Preparing Inventory Data

Overview

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 1 of 26 Rev 1
Preparing Inventory Data
System References
None

Distribution
Job Title*

Oracle Configurator

Oracle Configurator Developer

Ownership
The Job Title [list@YourCompany.com?Subject=354689162.doc] is responsible for ensuring that
this document is necessary and that it reflects actual practice.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 2 of 26 Rev 1
Preparing Inventory Data

Schedule: Timing Topic

11 minutes Lecture
19 minutes Practice - Creating Inventory Item Records
30 minutes Total
Script
This course topic presents creating Inventory Items in the database instance that will serve as
the source for the import into the CZ schema. Before proceeding with this topic, be sure you
have reviewed the course topic About Configurator Data.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 3 of 26 Rev 1
Implementation Flow: Prepare Data

Script
The steps in the flow of an Oracle Configurator implementation begin after preparing and
importing the data into the CZ schema that you want to make available for configuration.Some
implementations do not involve data import, but most do. Commonly, the imported data is
Oracle Inventory items and Bills of Material (BOM) Models.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 4 of 26 Rev 1
Objectives

Script
After completing this topic, you should be able to:
Describe the types of data that can be imported into the CZ schema
List Inventory Item attributes relevant to Oracle Configurator
Explain the relationship between an Inventory Items descriptive elements and the Item in
Oracle Configurator Developer (OCD) after import, and
List the types of BOM Models that can be imported

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 5 of 26 Rev 1
Why Prepare Data for Import?

Script
Before you import data into the CZ schema, the data must be defined so that it can be accessed
as part of a configurable item and ordered as part of a configured item.
Any configuration model data that is not created in Oracle Configurator Developer must be
imported into the CZ schema.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 6 of 26 Rev 1
Types of Imported Data

Script
The following can be imported into the CZ schema by using the Populate Configuration
Models concurrent program:
Bills of Material for ATO Models and PTO Models, which are called collectively referred
to as simply BOM Models,
Bills of Material for Option Classes that appear within BOM Model structure,
Oracle Inventory Items within BOM Models and Option Classes,
Inventory Item Catalogs, Descriptive Elements, and Descriptive Element Values assigned
to imported Inventory Items,
And Legacy data, such as rules that are not created in Configurator Developer
Imported BOM data usually includes the root BOM Model and all of its optional components,
which may include other BOM Models, BOM Option Classes, and BOM Standard Items.
Implicit rules are carried over to Oracle Configurator Developer when a BOM is imported.
Oracle Configurator takes these rules into consideration when generating Model logic and
Configurator enforces these rules at runtime to ensure orders are valid and complete.
Customer data (for example, pricing data) is accessed at runtime from the host application.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 7 of 26 Rev 1
 Oracle Configurator is fully integrated with the Oracle E-Business Suite and is installed on the
same database as other installed Oracle Applications products. Importing Inventory and BOM
data simply refers to the process of copying data into the Oracle Configurator database tables
so it is accessible by both Oracle Configurator Developer and the runtime Oracle Configurator.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 8 of 26 Rev 1
Oracle Inventory Items

Script
Items are created in the Oracle Inventory Item Master and enabled in Inventory Organizations.
Item attribute settings determine whether the Item can participate in configurations.
These Items are imported into the CZ schema as read-only data for access by Configurator
Developer and the runtime Oracle Configurator.
The Oracle Inventory Item Master is different from the Oracle Configurator Item Master.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 9 of 26 Rev 1
Inventory Organizations

Script
When a BOM Model is imported into the CZ schema, the imported Items must be enabled in
the Inventory Organization that the host application references on the order line. Otherwise, the
Item cannot be retrieved and placed on the order line.
Items are defined in the Item Master Organization and then enabled in Inventory Organizations
by selecting the Assigned check box for the appropriate Inventory Organizations that are listed
in the Organization Assignment window.
Assigning an Item to an Organization is important to configurations because PTO and ATO
BOM Models are assigned Inventory Item IDs in Oracle Inventory. Configurator uses these
Item IDs to locate and run the correct Model and UI.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 10 of 26 Rev 1
Item Attributes

