Integrations / ERP / SAP Business ByDesign
SAP Business ByDesign Integration Guide for Production Scheduling with SkyPlanner APS
This SAP Business ByDesign integration guide shows partners and IT teams how to connect ByDesign to SkyPlanner APS. SkyPlanner integrates with ByDesign in both directions, using SAP’s released web services:
- Released production orders with their operations, Production Models, Bills of Material and Bills of Operations, equipment and labor resources, materials, stock and purchase orders flow in.
- The planned start of each production order and the main resource of each operation go back to ByDesign.
- Confirmed quantities, scrap and finished tasks can post back to the production lots.
- SkyPlanner webhooks push schedule changes as they happen.
The SkyPlanner team configures the integration to your ByDesign tenant during onboarding over the REST API and supports it after go-live. This guide is for partners and developers who want to take part, or to build on SkyPlanner’s documented REST API (API reference) themselves.
SAP ByDesign’s integration interfaces
ByDesign publishes its released A2X SOAP web services per release in the web service API list. The services a scheduling integration uses:
- Manage Production Orders (ManageProductionOrderIn). READ_PROD_ORDER returns requested, earliest and latest start and end, resources with planned and fulfilled duration, priority, execution status and scheduling status. MAINTAIN_BUNDLE_V2 updates the EarliestStartPeriod or the LatestEndPeriod, and the operation MainResourceID (SAP help).
- Manage Production Lots (ManageProductionLotsIn). MaintainBundle creates or updates production tasks: confirmed quantity, scrap and the confirmation finished indicator per reporting point, finish task with the processor employee and execution time, and resource utilization (SAP help).
- Query services. Query Production Orders, Query Production Lots, Query Production Model, Query Production Bill of Materials, Query Production Bill of Operations (also by resource), Query Materials, Read Equipment Resources, Query Labour Resource, Query Purchase Orders, Query Identified Stocks and Determine Availability of Products.
- OData. Custom OData services for business objects, plus OData for data sources and analytical reports. SAP says “companies are fully empowered to decide which business objects” are exposed (SAP integration scenarios).
Use the Query services or OData for reads and the two Manage services for every write.
Authentication and licensing
On the ByDesign side, create a communication system for SkyPlanner and a communication arrangement for the services you use. Each arrangement has its own technical user. SAP’s security guide authenticates application integration with “user ID plus password, and the X.509 client certificate” (Security Guide). OAuth 2.0 can be configured for OData. You download each service’s WSDL from the communication arrangement or the Service Explorer.
On the SkyPlanner side, every call carries an API token in the Authorization-Token header. You create the token in SkyPlanner under Settings > API. An API token is enough to start building.
Events and polling
SkyPlanner sends webhooks on every schedule change, so write-back to ByDesign happens as the plan moves.
For changes in ByDesign, poll the Query services. Read released production orders and production lots every few minutes, and materials, stock and purchase orders on a slower cycle. Query results are paged with QueryHitsMaximumNumberValue and LastReturnedObjectID; SAP documents the default page size on its web services page.
