Communication Hub

Communication Hub (Operator messaging) is available with PreBilt for EWM versions 4.11 and newer. It enables two way communication between the warehouse office and PreBilt operators as well as operator to operator messaging with PreBilt.

Number Range Intervals

Number range intervals must be defined in every client for each applicable warehouse

To specify these navigate to transaction SNRO > Object “/TCTM/EOM” > Display > Go To > Interval Editing (F7)

Specify range from 0000000001 to 9999999999. For example:

Number Range Interval Setting

Warehouse Monitor Configuration

Create the following entries in SPRO > SCWM Extended Warehouse Management > Extended Warehouse Management > Monitoring > Warehouse Management Monitor > Define Nodes > Define Object Classes.

Obj. Class	Text	Presentation Text
ZOMMSG	Messages	Messages
ZOMPAR	Response Parameters	Response Params
ZOMRCV	Message Receivers	Receivers

Create the following entry in SPRO > SCWM Extended Warehouse Management > Extended Warehouse Management > Monitoring > Warehouse Management Monitor > Define Nodes > Define Categories.

Category	Text	Presentation Text
ZOPMSG	Messaging	Messaging

Create the following entries in SPRO > SCWM Extended Warehouse Management > Extended Warehouse Management > Monitoring > Warehouse Management Monitor > Define Nodes > Define Node Profiles.

Note

Not all columns displayed in below, any column not displayed does not need any value.

Node Prof.	Object Class	List Table Type	List Funct. Module	Text	Presentation Text	Disable	Visibility
ZPOMN001	ZOMMSG	/TCTM/EWM_TT_OM_MON_MSGS	/TCTM/EWM_SRV_OM_MON_MSG	Messages	Messages		Always Visible
ZPOMN002	ZOMRCV	/TCTM/EWM_TT_OM_MON_MSGR	/TCTM/EWM_SRV_OM_MON_RCV	Recipients	Recipients	X	Always Visible
ZPOMN003	ZOMPAR	/TCTM/EWM_TT_OM_MON_MSGP	/TCTM/EWM_SRV_OM_MON_PARAM	Possible Answers	Poss. Answers	X	Always Visible

Create the following entries in SPRO > SCWM Extended Warehouse Management > Extended Warehouse Management > Monitoring > Warehouse Management Monitor > Define Nodes > Define Nodes.

Node	Category	Node Prof.	Text	Presentation Text
ZOM000001	ZOPMSG		Operator Messaging	Messaging
ZOM000002		ZPOMN001	Messages	Messages
ZOM000003		ZPOMN002	Recipients	Recipients
ZOM000004		ZPOMN003	Possible Answers	Poss. Answers

Create the following entries in SPRO > SCWM Extended Warehouse Management > Extended Warehouse Management > Monitoring > Warehouse Management Monitor > Define Object Class Methods > Define Methods.

Obj. Class	Method	Method Funct. Module	Method Icon	Auto Refresh	Visibility	Text	Presentation Text	Pushb. Text
ZOMMSG	ADD_MS	/TCTM/EWM_SRV_OM_MON_ADD	@17@	X	Always Visible	Create Message	Create	Create
ZOMMSG	REM_MS	/TCTM/EWM_SRV_OM_MON_DEL	@18@	X	Always Visible	Remove Message	Remove	Remove

Create the following entries (for the required warehouse/monitor combinations) in SPRO > SCWM Extended Warehouse Management > Extended Warehouse Management > Monitoring > Warehouse Management Monitor > Define Object Class Methods > Define Methods Presentation.

Object Class	Sequence	Method	Text	Dialog	Mthd Pres.
ZOMMSG	1	ADD_MS	Create Message		0 Normal pushbutton with icon
ZOMMSG	2	REM_MS	Remove Message		0 Normal pushbutton with icon

Create the following entries (for the required warehouse/monitor combinations) in SPRO > SCWM Extended Warehouse Management > Extended Warehouse Management > Monitoring > Warehouse Management Monitor > Define Monitors > Define Node Hierarchy.

Higher Node	Lower Node	Sequence	Higher Node	Hide PB
ZOM000001	ZOM000002	1
ZOM000002	ZOM000003	1
ZOM000002	ZOM000004	2

Add the newly created nodes to the Monitor Tree with T Code /SCWM/MON_MAINT.

Open relevant monitor(s) on right side of the screen.

Display all monitor nodes on left side of the screen (Node Pool > Display All Nodes).

Open Customer Nodes, drag and drop ZOM000001 from the left side of the screen to the highest level of the monitor on the right hand side of the screen.

Drag and drop ZOM000002 onto the newly created Messaging node.

Place the highest level Messaging node to a suitable position in the Monitor tree (under Resource Management suggested) – this is open to customer preference. The result should look something like the example below.

Define Messaging in Warehouse Monitor Tree

Operator Groups - /TCTM/EWM-OPGRP

Users to be grouped into Operator Groups for the purpose of sending messages. These could be shift groups or supervisor/manager groups.

They can be used in the following contexts:

• Assigned as a receiver when sending a message from the Warehouse Monitor.

• Assigned as a receiver within a messaging type. This applies for operator to operator messages.

Operator Groups are defined at the warehouse level, and the “members” assigned are SAP users. For example:

Define Operator Group and Members

Operator Messaging Customising - /TCTM/EWM_OMCUST

To define message master data for sending messages from mobile devices, the field types, field parameters and receiver types must be defined. Below is the recommended configuration to apply on installation. Unless there are specific customer requirement enhancements, these should not be changed.

