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We’ve been accepting 6 proposal for our new weighbridge system so far. Two main qualification that the system can read our (old) weighing hardware correctly, and it has to be connected to SAP. This brand new weighbridge system will be:

• Connected to SAP (customer, material, and transporter master data, pick Delivery Order directly).
• To release truck, DO must pick directly from SAP. But its also can release truck in offline mode in case the SAP system is down. There is some flag that tell that the system is on offline mode. On offline mode, operator has authority to release truck. But there is validation routine once SAP connection establish.
• Because SAP not allow user to access directly to SAP, the system must access via BAPI, and its follow as a normal transaction so that it follow normal transaction flow.
• Approval mechanism in case the weight beyond tolerance, or validation routine after SAP system down. Tolerance configuration defined locally on the system, and it has to be easy to maintain.
• Source code and manual, to tackle the need of system extension in the future.
• User authorization: operator, administrator, manager (system approval).
• Print ticket and update DO data in SAP telling that this DO has been carried out.
• Weighing routine support for 2 types of material, finish good/non finish good.

My job is making technical evaluation of these vendor and propose rank of them. We can see their qualification based on proposal quality, system understanding on their presentation, and software demo. Source code, manual, and maintenance period is also one of big concern. And the price? We left it for procurement team and boss.


For those 6 proposal, 4 vendor do come and discuss what they have for our requirements.

• Vendor A, the vendor which I get my SAP training. There is no doubt that this vendor is a SAP master. They also have good understanding on weighbridge business flow. But we have no data whether they can handle legacy weighbridge hardware (read the value of the weighbridge hardware). They do promise a demo on the second meeting.
• Vendor B, sure an old player in weighbridge world, but not in SAP. Tight schedule of this weighbridge system make us force the vendor do a demo, showing that their software can connect to SAP and connect to weighbridge hardware. They do show us their program connect to weighbridge hardware. Its failed. One big loss for their rank, their system using third party component to connect to weighbridge hardware, and will be separate licence of the system. It does mean –eventhough we had the source code- we can’t extend the system since we don’t have the component.
• Vendor C, good understanding in both weighbridge and SAP. Good software demo showing its integration with SAP. They miss first trial of demo connect to weighbridge hardware. But on later demo, they succeed reading value of the hardware. They give us VB.NET and VB6 demo, and both work.

• Vendor D, thanks for their good effort. Old player of weighbridge system with lack of SAP experience. But they fail reading weighbridge hardware. They using many software to read com port traffic data, and even de-compiling our old weighbridge software to see how the software communicate with the hardware.

With that qualification, the sequence is (big point first) is: vendor C, vendor B, vendor A.


SAP Weighbridge Workflow