Data mapping
| ByDesign object (interface) | SkyPlanner object | Direction | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Materials (Query Materials) | Products and materials | ByDesign → SkyPlanner | Initial load, then polling |
| Production Bill of Material (Query Production Bill of Materials) | Product structure, materials per product | ByDesign → SkyPlanner | Initial load, then on change |
| Production Bill of Operations: operations, Setup, Produce and Tear down activities (Query Production Bill of Operations) | Process steps with durations, setup and teardown times | ByDesign → SkyPlanner | Initial load, then on change |
| Production Model (Query Production Model) | Product routing per site | ByDesign → SkyPlanner | Initial load, then on change |
| Equipment resources and resource groups (Read Equipment Resources) | Workstations, workstation groups, tools | ByDesign → SkyPlanner | Initial load, rarely after |
| Labor resources, operating times (Query Labour Resource) | Personnel and shifts | ByDesign → SkyPlanner | Daily, or own shifts in SkyPlanner |
| Released production orders and operations (Query Production Orders, READ_PROD_ORDER) | Orders and jobs with due dates and material needs | ByDesign → SkyPlanner | Polling every few minutes |
| Production lots and tasks (Query Production Lots) | Job progress | ByDesign → SkyPlanner | Polling every few minutes |
| Identified stock, product availability (Query Identified Stocks, Determine Availability of Products) | Stock balances | ByDesign → SkyPlanner | Polling, hourly or on schedule run |
| Purchase orders (Query Purchase Orders) | Purchase orders, incoming material by delivery date | ByDesign → SkyPlanner | Polling, hourly or on schedule run |
| EarliestStartPeriod, operation MainResourceID (Manage Production Orders, MAINTAIN_BUNDLE_V2) | Planned start, assigned workstation | SkyPlanner → ByDesign | On schedule change, via SkyPlanner webhook |
| Confirmed quantity, scrap, finish task (Manage Production Lots, MaintainBundle) | Timelogs and operator confirmations | SkyPlanner → ByDesign | Per confirmation or per shift, if chosen |
| Not in ByDesign | Setting time matrix, multi-operator requirements, alternative machines and personnel | Maintained in SkyPlanner | Set up during onboarding |
Integration patterns
1. Initial master data load. Read materials, Production Models, Bills of Material and Bills of Operations, equipment and labor resources. Map resources deliberately: a resource group with four machines becomes one workstation group or four workstations. Equipment resources that are tools become finite tools in SkyPlanner.
2. Production order sync. Read released production orders with their operations and material, plus open purchase orders. SkyPlanner treats ordered material as available on the PO delivery date and updates stock when the PO is marked Delivered. Production proposals stay in ByDesign Supply Planning until they become production orders.
3. Schedule write-back. When the engine places or moves an order, a SkyPlanner webhook triggers MAINTAIN_BUNDLE_V2 on Manage Production Orders. It sets the EarliestStartPeriod and the MainResourceID of the operation SkyPlanner chose.
4. Shop-floor confirmations. Operators log work with SkyPlanner Mobile Confirmations or the Production Timer, and the timelogs keep the schedule current. You choose whether actuals post back. If yes, MaintainBundle on Manage Production Lots posts confirmed quantity, scrap and the finished task with the processor employee. If no, confirmations are entered in ByDesign as before.
5. Ownership and conflict rules. Write them down before go-live:
| Data | Owner |
|---|---|
| Materials, Production Models, quantities, order and lot status | ByDesign |
| Operation sequence, start and end times, resource assignment | SkyPlanner |
| Setting time matrix, tool and operator requirements, alternative resources | SkyPlanner |
| Shifts and non-working days | One system, chosen in scoping |
| Confirmations, goods movements, costing | ByDesign, entered there or posted from SkyPlanner timelogs |
Pick one writer of order dates. Do not run Load Leveling on resources SkyPlanner schedules, and check that the planning run does not move released orders that SkyPlanner owns.
Typical project steps
Implementation is normally completed within weeks after onboarding starts. Before that, validate the schedule in the 30-day free trial with resources, Bills of Operations and open production orders exported from ByDesign as CSV or Excel.
- Mapping. Fix the mapping table, ownership rules, sync frequencies and whether confirmations post back.
- ByDesign access. Create the communication system and communication arrangements, and download the WSDLs. Test in your ByDesign test tenant first.
- Initial load. Materials, Production Models, Bills of Material and Operations, resources, operating times.
- Order and purchase order sync. Polling with paging, filters and retries.
- Constraint setup in SkyPlanner. Setting time matrix, tools, operator counts per job and alternative machines or personnel.
- Schedule write-back. MAINTAIN_BUNDLE_V2 calls from SkyPlanner webhooks, plus lot confirmations if chosen.
- Parallel testing. Run SkyPlanner beside the current plan, compare dates, fix master data.
- Go-live. Switch on write-back once the data matches.
