Here is a demonstration for an indirect activity allocation – using activity category 2 (indirect determination, indirect allocation). This type of activity quantity allocation involves most number of calculation steps than other activity allocation since the activity quantity is indirectly determined and allocated indirectly based on tracing factors and as we shall see activity quantity is not entered directly by the user at any point for any cost center. Here is a practical case scenario where this is applicable:
Source: help.sap.com
Our aim is to determine activity called “Tester Hours” for the Cost center called “Quality Control” and further allocate to the receiver cost center involving goods receipt and finished product. Now we do not know how many Tester Hours will be utilized by the Quality Control so the logic is that we determine from the number of items that are being tested, we know that 0.4 hrs are needed per piece. Also we know that 4000 items and 6000 items of goods receipt and finished product respectively are to be tested. From this information we are going to determine the activity quantity (indirect determination) and allocate the same to the cost center where the goods receipt and finished products are tested (indirect allocation).
Let us jump right into it with the below master data ready:
- Tester Hours: ZACT3 (name of activity type, category 2 indirect determination and indirect allocation)
- Sender quality control cost center: 53001 (name of cost center, where ZACT3 quantity will be indirectly determined and it is the sender during indirect allocation)
- Receiving goods receipt cost center: 53003 (name of cost center, where goods receipt testing takes place and the receiver during indirect allocation)
- Receiving finished product cost center: 53004 (name of cost center, where finished product testing takes place and the receiver during indirect allocation)
- Statistical Key figure: 5ZSKF3 (name of the statistical key figure which contains the number of tester items at the cost center 53003 and 53004)
Here is the activity type master data screen shot tcode: KL02
Below screen shot displays the statistical key figure entered for the cost center 53004 and 53003, kindly note activity allocation has not yet taken place. The SKF unit ‘AU’ is slightly misleading 
think of it as unit 'number of items'. Using tcode: S_ALR_87013618 we can view the SKF entered as shown below.
Creation of a plan indirect determination and indirect allocation cycle is done using tcode: KSC7
Kindly note the selection rule: “Quantities calculated inversely”, Receiving tracing factor is Plan statistical key figure
The sender is the cost center 53001 while the receivers are cost center group ZCCGRP1 which contains the cost centers 53001,53002,53003,53004. We can also enter the cost center 53003 and 53004 alone as receivers for this scenario. Please note that the activity quantity on the sender and receiver are zero as on this step.
In the sender values tab the weighting factor is 40/100 = 0.4 as per our requirement i.e. 0.4 hrs/piece. In the receiver tracing factor tab screen, the receiving tracing factor is the plan statistical key figure 5ZSKF3 entered in the version 912.
Save the plan activity allocation cycle and then execute the same in tcode: KSCB
After successful execution in KSCB make sure there are no error messages.
Viewing the plan line items in KSCB we can confirm that the Quality Control cost center (53001 cost center has been the sender for the receiver cost center 53003 and 53004. Though the activity ZACT3 quantity has not been entered at any step the quantities have been indirectly determined for the Quality Control cost center 53001 and allocated to the goods receipt cost center 53003 and finished product cost center 53004.
Similar steps are to be followed using tcode KSC1 and KSC5 for creating actual indirect activity allocation cycle and execution respectively. Kindly note that until now the cost for the activity ZACT3 has not been dealt with, since in this scenario the cost per unit of activity i.e. 5 USD/HR is known we can perform an assessment cycle based on the plan activity units i.e. activity dependant costs can be entered for the respective cost centers with tracing factors as activity quantities. Hope this blog has been useful to understand indirect activity allocation using activity category 2.
Regards,
Srirama