Script
Item attributes are information about an Item such as unit of measure. All Items are originally
defined in the Oracle Inventory Item Master.
Item attributes maintained at the Master level have identical values across all Inventory
Organizations
Item attributes maintained at the Organization level can have different values in each
Organization that results in a decentralized control over the attribute.
If you have an Item attribute defined at the Organization level and then change it to the Master
level, then the Organization setting is not forced to conform to the Master setting. The setting is
frozen at the Organization level. This results in a different attribute setting. For example: Org 1
unit of measure is quart, Org 2 unit of measure is liter. The unit of measure attribute control is
then changed to the Master level where the unit of measure is gallon. Org 1 is frozen at quart,
Org 2 is frozen at liter and new Org 3s unit of measure is gallon.
Each level of an Item attribute is specified in the Item Attributes Control window:
(N) Inventory > Setup > Items > Attribute Controls
The Display Attributes box on the Master Item window enables you to highlight attributes
maintained at the specified level.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 11 of 26 Rev 1
 (N) Inventory > Items > Master Items

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 12 of 26 Rev 1
Inventory and Order Management Attribute Settings for
Configurable Inventory Items

Script
When defining an Inventory Item that you want to be configurable, the following attributes
must be set:
On the Inventory tab select Inventory Item.
On the Order Management tab select Customer Ordered, select either Pick Components (PTO)
or Assemble to Order (ATO), and select OE Transactable. Optional selections are Check ATP
and ATP Components.
Oracle Inventory provides several Item templates, or you can create your own. Templates are
used to set a large number of Item attributes in the same way for similar products.
For example, all purchased items should have certain flags, such as Inventory Item, and
Purchasable set to Yes. Applying the Purchased Item template results in the setting of these
flags, as well as several other Item attributes being set appropriately for a purchased Item.
The User Item Type field is set to the name of the last template applied, such as Purchased
Item. If later another template is applied, the User Item Type field is overwritten with the
name of the subsequent template.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 13 of 26 Rev 1
 To apply a template, use the Manufacturing and Distribution Manager responsibility to
navigate to the Copy From window. (N) Inventory > Items > Master Items (M) Tools > Copy
From > (LOV) Template > (B) Apply (B) Done.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 14 of 26 Rev 1
Bills of Material Attribute Settings for Configurable Inventory Items

Script
When defining an Inventory Item that you want to be configurable, the following attributes
must be set in the Master Item window:
On the Bills of Material tab, BOM Allowed must be set to Yes if you want to create a top-level
bill of material for the Item. This also allows you to create a routing for the Item. The BOM
Allowed field should also be set to Yes for each Item that will be a component within the
BOM.
BOM Item Type is an item classification that determines the Items you can use as components
in a bill of material. The top-level or root Item must have a BOM Item Type of Model. The
BOM Item Type of the Items that will be components in the bill of material can be Model,
Option Class, or Standard.
Set the Configurator Model Type setting to either Standard or Container. For most configurable
BOM Models, Standard is appropriate. The Container setting is explained in more detail later
in this topic.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 15 of 26 Rev 1
Models that Support Reconfiguration of Installed Configurations

Script:
Some Models support reconfiguration of installed configurations. In other words, an Oracle
Configurator end user can make changes to, or partially reconfigure, an existing configuration.
Typical reconfiguration actions include moving, adding, changing, or disconnecting options.
This functionality is part of Oracles Telecommunications Service Ordering (TSO) solution,
and is supported by Oracle Configurators integration with Oracle Installed Base, Oracle
Quoting, and Oracle Order Management.
This integration, along with the ability to connect and disconnect components, enables a
customer to dynamically configure and continuously upgrade customer services and
equipment. For example, telecommunications companies need to be able to upgrade
telecommunication services, such as networks.
For details about Connectivity, refer to the course topic Connectivity and Network Models.
For more information about TSO, refer to the Oracle Telecommunications Service Ordering
Process Guide.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 16 of 26 Rev 1
Models that Support Reconfiguration of Installed Configurations

Script:
To support reconfiguration of an installed configuration:
The parent BOM Model must be a PTO Model (select Pick Components in the Order
Management tab of the Master Items window)
The parent BOM Model must be a Container Model (set Configurator Model Type to
Container in the Bills of Material tab of the Master Items window)
All BOM items within the Container Model that are to be tracked in Oracle Installed Base
must be marked as trackable (select Track in Installed Base in the Service tab of the
Master Items window). The BOM Model itself should not be marked as trackable.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 17 of 26 Rev 1
Task: Creating an Item in Oracle Inventory

