SAP QA32: Incoming Material Inspection in SAP QM

By : Olivia Turner Olivia Turner
Hours Updated

⚡ Smart Summary

Incoming raw material inspection in SAP QM checks goods received against a purchase order. The system creates an inspection lot at goods receipt, and the inspector records results and makes a usage decision in transaction QA32.

  • 🔘 Trigger: Inspection type 01 on the material master Quality Management view creates a lot at every goods receipt.
  • ☑️ Plan: A released inspection plan with usage 05 is copied into the lot and the sample size is calculated.
  • ✅ Results: Transaction QA32 records measured values and attribute codes against each inspection characteristic.
  • 🧪 Decision: The usage decision code accepts or rejects the lot and sets the quality score.
  • 🛠️ Stock: Movement type 321 moves the quantity from quality inspection stock into unrestricted use.
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SAP QM incoming raw material inspection with transaction QA32

What is Incoming Raw Material Inspection in SAP?

Incoming inspection, usually called raw material inspection, is the check applied to material received against a purchase order in SAP. It is activated by maintaining the SAP QM data in the Quality Management view of the material master.

The inspection type stored there identifies which business event triggers an inspection lot.

Incoming Raw Material Inspection Procedure in SAP

Incoming inspection runs through the following steps in the SAP system:

Step 1) Creation of inspection lot at goods receipt against purchase order

A goods receipt occurs in the procurement process, normally against a purchase order or a scheduling agreement.

Against each GR line item, the SAP system automatically generates one inspection lot holding the purchase details such as vendor, date of purchase, inspection specifications and sampling details.

Step 2) Listing of inspection lots

To list inspection lots, use transaction code QA33. The search criteria can be:

  1. Material(s)
  2. Inspection lot creation date
  3. Inspection dates
  4. Plant
  5. Inspection type
  6. Batch
  7. Vendor

Step 3) Attaching the inspection plan and releasing the inspection lot

If exactly one released inspection plan with usage “05” (goods receipt inspection) exists for the material, the SAP system assigns it automatically. If more than one plan exists, you have to:

  1. Assign the proper inspection plan to the material
  2. Calculate the sample
  3. Release the lot for inspection processing

Step 4) Sample calculation

If a sampling procedure is attached to the inspection plan, material or characteristic, the sample is calculated automatically. Otherwise you open the lot and calculate it manually.

Step 5) Result recording

Results are recorded against the inspection lot created at the time of Goods Receipt.

Every characteristic appears on the recording screen, and F4 search help supplies the code values for an attribute inspection.

For quantitative data the system proposes a valuation from the upper and lower tolerance limits. In both cases the inspector can accept or reject that proposal manually.

Step 6) Usage decision

The usage decision records whether the goods in the lot are accepted or rejected on the basis of the inspection results, and it completes the inspection.

Step 7) Stock posting

When inventory management is in place, the usage decision transfers the quality inspection stock into the relevant stock category:

  1. Unrestricted use
  2. Blocked
  3. Scrap
  4. Different material
  5. Sample
  6. Return to vendor

How to Post a Goods Receipt Against a Purchase Order in SAP (MIGO)

The goods receipt triggers the inspection lot, so it is the first transaction in the flow.

Step 1) From the SAP Easy Access menu, open transaction code MIGO and enter the following details.

  1. Select Goods receipt from the drop-down box.
  2. Select Purchase order from the drop-down box.
  3. Enter the purchase order number.

MIGO initial screen with Goods Receipt, Purchase Order and the order number field

After filling in all the fields, click SAP toolbar check mark button used to confirm the MIGO entry screen or press Enter to go to the next SAP screen.

Step 2) Post the goods receipt against the purchase order.

The stock type is set to “Quality inspection” automatically, because the material is subject to quality inspection.

MIGO item detail showing the stock type set to quality inspection

Click the Save button, and the material document is posted:

SAP status bar message confirming the material document was posted

The next step is quality result recording.

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How to Do Result Recording in SAP (QA32)

Step 1) From the SAP Easy Access menu, open transaction code QA32. Here you inspect the material and record the results against the inspection specification.

  1. Enter the Plant code.
  2. Enter the inspection lot origin as “01”, the standard SAP inspection type for raw material inspection.
  3. Press Execute to display the list of inspection lots.

