• Optimized production integration (goods receipt from production as well as provision and consumption - thus also goods issue process)
• EWM-MFS warehouse automation (multiple depth storage, interface expansions, improved monitoring)
• Integration of quality management (preliminary inspection in production, recurring inspections, acceptance sample inspection and goods receipt control, e.g. based on ERP quality info records)
• Dock Appointment Scheduling optimizations, workload planning, and minor general feature enhancements

SAP EWM and SAP TM continue to grow together. After the integration basis for SAP EWM and SAP TM was created in Release 9.0 with the common SCE platform, Release 9.1 now enables the next step for the interaction of warehouse and transport logistics.

In Release 9.0, SAP ERP still served as the interface between the two systems for integration. In 9.1, full integration is now guaranteed by means of a direct interface between SAP EWM and SAP TM. Dock Appointment Scheduling (DAS) is a completely new functionality in the EWM toolbox. It offers the possibility of dock occupancy planning of transport units or trucks or other vehicles. Another new feature is the Shipping Cockpit. With the Shipping Monitor, which is based on the Warehouse Management Monitor, transport units can be clearly planned, monitored and also controlled within the goods issue processes. Within the Shipping Cockpit, extensive possibilities are provided to further optimize the shipping process. With Labor Demand Planning, a new function has been added to Labor Management. Labor demand planning (ABP) is used, for example, to plan and graphically illustrate the workload of picking and packing processes.

With Release 9.0, SAP is unifying its three most important systems for operational logistics - Extended Warehouse Management (EWM), Transportation Management (TM), and Event Management (EM) - on a common system platform, SAP Supply Chain Execution (SCE).

In addition to integration with TM and EM, EWM 9.0 offers a range of new functionalities: For the problem of changing quantities in delivered packaging, EWM 9.0 offers a solution in the standard system with the stock-specific units of measure, which in future will considerably simplify the goods issue processes with different packaging units. In the integration with Business Objects, EWM 9.0 creates new, clear controlling and monitoring functionalities with the Dashboard for Warehouse Performance. 15 top key figures for warehouse logistics (Warehouse KPIs) are already included in the package. Based on radio frequency technology, EWM 9.0 includes pick-by-voice integration as standard. Dock Appointment Scheduling ensures that the gates in the yard are planned on schedule.

Release 7.02 is characterized by the replacement of the old SAP LES. Migration tools for the transfer of master data and processes from SAP LES and the Rapid Deployment Solution (RDS) are intended to enable a quick entry and transition to SAP EWM.

In addition to other new functionalities in various areas, such as Crystal Reports, warehouse order printing, and replenishment, packaging planning is a particular highlight. Based on quantity, volume and weight data, the planning of shipping HUs and thus the entire packaging process can be optimized.

Release 7.01 contains enhancements in the area of material flow system (MFS). On the performance side, the response times of telegram exchange have been improved, and functionally, the requirements for controlling container conveyor technology are now also covered.

In view of the close integration between warehouse and transport processes, 7.01 now also offers integration with SAP ERP Transport (LE-TRA). Furthermore, returns management provides new processes for handling return deliveries.

In Release 7.0, SAP closes the process gap in production supply that existed until then. The Cross Docking process area is extended to include opportunistic Cross Docking and Merchandise Distribution Cross Docking.

The scope of resource management is expanded with new features such as Execution Constraint Management, semi-system guided work and duplication. With the graphical warehouse layout a further step in the area of monitoring is made.

The release SAP EWM 5.1 is another important milestone in the history of SAP Warehouse Logistics. With the new component Material Flow System (MFS), EWM now has a fully integrated material flow computer and thus obviously stands out from the old LES.

With the Work Management EWM gets another brand new component for the evaluation and planning of warehouse activities. In addition, further integrative functionalities such as batch management, serial number management, packing specifications and quality management are made available. Other new process design options include catch weight management, GR optimisation and kit-to-stock. Monitoring is enhanced with clear elements using the graphically created Warehouse Cockpit.

SAP EWM 5.0 is already in the ramp-up process. With a new system philosophy, the first release 5.0 will be equipped with old familiar and new processes and functionalities on a completely new system basis and document structure.

Most of the organizational units have been transferred from SAP LES and new organizational units have been added. The individual organizational units are now fully integrated in their functions and dependencies to each other. Special emphasis is placed on the integration of functions that are not optimally integrated in the LES, such as multi-level movements, mobile data entry, handling unit management, yard management, picking waves etc. Many new processes, such as deconsolidation, kit-to-order, warehouse reorganization, slotting, and the Warehouse Management Monitor as a central monitoring instrument round off Release 5.0.

