A work centre represents where production work happens. Every routing operation is assigned to one.
Three roles in one master
| Role | What it defines | What it affects |
|---|---|---|
| Capacity | How many hours are available per day | Capacity planning and load |
| Scheduling | How operation duration is calculated | Operation start and finish dates |
| Costing | Which cost centre and activity types are used | Conversion cost |
Basic data
| Category | Use |
|---|---|
| 0001 | Machine — the PP standard |
| 0006 | Resource for process manufacturing |
| 0007 | Quality management |
| 0005 | Plant maintenance |
The standard value key is a critical field: it determines which kinds of time — setup, machine, labour — the routing asks for.
Defining capacity
| Field | Content |
|---|---|
| Capacity category | Machine, labour and so on |
| Start and finish | The daily operating window |
| Breaks | Time deducted |
| Utilisation rate | The usable percentage |
| Number of individual capacities | How many can run in parallel |
| Factory calendar | Working days |
| Relevant to capacity planning | Whether requirements are generated at all |
A work centre can carry several capacities, expressing constraints such as three machines but only two operators.
Scheduling formulas
Setup = SAP_08 (standard value 1, as entered)
Machine = SAP_09 (standard value 2 x quantity / base quantity)
Labour = SAP_10 (standard value 3 x quantity / base quantity)Setup is fixed while processing scales with quantity, and the formulas express that. The standard formulas cover most needs; custom ones can be defined where they do not.
The costing link
| Field | Content |
|---|---|
| Cost centre | The cost centre the work centre belongs to |
| Activity type | Mapped to each standard value |
| Costing formula | How time is calculated for costing |
Standard value 1 might map to a setup activity type and standard value 2 to machine time. When confirmations record actual time, cost moves from the cost centre to the order on that basis.
Hierarchies
Work centres can be arranged hierarchically, with individual machines beneath a line, so that load can be reviewed in aggregate and then investigated at the level below.