SAP Field Logistics
SAP Field Logistics is a solution designed specifically for the Upstream Oil and Gas industry. This public cloud solution manages the flow of products and containers from onshore to remote sites to support maintenance activity, and their return. Building on standard SAP components, this solution manages the end-to-end process from receiving from suppliers, outbound logistics and tracking, receiving at the remote location, and returns.
With Field Logistics, you’re investing in a future-proof solution that evolves with your business needs. Replacing SAP RLM (Remote Logistics Management), which is coming to its end of life, it doesn’t rebuild the solution from scratch but builds functions on top of existing solutions like finance, warehouse management, materials management, etc.
SAP Field Logistics Business Case
With time running out from SAP RLM, now is the time to consider Field Logistics with a partner you can trust. Absoft has years of experience working with upstream companies running RLM and is well versed in S/4HANA migrations.
Flexible Supply Processes
SAP Field Logistics offers flexible supply processes that aid in logistics planning. It manages the movement of products required for maintenance operations between a supplying base and a remote location. This includes both stock and non-stock products, as well as supplier-owned items.
The system allows for different ways of supplying products to customers, depending on their needs. It can handle both stock and non-stock products, which are directly bought and shipped to the customer. It can also manage the logistics of items that are rented or owned by third parties, such as suppliers. Field Logistics helps with planning and tracking the logistics processes of various products.
Rentals and Supplier Items
The system facilitates the management of third-party, rental items, and own non-stock items during the supply from the base to the remote location, as well as during the return process. Tracking of rental items may be required to ensure an accurate number of billable days is consumed.
Field Logistics provides visibility of ad-hoc items, which are free-flowing items that are not linked to any purchasing document, like purchase orders. This feature lets Field Logistics capture and track ad-hoc items upon receipt at the warehouse or quay.
Logistics Tracking
SAP Field Logistics enables tracking of third-party items when a supplier brings their equipment to perform the required service. This ensures that rental items spend a minimum number of billable days completing the required operation.
ML–based OCR for Packing Containers
SAP Field Logistics incorporates machine learning-based Optical Character Recognition to simply scan container IDs with mobile devices. This method improves packing efficiency and accuracy by eliminating the need for additional labelling or tagging.
The Clock is Ticking
Support for SAP RLM is planned to expire by the end of 2025 for S/4HANA customers. For those still on ECC6, support will end by late 2027. Though this may seem like a long way off, the effort required to understand and fully implement Field Logistics – not to mention moving legacy systems and data to the new module – will require a proper amount of time, attention, and nurture. It is never too early to begin this transition and the right support and expertise can get you swiftly underway.
Why SAP Field Logistics?
New Product, but Powered by SAP
Manage Logistics for Supplier Items
Natural Progression for Existing SAP RLM Users
[DEMO] See How it Works
Our team walks you through the ins and outs of the Field Logistics user interface, from creating orders to shipping containers. Whether you’re an industry professional, consultant, or simply curious about logistics management, this video provides valuable insights.
Frequently Asked Questions
SAP Remote Logistics Management for Oil & Gas is a SAP Business Suite software product. Field Logistics is the product with comparable Business functionality in S/4HANA. However an RLM compatibility pack is available which can be used on the S/4HANA installation.
RLM as a compatibility pack is the SAP S/4HANA compatible version of RLM. However, the usage right for this is set to finish by the end of 2025. Also, the compatibility pack is only available for on-premise licensing of SAP S/4HANA.
Yes! At the core, Field Logistics is about managing the flow of products and containers to a remote location and back. We advise to get in touch to discuss this as there are differences to be aware of. This holds true also between private and public cloud installations.
Yes! One innovation is the new Logistics Tracking app which allows to gain visibility of equipment (incl. rentals and supplier items) from maintenance request to dispatch, and backload incl. return to supplier. This is all built on configurable milestone events and risks.
Another example is that additional Field Logistics objects are being released for developer extensibility, which is great news for companies looking to integrate third party software with Field Logistics.
Why Absoft?
With 30 years of expertise in the Oil and Gas industry, our team has extensive experience in SAP RLM projects. We have successfully delivered numerous implementation and migration projects, including RLM to RLM transitions, and are well-versed in the complexities of migrating in-flight equipment, containers, and returns.
Absoft’s expert design capabilities ensure accurate cost estimations and project tracking. We pride ourselves on delivering projects on time with minimal business disruption.
Resources
Absoft’s Learnings on Field Logistics with SAP
Case Study – SAP Support Services for Total UK
Case Study – Data Migration with Petrogas
