News To Use
MM Year-end Presentation Available 04/11/08 The April 9 IRIS Wednesday presentation on Materials Management year-end information is now available for review. This presentation covers year-end requisition/purchase order encumbrances, reporting, purchase requisition status, and check information. View Presentation.
Campus Inventory Management Implementation 05/04/07As part of the Plant Maintenance implementation, the UK Stores operation will undergo several changes. In May the operation will become the UK Supply Center, with a main distribution point at 347 Scott Street and three satellite locations for receiving and delivery of materials purchased by campus departments.
The new center will begin using the Materials Management module and utilizing the strengths of the Inventory Management functionality, following the 2006 MM Inventory implementation in the UK Hospital. By converting its inventory records, the UK Supply Center’s operation will integrate with Plant Maintenance, supplying materials for maintenance, custodial work orders, and projects.
The UK Supply Center staff has been busy building a new online catalog which soon will be available to campus customers. Along with offering the easy-to-use catalog, the center also will develop standard web forms for those units that routinely re-order the same items. While Stores requisition forms also can be used for a short time, plans call for moving away from this ordering method as soon as possible.
Departmental personnel should visit the UK Supply Center web site to learn more about the changes in this operation.
Web Procurement V2.0 Ready for Viewing 03/04/07 Web Procurement V2.0 Release is available now for viewing. Those employees who use web procurement will see new features such as department code, filter options, and print capabilities in V2.0. Functionality for users is expected on March 12.
Users can view a video clip to become familiar with the V2.0 Release.
T Code News 11/13/06
Until now both FK03 and XK03 transactions have allowed MM users to display vendor information. Effective November 14, FK03 will no longer be a valid T code. All end-users will access vendor information with XK03 only.
Most end-users who work with procurement already use XK03. Employees who discover they lack access should ask their supervisors to work with the appropriate business officer on the needed change.
Questions concerning this change can be directed to the MM Team, 323-8689.
Procurement Card Enhancements Nearing Completion 10/31/06 
The Phase Two effort to enhance UK’s procurement card processing is wrapping up, with testing and validation taking place now Users may recall that this enhancement is two-part, that is, includes the creation of Master Data files for card and cardholder data and a web-based application for editing transactions. The developments will translate into more appropriate control of procurement card access and editing.
With Master Data readily available online, end-users will see detailed information about their departmental cards and cardholders, such as the authorized editors, specified limits, and billing address. Information that once was available only on an application form will soon be added to IRIS for easy access.
End-users can anticipate several improvements with the roll-out of the web-based application for procurement card edits. Information (like vendor name, cardholder name, multiple charges/credits) will be consolidated on one screen. Edits of several purchase transactions will be accomplished with a single process. Better controls for posting are on the way, eliminating the possibility of mass deletions or cancellations. Printed output also will be enhanced, with additional details appearing on the documentation.
End-users can expect to hear more about procurement card process improvements soon, as these Phase Two enhancements should be available by late December or early January.
New MM Workflow for Procurement 10/04/06
Beginning October 5, Materials Management will include a new workflow for procurement. This new process will notify the approver when a requisition has been completed. It also will notify the creator of a requisition when each level of approval has been posted to the requisition or when the requisition has been rejected by the approver.
The process starts with an e-mail message to the approver when the requisition has been created. The message prompts the approver to click the attachment. If the user is not already logged on to IRIS, the message will include a log-on prompt. If the approver is already logged on, the requisition will be brought up automatically for review. The user can view system information and complete the approval process. When the attachment is clicked, the document is flagged “in process” in SAP workflow until approvals are saved.
This new workflow provides needed improvements for the MM procurement process. With the e-mail notices, approvers will now know when they have requisitions to approve, resulting in timelier approvals. Creators of requisitions will be notified each time the approval process has been completed. The new workflow improves the ease of use of the system.
View examples of new workflow e-mail communication.
June Preliminary Closing 07/18/06
June Preliminary Closing was completed the evening of July 17. Except for Grants and Capital Projects, corrections will be accepted through 3 p.m., Friday, July 21.
Because the closing was later than expected, Period 13 will not be open for manual corrections. Period 13 will be used only for system-generated adjustments.
Period 12 will continue to be open for processing through 3 p.m., Friday, July 21. All corrections will be made to Period 12. Once activity for Period 12 is completed, the system will go directly to Period 14 for year-end closeout. As a rule, access to the system during Periods 14-16 will be restricted to Office of the Treasurer staff.
To gain a complete picture of a cost object’s activities, users may need to report for activity through Period 16, as there may be adjusting entries made in the periods after Period 12. If an end-user only reports activity through Period 12, adjusting entries may not be included, therefore showing an incomplete picture of the activity for the cost object.
Carry Forward of Encumbrances/Commitments 07/18/06
In SAP, when all types of encumbrances/commitments (POs, requisitions and earmarked funds) are carried forward to the new fiscal year, the encumbrances are liquidated from the old fiscal year and carried forward to the new fiscal year. Note that this is in contrast to FRS processing, wherein encumbrances/commitments were carried forward to the new year, but were not liquidated from the old fiscal year. As a result, FRS encumbrances/commitments could be seen and reported against in the old fiscal year.
As users run the GR55 report or a BW report, encumbrances in the old fiscal year will not be displayed, but will be seen in the new fiscal year. In running a year-to-date report, if Period 12 is selected, the encumbrance will appear. If Period 13 is selected, however, the encumbrance will not be available because it was deleted in Period 13. To determine the encumbrances that were carried forward into the new year, users can drill down into the total encumbrance field from a GR55 report run for the old fiscal year and select the amt type field = 0300. If running for the new fiscal year, then the amt type is 0350. This field can then be sorted to obtain the total carry forward amount for the funds center.
Procurement Card Enhancements 05/25/06
This Phase Two activity includes the creation of Master Data files for card and cardholder data and a web-based application for editing transactions.
With the development of Master Data files, the Procurement Card Administrator will capture and maintain information as part of the application process. Data then can be shared with end-users for reporting and tracking cards within departments.
Web-based editing promises better selection criteria, improved screen layouts, multiple transaction presentation for editing in a single process, and additional details. Users also can anticipate improved controls for transaction posting and additional details for printed documentation.
Completion of the Procard Enhancements is expected this summer.
