A collective order is a logistical linkage of planned orders, production orders, or process orders across multiple manufacturing levels
Collective orders represent multilevel production structures for materials produced in-house in which the manufacturing order for the highest material in the structure automatically generates manufacturing orders for the semifinished products in the structure. The output quantity of the manufacturing orders for the semifinished products is the quantity required for the manufacture of the highest material.
You can analyze the costs for collective orders in the Product Cost Controlling Information System in special reports. A hierarchy report can be accessed for the collective order, which shows the sum of the planned costs, target costs, and actual costs for each level of the collective order. You can access detailed reports on individual orders
Collective orders can consist of planned orders or manufacturing orders (production orders or process orders).
A collective order consists of the following:
- A leading order
The leading order is the order at the highest level of the collective order. It is created to manufacture the finished product.
- Dependent orders
All orders below the leading order are dependent orders. The system automatically creates the dependent orders for the leading order. Dependent orders can be subordinate to each other on multiple levels of the collective order.
Changes to higher-level orders (such as a changed order quantity or release of the order) are immediately reflected in all dependent orders when the order is saved.
There are two ways of processing collective orders in Cost Object Controlling:
- Collective Orders with Automatic Goods Movements
All orders in the collective order are processed in Cost Object Controlling in the same way as the orders that are not in the collective order. Goods movements take place between the levels of the collective order. This means that a goods receipt is automatically posted to the higher-level production order when the lower-level manufacturing orders are delivered to stock.
SAP recommends the use of collective orders with automatic goods movements.
- Collective Orders Without Automatic Goods Movements
No goods movements take place between the levels of the collective order. No MM documents are generated. In make-to-order production and with a valuated sales order or project stock, the orders are credited the planned costs at the time of final confirmation of the operation. The higher-level order in each case is debited with the planned costs at the same time. The difference between the debit and credit is settled to the higher-level order at the end of the period. Only the leading order delivers to stock and settles to inventory (receiver = material).
In sales-order-related production and in engineer-to-order with a nonvaluated stock, the leading order is not credited at the time of the goods receipt. The full cost is passed to the sales order item or WBS element when you settle.
