Material Master: Material Type configuration

By Willem Hoek
SAP version used for this post: SAP ECC (ERP Central Component) 5.0
When creating a material, you need to specify the material type.

The Material type is the highest level of categorization of material masters.

Material Types defined in configuration and below is a summary of main areas that material type influence:

Number range of material master and if it is internal (system allocated) or external (user allocate number)

Which fields in material are mandatory / read only / optional

User departments (Views in material)

Purchase Orders allowed

Valid valuation classes

Quantity and Value update (does it update stock qty and value)

Is it a pipeline material or not

.... and many more

Standard SAP Material Types include:
ABF - Waste
CH00 - CH Contract Handling
CONT - Kanban Container
COUP - Coupons

DIEN - Service
ERSA - Spare Parts
FERT - Finished Product
FGTR - Beverages
FHMI - Production Resource/Tool
FOOD - Foods (excl. perishables)
FRIP - Perishables
HALB - Semifinished Product
HAWA - Trading Goods
HERS - Manufacturer Part
HIBE - Operating supplies
IBAU - Maintenance assemblies
INTR - Intra materials
KMAT - Configurable materials
LEER - Empties
LEIH - Returnable packaging
LGUT - Empties (retail)
MODE - Apparel (seasonal)
NLAG - Non-stock materials
NOF1 - Nonfoods
PIPE - Pipeline materials
PLAN - Trading goods (planned)
PROC - Process materials
PROD - Product groups
ROH - Raw materials
UNBW - Nonvaluated materials
VERP - Packaging
VKHM - Additionals
VOLL - Full products
WERB - Product catalogs
WERT - Value-only materials
WETT - Competitor products
The main configuration of material type is in transaction OMS2
IMG: Logistics > Material Master > Basic Settings > Material Type > Define Attributes (OMS2)

Some settings can be done per plant

This information resides in:

T134 - Material Type
T134T - Material Type: Text
T134M - Material Type: Valuation area data
For number range configuration, the transaction is:
IMG: Logistics > Material Master > Basic Settings > Material Type > Define Number range (MMNR)

First create a Group

Then link the material type to it

This is the main settings of material type. In later articles, we will address other configuration that can be be done per material type.

Define Attributes of Material Types

Whenever you create a material master record, you must assign it to a material type. This requires you to first define the attributes of each
material type. You do this in this IMG activity.

The following options are available here:

Customizing the existing material types in the R/3 System if necessary
You do this by selecting the material type and choosing Details.
Creating new material types
You do this by copying an existing material type. In each case, define the attributes of each material type as required.
For each material type, you can allow movements in quantity to be updated in all valuation areas, in some valuation areas,
or in none. Likewise, you can allow value flows to be updated in all valuation areas, in some valuation areas, or in none.
Choose the material type for which the attributes are to be defined:

The attributes of the material type are defined in the following screen. The significance of the fields are detailed later.

Field reference for material master

When material master records are maintained, the field reference determines for each field selection group if the field selection group is set to
Hide, Display, Required entry, or Optional entry. See the section Field Selection for configurations related to this.
Default value for material item category group
The system determines the item category on the basis of the item category group, to which the material is assigned, and the transaction-specific
data, that is defined in a table. It then proposes this item category in the document concerned. In the material master this value is defaulted for
the materials of this type.
Screen reference depending on the material type
Grouping of material types that determines what screens are displayed depending on the material type when you maintain material master
records. It also determines the order in which the screens appear.
Material Is Costed with Quantity Structure
This indicator determines whether the material is costed using costing with or without a quantity structure.
Manufacturer Part
Identifies materials of this material type as manufacturer parts.
Price Control Indicator
Indicates the price control used to valuate the stock of a material. You have the following options:
Standard price
Moving average price
External purchase orders allowed
Allows external purchase orders, that is, external procurement of the material option 2.
Account category reference
Group of valuation classes that the system uses to check whether the valuation class you have entered is allowed when you maintain accounting
data in a material master record. All the permitted valuation classes for the material type are assigned thru this Account Category Reference.
Price Control Mandatory
Determines whether the price control indicator defined for the material type appears as a default value (indicator not set) or a fixed value
(indicator set) when material master records are created or changed.
Update Movements in Quantity /Value Flows in All Valuation Areas
Defines whether movements in quantity are updated identically in all/some/no existing valuation areas.
If it is for some valuation areas, by double-clicking Quantity/value updating, you can select or deselect the valuation areas in which value flows
are to be updated. If value flows are not updated identically in all valuation areas, the By valuation area indicator is set automatically.
User Departments
Select which views are to be made to appear while maintaining material master data for this material type.

MATERIAL TYPES IN SAP MATERIAL MANAGEMENT

Quite similar to the way a vendor account group controls the properties of the vendor or the customer account group
controls the properties of the customer master, material type controls the properties of the customer.
The most commonly used material types are

Material Type

Description

FERT

Finished Goods

HAWA

Trading Goods

DIEN

Service

PIPE

Pipeline Material

HALB

Semi-Finished Product

ROH

Raw Material

LEIH

Returnable packaging

AEM

Samples

DIEN

Service

WERT

Value only material

Material Types are defined in transaction code [OMS2]. If new material types are required, copy from the existing
material type.

We will discuss some important fields in the material type controls. For more, please follow the online SAP Training links
or SAP MM Training Online links.
General Data:

Field Reference This is used to control the field status of the material type. This controls which fields can be
hidden, displayed, made mandatory or optional. These in turn are based on the field selection group.
Screen Reference Material Type We normally do not need to touch this field as this is hard coded to show
different screens based on the material type. No customization is possible here.
Authorization Group Basis Consultants can use this field to restrict access to a particular material type. For
example, if you want certain sensitive material types to be used only by a certain group of MRP controllers, then you
can use this field.
Item Category Group This is an arbitrary grouping of materials. There is no control behind item category
groups. They are freely definable. SAP automatically proposes the item category group while creating the material
master based on the material type. This field is used to determine the item category in the sales order. This field is
found in the Sales view of the material
master.

User Departments
The user departments specify which views the material master has by default.
The views that are selected here are shown in the material master during creation.

Valuation
Price Control There are 2 types of price control
S Standard Price
V Moving average
SAP proposes the price control automatically in the accounting views ( Accounting1 view )of the material master during
creation. Typically, internally manufactured goods use standard price while externally procured goods have a moving
average ( essentially the weighted average of the price and quantities supplied by different vendors )
For example, if the standard price of the product is $100, and if the item is externally procured for $110, then $100 is
posted to the stock account and $10 is posted to the price difference account as expenditure. However, in moving
average, $110 is posted to stock account.
Account Category Reference - This is used in Material Account Determination [OBYC]. Account category is assigned
to the valuation class and the valuation class is used to determine the correct G/L account to post to in the MM-FICO
automatic account determination for goods movements associated with materials of that account category.
Price Control Mandatory This check mark is used to ensure that the user who created that material master has to
enter the cost ( standard or moving average )
Quantity/Value Update Stock keeping can be done both at the quantity level as well as the valuation level.

This is normally done based on valuation area. In this case, for example in valuation area 0001, for material type FERT,
both quantity updates and value updates take place.