In SAP S/4HANA Advanced Planning (PP/DS), a "mode" defines a specific way an operation can be executed. The primary characteristic of a mode is the resource on which the operation is performed. If an operation can be carried out on several different machines or by different labor groups, each of these alternatives is mapped as a separate mode for that single operation. The mode selection function within scheduling heuristics then determines the most suitable resource (mode) based on factors like availability, cost, or priority, thus enabling flexible and optimized production scheduling.

A. When several operations are maintained for one product: This describes a routing, which is a sequence of operations. Mode selection applies to alternatives within a single operation, not to the sequence of different operations.

C. When several production versions are maintained for one product: A production version determines the combination of a Bill of Material (BOM) and a routing. While different versions may lead to different resources, mode selection is a lower-level function that occurs within the chosen routing for a specific operation.

D. When multiple planned orders are scheduled in parallel on one resource: This describes the functionality of a multi-activity or continuous resource that can process multiple orders simultaneously, which is unrelated to selecting an alternative resource for a single operation.

1. SAP S/4HANA 2023 Help Portal

Production Planning and Detailed Scheduling (PP/DS) -> Master Data for PP/DS -> Production Data Structure (PDS) -> Mode: "A mode defines on which resource an operation is to be processed and with which parameters (for example

the processing time). If an operation can be executed on alternative resources

you can define several modes for an operation."

2. SAP S/4HANA 2023 Help Portal

Production Planning and Detailed Scheduling (PP/DS) -> Detailed Scheduling -> Scheduling Heuristics -> Mode Selection: "If an operation can be executed on alternative resources

you can define several modes for an operation. During scheduling

the system can then select a suitable mode

for example

based on the resource availability."

3. Courseware S4220 (SAP S/4HANA Production Planning and Detailed Scheduling): Unit 3

Lesson on Production Data Structure (PDS). This unit explains that alternative resources for an operation in the classical master data (e.g.

work center with resource classification) are transferred to PP/DS as alternative modes within the PDS for that operation.