Hierarchies

Updated
  • Updated on Apr 30, 2026
  • Published on Feb 24, 2026
  • 9 minute(s) read
  • AF
 Prev Next

Feature Overview

The Hierarchies feature provides tools for organising master data records into structured groups, parent-child relationships, and multi-level hierarchies. You can build a tree of categories and subcategories — for example a product family structure where "Outdoor Clothing" contains "Jackets" and "Trousers", each of which contains specific items — and use that structure to navigate, filter, and report on your master data.

The hierarchy is built from three components. Master Data Groups defines the category nodes: the named groupings that form the levels of the hierarchy (e.g. "Outdoor Clothing", "Jackets"). Master Data Relations defines the parent-child connections between groups and can also describe how Information Code values relate to group membership — so a group can be defined by a specific combination of specification values rather than by manual assignment. Master Data Item Relations then resolves which items belong to each group, either through fixed manual assignment or automatically based on the specification values that match the relation rules. When an item is added as a Fixed Item Relation, you can also set a Hierarchy Action on it: items can be set to Use in Master Data Hierarchy (the default), Ignore in Master Data Hierarchy (to exclude a specific item from a group even if its specifications would normally qualify it), or archive variants of these two states. This gives you precise control over exceptions without having to change the item's specifications.

The Master Data Hierarchy page is the main working view. It displays the full hierarchy for the current user, showing all group levels and the items within them. From this page you can add or remove items and specifications, refresh the hierarchy after changes, and drill down into fixed item relations for any group. The hierarchy is per-user — each user sees their own filtered view — and is refreshed using the Refresh Hierarchy or Refresh Hierarchy with Items actions.

The Roll up Hierarchy field on the Information Code Card allows a specification value to be automatically rolled up from child items to parent nodes in the hierarchy, making it possible to see consolidated attribute information at the category level.

Key Facts

Area Detail
Where to set up Master Data Groups page, Master Data Relations page, Master Data Hierarchy page
Key pages Master Data Hierarchy, Master Data Groups, Master Data Relations, Master Data Item Relations, Fixed Master Data Item Relations
Hierarchy types Specification-driven (automatic, based on Information Value rules) or fixed (manually assigned)
Refresh Refresh Hierarchy (structure only) or Refresh Hierarchy with Items (structure + item assignment)
Roll-up Enabled per Information Code via Roll up Hierarchy on the Information Code Card
Integration points Information Codes, Information Values, Mark Master Data (for hierarchy-based marking)

Getting Started

  1. Open Master Data Groups and define the category nodes for your hierarchy. Enter a Master Data Groups code (the category name), a Description, and a Parent Group to nest it under another category.
  2. Set Sorting on each group to control the display order within a level.
  3. Open Master Data Relations and define the rules that link groups together and specify which Information Code values qualify items for membership in each group.
  4. Use the Suggest Master Data Relations action on the Master Data Relations page to have the app propose relations based on existing group and specification data.
  5. Open the Master Data Hierarchy page. If the hierarchy is empty, use Refresh Hierarchy to calculate the logical structure, or Refresh Hierarchy with Items to also resolve item membership.
  6. To add an item manually to a group, select the group node in the hierarchy and use the Add Item to Hierarchy action.
  7. To add a specification node, use the Add Specification to Hierarchy action.
  8. To refresh after changes, use Refresh Hierarchy with Items from the hierarchy page.
  9. To enable value roll-up for a specific Information Code, open its Information Code Card and enable Roll up Hierarchy in the Master Data Hierarchy group.

Related Features

Hierarchies depend on Information Codes and Information Values — groups can be defined by the presence of specific specification values, and the roll-up feature reads specification values from child items to populate parent nodes. Mark Master Data integrates directly with the hierarchy: the Add Mark to Items in Hierarchy action on the Item List uses the BOM structure or hierarchy to mark all items in a group simultaneously, which is useful for bulk operations. Information Codes carry the Roll up Hierarchy setting that controls whether a code's values are aggregated up the hierarchy tree. The hierarchy is also used as a navigation structure in connected external systems such as webshops, where the group codes and their parent-child relationships drive category navigation.

User Stories

US-01: Set up a two-level product category hierarchy

As a Business Manager
I want to create a hierarchy with top-level categories (e.g. "Clothing", "Footwear") and subcategories beneath them
So that items can be organised into a logical product tree for navigation and reporting

Setup:

  1. Open Master Data Groups.
  2. Add a line: Master Data Groups = CLOTHING, Description = Clothing, Parent Group = blank.
  3. Add a line: Master Data Groups = JACKETS, Description = Jackets, Parent Group = CLOTHING.
  4. Add a line: Master Data Groups = TROUSERS, Description = Trousers, Parent Group = CLOTHING.
  5. Repeat for other top-level categories and subcategories.
  6. Open Master Data Hierarchy and run Refresh Hierarchy to see the structure.
US-02: Automatically assign items to groups based on specification values

As a Business Manager
I want to define a rule so that all items with Product Category = "Jacket" are automatically placed in the "Jackets" group
So that the hierarchy is maintained without manual item-by-item assignment

Setup:

