SAP can be thrived as Systeme, Andwendungen, Produkte in der Datenverarbeitung in German or Systems, Applications and Products in Informations Processing in English. The German organization set up in the yr 1972 published module R/1 and module R/2 earlier. Still, with the advent of the client server architecture the module R/3 was released by the corporation in the year 1992 and is a business management application settled on this architecture. The reply to the application has been tremendous and it can be told that the R/3 module has read the global software industry by storm.

The R/3 module can be better identified as a comprehensive and integrated information system.SAP R/3 is a now being widely utilized around the universe and is easy customizable for various companies depending on their sizes of procedure due its ABAP/4 programming language. The R/3 architecture is a 3 tiered 1 which includes a user interface, a software application and database server and is compatible with a variety of hardware configurations. The R/3 module includes different operational modules example financial control, human resources, materials management, sales and distribution in addition to production planning. Though every of these modules executes their procedures singly they are integrated unitedly wheresoever applicable. This feature makes accessing the finished business activities of a organization feasible to all it employees. The module too gains through it is good to use interface and online assistance functionality.

The SAP R/3 module is offered to the customer with standard features turned on and a host of optional features disabled. An organization can manipulate the software according to their proper needs by altering the settings of the database and tables in the module. However, the module with its superior features comes with a high cost tag. The cost of the R/3 module ranges anywhere between US$1.5million and US$5million.

Though the functionality of the module is highly amazing implementing the R/3 module is a laborious task not to mention the high prices involved. Implementation and maintenance prices reach between US$10million to US$100million and take on the service charges of the SAP consultant who serves in the operation. Broadly Speaking the implementation procedure requires a lot of changes within the enterprise and can be separated into four primary stages the project preparation stage where SAP technical support corporation is set up and planning the SAP requirements of the corporation are undertaken.

In the 2nd stage, the blueprinting stage analysis of the price of ownership, high availability and disaster recovery requirements, staffing the support enterprise and developing are executed. In the third functional management stage the transfers that the enterprise need to undergo are planned and the SAP systems management and SAP computer procedures are made. The phase too involves testing the SAP system before implementation. The last planning stage involves different testing operation and the cutover phase where the organisation plans the operation of transmission from the older system to a newer 1.

It is evident that the SAP R/3 module is a extremely functional and integrated system for companies. Though the price of the application, maintenance and implementation are high the functionality of the module overweighs the costs required. Numerous enterprises around the world have implemented the R/3 module and benefitted tremendously.