Introducing
Your new presentation assistant.
Refine, enhance, and tailor your content, source relevant images, and edit visuals quicker than ever before.
Trending searches
SAP and Easy Cost Planning
87
SAP SHORTS
Easy Cost Planning (ECP)
What is ECP?
What is it?
A project cost planning tool that can be quickly customised to the users needs using custom Planning Forms, (otherwise known as Cost Models).
Why use ECP?
Why use it?
Depending on system design, summary project costs need to be entered in advance of detail (which may be in the form of Network, Maintenance or Production orders)
- ECP allows you to create user-friendly Planning Forms, where you can very quickly provide the user with an easy-to-use data entry screen
- ECP is a project cost planning method, useful for creating a baseline cost plan used as a measure against a project's real costs
- Cost plans created in ECP can be copied for 'snapshot' comparisons as a project progresses over time
- It is the simplest method of providing a quick planning tool that users will enjoy
What's the difference?
PS provides for a number of different ways of planning costs in a project:
- Structure Planning, where costs are planned as a lump sum against a WBS with no regard as to what the planned costs are for
- Detailed Planning, where the planned costs for a WBS are broken down into Cost Elements
- Unit Cost Planning, where costs are planned against a WBS based on units of measure (quantity-based)
- Order Cost Planning, where costs are planned against a Network Order using Material Components, Labour and Services. This method of planning also allows cost planning from Plant Maintenance and Production Orders to be 'rolled-up' to the projects by reference
Easy Cost Planning exclusively uses CO Plan Versions to record the cost plan and is confined to projects via the use of special customisable planning forms. ECP can be use in conjunction with the other planning methods but you must be careful to keep the CO Versions separate. With this in mind, remember that SAP uses Plan Version Zero as the exclusive version for all order planning (Network, Maintenance and Production) and that all actual costs are also posted to Plan Version Zero.
Therefore, the most common use of ECP is in early planning, where the baseline will be used as a measure against actual costs.
What's the Diffference?
Pros and Cons of ECP
Pros and Cons
PROS
PROS of using ECP
- Cost Models (templates) are master data, not config so they can be maintained by an expert user
- Basic use is quick to set up and configure
- For simple cost planning at the Cost Element level, it is extrememly user-friendly for the user
- Cost Models can be migrated across clients to save re-entry
- ECP can be run directly from within the Project Builder (CJ20N or directly in CJ)
- It is intuitive/user-friendly
CONS
CONS of using ECP
- ECP does not support Integrated Planning (ie, planning that integrates with CO at the Cost Centre level)
- It cannot be used in parallel with Unit Cost planning because Unit Costing supports Integrated Planning
- More complex cost models that use Materials and Services to calculate costs (eg, a BOM or Base Planning Object) require special expertise
How to set it up
How to set it up
Cost Model
Setup Essentials
Firstly, Determine which objects will be used (Materials, Cost Centre/Activity Types, Cost Elements)
Select the model and complete values in CJ20N (or CJ9ECP)
Assign Characteristics in Cost Model
Create Characteristics for use in the model
Structure the Model entry screen
CKCM
CT04
CKCM
Define Derivation Rules (CKCM)
Create the
Cost Model in the CO Area
Master Data
Cost Elements
- Cost Elements, as per CO
- ECP requires Classification objects set up for use in Cost Models (see Cost Models/Planning Forms in transaction CKCM)
Materials
- Materials number solely for planning costs - not for execution (which can be set up in Execution Services)
Services
- Service Master solely for planning costs - not for execution (which can be set up in Execution Services)
S4 Hana
New in S4 Hana
COSS
As standard, ECP planning data populates standard CO tables, thereby providing standard reporting visibility
RPSCO
PRPS
COSP
New universal planning table ACOCP is not populated unless integration to financial planning is activated and a planning category configured under Controlling.
SAP have provided a manual method of transferring CO table data to the ACDOCP.
You can use SE38 to run program R_FINS_PLAN_TRANS_CO_ERP_2_S4H
ACDOCP
To automate the process, configuration via CO Config transaction SIMG allows you to create a Plan Category that will be used each time an ECP cost plan is created
Master Data
Cost Elements
- Cost Elements, as per CO
- ECP requires Classification objects set up for use in Cost Models (see Cost Models/Planning Forms in transaction CKCM)
Materials
- Materials number solely for planning costs - not for execution (which can be set up in Execution Services)
Services
- Service Master solely for planning costs - not for execution (which can be set up in Execution Services)
Configuration
Configuration Points
IMG Menu Path:
Project System->Costs->Planned Costs->Easy Cost Planning
- Defining CO Versions for ECP allows the user to plan their project costs against a specific version without having to specify the Plan Version each time. It is important to remember that if the user needs to choose an alternate plan version, you will need to configure Define Alternate CO Version, below
- Creating the Cost Variant is mandatory. PS06 is the default and does not generally require any change from standard. It will be used when you create the cost plan itself
- Assigning a Costing Variant to your Plan Profile defaults it (the standard one used in PS is PS01. Best practice is to create a new Plan Profile specifically for ECP use)
- Assigning the Planning Profile to the Project Profile will default the Planning Profile used for the project
- Defining the Cost Component Structure is used for determining Material Costs (Cost Element component split for a Materials)
- You Define Alternate CO Versions when planning costs in separate CO Version. Warning - this action cannot be undone, so if you perform this configuration, the user will always be asked which Version is required even if there is only one
- Activating Multiple CO Versions literally activates multiple CO Versions per Controlling Area and is an action that cannot be transported and must be manually performed in Production
Configuration Tasks
Step 1
Step 2
Define CO Versions
Creating the Cost Variant is mandatory. PS06 is the default and does not generally require any change from standard. It will be used when you create the cost plan itself
Defining CO Versions for ECP allows the user to plan their project costs against a specific version without having to specify the Plan Version each time. It is important to remember that if the user needs to choose an alternate plan version, you will need to configure Define Alternate CO Version