Product Group Maintenance 
This topic describes some of the functions with which you can maintain product groups.
Assigning Members
You can create a complete multi-level product group hierarchy in one processing step.
You start at the root of the product group hierarchy. To create the data for a member product group, you double-click on it with the mouse. You proceed in this way for as many hierarchical levels as you want. The same approach applies to displaying product groups.
You can specify product group members either by entering them manually or by selecting them from a list of existing product groups or materials.
If you specify them manually, you must enter a description, a plant, a unit of measure, and⎯with the exception of internally assigned product group numbers ⎯a number. If the product group member is a material, the system reads the description and the base unit of measure from the material master record. If the product group member is a new product group, a master record is created for it when you have made all the required entries and choose ENTER .
To select product group members from a list of master records, choose Edit → Selection list → Parameters. If the members are product groups, you must specify a unit of measure, plant, MRP controller, and/or period indicator. If the members are materials, you must specify a material type, material group, unit of measure, division, plant, ABC indicator, purchasing group, MRP type, MRP controller, and/or period indicator. To obtain the selection list, choose Continue . Now select your product group members. To include them in your product group, choose Copy .
To select product group members via the Classification system, choose Edit → Selection list → Classification.
Proportional Factors
When you disaggregate planning data, the proportional factors determine how the product group quantity is distributed to individual members. The system uses the proportional factors in conjunction with the units of measure conversion factors to calculate the members’ planning data.
The default proportional factor of each product group is 0 %. You can overwrite this value. The total of the proportional factors does not have to be 100 %. When you save or exit the product group, the system checks whether the sum of the proportional factors is 100 %. If it is not, a warning message appears.
You create proportional factors in one of three ways:
- Enter them manually
- Distributing them evenly across the planning level
The system divides 100 by the number of product group members on that planning level to obtain the proportional factors.
- Have the system calculate them automatically
If you access this function from the standard SOP or flexible planning menu, and specify the information structure S076, all proportional factors in all product groups will be calculated or recalculated. Any existing proportional factors will be overwritten. Therefore, a good time to use this function is before you start creating planning data.
The system calculates the proportional factors of the product group members on the basis of actual consumption data. This calculation is performed for a planning horizon which you specify.
The system totals the consumption data of the materials at the lowest level in the product group hierarchy and cumulates it "bottom-up" until it reaches the current planning level. It then divides the quantity for each product group member at this level by the total quantity. This gives the proportional factor of each product group member.
If you carry out this function in the product group master record, the function is single-level; that is, the system calculates only proportional factors for the planning level that you are currently maintaining. You choose Edit → Calculate proportions.
To have the system calculate the proportional factors at all levels in all product group hierarchies (see note above), choose Product group → Calculate proportions from the standard SOP menu.
Units of Measure Conversion
The system determines the units of measure conversion factor if it is stored either in the central units of measure conversion table or in the material master record. You cannot change the conversion factor in Standard SOP.
If no units of measure conversion factor has been maintained, the system proposes a default value of 1.
If the product group is managed in pieces and the product group members in pairs, and there are two pieces in every pair, then the conversion factor is 2.
Cross-Plant Planning
You can assign materials or product groups from different plants to the same owner product group. This allows you to plan both product groups and materials across different plants and even company codes. Thus, you can create an initial plan to cover all plants, and then define plant-specific production quotas in a subsequent step.
Any Units of Measure Combination
A product group may have a different unit of measure than one or more of its members. This means that you can plan, for example, at an aggregate level in pallets, and at a detailed level in pieces. The units of product group members may also be different.
The required conversion factor is stored in either the material master record (for example, pieces to kilograms) or the central conversion table (for example, kilogrammes to tonnes). This allows you to:
- Group together materials with different units of measure
- Define conversion factors separately for each member
- Aggregate or disaggregate using any unit of your choice
Generating Planning Objects for Standard SOP
See Master Data Generator in Standard SOP.
Graphical Support
See Product Group Graphic and Graphical Overview of Product Group Hierarchies.