Understanding Configurable Item Templates

Setting up new items is a critical implementation task for any supply chain management system. During the item definition process, you want to define default values for many item attributes so that these values can be applied to your business transactions. Users can enter business transactions quickly and efficiently when less input is required. For example, if a particular item (such as aerosol cans) should always be shipped by ground transportation, then the item definition should include the value of Ground for the Ship Via field (item attribute). This default value populates any material stock request, so that the user is saved a data-entry step and does not need to remember this detail about aerosol cans. While it is helpful for your business transactions to have many default values for your item attributes, it can result in a time-consuming item setup process. There are many item attributes for an item ID assigned at both the SetID level and the business unit level. Configurable item templates help streamline the process of adding new items.

Configurable item templates provide a flexible way to assign default values to item attributes when you are setting up new items. The configurable template enables you to decide which attributes are populated, both at the SetID level and at the business unit level. Configurable templates can be used to add items:

• Using the Item Add component to manually add items one at a time.

• Using the Item Loader process to load a batch of new items. To populate the item loader staging tables you can:

  • Use the Item_Sync service operation within the PeopleSoft Integration Broker.

  • Use the IN_MST_ITM_XLS component interface to load a batch of new items from a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.