SAP PP Interview Questions

SAP PP Interview Questions & Answers

Q1. What is SAP PP and its importance?

SAP PP (Production Planning) is a module for planning, execution, and control of manufacturing processes. It ensures that production is aligned with demand, resources are used efficiently, and costs are controlled. It’s vital for reducing lead times, optimizing capacity, and integrating with supply chain processes.

Q2. Main components of SAP PP

• Master Data – BOM, Work Centers, Routings, Production Versions.
• Planning – Demand Management, MRP, Capacity Planning.
• Execution – Production Orders, Shop Floor Control.
• Integration – MM, SD, QM, PM modules.

Q3. Master Data in SAP PP

Includes Material Master (production views), BOMs, Work Centers, Routings, and Production Versions. Master data forms the foundation for planning and execution accuracy.

Q4. What is a Bill of Material (BOM)?

A list of components needed to manufacture a product. Specifies material numbers, quantities, and units of measure. Used in planning, costing, and production.

Q5. What is a Work Center?

A location where production operations are performed. Contains data for capacity planning, scheduling, and cost allocation.

Q6. What is a Routing in SAP PP?

A sequence of operations for manufacturing a product. Defines work centers, standard times, and inspection requirements.

Q7. Types of BOM in SAP PP

• Single-Level BOM
• Multi-Level BOM
• Variant BOM
• Phantom BOM

Q8. What is Production Version?

Links a material with a specific BOM and routing. Determines which version to use for MRP and order creation.

Q9. MRP in SAP PP

Material Requirements Planning calculates material needs, generates procurement proposals, and aligns supply with demand.

Q10. Types of MRP

• PD – Standard MRP
• VB – Reorder Point Planning
• ND – No Planning

Q11. MRP Controllers

Responsible for running MRP and monitoring exceptions. Identified in material master.

Q12. What is Demand Management?

Translates sales forecasts into planned independent requirements (PIRs) for MRP to plan against.

Q13. PIR vs Sales Order

PIR – Forecast-based demand. Sales Order – Actual customer demand. Planning strategy determines consumption rules.

Q14. Discrete vs Process Manufacturing

Discrete – Individual units, flexible routing. Process – Continuous/batch production using recipes.

Q15. What is a Production Order?

An instruction to manufacture a specific quantity of a product, containing BOM, routing, and schedule data.

Q16. Steps in Production Order Processing

1. Create Order
2. Release Order
3. Issue Materials
4. Confirm Operations
5. Receive Finished Goods
6. Settle Costs

Q17. Capacity Planning

Ensures work centers can handle planned loads. Includes capacity leveling.

Q18. Capacity Evaluation

Analyzes workload vs available capacity to identify bottlenecks.

Q19. Backflushing

Automatic goods issue of components at confirmation instead of manual posting.

Q20. Goods Issue vs Goods Receipt in Production

GI – Issue of components to production. GR – Receipt of finished goods into stock.

Q21. Confirmation in Production Orders

Recording operation progress, time, and yield. Can be partial or final.

Q22. Scheduling Types

Backward – Calculates start date from finish date. Forward – Calculates finish date from start date.

Q23. Shop Floor Control

Monitors and controls production orders during execution, including confirmations and progress tracking.

Q24. Order Settlement

Allocates production costs to cost objects like materials or cost centers.

Q25. Repetitive Manufacturing

High-volume, continuous production without discrete orders. Uses rate-based planning.

Q26. Production Planning for Process Industries (PP-PI)

Supports recipe-based production, resources, and process orders.

Q27. Planning Strategies

• Make-to-Stock (MTS)
• Make-to-Order (MTO)
• Engineer-to-Order (ETO)

Q28. Make-to-Stock vs Make-to-Order

MTS – Produce in anticipation of demand. MTO – Produce after receiving customer order.

Q29. Lot Sizing

Determines order quantity for production/procurement. Can be fixed, lot-for-lot, or period-based.

Q30. Lead Time Scheduling

Calculates operation start/finish times based on routing data.

Q31. Production Scheduling Profile

Automates order release, scheduling, and printing.

Q32. Master Production Schedule (MPS)

Focuses on critical materials or finished goods, planned separately from MRP.

Q33. Order Types in SAP PP

Standard Production Orders, Process Orders, Rework Orders, Planned Orders.

Q34. Collective Orders

Links orders for header and components so they are processed together.

Q35. Co-Products and By-Products

Co-products – Jointly produced items of equal importance. By-products – Secondary output with less value.

Q36. Scrap Management

Manages planned/unplanned scrap quantities for costing and planning.

Q37. Production Order Costing

Captures planned and actual production costs for variance analysis.

Q38. Settlement Profile

Defines rules for settling order costs to receivers.

Q39. Variant Configuration

Manages configurable products using characteristics and dependencies.

Q40. Batch Management in PP

Tracks batches for traceability and quality compliance.

Q41. Integration of PP with MM

Links material availability and procurement with production needs.

Q42. Integration of PP with SD

Aligns sales orders with production scheduling.

Q43. Integration of PP with QM

Triggers quality inspections during production processes.

Q44. Process Orders vs Production Orders

Process Orders – Recipe-based, used in PP-PI. Production Orders – Discrete manufacturing with routings.

Q45. Planning Time Fence

Period during which MRP does not automatically change orders to avoid disruptions.

Q46. Long-Term Planning (LTP)

Simulates future demand and capacity for strategic decisions.

Q47. MRP Areas

Subdivides planning responsibility within a plant for specific storage locations or subcontractors.

Q48. Kanban in SAP PP

Visual replenishment system using cards/containers for lean manufacturing.

Q49. Rework Processing

Handles defective items that require additional processing using rework orders.

Q50. Common challenges in SAP PP implementation

• Inaccurate master data
• Poor integration with other modules
• Resistance to process changes
• Capacity and scheduling complexities