ERP system test plan for order-delivery process

Abstract

In 2005 ABB launched the OsA (One simple ABB) program which is meant to unify the processes of different ABB business units. The focus of the program is on the replacement of the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. In Finland ABB has decided to use SAP as the ERP system in all the business units. ABB Motors will take the SAP system into use in September 2009. The objective of this thesis was to create a testing plan for the new SAP system in ABB Oy, Motors. As a final product this thesis was expected to hand out a set of test cases concerning the purchasing processes and other Material Management module processes.

As a background for the thesis theory related to software engineering and software testing processes was introduced. Five different software process models were introduced with all the process activities. The history of ERP systems and SAP was introduced from where the focus was moved into ERP testing and especially testing of SAP systems. The order-delivery process of ABB Motors was also introduced. The ETO (Engineer To Order) process is the most complex production type and it was chosen as the base of the order-delivery process. All the SAP modules used at ABB Motors were shortly explained and the requirement documents of Material Management module were introduced.

As the result of this thesis a comprehensive set of test cases for the Material Management module processes was created and will be used during the testing process of ABB Motors’ SAP system. The test cases were grouped into four different categories with 27 cases in total: 18 purchasing cases, 2 material return cases, 3 stock transfer cases, and 4 other cases. The results of this thesis can be used in other similar software processes as a guiding principle. However, using the test cases as they are in other software testing processes is not recommended because every company has their own processes and operating models. Therefore, the test cases introduced in this thesis may not be suitable in all situations. For future ERP testing this thesis could be considered as an example material and all the SAP projects should have same kind of testing plan created.