Concept of Drilldown Reporting And Report Painter

Drill down reporting and report painter:

Drilldown reporting is an dialog oriented information for evaluating data from the FI, GL, AR and AP data base.

Drill down reporting contains helpful functions for navigating in the data set, it also contains several additional functions for processing a report interactively.

Sap graphics, sap mail, and various printing functions are connected to drill down reporting together with Microsoft word for windows and Microsoft excel.

You can use graphics interface of the report painter for various activities (for example to define report writer reports, drill down forms, and planning layouts)

The following reports can be used for GL account evaluations:

1) Report for financial statement analysis:

 these reports are based on financial statement version defined in financial accounting. You can carry out any number of variance analysis based on actual and plan data (annual, half year, quarterly and monthly).

2) Key figure reports: 

for key figure reports, the system takes into account only the financial statement items in the financial statement version that you need for calculation of specific key figures. This is not the case for financial statement analysis reports. Financial statement version key figures could be for example equity ratio, debt equity ratio, capitalization ratio. You can create key figures from report rows and/or columns using an integrated formula interpreter.

3) Balance display: 

you can use the balance display, line item analysis for customer or vendor drill down reports.

A report definition can contain characteristics, key figures and forms. A report is a number of interactive, controllable report lists and graphics that are displayed on the screen.

Drill down report provides useful functions for navigating within the dataset for example next level, next object within a level, hiding a level, detail list/drill down list. It also contains several additional functions that can be used to process a report interactively (sorting, specifications of conditions, ranked list and so on). You can send report lists, display them on the internet or transfer them as files to Microsoft word and Microsoft excel.

In addition to the dialog functions for displaying reports, drill down reporting also contains functions for printing reports. There are various print preparations functions for you to structure your report as you require such as page break, headers and footers and underlining.

A form describes the basic content and formal structure of report lists. A form can be seen as semi finished product for a report. It is later completed with characteristics and key figures when you define the report. Characteristics appear in the form as well as in report. You can choose key figures either in the form or in the report.

Characteristics specify the classification options for the dataset. Examples of characteristics are company code, business area, and plan/actual indicator. The time reference (fiscal year period) is also a characteristic.

Characteristic values are concrete forms of characteristic, possible values for the characteristic company code would be 0001, 0002, 0003 or all company codes defined in the system.

A combination of characteristics and characteristic values is generally called an object in drill down reporting.

In the applications, there are various key figures that can be relevant to evaluations. Key figures are not just values and quantities, but also calculations involving these values and quantities with user defined formulas.

Value: balance sheet value, debit total, sales/purchases
Quantity: number of employees, sales quantity
Calculation: sales per employee, plan/actual variance

There are two types of list for displaying information. The detail list and the drill down list.

In a drill down list several objects for example asset under construction, the vehicles, chemicals) are formatted using a selection of key figures. Usually the key figures are in the columns of the list (for example balance sheet value, total debit postings, total credit postings). The rows contain the characteristic values of all the characteristics that are drilled down.

In a detail list an individual object for example business area is formatted for all key figures according to the form. Usually the key figures are in the rows of the detail list for example balance sheet value, total debit postings, total credit postings.

There are different types of forms that can be used for drill down reporting in sap

1) Single axis form without key figure: 

if you are using single axis form without key figure, you define either the form rows or columns with characteristics. When you access the initial screen the system displays an empty list of columns

2) Single axis form with key figure:

if you are using single axis form with key figure, you define either the form rows or columns with key figures and characteristics. When you access the initial screen, the system displays an empty list with rows

3) Dual axis form with key figure: 

if you are using a dual axis form with key figure, you define the form rows and columns with key figures and characteristics. When you access the initial screen, the system displays an empty list containing rows and columns. You are free to define whether the rows contain key figures and the columns contain characteristics or vice versa. It depends on what you want to report.