The last significant development in LES will be delivered in 2006 in Release ECC 6.0.

It allows partial goods receipts with decentralized processing.

The Extension Set 2.00 of Release 4.7 contains further submodules that dock to the core components of the LES.

The submodule "Direct Store Delivery Backend" supports the direct supply of retailer stores by the manufacturer and thus represents an addition to the transportation component (LE-TRA). A further sub-module is Yard Management, which docks to the warehouse number with processes and functions for controlling the trucks on the factory premises. Here too, the integration with the warehouse processes is rather rudimentary.

With Release 4.7 Extension Set 1.10, a new submodule has been added to the LES. The so-called Task and Resource Management (TRM) is a very controversial functionality.

Designed primarily to enable the mapping of multi-level movements, it docks with its own system document "Task" below the transfer order logic and unnecessarily creates an additional system level for processing warehouse movements. In some projects it is used as a basis for the development of material flow functionalities. As a material flow system, however, the submodule proves to be very programming intensive, not only because of the lack of integration. It also has no standard interface to programmable logic controllers (PLC).

While Release 4.5 was characterized by a consolidation of the logistic functionalities, Release 4.6 introduces new important functional blocks into LES. With the submodule Radio Frequency (RF), SAP provides transactions for mobile data entry.

In practice, this submodule proves to be a very rigid construct. When implementing customer-specific requirements, it is often necessary to resort to unconventional methods in order to avoid modifications. With the integration to the so-called Handling Unit Management it is now possible to implement load carrier controlled logistics. As a supplement to storage unit management, the handling unit information is also managed beyond the warehouse boundaries. A disadvantage is that consistent handling unit management with LES has an effect on both LES-internal and adjacent ERP processes. In addition to new packaging processes, further auxiliary processes increase the booking effort and the complexity of the booking processes in the system.

With Release 4.5, the Logistics Execution (LE) is born as a separate module. The existing MM component WM, together with the existing SD components Shipment (SHP) and Transportation (TRA), now form a joint logistics solution consisting of Warehouse Management (LE-WM), Shipping (LE-SHP) and Transportation (LE-TRA).

We speak of LES (Logistics Execution System) when LE is implemented as a decentralized solution. LES is now often used synonymously with LE or WM.

SAP recognizes that a warehouse also has openings to the outside world. In Release 4.0, there are new organizational units with door and staging area, which aim to integrate transportation. However, the practical relevance of integration is low.

Another organizational unit is the picking area as a counterpart to the storage area. The warehouse activity monitor is implemented as the central monitoring instrument. With the help of the rough workload forecast, workload planning is to be supported. The demands on material flow relationships are increasing. With the new 2-step confirmation, the transfer order logic now offers the possibility to map two-step movements by the system. Due to the system-technical dependency of the transfer order logic on the storage type, WM reaches its first limits for mapping multi-level movements. In order to improve the bundling of outbound delivery items, picking waves with initial rudimentary functionalities are being implemented.

As of Release 3.0, additional integrative functionalities will be incorporated into WM. With the organizational unit Production Supply Area (PSA) and the so-called control cycles, processes for production supply are created and integration with Production Planning (PP) is established.

Quality Management is integrated by linking inspection lot processing with the corresponding stock transfer postings. The integration of storage classes and water hazard classes from the Environment, Health and Safety (EH&S) module in the putaway process provides hazardous materials management functions. Shelf life expiration dates (MHD) are implemented for testing and managing perishable materials. Furthermore, WM can be operated decentrally on a separate hardware instance for the first time.

The first functionalities for warehouse logistics already existed in the SAP R/2 environment, some of which were transferred to SAP R/3. Under the term Warehouse Management (WM), the warehouse processes were summarized as a component of Material Management (MM) in Release 2.0. At this time, the now familiar terms for the SAP warehouse structure were coined.

The organizational units warehouse number, storage type, storage section and storage bin have been established until today and made it into SAP EWM. An elementary component for mapping material flows is the transfer order logic. The transfer order is the central document for (single-level) movements in the warehouse. Over the years, the system concept of transfer order management in particular has proven to be too rigid for the increasingly complex material flow relationships in the warehouse. With the help of storage unit management, stocks on load carriers can be managed and transferred in the warehouse. The common inventory procedures are also part of the functional scope. In this release, WM only has an integration with Inventory Management (MM-IM) and the Sales and Distribution (SD-SHP) module. In addition, batch management is integrated into warehouse processing.