SAP ABAP IMG Activity EHS_MD_120_30_1 (Set Up Characteristics)
Hierarchy
☛ EA-APPL (Software Component) SAP Enterprise Extension PLM, SCM, Financials
   ⤷ EHS (Application Component) Environment, Health and Safety
     ⤷ CBIMG1 (Package) EH&S: IMG Migration
IMG Activity
ID EHS_MD_120_30_1 Set Up Characteristics  
Transaction Code S_SH8_72001013   IMG Activity: EHS_MD_120_30_1 
Created on 19990122    
Customizing Attributes EHS_MD_120_30_1   Set Up Characteristics 
Customizing Activity    
Document
Document Class SIMG   Hypertext: Object Class - Class to which a document belongs.
Document Name EHS_MD_120_30_1    

Use

A class can have a maximum of 60 characteristics. This IMG activity describes how you define characteristics for the specified classes. You can describe each characteristic in more detail using the following attributes:

  • Name for characteristic (30 characters max.)
  • Description in logon language (30 characters max.)
  • Description in other languages (30 characters max.)
  • Data type
  • Number of characters

    Note the following when you specify the number of characters for a characteristic:

    • For characteristics to which you want to assign phrases, you must always choose a length of 30 characters. A length of 30 characters is also the maximum length for a characteristic.
    • For characteristics of data type Numeric Format, the Number of characters defines the total number of digits without a sign, decimal point, and dimension data.
  • Exponential representation
    • For characteristics of data type Numeric Format, you can specify whether the data is to be represented as an exponential value. If you specify exponential representation, the value is always displayed as an exponential value.

An exponential entry can have either an exponential or a scientific format. If an exponential entry is made for a characteristic that has no exponential representation, the value is converted to non-exponential form.

  • Decimal places
  • Unit of measurement

    If no units of measurement are specified when assigning values to a characteristic, the system automatically adds the unit of measurement assigned to the characteristic. If a unit of measurement is entered specifically, this is used. You must have specified the unit of measurement and its conversion in Customizing.

  • Negative values permitted
  • Interval values permitted

    For characteristics of data type Numeric Format, you can permit interval values, or in other words, you can assign values to the characteristic by entering an interval:

    • Operator, lower limit - operator, upper limit, unit of measurement, for example: >12.0 - <13.0 °C
    • Operator, value, unit of measurement, for example = 12 °C
      • As operators, >,<,<=,>=,= are allowed. Other operators like approx., max., min. cannot be used and must be represented using an additional characteristic. Operators can be omitted.
  • Permitted values

    For characteristics of data type Numeric Format, you can define permitted values or intervals. However, codes such as water pollution class should be represented using phrases.

  • Classification
    • Monovalent
      • Monovalent characteristics have one specific value. Monovalent characteristics are, for example, numerical values, methods, species, and so on.
    • Polyvalent
      • Polyvalent characteristics can have several values. Polyvalent characteristics are, for example, first aid measures for eyes, storage regulations, and so on.

Remember to define characteristics independently of classes. The unique key is the name. This means that you can create only one METHOD characteristic. For this reason you should begin the name with an abbreviation, for example, BP_METHOD for the method for determining a boiling point. Adhering to certain conventions also helps you to find characteristics easily later.

For more information on defining characteristics, see the application help for the classification system.

Standard Attributes of Value Assignment

The properties for the SAP component Environment, Health and Safety already contain a basic set of attributes. They are automatically available for each property and no longer have to be represented using the classification system. These attributes are:

  • Rating (Valid w/o restrictions, Valid with restrictions, and so on)
  • Sources
  • Origin
  • Entered by
  • Entered on
  • Changed by
  • Changed on
  • User-defined texts with type and language
  • Usages (purpose and region)

For classes, you should not define any characteristics that represent this information.

Multiple Use of Characteristics

In the classification system, you can assign a characteristic to several classes. This means that you can represent semantically similar characteristics that occur in different classes using one single characteristic definition. This process can be compared to the way in which domains are formed.

To define these characteristics, you examine all classes that have already been defined. You generate a list of all characteristics that are semantically similar and that occur in more than one class. Then you generate a list of all characteristics that occur in one class only.

