Modern supply chains demand ever greater flexibility, and SAP Integrated Business Planning (SAP IBP) helps companies in that regard. Let’s introduce the new characteristics-based planning (CBP) functionality.
Made available with SAP IBP release 2502, CBP lets planners model product attributes (characteristics) directly in the planning process—for example: color, size, dosage, or country of origin—and use them as planning dimensions. SAP explains that CBP “empowers planners to balance demand and supply and harmonize their supply chain processes across the network, based on attributes of products, demands, and supplies.”
In practice, this means SAP IBP can support very granular planning: one supply plan can satisfy any demand that matches the specified attributes. For instance, demand for “red, size M t-shirts” can be met by any supply of t-shirts tagged with those attribute values. This attribute-driven matching allows customized product offerings and proactive supply-chain steering, enabling you to make customized product offerings and proactively steer your supply chain at a more granular level.
Conceptual Framework
Under the hood, CBP adds a new dimension to SAP IBP’s supply planning capability. Planners first define CBP attributes in the planning model (fields such as color, size, dosage, etc.) and group them into attribute sets for relevant products or product categories. Each product (master data group) can have a set of attributes attached. In the SAP IBP supply planning run, CBP rules (configured in the Characteristics-Based Planning Profiles SAP Fiori app) use these attribute sets to determine how demands and supplies match.
In effect, CBP lets you think of a product not just as a single SKU, but as a combination of attributes. For example, a clothing retailer might define one “Generic T-Shirt” product with attributes color and size. A demand line could then specify “20 units – Color: Blue; Size: M” and the planning engine will net that against any supply entries (such as existing inventory or planned production) marked as color=Blue and size=M.
This avoids maintaining separate product codes for each color/size variant. These attributes provide greater detail and increased data analysis by adding the related attribute fields to master data. With CBP, SAP IBP effectively treats product variants as flexible constraints rather than fixed items. Supply that shares the required attribute values becomes eligible to fulfill the demand, improving fill rates and planning accuracy.
Business Value and Strategic Importance
CBP delivers clear business benefits for companies with complex, configurable products. Key advantages include the following.
Attribute-Driven Agility
Planners can respond faster to customer preferences and market trends. For example, by using attributes, a company can offer tailored configurations (e.g. customizing a product’s color or features) without rebuilding the entire product master. CBP enables customized product offerings and more granular planning, providing the strategic agility needed in markets where customers demand variety and personalization.
Improved Demand-Supply Alignment
CBP ensures that any available supply matching the demand’s attributes is used first. In SAP IBP for supply planning, a demand can specify required attributes, and CBP rules will pull in any supply elements meeting those specs. This tightens alignment: planners can better match production or inventory to the actual mix of attribute-driven demand. CBP helps planners balance demand and supply across the network based on attributes, reducing shortages of one variant when another is available.
Reduced Master Data Complexity
By grouping variants under a common product with attributes, CBP minimizes SKU proliferation. Companies no longer need to create a new item for every possible combination of features. This simplifies data maintenance and models. Planners can manage one “base” product and let CBP attributes handle the rest. Using attributes brings enhanced granularity and detail to business planning without exploding the data model, allowing inventory and component use to be shared across variants and thus lowering costs and lead times.
Together, these benefits make CBP strategically important. It aligns with digital transformation goals (mass personalization, configurable products) by embedding flexibility into supply planning. For solution architects, CBP is a forward-looking capability: it aligns with SAP’s move toward more dynamic planning (e.g. harmonized planning areas) and can be a differentiator in planning setups for high-mix environments.
Granular, Attribute-Driven Planning
A core promise of CBP is precision. Traditional planning nets demand and supply strictly at the product-location level. CBP adds a second layer: the attribute dimension. Adding these attributes provides a finer level of data analysis. In planning terms, this means SAP IBP can slice supply and demand by characteristics. For example, rather than planning “100 units of Product A,” planners can plan “30 units of Product A where size=M and 20 units where size=L.” CBP logic will then match these to any supply offering those attribute values.
This granular netting improves service: a sudden spike in demand for one variant (say, a specific size) won’t be missed simply because inventory exists for a different variant. Instead, SAP IBP will recognize the attribute match. By enabling attribute-driven filtering and matching, CBP embeds detail directly in the planning run, turning broad forecasts into actionable, variant-specific plans.
The diagram below illustrates the end‑to‑end CBP landscape—covering the initial setup in SAP ECC or SAP S/4HANA, the planning execution in SAP IBP, and the seamless integration between the two systems.
Industry Use Cases
CBP’s flexibility makes it valuable across many sectors.
Consumer Goods & Retail (Apparel, FMCG)
Clothing and consumer products often come in many colors, sizes, and packs. A retailer can define a base product (e.g. a “T-Shirt Style 123”) and attach color and size as CBP attributes. Now SAP IBP can plan and allocate “30 units – Size M, Color Blue” separately from “20 units – Size L, Color Red,” even though they’re the same style.
This streamlines planning for fast-fashion or consumer products, where styles frequently change. Similarly, a packaged-goods company with one recipe but multiple pack sizes can use CBP to plan by pack-size attribute instead of dozens of distinct SKUs. By focusing on attributes, businesses in these industries can adjust more quickly to trends and sales shifts without reworking product masters.
Automotive and Configure-to-Order Manufacturing
Vehicles and machinery are highly configurable. A car model may have dozens of options (engine type, trim, regional specs, etc.). Using CBP, an automaker can treat “Car Model X” as one product with attributes such as engine type or market region. A customer order might call for Model X with a V6 engine and sunroof; the CBP rules then match that demand to any production slots or inventory already designated for Model X with those attributes.
This helps balance production across variants. CBP also allows planners to leverage common components: e.g. track a shared chassis (attribute = model) and plan optional components (attribute = engine size) separately. In short, CBP helps automotive suppliers and similar industries manage complexity by planning at the model/configuration level while still honoring all variant requirements.
Pharmaceuticals & Life Sciences
Drug manufacturers often produce a core active substance that is then packaged in various strengths or forms. With CBP, companies can model a drug as one base product and use attributes for dosage strength, form (tablet, capsule, vial), or packaging type. For example, a vaccine manufacturer might produce a generic vaccine buffer and then fill it into vials of different volumes.
A demand for 1ml vials and 0.5ml vials can both be planned from the same source if the attribute (vial size) is used to differentiate them. This approach ensures continuity of supply: if one dosage form faces a spike in demand, the planner sees it and can allocate matching inventory, even as other forms may have plenty. CBP thus supports regulatory and distribution complexity in pharma by aligning supply at the most relevant level of detail.
Conclusion
Characteristics-based planning represents a significant evolution in SAP IBP’s supply planning. By treating product features as first-class planning dimensions, CBP brings next-level granularity and flexibility to planning processes. Planning professionals and solution architects should view CBP as a strategic tool: it directly supports market-driven customization and more efficient networks.
With CBP, SAP IBP customers can align supply and demand more precisely across complex, variant-rich portfolios. CBP harmonizes network‑wide processes through attribute‑driven planning—a capability that’s vital in today’s fast‑paced, customized markets. For organizations managing high product variability, CBP is a strategic tool to include in any digital planning initiative.
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