Overview: SAP F&R today and tomorrow - the future of sales forecasting

    Hello, Habr! I’m starting a series of articles about auto-replenishment of stocks using SAF F&R, a demand forecasting and inventory management system at the target location-supplier location level. The system is part of the SAP SCM (Supply Chain Management) solution and is implemented in two variations:

    • SAP F&R SCM - implementation with seamless integration with SAP systems;
    • SAP F&R OI is a system for integration with non-SAP systems.

    In this post we will consider the current and planned for the near future SAP F&R functionality.

    What now?


    The current functionality of SAP F&R can be divided into 4 main blocks:

    • Input Processing
    • Prediction calculation
    • Requirement calculation
    • Need optimization

    At the exit, draft orders, exceptions that arose during the calculation process, and analytical reports are generated in the system. Each project of orders is assigned a traffic light status. It is assumed that orders are approved according to their status (without verification or with expert review).

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    About interface


    Everyone who has ever dealt with SAP products is aware of the specifics of the user interface and UX of SAP systems and solutions. More recently, SAP took the vector to update the interface of its products, and even writing their functionality from scratch. An example of such an update is SAP IBP, an integrated business planning solution that fully functions in the SAP Fiori shell, which is intuitive and accessible without SAP UX. F&R also affected this update.

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    SAP HANA


    SAP HANA (High-Performance Analytic Appliance) is a high-performance NewSQL platform for storing and processing data, which is based on in-memory computing technology using the principle of bulk data storage, a platform developed and marketed by SAP SE. The HANA architecture provides both high-speed transaction processing and work with complex analytical queries, combining the solution of these problems within a single platform.

    In addition to the DBMS itself, HANA includes an integrated web server and version control repository, which are necessary for application development. HANA applications can be created using server-side JavaScript and HTML.

    SAP F&R is being migrated to HANA. This will simplify integration with the SAP S / 4 HANA system, as well as speed up the process of calculating orders carried out at a critical time window (the time when stores close and sales data from cash registers is sent to ERP). Previously, F&R used DBMSs from Microsoft, Oracle, and IBM.

    Fresh add-on


    This is a development to take into account special requirements for ultra-fresh products with a shelf life of not more than 3 days. Using fresh add-on provides increased accuracy of forecasting and reaction speed of the forecast model. The system reduces possible write-offs of goods when calculating needs and offers a report on future possible write-offs, which leads to an increase in the quality of auto-completion.

    Offline review of ordering projects on mobile devices


    This application is integrated with SAP F&R, SAP ERP and SAP Offline Mobile Store by GK (or other store solutions). In the application, you can change the order, adjust delivery schedules, as well as view messages about exceptional situations that arise during the calculation process. The application uses the Fiori interface

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    Integration with UDF


    UDF (Unified Demand Forecast) is a single demand forecast module that can be used with any SAP system. Its use will allow to expand forecasting capabilities in F&R, as well as to add the assortment planning function. The module allows you to take into account unexpected factors affecting demand arising within the week (for example, weather changes), improve input data processing using Bayesian statistics methods, and provide a forecast for products with a short life cycle. The module uses Fiori data visualization tools.

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    Conclusion


    Despite the abundance of demand forecasting systems in the market, SAP F&R wins on two main points:

    • The use of mathematical methods in planning (and not methods sucked from the finger, which is what Russian software solution manufacturers like to hunt);
    • In order to use SAP F&R there is no need for knowledge of higher mathematics. Any user is able to communicate with the system after a training seminar.

    The disadvantages of SAP F&R include the SAP GUI interface (and the F&R OI interface), which will be updated in the near future. Moreover, for the SAP F&R OI it is possible to develop any user interface, which is actively used by companies that have implemented F&R.

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