In these classes, you replace those characteristics that occur in more than one class with the new definition.

Example

The following classes are required:

  • Class boiling_point with the characteristics boiling_point_value, boiling_point_method, boiling_point_ambient_pressure
  • Class density with the characteristics density_value, density_method, density_ambient_pressure

Here, you must define the six characteristics boiling_point_value boiling_point_method, boiling_point_ambient_pressure, density_value, density_method, density_ambient_pressure and then assign them to the classes.

The characteristics boiling_point_ambient_pressure and density_ambient_pressure could be grouped together, because they are semantically identical. This would mean that only five characteristics would be necessary. The classes would then look like this:

  • Class boiling_point with the characteristics boiling_point_value, boiling_point_method, ambient_pressure
  • Class density with the characteristics density_value, density_method, ambient_pressure

Standard settings

The standard settings for EH&S characteristics can be found in the IMG section Characteristics. Check these settings.

Activities

  1. In the SAP menu, choose Cross-Application Components -> Classification System -> Master Data Characteristics.
  2. Assign a mnemonic characteristic key and choose Characteristic -> Create. We recommend that you use an English key.
  3. On the Basic data tab page, enter a characteristic description in the logon language.
  4. Specify the data type.
  5. Specify whether the characteristic is to have a single value or multiple values.
  6. Specify whether an entry is a required entry.
  7. On the Descriptions tab page, translate the description if required.
  8. For characteristics to which you want to assign phrases as values, proceed as follows:
    1. On the Values tab page, set the Additional Values indicator.
    2. Choose Other Value Check.
    3. From the strategies proposed, choose Funct. Module and enter the function module C14K_PHRASECHARACT_CHECK. In this way you can assign a phrase set to the characteristic in the Basic Data and Tools component.

      Notes:

  • You can also set up this option of assigning a phrase set to a characteristic at a later time in the system for all characteristics of data type CHAR and of length 30. To do this, from the Basic Data and Tools menu choose Tools -> Match Up Master Data. Then execute the function Match up ValAss type and char..
  • In the system you must assign phrase sets to all characteristics to which you want to assign phrases as values. You can make this assignment in the Basic Data and Tools menu by choosing Phrases -> Edit Phrase Set-to-Attribute Assignments or from the screens for editing phrase sets under Utilities -> Attribute Assignment. To enable the system to display the phrase set when you call the characteristic to which you have assigned a phrase set, you must activate phrasing of characteristics. To do this choose Tools -> Match Up Master Data in the Basic Data and Tools menu. Then choose the function Activate Phrasing of Characteristics.

  1. On the Restrictions tab page, restrict the characteristic to class type 100.

Further notes

For the SAP component EH&S, the above entries are sufficient. If you want to use characteristics with characteristic values that were predefined directly (not phrase-enabled characteristics as described above), you must define these values on the Values tab page.

Note that permitted phrases are defined using the phrase set. A phrase set is assigned to a characteristic as described above.

Object dependencies that allow you to define dependencies between characteristics and characteristic values in the classification system are not supported in the EH&S standard system.

For more information on object dependencies and how to define dependencies for characteristics and characteristic values, see the application help for the Classification System.

Business Attributes
ASAP Roadmap ID 203   Establish Master Data 
Mandatory / Optional 2   Optional activity 
Critical / Non-Critical 1   Critical 
Country-Dependency A   Valid for all countries 
Assigned Application Components
Documentation Object Class Documentation Object Name Current line number Application Component Application Component Name
SIMG EHS_MD_120_30_1 0 HLA0003436 O  
SIMG EHS_MD_120_30_1 1 ALR0000066 O  
SIMG EHS_MD_120_30_1 2 SH10000011 O  
SIMG EHS_MD_120_30_1 3 SH10000012 O  
SIMG EHS_MD_120_30_1 4 SH10000009 O  
SIMG EHS_MD_120_30_1 5 SH10000016 Injury/Illness Log 
SIMG EHS_MD_120_30_1 6 /PLMI/E5C0000032  
Maintenance Objects
Maintenance object type    
History
Last changed by/on SAP  20091006 
SAP Release Created in 46C