Materialkategori

Materialkategori, or material category, is a classification system used in inventory, procurement, and master data management to group materials by shared characteristics. The category serves as a organizing framework that supports consistent naming, handling, and reporting of items across an organization.

The primary purpose of materialkategori is to streamline processes such as purchasing, inventory valuation, storage, and regulatory compliance. By assigning a material to a category, businesses can apply appropriate workflows, approval rules, tax and accounting treatments, and data attributes. The exact implications of a category vary by system, but common effects include determining whether items are stocked or consumed, which procurement methods and supplier types apply, and how items are valued in financial records.

Typical attributes associated with materialkategori include a category code, name, description, and related processes (purchasing, invoicing, inventory management). Categories are often organized hierarchically and linked to other master data elements such as material type, material group, and product hierarchy. In practice, organizations define categories based on factors like usage (raw materials, finished goods, MRO), material form (bulk, packaging, tools), regulatory requirements (hazardous materials), and handling needs.

Examples of common categories are raw materials, semi-finished goods, finished products, packaging materials, spare parts, and services (in systems that separate services from tangible items). Effective management of materialkategori improves searchability, spend analytics, and governance of master data, while misclassification can lead to incorrect workflows and misaligned reporting.

See also: material master, material type, material group, procurement, master data management.