Script
To create an Item in Oracle Inventory:
1, Navigate to Oracle Inventory Master Items window
2. Select the appropriate Organization
3. Enter a unique item identifier in the Item field
4. Enter text in the Description field

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 18 of 26 Rev 1
Task: Creating an Item in Oracle Inventory

Script
To create an Item in Oracle Inventory:
5. On the Inventory tab:
a. Select the Inventory Item check box
b. Select any other appropriate fields
6. On the Bills of Material tab:
a. Select BOM Allowed
b. Select Model from the list of values for the BOM Item Type field
c. Select Standard or Container for the Configurator Model Type.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 19 of 26 Rev 1
Task: Creating an Item in Oracle Inventory

Script
7. On the Order Management tab:
a. Select Customer Ordered
b. Select either Pick Components or Assemble to Order
c. Select OE Transactable
d. Optionally, select Check ATP and ATP Components
8. If the Item is a child of a Container Model, then select Track in Installed Base on the
Service tab.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 20 of 26 Rev 1
Oracle Inventory Item Catalogs

Script
An Inventory Item Catalog Group consists of a named list of Descriptive Elements.
Oracle Inventory Item Catalog Group data includes:
Catalog Group Name
Descriptive Elements, and
Descriptive Element Values
One Inventory Item Catalog can be assigned to a group of Inventory Items that have similar
descriptive elements. If you plan to use Populators to quickly create Models or Feature Options
in Configurator Developer, you should create a unique Catalog Group for each Option Class.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 21 of 26 Rev 1
Item Catalog Descriptive Elements

Script
Descriptive Elements are used to define characteristics of Items. Examples of Descriptive
Elements include color, shape, length, style, and so on. They also can provide language
translations for Item Descriptions.
Descriptive Elements are imported into the CZ schema as Properties. Property Data Types are
either Text or Numeric.
Configurator uses Catalogs, but not Categories. Categories are distinguished from Catalogs in
that Categories can be used to limit the range of items included in processes or appearing on
reports. Refer to the Oracle Inventory Users Guide for information about defining Categories
and Catalog Sets.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 22 of 26 Rev 1
Imported Oracle Inventory Item Data Mapped in Configurator
Developer

Script
Each imported Inventory Items Descriptive Element is mapped to an Item Property in
Configurator Developer. For example: Inventorys Item Catalog Name maps to Configurators
Item Type. Inventorys Descriptive Element maps to Configurators Item Property, and
Inventorys Descriptive Element Value maps to Configurators Item Property Value.
You can use Item Properties when you create configuration rules.
Descriptive Elements are maintained in Oracle Inventory and are alphanumeric strings.
Configurator tries to deduce the correct type (text or number) by using the ResolveDataType
setting in the CZ_DB_SETTINGS table. This setting is used to determine whether the
Descriptive Element Value is evaluated as text or as a number.
You can update rules and Item Properties by re-importing (refreshing) the data.

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 23 of 26 Rev 1
Task: Creating an Item Catalog Group

Script
To create an Item Catalog Group:
1. Navigate to Catalog Groups window: (N)Inventory > Items > Catalog Groups
2. Click Create New Record
3. Fill in the Name and Description fields
4. Click the Save

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 24 of 26 Rev 1
Task: Creating an Item in a Catalog Group

Script
To create an Item in a Catalog Group:
1. Navigate to Catalog Groups window: (N) Inventory > Items > Catalog Groups
2. Click a Catalog Group
3. Fill in the fields
4. Click the Save

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 25 of 26 Rev 1
Summary

Script
In this topic, you should have learned how to:
Create Inventory Items and BOM Models so that they can be imported into the CZ schema
Define a Model that supports reconfiguration of installed configurations
Prepare Inventory Item Catalogs, Descriptive Elements, and their Values for import as
Item Types, Properties, and Values in Configurator Developer
Refer to Practice - Creating Inventory Item Records [LAB3CE5Y]

Copyright Oracle, 2007. All rights reserved.

Preparing Inventory Data 354689162.doc

Effective mm/dd/yy Page 26 of 26 Rev 1