QA32 selection screen with the plant code and inspection lot origin 01

Step 2) In this SAP screen:

  1. You can see the inspection lot generated in the earlier steps, along with the material.
  2. Check the system status “REL CALC SPRQ”: the plan is copied into the lot (released), the sample size is calculated, and a stock posting is required from quality stock to unrestricted use or another category.
  3. Press the “Results” button to move to the next SAP screen and record the results.

QA32 worklist showing the inspection lot with system status REL CALC SPRQ

Step 3) In this SAP screen you see the result screen for the inspection lot.

  1. The short text of each master inspection characteristic is shown with its specification, such as length, surface or visual.
  2. A sample size of 5 is calculated automatically when a sampling procedure is assigned in the inspection plan.
  3. Enter your actual results against the inspection specifications.

QA32 results recording screen with the characteristics, sample size and entered values

Press the Save button to save the inspection results.

How to Do a Usage Decision in SAP (QA32)

Step 1) From the SAP Easy Access screen, open the same transaction QA32 used for results recording. Here you decide whether the lot is accepted or rejected and move the stock out of quality inspection.

  1. Enter the Plant code.
  2. Enter the inspection lot origin as “01” again.
  3. Press Execute to display the list of inspection lots with the lot quantity.

QA32 selection screen used again to list the lots for the usage decision

Step 2) In this SAP screen, press the usage decision button to move to the next SAP screen.

QA32 worklist row with the usage decision button ready to be pressed

Step 3) In this SAP screen:

  1. Select the UD code “A” to accept the lot. The quality score of “100” is derived from that usage decision code.
  2. Select the Inspection lot stock tab to post the stock on the next SAP screen.

Usage decision screen showing UD code A and a quality score of 100

Step 4) In this SAP screen, post the stock from quality inspection to another stock category.

The quality stock of 200 can be moved to unrestricted use if the results are within the expected specifications. This posts movement type 321 in the background, which is the movement of quality inspection stock to unrestricted stock.

Inspection lot stock tab posting 200 units from quality inspection to unrestricted use

Press the Save button to save the usage decision. The stock movement from quality inspection to unrestricted use shown above marks the completion of the raw material inspection.

In the next SAP QM tutorial, you will see how to perform In-Process Inspection.

Troubleshooting Incoming Inspection Errors

  • The inspection plan must be copied into the inspection lot. Without it, neither results recording nor the usage decision is possible.
  • A plan created after the lot leaves it in status CRTD (created). Assign the plan manually to move it to REL (released), after which recording and the usage decision work.
  • A sampling procedure must be assigned in the inspection plan, otherwise the sample has to be calculated manually in the lot before anything can be recorded.
  • If no lot appears at all, the inspection type is usually not active on the Quality Management view of the material master for that plant.

FAQs

Inspection type 01 creates a lot when a goods receipt is posted for a purchase order. Type 05 covers other goods movements, such as a customer return. Each type is activated separately per plant.

Movement type 321 sends quality inspection stock to unrestricted use, 350 moves it to blocked stock, 553 scraps it and 122 returns it to the vendor. Type 322 moves unrestricted stock back into inspection.

Transaction QA12 changes a usage decision and keeps a history of the change, while QA11 records one for the first time. Stock that was already posted must be corrected with a separate transfer posting.

When the score comes from the usage decision code, acceptance gives 100 and rejection gives 1. Other procedures weight the share of accepted characteristics instead, and the procedure is chosen in Customizing.

Yes. QA32, QA33, QA11 and QA12 all run in SAP S/4HANA, and SAP adds Fiori apps such as Manage Inspection Lots and Record Inspection Results over the same data.

Machine learning ranks suppliers by defect history so low-risk deliveries can be skip-lotted, image models grade visual characteristics, and anomaly detection flags readings that stay inside tolerance yet drift from the historical mean.

Copilot can draft ABAP for a QM user exit, a CDS view over the inspection lot tables or a script that calls the usage decision BAPI. An inspector still owns the decision and its documented reasoning.

The inspection type must be active on the Quality Management view of the material master for that plant, and the receipt must post into a stock type that QM controls.

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