In single axis forms with no key figures you make selections only in the characteristics columns. The characteristics that you select in the form define the column content. You can also perform calculations with formulas for example the variance could be the difference between plan and actual.

You select the key figures and the drill down characteristics that is characteristics whos value you want to use to navigate in the report. When you define the report for example the characteristics business area, financial statement version or account number. 

The drill down list contains a two line column heading. The key figures for example balance sheet value, total debit postings, total credit postings are in the first row and the characteristics that you selected in the form for example fiscal year, prior year, variances are listed below. The values for the drill down characteristics are in the rows for example assets under construction, vehicles, and chemicals for the business area.

In the detail list the characteristics chosen in the form are contained in the columns and the key figures are contained in the rows. The detail list displays the results of a selected characteristic value for example assets under construction for business area.

In a single axis with key figure, the key figures are integrated with characteristics in the rows of the form for example fiscal year, balance sheet value, prior year balance sheet value with variance
In the report definition only the drill down characteristics are the columns of the form, and the values of the drill down characteristics form the rows for example assets under construction, vehicles, and chemicals and so on.    

The detail list has one column and contains the selected characteristic value for which you want to report for example assets under construction and the key figures are in the rows.

You define detail list when you define a form. This means that position of elements that you define in the form corresponds to the position in the detail list. Therefore for single axis forms with key figures the key figures are defined in the rows by default.

In the form with two axis (matrix), both the rows and columns are defined using key figures or characteristics. The key figures have to be in either the rows or columns of the form but you can enter the characteristics in the rows and columns.

When you define the report, you then choose only the drill down characteristics (for example business area, company code, account number and so on).

Navigation in reports:

If you want to switch from drill down list to the detail list, choose the detail list symbol. All of the row selection symbols are then highlighted in a different color. Choose the required evaluation object. The system then displays the required detail list.

If you want to return to the basic list, choose the XX symbol in red.

From detail list to drill down list: if the basic list is defined as the detail list for a report, the detail list is the first screen to be displayed when you execute your report. When you execute your report, if you want to switch from the detail list to the drill down list choose “drill down list”. The system then highlights all the free characteristics in the navigation block. Choose a characteristic by clicking it. The system then displays the drill down list.

Form and report definition:

Sap delivers standard forms, which you can use as templates to create your own forms. The names for these standard forms are 0sapblnce-01 through and ahead and you cannot use these names for your own forms.

Defining characteristics for all columns (general selections)

You first define the characteristics that you want to be valid for all columns in your form. Since you want to enter actual data in all the columns of your form, you can define this general characteristic by choosing edit---general selections.

A dialog box appears for you to select the characteristics for general selections. In the dialog box add the characteristic ‘record type’ to the table of selected characteristics and define the value 0 for actual data.

Once you have defined the general characteristics, you can then define the characteristics of the individual columns.

A dialog box appears in which you can select ‘key figure’ with characteristics. A second dialog box appears. Choose balance sheet value from the list of available key figures. In this case, the key figure reflects the values of the balance sheet that you want to evaluate for your report.

To carry out an actual/actual comparison, you also require the fiscal year characteristic.

Then define the characteristic values for the characteristics that you have selected. For example for the fiscal year you want to enter either fixed values or variables. If you want to enter fixed values, specify the specific value.

You can enter different lengths of text. These are then used as column headings for the elements.

You can enter a short, medium and long text. Using the text type, you can later determine which text is used for each column. If you want to enter a two line heading, you must separate the two lines using the semi colon. You can change the text type by choosing format---all columns---text type.

In the third column, you define the variance between the first and second column.

To do this place the cursor on the third column and choose edit----element---define element.

On the following screen, choose formula, the formula editor appears in which you define the formula that is to be used to calculate the variance. Using the formula editor, you can perform standard arithmetic operations with any elements.

Under ID, double click the first value, select the minus sign, and then double click the second value under id.

On the following screen, maintain the text types for the variance column.

Save the form.