SAP (ERP software)

SAP (Systems, Applications and Products in Data Processing) is an enterprise resource planning (ERP) software that enables large and medium-sized enterprises to manage all their business processes through a single shared database. Developed by the German company SAP SE, it has been in use since the 1970s and is one of the most widely adopted ERP solutions. Centralized management of corporate processes through a unified database provides businesses with significant advantages including real-time information flow, efficient resource utilization, and improved strategic decision-making.

SAP integrates multiple departments such as finance, human resources, production, logistics, sales and procurement, enabling processes to be executed transparently, quickly and efficiently. This integration reduces data loss, duplicate entries and errors, while elevating corporate management to an end-to-end digital structure.

Architecture and Components

SAP is developed in a modular structure. All modules operate on a common database, facilitating integration between different business units. Users access the system through transaction codes (Transaction Code – T-Code), which simplifies data sharing across departments.

Core Modules

Finance (FI)

Manages financial accounting processes including revenue and expense recording, balance sheet preparation and financial reporting.

Cost Control (CO)

Used for cost accounting, budget management and profitability analysis.

Materials Management (MM)

Handles procurement processes, inventory control and materials requirement planning.

Sales and Distribution (SD)

Manages customer relationships, order entry, quotation preparation, invoicing and shipping processes.

Production Planning (PP)

Enables the creation of production plans, determination of material requirements and monitoring of production processes.

Human Capital Management (HCM)

Used for managing employee records, payroll processing, leave administration and organizational structure.

Quality Management (QM)

Organizes quality control processes for products and services.

Plant Maintenance (PM)

Plans maintenance and repair operations for machinery, equipment and facilities.

Warehouse Management (WM)

Manages warehouse operations, inventory movements and material flows.

Integration of Business Processes

SAP enables end-to-end process management. When a customer order is entered into the system, it is transferred to the production planning module, inventory is automatically checked, the procurement process is initiated if needed, warehouse entries are recorded, and once production is complete, shipping and invoicing are executed while all financial records are updated automatically.

Example Scenario: Automotive Industry

An automotive company records a customer order in the SD module. The order details are transferred to the PP module, where a production plan is created. PP checks the stock status of required parts via MM. If any materials are missing, MM initiates the procurement process. Incoming materials are received into the warehouse via the WM module and directed to production. Upon completion of production, SD handles shipping and invoicing. FI and CO modules simultaneously update financial data. Thus, the entire process from order to delivery proceeds in an integrated manner.

Data Model and Relational Structure

The underlying data structure of SAP is based on the relational database model. Tables such as customer, order, product and invoice are linked together using Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD) logic. All modules operate on a common data model, ensuring a reliable, consistent and integrated flow of data.