  1. Open Master Data Relations and add a relation line that links the JACKETS group to the PRODUCT-CATEGORY Information Code with value JACKET.
  2. Open Master Data Hierarchy and run Refresh Hierarchy with Items.
  3. All items with the Jacket product category specification will now appear under the Jackets group.
US-03: Manually assign specific items to a hierarchy group

As a Business Manager
I want to assign a specific item to a group manually, regardless of its specification values
So that exceptions can be handled without changing the item's specifications

Setup:

  1. Open Master Data Hierarchy and navigate to the target group.
  2. Choose the Add Item to Hierarchy action.
  3. Select the item to add. It is recorded as a Fixed Item Relation for this group.
  4. Run Refresh Hierarchy with Items to update the view.
US-04: Roll up a specification value from items to their parent group

As a Business Manager
I want to roll up the "Certification" specification from individual items to the category level
So that I can see which certifications are held by items within each category without opening each item

Setup:

  1. Open the Information Code Card for CERTIFICATION.
  2. Enable Roll up Hierarchy in the Master Data Hierarchy group.
  3. Run Refresh Hierarchy with Items from the Master Data Hierarchy page.
  4. Certification values from child items will now be visible at the parent group level in the hierarchy.
US-05: Mark all items in a hierarchy group for bulk operations

As a Business Manager
I want to mark all items in the "Jackets" category so I can open the Information Matrix filtered to just those items
So that I can review and update jacket specifications in bulk without manually filtering

Setup:

  1. Open the Item List.
  2. Select an item that belongs to the Jackets group.
  3. Choose Mark Master Data → Add Mark to Items in Hierarchy.
  4. The app uses the BOM or hierarchy structure to identify all items in the group and marks them.
  5. Open the Information Matrix and filter to marked items.

Note: This action uses the Production BOM structure. For hierarchy-based marking to work correctly, ensure the items have the correct BOM or hierarchy relations configured.

US-06: Remove empty hierarchy groups after a reorganisation

As a IT Manager
I want to clean up Master Data Relations that no longer contain any items
So that the hierarchy is kept tidy and does not show empty categories

Setup:

  1. Open Master Data Hierarchy or Master Data Relations.
  2. Choose the Remove Empty Master Data Relations action.
  3. If only one relation is selected, the app asks whether to check all relations. Confirm to run across all relations.
  4. Relations with no items are removed. Run Refresh Hierarchy to update the view.
US-07: Refresh the hierarchy after adding new items or changing specifications

As a Business Manager
I want to refresh the hierarchy after a batch import of new items so that the new items appear in the correct groups
So that the hierarchy always reflects the current state of the item catalogue

Setup:

  1. After completing the import or specification changes, open Master Data Hierarchy.
  2. Choose Refresh Hierarchy with Items to recalculate both the structure and item membership.
  3. Alternatively, use Refresh Hierarchy down to refresh only a specific branch of the hierarchy starting from a selected specification node.
US-08: Exclude a specific item from a hierarchy group without changing its specifications

As a Business Manager
I want to prevent a specific discontinued item from appearing in the "Jackets" hierarchy group, even though its Product Category specification still says "Jacket"
So that the hierarchy only shows active items without requiring a specification change on the item

Setup:

  1. Open Master Data Hierarchy and navigate to the Jackets group.
  2. Find the item in the group and choose the Fixed Master Data Item Relations action.
  3. On the Fixed Item Relation line for this item, set Hierarchy Action to Ignore in Master Data Hierarchy.
  4. Run Refresh Hierarchy with Items to update the view.
  5. The item will no longer appear in the Jackets group, but its specifications remain unchanged.

Note: The Archive variants of the action (Archive Use in Master Data Hierarchy and Archive Ignore in Master Data Hierarchy) allow you to preserve a historical snapshot of an item's hierarchy membership at a point in time, which can be useful for compliance or reporting purposes.

Field Reference

Master Data Groups fields:

Field Where to find it What it does Default
Master Data Groups Master Data Groups page The code for this category node —
Description Master Data Groups page Display name for this category —
Parent Group Master Data Groups page The code of the parent category; leave blank for top-level nodes Blank
Sorting Master Data Groups page Controls display order within a level —

Master Data Relations fields:

Field Where to find it What it does Default
Group Code Master Data Relations page The group this relation belongs to —
Group Value Master Data Relations page The specific value within the group that this relation represents —
Group Description Master Data Relations page Description of this relation node —
Parent Group Master Data Relations page The parent relation entry —
Level Master Data Relations page The depth level of this node in the hierarchy —
Sorting Master Data Relations page Controls display order at this level —

Fixed Master Data Item Relations fields:

Field Where to find it What it does Default
Item No. Fixed Master Data Item Relations page The item that is manually assigned to this hierarchy group —
Relation Entry No. Fixed Master Data Item Relations page Links this assignment to the specific Master Data Relation node —
Hierarchy Action Fixed Master Data Item Relations page Controls whether this item is included in, excluded from, or archived in the hierarchy: Use in Master Data Hierarchy, Ignore in Master Data Hierarchy, Archive Use, Archive Ignore Use in Master Data Hierarchy
Field Where to find it What it does Default
Roll up Hierarchy Information Code Card — Master Data Hierarchy group Rolls up this code's values from child items to parent hierarchy nodes Disabled
Related articles

abakion@abakion.com