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By now, we are all well aware that SAP are withdrawing support for WM (Warehouse Management) as part of R/3 ECC, and SCM EWM (old Business Suite) by 2027 and a lot of customers are wondering ‘what to do next?’. Throw in SAP’s cloud-led strategy to migrate clients from SAP R/3 ECC onto the S/4HANA platform and from ‘on-premise’ and into the cloud, the confusion is understandable.
The WM module has been around since 1993, from R/2 days through early R/3 versions up to the latest ECC version. In that time it was enhanced with new features and functionality, from RF transactions to ‘add-ons’ such as TRM (Task and Resource Management), and the ability to run as a decentralized solution separate from an existing SAP R/3 ERP system. However, even with those features, customers have found it lacking in the functionality required to support complex warehouses. Consequently, they have resorted to implementing large amounts of custom developments to enable them to run their business effectively, which in itself brings a long list of problems that we are all familiar with.
SAP realized that WM wasn’t cutting the mustard with large enterprise and was also found lacking in the ‘best of breed’ comparisons, so EWM (Extended Warehouse Management), a ‘ground-up’ redesign, was released. This redesign has also cleverly aimed to address the age-old problems of performance due to increased table sizes, although we should never underestimate the importance of including archiving in a project. EWM was designed to support the needs of complex, high-volume warehouses and distribution centres, addressing some of the restrictions that held WM back for such business scenarios.
Initially, this was only available as a separate system running on its own platform and connected to the ERP. However, it was subsequently made available within the core functionality of S/4HANA, branded as Embedded EWM.
EWM supports best practice processes and contains all the functionality needed to run complex, fast-moving operations and give them a competitive edge. It is classified by Gartner as ‘best of breed’ in their ratings and makes it into their ‘Magic Quadrant’ of warehousing solutions. Added to that, SAP are listening to all their customers through various engagement programs, and the solution is constantly being enhanced to meet their needs.
So what are the options for moving from WM?
If your strategic plan is to convert to S/4HANA, you could make use of the “compatibility” packs, which would allow you to keep using WM on S/4HANA. Whilst this would allow you to cut over to S/4 and give you time to plan your next move, bear in mind that the compatibility packs have temporary user rights and SAP will withdraw the licensing and support for them at the end of 2027, making this a very short-term option, and you probably wouldn’t gain any great benefits from doing this.
What are the available options on S/4HANA?
Stock Room Management – This is designed for existing WM customers to continue running light warehouse operations on SAP S/4HANA (private cloud or on-premise) beyond the 2027 support deadline but importantly, it will not be further developed by SAP. The appropriate license is included as part of S/4HANA Enterprise Management component. This is effectively the ECC WM component (LE-WM) without capabilities supporting more complex operations such as cross-docking, wave management, etc. and cannot be deployed in a decentralized mode.
EWM Public Cloud Edition – Fiori based, hosted on SAP’s cloud infrastructure, and updated and maintained by SAP, this is the supply chain part of the S/4HANA public cloud release, once again referred to as WM (we go full circle!). This has simpler functionality than the Private Cloud Edition and is sold on a SaaS (Software as a Service) model. This solution is upgraded on a set schedule which is released in advance by SAP so, to help each upgrade run as smoothly as possible, we would recommend following the ‘Clean Core’ principles for any extensions you need to implement. Available as an embedded option with the public cloud ERP, or separately as a decentral option connected to SAP ECC, this solution is aimed mostly at new customers with simpler warehousing processes or sometimes customers with existing WM (on ECC or via S/4 compatibility pack) that see the benefits of re-implementing fully on Public Cloud.
On its initial release, this looked like a very poor relation to EWM on S/4HANA as it only had basic functionality and no RF/mobile capability. But SAP have been constantly developing the functionality and have a full road map of updates to make it more attractive for larger companies too. Patches, upgrades and new functionality releases are pre-planned, with 3-4 new releases each year, and everyone on the public cloud gets all the new functionality delivered – you can choose whether you use it or not in most cases. Configuration is made much simpler, and the aim is to reduce the deployment time and the amount of custom code you need by using best practice processes – that said, we have found that the configuration lacks the flexibility available in Private Cloud Edition and would advise customers to carefully evaluate upfront if the Public Cloud Edition works for them. Another advantage of public cloud is that the new AI capabilities are built in and come with the system as standard.
