase order lines that are created in an MDC demanding company in DC1 Distribution.

Prerequisites
The normal automatic matching routine, which is the base for this function, needs to be set up first. See Setting up automatic invoice matching for details.

When that set-up is complete, the steps include:

In the supplying company:
MDC company control file Inv autom matching must be set to YES. This flag must be set on all MDC supplying companies which will interact with each other.

The invoices, invoice lines and the VAT transactions from the MDC supplying company will be loaded into the interface files SROLBA, SROLBAL and SROLBV in the demanding company.
In the demanding company:
A/P control file The Inv autom matching field must be set to YES.

Note: Set the Inv manual matching field to YES in order to be able to manually correct detected errors.

Note: If the document types connected to the MDC document types are of type preliminary, then indicate also in the Promote prel invoice field if you want the system to automatically set the matched invoices to final.
Interface type table The interface type used for the retrieval of A/P invoices must be defined with a voucher type active for the A/P invoice automatic matching routine, and the identity must be MD.
System document type table The following system document types for system ID A/P are preloaded for MDC invoices:

A/P MDC invoice (MDI)

A/P MDC credit note (MDC)

A/P MDC zero invoice (MDZ)

The document types connected to the system document types can be either of type preliminary or final and must be defined with a number series which handles automatic numbering.
Pseudo account table Fees charged on the invoice lines that are loaded into SROLBAL must be defined with a specific pseudo account. The fixed pseudo account codes listed below apply for each type of fee and the coin adjustment.

Fee Pseudo account
Freight XMDCFRE
Postage XMDCPOS
Insurance XMDCINS
Administration fee XMDCADM
Invoice fee XMDCINV
Coin adjustment XMDCCOA

VAT handling

When the supplying company creates the VAT handling code interface file (SROLBV) in the demanding company, the VAT handling codes are retrieved from the demanding company according to the following:

  • VAT handling code for order lines (items):
    • Item file maintenance, Country/Country VAT information
    • Country/Country VAT table maintenance
    • DIS control file
  • VAT handling code for fees:
    • Country/Country VAT table maintenance
    • DIS control file

The following flowchart illustrates the flow for MDC automatic matching in the Demanding and Supplying company.

Flowchart – MDC automatic matching

Related topics