Matrix management – a flexible set of rules for your labels

A classic example of the extension of label data is, for example, the address that is to be printed on a label. In many cases, this depends on the plant that prints the labels or produces the product. In SAP, the address is maintained in the plant table, but usually not in a printable form, as you would like to print it on the labels. A table (matrix) in which you can store these addresses and, if necessary, an emergency number for each plant is therefore a good idea.

A good example of content control rules is graphics control. You define criteria for the dynamic printing of graphics, for example depending on the product group, classification or approval. Logos, pictograms or ISO symbols often have to be printed in relation to product attributes. So that your designers do not have to work with different templates, you can control this very flexibly via a matrix.

There is often a business logic that states, for example, when an additional label must be printed. A rule can be defined via a matrix so that you can leave this control to the specialist department. You can then define criteria (e.g. outer packaging only for the corresponding container) for which an additional label should be printed.

To make data determination more flexible and configurable, you can use a matrix to make it maintainable for the department. An example of this would be determining the language(s) for monolingual or multilingual labels. In many cases, the language of the labels depends on the receiving country, the target market or directly on the end customer. This can be of key importance to you, particularly in the case of drop shipments. You define the above-mentioned criteria in a matrix in order to read the content to be determined depending on the language.