Objectives
The goal of this guide is to provide a detailed view on how you can manage the blocking of batch elements in WPMS. We will demonstrate every step involved in the manipulation of batch elements.
We will also show you how you can access blocked batch element data from two specific screens.
All the pictures showed in this guide are slices of screenshots.
Blocked batch elements
Blocking a batch element
If you need to block a batch element for a specific reason, you can do it on the AL391 transaction:
Global → Global Application → Application → Warehouse Management → Batch Records Monitoring → List Articles to Block Batch Records Elements [AL391]
First you will have to list the article(s) that belong to the batch element. Fill in the suitable parameters in the search fields and click the List button (see picture 3.1.1). You can filter by supplier, by article, by supplier and article or you can leave the search fields empty (which will result in the listing of all articles).
The following screen displays the article you searched. Select the article and click the Blocked Batch Elements button (see picture 3.1.2).
You will be redirected to a screen containing a list of batch elements currently blocked in which the article you filtered by is included. In the example shown in picture 3.1.3 you can see that there are other blocked batch elements that contain this article. If you want to block another batch element that contains this article, click on the Add button (see picture 3.1.3).
In the following screen you will set the batch element you want to block. Check the box for the Record Element you want to block. Then you will have to, either click the Element Value to select a value (see picture 3.1.4), or manually input a Value Element Free value (this step is dependent on which Record Element you want to block).
After setting the value for the Record Element, you will need to define a Lock Reason (see picture 3.1.5).
After defining all the parameters for blocking the batch element click the Confirm button (see picture 3.1.6) to complete the process of blocking a batch element.
Now you have a new blocked batch element for the chosen article on your list (see picture 3.1.7).
Everytime a stock count is performed, for each container that has a blocked batch element, that container is declared as blocked. The container status is automatically updated on the AL164 (Articles Stock Count List) transaction and the AL384 (Articles Stock Count List – with operations running) transaction. When declaring a container (on the AL074 transaction – Articles Declaration List) the container will be generated as a blocked container and a warning message will apear informing you of this.
Modifying a blocked batch element
If for some reason you want o change the settings for a blocked batch element, you can do it by selecting the batch element (Record Element) and clicking on the Change button (see picture 3.2.1).
Now you are able to change the blocked batch element value (Element Value) and the Lock reason for the chosen blocked batch element. You can make the suitable changes and then you can click the Confirm button (see picture 3.2.2).
In picture 3.2.3 you can see the changes made to this blocked batch element on the blocked batch elements list for the article (highlighted line).
Blocked batch elements on warehouse containers
When you block a batch element for an article which is in a warehouse container, all containers that have this blocked batch element become automatically blocked. You can check all the blocked containers for a given blocked batch element: select the batch element (Record Element) and click the Blocked Containers button (see picture 3.3.1).
The following screen displays the blocked containers that have the selected blocked batch element. When you click on the Blocked Containers button you will list the all blocked containers for all warehouses that have the selected blocked batch element. In this particular case this blocked batch element is only present in one warehouse (see picture 3.3.2 – blue arrow).
Blocked batch elements dispatched to stores
You are also able to check if a blocked batch element has already been shipped to a store. Select the blocked batch element and click the Dispatch Containers button (see picture 3.4.1).
In the next screen, for each warehouse, all the blocked batch elements that have been shipped to stores and that contain the selected article are listed. In this particular case, there are four blocked batch elements that have been dispatched to stores and both are from the same warehouse (see picture 3.4.2).
Accessing blocked batch element data
You can access the list of blocked batch elements for an article. You can do this in two ways: from a list of active containers in a warehouse and from a list showing the containers´details.
From a list of active containers in a warehouse
If you want to access the list of blocked batch elements for an article from a list of active containers in a warehouse, you can do it through the AL179 transaction.
Global → Global Application → Application → Warehouse Management → FAQ’s → Which containers are active in warehouse [AL179]
Fill in the fields the suitable search criteria (the Site and the Stock T. fields are mandatory) and list the containers by clicking the List button (see picture 4.1.1).
According to the search criteria used, a list of blocked containers will be displayed for that specific warehouse with a distribution stock type. Select a container and click the Details button (see picture 4.1.2).
You will be redirected to another screen that has all the information about the selected container. Access the container´s batch data: check the box below and click the Batch Record button (see picture 4.1.3).
In the following screen you can see the batch document´s details. From this screen you can access the list of blocked batch elements the chosen article: just click on the Blocked Batch Elements button (see picture 4.1.4).
When you click on the Blocked Batch Elements button you will be redirected to the same list of blocked batch elements that was displayed on chapter 3 (see picture 4.1.5).
The highlighted line corresponds to the blocked batch element for the selected article (see picture 4.1.2).
From container details´ list
You can also access the list of blocked batch elements for an article through the container´s details list. To do this use de AL046 transaction.
Global → Global Application → Application → Warehouse Management → Containers Management → Containers Details (NºCont./Label) [AL046]
Fill in the search fields (the Site field is mandatory) with the appropriate search parameters. Then click on the List button (see picture 4.2.1).
According to the search criteria used, a list of blocked containers will be displayed for that specific warehouse. The remaining procedure is exactly the same as the one described on subchapter 4.1.