EWM Private Cloud Edition – this is the full blown EWM system where your hosting is independent with a supplier of your choice and you are responsible for arranging upgrades, patching and maintenance. It can be deployed as Embedded EWM on S/4HANA or Decentralized EWM on S/4HANA (decentralized is simply EWM but on its own separate instance connected to the ERP by standard interfaces). Designed to support large warehouses with complex processes and requirements, all functionality is available with both the Embedded (available on the basic licence) and Decentralised options, but be aware that some functionality attracts an ‘advanced’ license cost if used in the Embedded version (e.g. wave management, kitting, cross docking etc). Whilst a decentralized option brings some advantages for performance, resilience and high availability, it also immediately attracts the ‘advanced’ license costs.
As WM and EWM are fundamentally different, it is not possible to perform a simple technical upgrade in this scenario. Stock would have to be migrated and any custom developments recoded to work with EWM’s architecture although, due to EWM’s greater functionality, our experience is that the need for custom transactions can be greatly reduced and sometimes eliminated altogether. SAP do provide some tools to assist with the migration of data configuration, but this can be the perfect time to re-evaluate and conduct some business process re-engineering, enabling you to explore all the additional functionality offered by EWM. If you are moving from SCM-EWM to S/4 EWM, there are a number of tools available to assist in this migration.
EWM Private Cloud Edition has a large range of functionality to help businesses improve efficiency, reduce cost and really get a competitive advantage. Processes can be automated leaving your managers to concentrate on managing the exceptions rather than the rule and to assist them, SAP have provided the Warehouse Monitor, an interactive workbench which provides over 450 ‘real-time’ standard reports covering all aspects of your operation.
SAP are putting a lot of effort into developing and releasing new functionality (currently on a bi-annual basis), and the road map looks extremely promising with the latest release promising improvements to Advanced Shipping And Receiving, as well as the ability to reverse a goods receipt after putaway, and S/4Hana Public Cloud integration among other things. In 2025 SAP have added AI capabilities like Joule for talking to your warehouse and AI Labor Demand Planning.
Automation is a fast growing trend in warehousing and EWM delivers the capability to integrate to all types of automation (such as AGVs or an ASRS) through the Material Flow System (MFS) functionality, which is delivered as part of the standard system thus saving on licence and maintenance costs for a third party WCS.
What other options are available?
Logistics Management – a new solution from SAP aimed at customers who need a logistics solution to manage smaller, local and satellite operations for which EWM is too big and complex. Logistics Management combines some functionality of Extended Warehouse Management, Transportation Management (TM) and some Business Network for Logistics (BN4L) capability. Built on the Business Technology Platform and sold on a SaaS model, it’s aim is to improve usability with a modern and intuitive UI, reducing onboarding time for users and also reducing the IT effort required for implementation. Released with attractive pricing and a clear focus on logistics, the package price for supports a “start small and grow over time” approach with different packages available (base, premium, premium+) based on customer needs.
Initially, integration is to S/4Hana Private Cloud Edition, with integration to S/4Hana Public Cloud Edition planned for 2026.
It’s simplified approach means a reduction in the number of system documents compared with previous solutions and, whilst the initial functionality is limited, SAP have a clear roadmap to build on the initial release – planned improvements between now and 2027 see more advanced capabilities being introduced like a supply chain control and risk tower, full freight collaboration, VAS, Waveless picking and Autonomous GenAI .
Conclusion.
Whilst SAP have offered a lifeline for customers moving from SAP R/3 ECC to S/4HANA in the shape of the compatibility packs, or Stock Room Management for ‘lite’ warehousing functionality after the 2027 support deadline, it is clear that EWM is SAP’s strategic warehousing offering going forward, whether in the private or public cloud.
In conclusion, choosing to ‘do nothing’ is not really an option, and strategic decisions need to be made as to which direction your business will take to gain the competitive edge needed in the current economic climate and for the future.
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