Discover the difference between Work Center and Maintenance Store in SAP EAM. Learn their roles in maintenance planning, execution, and spare parts management.
🔹 Work Center
Definition: A work center represents where and by whom the maintenance work is carried out.
Examples: Mechanical workshop, Electrical team, Instrumentation group, specific technician group.
Purpose:
Assigned to operations in maintenance orders.
Used for capacity planning (how much work a team can handle).
Used for costing (labor/activity costs are calculated based on work center).
Key Master Data:
Plant
Cost center
Capacity data (number of people, hours available)
Scheduling & costing parameters
👉 Think of Work Center = People + Skills + Place to do the work
🔹 Maintenance Store (Storage Location in PM context)
Definition: A maintenance store (technically a storage location in SAP MM, linked to PM) represents the physical storage location where spare parts and materials are kept.
Examples: Central maintenance warehouse, Electrical spare store, Mechanical spare parts store.
Purpose:
Used in reservation and goods issue for spare parts in maintenance orders.
Helps track stock availability of maintenance spares.
Ensures material consumption is recorded against maintenance work.
Key Master Data:
Plant
Storage location code
Materials (spares, lubricants, consumables)
👉 Think of Maintenance Store = Where spare parts are physically stored and issued from
🔹 Simple Difference
Work Center → Who does the maintenance work (resources, labor, cost).
Maintenance Store → Where the spare parts/materials for maintenance are kept (inventory, consumption).
⚙️ Example in real life:
A pump breaks down.
Notification created in IW21.
Maintenance Order is planned.
Work Center = Mechanical Workshop (team repairing the pump).
Maintenance Store = Mechanical Spare Store (from where bearings, seals, or gaskets are issued).