In SAP S/4HANA Controlling (CO), settlement is the process of allocating costs from a sender object to one or more receiver objects. A settlement rule, defined on the sender object, governs this process. Production orders, maintenance orders, and WBS elements are classic examples of temporary cost collectors. They accumulate costs during their lifecycle (e.g., for manufacturing, repairs, or project tasks) which must be periodically settled to final receivers like cost centers, fixed assets, or profitability segments. These three objects are fundamental controlling objects that utilize settlement rules as a core part of their business process cycle.

D. Sales order: While a sales order item can be a cost and revenue object and can be settled (typically to Profitability Analysis), it is not as universally defined as a temporary cost collector requiring settlement as A, B, and C are.

E. Profit center: A profit center is a controlling object for reporting profitability. It is a receiver of cost and revenue postings through various allocation methods but does not have a settlement rule to settle its own balance.

1. SAP Help Portal

SAP S/4HANA

Settlement: "You can settle actual costs and revenues for the following sender objects: ... Maintenance

service

and production orders ... Projects with their work breakdown structure (WBS) elements." This statement directly confirms that production orders (A)

maintenance orders (B)

and WBS elements (C) are standard sender objects for settlement.

2. SAP Help Portal

SAP S/4HANA

Functions in Detail: Settlement: "The costs collected on the order are passed on to other account assignment objects using settlement... The settlement rule contains the receivers

the apportionment

and other settlement parameters." This describes the function of settlement for orders like production and maintenance orders.

3. SAP Help Portal

SAP S/4HANA

Settlement Rule for a WBS Element: "Before you can settle a WBS element

you must have created a settlement rule for it." This explicitly states the requirement of a settlement rule for a WBS element (C).

4. SAP Help Portal

SAP S/4HANA

Profit Center Accounting (EC-PCA): "Profit Center Accounting (EC-PCA) lets you determine profits and losses by profit center... It is a component for reporting purposes." This defines the role of a profit center (E) as a reporting object

not a sender object for settlement.