Modern manufacturers run their businesses on SAP — from sales orders and planning to inventory, finance, and logistics. But what happens after a production order is released?
For many factories, the answer is still paper, Excel, and guesswork.
Operators write down quantities on forms, supervisors re-type data into SAP at the end of the shift, and managers wait hours (or days) to see what really happened on the line. By the time problems are visible in SAP reports, it’s already too late.
That’s exactly the gap BEEDIGIT closes.
With the new BEEDIGIT + SAP integration, manufacturers can finally connect business processes and the shop floor in one digital ecosystem – without complex middleware or extra license costs.
Why SAP Alone Can’t See What’s Happening on the Line
SAP is excellent at planning and controlling the overall business:
- Customer orders and contracts
- Production orders and batches
- Bills of materials and routings
- Costs, margins, and inventory levels
But SAP was never designed to talk directly to every machine, sensor, and operator terminal on the shop floor.
As a result, key questions are often answered too late:
- Did the line actually produce what SAP expected?
- How much scrap did we generate – and why?
- Which machine or work center is the real bottleneck?
- Are we losing money on this order because of speed losses or rework?
To answer these, you need "real-time production data", not just end-of-shift confirmations.
What the BEEDIGIT + SAP Integration Delivers
Together with BEEDIGIT, your SAP landscape gains a live window into the factory.
From day one you get:
- Real-time equipment monitoring – machines, lines, and work centers.
- Performance, energy use, and efficiency loss tracking (OEE & more).
- Plug & play” connection of any sensors or machines – new assets can be added quickly without redesigning SAP.
- One digital loop from planning to machine-level execution – SAP stays the source of truth for orders, BEEDIGIT becomes the source of truth for what actually happened.
- Integration with no extra costs – no need to buy yet another specialized “MES connector” license.
In other words: SAP plans, BEEDIGIT executes and measures, and both systems stay in sync.
The Data Loop Between SAP and BEEDIGIT
Think of the integration as a closed feedback loop between planning and reality.
SAP sends the information needed to run and track production:
- Batches and production orders
- Bills of materials and recipes
- Routings, work centers, and standard times
- Related documentation – specifications, quality instructions, checklist
This provides BEEDIGIT with the full production context, so operators and machines always “know”: - "What are we producing right now, for which customer, on which line, with which material and standards?"
BEEDIGIT connects to:
- Machines and PLCs
- Energy meters and sensors
- Operator terminals and tablets
On top of that, BEEDIGIT tracks:
- Machine states (running, idle, changeover, breakdown)
- Speed and performance losses
- Operator-confirmed downtime reasons
- Energy consumption per order or batch
- Quality checks, rework, and scrap reasons
All of this is visualized in real-time dashboards for operators, supervisors, and managers.
After (or even during) execution, BEEDIGIT can send back to SAP:
- Actual output per order / batch / operation
- Scrap and rework quantities
- Actual material consumption
- Confirmed activities and times at work centers
Instead of manual re-typing, SAP receives clean, structured, and timely production data – ready for costing, inventory updates, and analytics.
What Changes for Different Roles
For Production Managers
- Instant visibility of which orders are on track, delayed, or at risk
- Clear view of losses: changeovers, micro-stops, speed losses, quality issues
- Easier decision-making on priorities and resource allocation
For Operators and Supervisors
- Orders from SAP arrive directly as digital job lists on BEEDIGIT terminals
- No double paperwork – confirmations and downtime reasons are captured once, at the source
- Clear instructions and documentation available at the machine
For Finance and Planning Teams
- More accurate standard vs. actual comparisons
- Reliable consumption and scrap figures for costing
- Faster period closing thanks to real-time confirmations instead of late manual corrections
Example: Closing the Loop on a Production Order
Let’s walk through a simple scenario.
A production planner releases an order in SAP with:
- Quantity: 10,000 units
- Assigned work center and routing
- Bill of materials and batch/lot information
The order automatically shows up on the BEEDIGIT terminal at the relevant line. Operators see:
- What to produce
- Which material to use
- Target speed and expected time
As production runs:
- Machines send speed, status, and quantity to BEEDIGIT
- Operators log downtime reasons with a couple of taps
- Quality checks, rework, and scrap are recorded digitally
Supervisors watch a live dashboard:
- OEE for the order
- Accumulated scrap
- Energy consumption trend
- Whether the order will finish on time
When the order is completed, BEEDIGIT sends back:
- Produced quantity and scrap
- Actual consumption for key materials
- Confirmed operation times
SAP updates stock, costs, and performance metrics based on real data from the line, not estimates.
Why Manufacturers Choose BEEDIGIT + SAP Instead of a "Black Box" MES
Many MES solutions promise SAP integration, but often:
- Require heavy custom development or middleware
- Introduce another silo of data that is hard to maintain
- Focus on generic workflows instead of the realities of your machines
BEEDIGIT takes a different approach:
- Built from day one around machine connectivity and OEE
- Designed to be plug-and-play with diverse equipment (new and legacy)
- Integration is lightweight and transparent – your IT team understands what is happening, and your SAP stays the core system of record
Instead of replacing SAP or competing with it, BEEDIGIT complements it where SAP historically had the least visibility: directly on the shop floor.
Getting Started With BEEDIGIT and SAP
Every manufacturer is at a different stage of digitalization. That’s why BEEDIGIT integration with SAP is typically rolled out in phases:
- Pilot on one line or plant – connect several key machines, import selected orders from SAP, and start capturing actuals.
- Scale across lines and work centers – extend to more equipment, add energy and quality tracking.
- Close the loop – push confirmed production data back into SAP for costing, inventory, and planning.
- Optimize and automate – use insights from BEEDIGIT dashboards to improve OEE, reduce scrap, and standardize best practices.
Unify Your Business and Shop Floor in One Digital Ecosystem
Integrating BEEDIGIT with SAP is not just a technical project. It’s a step towards a fully connected factory, where:
- Planners, operators, and managers share the same live picture of production
- Improvement decisions are based on facts, not intuition
- Every order, from release to completion, is traceable and measurable
If you already rely on SAP to run your business, BEEDIGIT helps you finally see – and optimize – what happens between the plan and the final product.
