11.1 Introduction to Storage Unit Management

In modern warehouses, deliveries from a vendor may not arrive separated into quants of specific materials. In many retail operations, vendors send pallets of different material on one pallet, and these arrive at the warehouse and are unloaded on the pallet. At this point, the warehouse can break down the pallet that has arrived into distinct material quants. The warehouse then stores the quants separately or stores the pallet of material as a whole.

The pallet and the material on the pallet can be described as a single unit — a storage unit — made up from the container and the material stored with the container.

If the warehouse decides to store material in the container, then storage unit management will need to be configured for the warehouse. While the entire warehouse need not be designated for storage units, certain storage types will need to be identified to accept storage units.

To allow storage unit management to be used in the warehouse, a number of configuration steps need to be carried out.

The use of storage unit management when handling unit management is already used in SAP IM can cause some confusion. Before configuring any storage unit management steps, confer with the supply chain team to avoid miscommunication.

11.1.1 Activate Storage Unit Management

For each warehouse where storage unit management is to be used, it must be configured to be active. The configuration step can be found using the navigation path: IMG N Logistics Execution N Warehouse Management N Storage Units N Master Data N Activate Storage Unit Management per Warehouse.

Figure 11.1 Activating Storage Unit Management for Warehouse 009

Figure 11.1 shows the indicator for activating storage unit management for warehouse 009. No storage unit management can take place until this indicator is set for the relevant warehouse.

11.1.2 Define Storage Unit Number Ranges

For each of the warehouses activated for storage unit management, you need to define the number range needs to be defined for the storage unit. This configuration is found using the navigation path: IMG N Logistics Execution N Warehouse Management N Storage Units N Master Data N Define Number Ranges.

Figure 11.2 Defining Number Range for Warehouses with Storage Unit Management

Figure 11.2 shows the configuration for warehouse 009, where the storage unit number range is set as 01 and the assignment type as 2. These settings mean that the storage unit number is internally assigned and it does allow for numbers to be used more than once.

11.1.3 Define Storage Type Control

The storage type control is configured for the placement and removal strategies explained in earlier chapters. In this instance, the storage type control is configured for the storage unit management controls of those strategies.

The configuration steps can be found using the navigation path: IMG N Logistics Execution N Warehouse Management N Storage Units N Master Data N Define Storage Type Control.

Figure 11.3 Storage Unit Management Configuration for Storage Type Control

Figure 11.3 shows the configuration for storage type control for storage type 001 in warehouse 009. To ensure that the configuration is correct for a storage type when storage unit management is active, you should the consider several settings, described here:

• SU mgmt active This indicator is set to show that this storage type is storage unit managed.

• Putaway strategy This is set to P, which means that the Storage Unit Type putaway has been selected.

• Mixed storage Because different materials can be moved on the same pallet as a defined storage unit, the mixed storage indicator must be activated.

• Full Stk rmvl reqmt If this indicator, is set, it affects the storage unit, not just the materials. A complete removal involves the complete storage unit.

These configuration settings should be discussed with warehouse staff to ensure that you have correctly identified the way the warehouse needs storage unit management to operate.

11.1.4 Define Storage Unit Type

The storage unit type is used to distinguish the containers used in conjunction with the materials to comprise the storage unit. A storage unit type is configured as a three-character field, and a 20-character description can also be entered.

The configuration steps can be found using the navigation path: IMG N Logistics Execution N Warehouse Management N Master Data N Material N Define Storage Unit Types.

Figure 11.4 Configuration of Storage Unit Types

Figure 11.4 shows the storage unit type configured for each warehouse. Each container used in the warehouse should be configured. We identify the different storage unit types because the sizes of these containers depend on the type of racking they are designed for or the storage facilities they are part of, such as storage carousels. The storage unit type identifies the physical aspects of the container, and this is important during storage bin searches.

That concludes the introduction to storage unit management. I’ll continue by explaining the storage unit record.