Batch Determination for Production: First-Expiry-First-Out at Goods Issue

Business scenario

Process order 1500002 needs 950 L of RM-3100. Batch B-0901 (600 L) expires next month; B-1003 (2,000 L) expires in April.

All companies, numbers and documents are fictional demo data.

Step-by-step flow

1. 01

   The order needs 950 L open in twin

   Order 1500002 needs 950 L of RM-3100. Two batches are in stock: B-0901 (600 L, expires 2026-11-15) and B-1003 (2,000 L, expires 2027-04-30).

   Traceability: which batch went into which product batch.

2. 02

   Which batch first? open in twin

   Batch determination runs. Which batch should it take first?

   Typical rules: expiry date, characteristics (e.g. concentration within spec), quantity proposal.

3. 03

   Old batch expires on the shelf open in twin

   Using B-1003 first leaves 600 L of B-0901 to expire next month — ₹48,000 written off.

   That is why FEFO strategies are configured for shelf-life materials.

4. 04

   Issue by batch (261) open in twin

   B-0901 −600 L (now empty); B-1003 −350 L. ₹76,000 to the order.

   The batch where-used list (MB56 / batch information cockpit) can later trace any product batch back to these inputs.

5. 05

   Traceable consumption open in twin

   Order 1500002 consumed B-0901 and B-1003; the product batch inherits that history.

   Recalls depend on knowing exactly which input batches went where.

SAP documents

Stock impact

Accounting impact

Movement type

• 261GI for order (by batch)Reversal: 262

Chooses the right batches for production automatically — by expiry, quality characteristics or quantity rules — and keeps full batch traceability.

Transactions & Fiori apps

Configuration

• Batch determination procedure and search strategy types

  Configuration dependent

  Selection classes and sort rules (e.g. FEFO) for production.

• Time of batch determination

  Configuration dependent

  At release, at goods issue, or in the warehouse.

Prerequisites

• Material batch-managed
• Batch search strategy for the order type / plant / material
• Shelf-life data on batches

Master data

Batch master and classification

Characteristics like expiry date or concentration used in selection.

Organizational structure

• Plant 1000

Tables

Integration

• MMBatch stock and goods issue per batch.
• QMBatch characteristics from inspections.

Common errors

• “No batch proposed at goods issue”

  Likely causes: No search strategy record; All batches outside the selection criteria; Batches restricted

  Where to look: COB1 strategy records · Batch status and characteristics

Troubleshooting

Something went wrong? Work through these checks in order. They are diagnostic questions, not configuration instructions — confirm changes with your system owner.

1. CHECK 1

   Batch proposal

   • Strategy record exists?
   • Batch characteristics within selection?

Interview questions

• How does batch determination work in production?

  A batch search strategy (maintained per strategy type, e.g. by plant and material) defines selection criteria from batch classification and a sort rule such as first-expiry-first-out. At the configured point (release or goods issue) SAP proposes batches and quantities; the 261 posts one item per batch, which keeps traceability.

Quiz

Related processes

• 101 · 201Split Valuation
• 261 · 101Process Order

References

• SAP SE — SAP Help Portal: Batch Determination in Production (source)
• SAP SE — SAP Help Portal: Batch Management (source)

Explanations are original. They summarize standard behaviour; always validate against your system's release and configuration.

Version history