SAP is the short form of Systems, Applications and Products. SAP is not just the name of Earth some of the biggest software development company but likewise the name of the software product built by this organisation. SAP AG, the official name of the enterprise since it was made in Germany, in the first place thought of providing customers with a tool with which they can interact with a sole master information base for each and every application needed across the organization.

The idea of the tool became practical in the process of a financial accounting system identified SAP R/1, the first version of SAPs iconic enterprise software. The better version of this application, SAP R/2, was founded towards the end of 1970s, which was mainframe settled business application software. Afterwards, SAP AG launched a client -server version of the software addressed SAP R/3, after the advent of divided customer -server computing.

SAP R/3 Functionality:

SAP applications, made around their current R/3 system allows R/3 to treat all performance and management tasks throughout the organization. That implies, SAP R/3 provide the users with the tool to supervise financial, asset, and cost accounting, production processes and materials, personnel, plants, and archived documents. It operates on Advance Business Application Programming (ABAP), which is a 4th generation programming language. The R/3 system is compatible with various platforms including Windows 2000 and applies the client/server model.

SAP R/3 Modules:

SAP R/3 is made up of whatsoever individual operational software modules. These modules combine to execute the functional and management tasks of any enterprise. Each individual working module manages particular activities on it’s own, but is related to the others where applicable. The most wide used modules are – Logistics, Accounting and Human Resources.

Logistic Module:

Logistics is the method of completing a process from begin to finish on invite e.g. delivering a product at it’s wanted location, on request. Individual tasks involved in this operation are Sales and Distribution, Production Planning, Materials Management, Plant Maintenance and Quality Management etc among others, all of which are integrated by Logistic module. The several components of this module and example of their functions are:

Logistic Module

Sales and Distribution module: Presales support, customer enquiry processing, quotation working, sales order processing, delivery working, billing and sales information system.

Material Management module: Purchasing processes, warehouse management, inventory, invoicing etc.

Production Planning module: Planning & preparing production operation e.g. transport and storage of raw materials, by-products and waste etc.

Plant Maintenance module: Repair of buildings, maintenance of equipment used in the production procedure, info about machine usage and possible downtime etc.

Quality Management module: Each operations associated to the quality assurance of the product.

Accounting Modules:

This module executes every financial and accounting activities or in different words this module meets each financial and accounting needs of the corporation. It is self-activating to supply management and reporting of ledger, receivables & payments etc. which in turn enables balance sheets and Profit & Loss (P&L) accounts to be self updated, repeatedly. Hence, the basic advantage of this module is that the book shines the real situation. The several elements of this module are:

Accounting Module Examples

Financial Accounting: Accounting functions example balance sheet, Profit & Loss statements, Compliance with accounting regulations etc.

Controlling: Controls cost as well as corporations targets, Provides information needed for decision making and future preparation.

Enterprise Controlling: Collates internal data with market information to bring out subjects in marketing strategies.

Treasury: Corporate banking, Money, budget management etc.

Capital Investment Management: Aids finance corporations in their capital investments and tracking.

Project System: Project Management I, Project budgeting, Project execution/integration, Information system, Operative structures, Project planning etc.

Human Resources Modules

As the words itself determines, Human Resource Modules leaves a accomplished HR management system, dealing areas such as personnel planning and recruitment, personnel and salary administration, payroll and personnel development.

Beginning, SAP executions as well as its preparation were arranged on module lines. For example, in a training class on Logistics, you would read many things about SD such as SD-MD, SD-GF, SD-SLS etc but not much about the remaining of the SAP system and how SD fits into it. So, the integration ‘tween modules was completely absent. This applied to lead to that, the solutions were optimise on the modules, but lacked in integration. Hence, to accomplish that integration, programs are now being organized along the procedure lines such as:

Order to Money (including parts of SD, FI-AR and probably TY as well)
Purchase to Pay (including MM-Purchasing and FI-AP)
Record to Report (FI-GL etc)

With adaptation of operation lines alternatively of modules for solutions, SAP nowadays are moving away from reporting their system as a set of modules, and now are using the term results. These Fresh Dimension Products can stand exclusively or be integrated with R/3. It’s profits include elimination of duplication, discontinuity and redundancy in info and increases the return on investment made on IT implementations. It presents quality info designed for the Corporation as a entirely Faster and cheaper which in turn presents quality data to acquire a quality organisation. These results are:

Financials
Human Resources
Customer Relationship Management
Supplier Relationship Management
Product Lifecycle Management
Supply Chain Management
Business Intelligence

Conclusion:

SAP is an Organization Wide Business Solution. This stands for that companies functioning SAP can effectively integrate all of its business activities including finance, purchasing, sales, human resources etc. This integration allows each business dealings in an enterprise are handy to every last arenas of that enterprise and there is no duplicate of information in separate systems.