What to plan for in a SAP ByDesign integration
- One date per call. “The EarliestStartPeriod and the LatestEndPeriod cannot be updated together.” Use the start date as the write-back anchor.
- No locking. A2X services are stateless, so SAP says no transactional or logical locking can be enforced. Read the order again before each write and handle conflicts.
- Finished means finished. “Confirmation Finished Indicator cannot be unchecked once it is set.” Post finish only when the operator closes the task.
- Main and additional resources. ByDesign scheduling considers main resources. Model operators and tools from the additional resources as finite resources in SkyPlanner, so the schedule checks them.
- Setup and tear-down. Bills of Operations hold setup and tear-down as activities. Move sequence-dependent changeover times into the setting time matrix.
Who configures and supports the SAP ByDesign integration
- The SkyPlanner team configures it during onboarding and supports it after go-live, across the agreed web services and OData queries. Every company runs ByDesign differently, and this is where that know-how goes.
- Your SAP ByDesign partner can take part. The partner knows your tenant, scoping and extensions, and can set up the communication arrangements alongside the SkyPlanner team.
- Your own developers can build on it against SkyPlanner’s REST API with an API token in the
Authorization-Tokenheader. The SkyPlanner team assists when needed. Integration documentation is at SkyPlanner integration docs.
SkyPlanner starts from 199 € per month with 5 workstations included, billed monthly. The integration is quoted up front for your process and needs, together with your plan. See pricing, SAP ByDesign finite capacity scheduling, the SAP Business ByDesign page and the ERP integrations hub. Other SAP systems have their own guides: SAP Business One and SAP S/4HANA.
SkyPlanner reviews from manufacturers
2 hsaved every week
“SkyPlanner has taken our production planning from Excel spreadsheets to real-time production optimization.”
Kalle Kalliomäki, Supply Chain Specialist
UTU · Electrical switchboards and switchgear
Production planning saves 2 hours of working time every week, and a new work queue reaches the line in seconds.
+90%production efficiency
“Efficiency has gone up 90% in production.”
Abdul Rucyinga, Head of IT
Laboratory & Allied · Pharmaceutical manufacturing
Production efficiency is up 90%, and a three-month optimized plan across all workstations takes under 30 minutes.
100%delivery reliability since 2021
“SkyPlanner gives us visibility into capacity and makes planning predictable.”
Dan Berglund, COO/CFO
Opes Corporation · Chemical and food manufacturing
Delivery reliability has been 100% for the entire time SkyPlanner has been in use, since 2021.
Fewerstoppages from material shortages
“The value SkyPlanner brings us is that it is a tool that works in daily use, especially for setting delivery dates.”
Tommi Männistö, Production Planning Manager
Eskomatic · Contract machining
Automatic load scheduling gives more accurate delivery dates, and production stoppages caused by material shortages have fallen sharply.
FAQ
Which SAP ByDesign APIs does SkyPlanner use?
SAP’s released A2X web services. Reads use the Query services, such as Query Production Orders and Query Purchase Orders, or custom OData. Writes use Manage Production Orders and Manage Production Lots.
What does SkyPlanner write back to ByDesign?
The EarliestStartPeriod and the operation MainResourceID on each production order. If you choose, confirmed quantities, scrap and finished tasks post to the production lot.
Does ByDesign send events to SkyPlanner?
SkyPlanner polls the ByDesign Query services every few minutes for orders and lots. SkyPlanner itself sends webhooks on every schedule change, which trigger the write-back.
How does SkyPlanner authenticate to ByDesign?
Through a communication system and communication arrangement with a technical user, as SAP’s security guide describes. SkyPlanner’s own API uses an API token in the Authorization-Token header.
Do production proposals go to SkyPlanner?
SkyPlanner schedules released production orders. Proposals stay in ByDesign Supply Planning until they become production orders.
Who builds the integration?
The SkyPlanner team configures it during onboarding and supports it after go-live. Your SAP ByDesign partner or your own developers can also build on SkyPlanner’s REST API with an API token.