Field Types	Field Parameter Type
CHECKBOX	N/A
COMBOBOX	COMBOBOX_ITEM
RADIOBUTTON	RADIO_BTN_ITEM
SELECT	SELECT_ITEM
TEXTAREA	N/A

Field Type and Field Type Parameter details:

• CHECKBOX - Checkbox field.

• COMBOBOX - A drop down box that also has the ability to directly key / input values with a keyboard or scanner. Drop down values defined with Field Parameter Type “COMBOBOX_ITEM”.

• RADIOBUTTON - Single selection from a predefined set of options. All options presented to user instead of accessing via drop down. Radio button values defined with Field Parameter Type “RADIO_BTN_ITEM”.

• SELECT - A drop down box where only a predefined set of options can be selected (as opposed to “COMBOBOX” where values can be input manually. Drop down values defined with Field Parameter Type “SELECT_ITEM”.

• TEXTAREA - Text box where operators can input free text.

Receiver types can be defined by warehouse. There is a single receiver type, “null”, for PreBilt user (Figure 102). This framework is in place to enable additional receiver types in future releases.

Define Receiver Type

Operator Messaging Data - /TCTM/EWM_OMCFG

Messaging types are defined to control the content of messages sent from mobile devices.

Define Messaging Type

The Message Type Description is displayed in the first drop down after selecting the message icon and New Message in PreBilt.

New Message icon

Message Type Drop Down

The ‘Importance’ selection influences the icon displayed when messages are viewed within PreBilt. In the example below, a message designated as ’Important’ will display with an orange “X” icon in PreBilt.

‘Important’ message example

Full importance-icon determination is:

Importance	App Icon
General
Warning
Question
Information
Important

Receivers must be defined in the standalone dialog structure prior to their assignment to a messaging type. Receivers (Operator Messaging – Receiver) can either be SAP users or Operator Groups. If an Operator Group is added as a receiver, determination for the Operator Group will happen automatically and any messages will be received by all members of that Operator Group.

• “Type” will be used for additional receiver types in a future release.

• “… Receiver Data” is a description field.

Define Receivers

Receivers defined in the standalone dialog structure can then be assigned to messaging types. This influences the distribution of operator to operator messaging. When sending messages from the warehouse monitor, the receivers must be assigned. If a message is not intended for operator to operator messaging, a non RF user should be specified.

Assign Receiver to Messaging Type

In the Fields master data:

• Field Name acts as the key field

• Sequence is the sort order ascending as displayed in the app

• Field Type is the field type / input type

• Field Description is displayed as the field header in the app

An example of the master data setup and corresponding app display is demonstrated below.

Fields definition

Fields definition in app example

For Field Parameters:

• The Field Parameter Type and Param Seq act as key fields.

• The Param Sequence is the sort order ascending as displayed in the app.

• The Translatable Field Parameter Value is displayed as the description in the app.

The corresponding Field Parameter setup for the above app screenshot is displayed below as an example.

Messaging Type – Fields – Parameters definition

Note

For checkboxes, no field parameters are required, each required Checkbox should have its own “Fields” entry. An app screenshot example is displayed below for the corresponding Field display setup at the top of this section.

Checkbox in app example

Operator Messaging Execution - Warehouse Monitor

Operator Messaging within the Warehouse Monitor is accessed through its own node, “Messages”. Navigation & user experience is consistent with standard Warehouse Monitor features, with a selection screen, the ability to set selection and display variants etc.

Operator messaging settings

For sending messages to operators from the Warehouse Monitor, the following features are worth highlighting:

• The “Message Sender” will default to the user logged in but can be overridden with free text.

• Message Importance influences the icon displayed next to the message on an operator's mobile device as in the below table:

Importance	App Icon
General
Warning
Question
Information
Important

• If a response required is checked, Answer editable (by mobile device user) and Answers become available as input options.

• For receivers, SAP Users as well as Operator Groups defined in /TCTM/EWM_OPGRP can be specified. If an Operator Group is used, this will automatically be identified and the message will be sent to all associated members.

Send message dialog window – Warehouse Monitor

For sent messages, the Recipients button will display read receipt and response data (where applicable) by user.

Sent message recipient data – warehouse monitor

Operator Messaging Execution - Mobile Devices

If a message is received from the Warehouse Monitor, a red notification icon will appear next to the message icon (highlighted below). Note, operator to operator messages will not trigger a notification to minimise disruption.

In app messaging icon

When the operator receives a message from a desktop user requiring a response, if there are two options, these will display as radio buttons. If more than two response options, these will display as a drop down list. The tick box icon highlighted below must be pressed to confirm the response.

Confirming message response

When confirmed, the reply inputs will be grayed out. If the message from the monitor was sent with Answer editable checked, a pencil icon will appear where the operator can modify their response.

In app confirmed message response & edit icon

For operators to send messages, the Message Type option can be selected in New Messages. Details can then be input in accordance with the Operator Message Master Data setup (/TCTM/EWM_OMCFG). The receivers defined in the Master Data setup only influences the receipt of messages between operators. All message data is visible for desktop users in the Warehouse Monitor.

New message in app example

In the example above, when the operator presses submit a confirmation pop up appears on screen and sent messages are displayed in message history.

In app message sent confirmation

In app message history