Introduction
For oil, gas, and energy companies operating in complex downstream environments, this content plays a critical role in accelerating fit-to-standard workshops, process harmonization, and SAP S/4HANA transformation programs. To address the specific needs of downstream operations, two new packages are now available in the value accelerator library for SAP Signavio solutions.
- SAP Signavio Value Accelerator for retail fuel network operations in SAP S/4HANA
- SAP Signavio Value Accelerator for secondary distribution management in SAP S/4HANA
Both packages provide industry-specific business process model and notation (BPMN) process models reflecting real operational scenarios spanning secondary distribution management (SDM) and retail fuel network operations (RFNO). The processes are fully aligned with the official SAP downstream solutions SAP Secondary Distribution Management and SAP Retail Fuel Network Operations, better ensuring architectural consistency and solution relevance.
Oil, gas, and energy downstream challenges
Secondary distribution and fuel retail are operationally critical yet structurally complex domains. Organizations in these areas often face:
- Fragmented or outdated process documentation
- Regional process variations driven by local regulations and business models
- Limited transparency across end-to-end value chains
- Misalignment between business requirements and IT implementation
Generic reference models rarely capture the industry-specific depth required for secondary distribution and fuel retail. As a result, transformation projects spend considerable time reconstructing the operational reality before meaningful design decisions can be made.
The SAP Signavio Value Accelerators for SDM and RFNO address this gap by delivering structured, downstream-specific process content that reflects real execution patterns.
What is included in the value accelerator packages
The process landscape in both packages is developed according to the SAP reference architecture structure and aligned with the end-to-end process framework. This helps ensure compatibility with SAP best practices while retaining downstream specificity.
Each package includes an industry-specific variant of the lead-to-cash process, which reflects the unique characteristics of secondary distribution and fuel retail. This makes dependencies between retail, logistics, and financial processes transparent across the full value chain.
Processes are organized consistently across multiple levels:
- Process modules
- Process segments
- Process activities
- Solution process models in BPMN
This layered structure enables clear traceability from high-level business processes down to executable process models. Business stakeholders gain visibility into operational design while IT teams benefit from structured, implementation-ready models.
Level-based architecture and navigation assets
Beyond detailed BPMN models, both packages include navigation and structuring artifacts that support process discovery and transformation planning.
These include:
- Navigation maps guiding users through the hierarchical structure
- Downstream-specific value chains
- End-to-end BPMN diagrams for secondary distribution and fuel retail
All assets follow a level-based architecture. Users can navigate from high-level navigation maps to detailed process models without losing contextual alignment.
Secondary distribution management
The SDM content covers core oil, gas, and energy secondary distribution operations within SAP S/4HANA. The focus includes key fuel sales scenarios such as:
- Pickup and delivered sales
- Own stock and third-party stock scenarios
These models reflect practical execution patterns encountered in downstream distribution networks. (See Figure 1.). They support consistent process documentation and serve as a baseline for harmonization across regions.
The primary secondary distribution scenarios are comprehensively covered (See Figure 2.). Further enhancements are planned, including the integration of bottled gas scenarios, which are currently under development.
Retail fuel network operations
The RFNO package addresses core fuel retail processes, with a strong focus on settlements scenarios. (See Figure 3.).
Dealer settlement processes are modeled from both:
- A business model perspective, such as CoCo (company owned, company operated), CoDo (company owned, dealer operated), and DoDo (dealer owned, dealer operated)
- A product ownership perspective, including company-owned, dealer-owned, and third party-owned products
Planned future enhancements include clearing house settlements and reconciliation, fleet card settlements, goods movement processes, wet stock management, continuous station replenishment, and structured master data processes, such as dealer and business model changeover (See Figure 4.).
Level of detail and modeling approach
A defining characteristic of both packages is the depth offered by BPMN modeling. The process models include:
- Detailed activities and events
- Clearly defined decision gateways
- Explicit handovers between roles and systems
- Alignment with SAP best-practice process thinking
This level of detail supports multiple use cases. The content can be used directly in process discovery and fit-to-standard workshops. It also provides a structured foundation for process harmonization, system design, and SAP S/4HANA implementation.
By establishing a shared process language, the models strengthen collaboration between business stakeholders and IT architects.
Business value
The SDM and RFNO value accelerator packages enable organizations to accelerate downstream transformation while maintaining architectural consistency and process traceability.
They help organizations to:
- Accelerate process understanding in oil, gas, and energy downstream domains
- Reduce effort in documenting as-is and to-be processes
- Improve alignment between business operations and SAP solutions
- Support SAP S/4HANA and SAP Signavio solutions transformation programs with industry-specific reference content
By starting from structured, SAP-aligned process models, transformation initiatives move forward with clarity on scope, dependencies and integration points.
Intended audience and strategic stakeholders
This content is particularly relevant for the following stakeholders:
- Downstream oil, gas, and energy companies preparing or executing SAP S/4HANA transformations
- Process owners and business architects responsible for harmonization initiatives
- SAP Signavio solutions practitioners designing industry-specific process landscapes
- Consultants supporting secondary distribution and fuel retail transformations
Conclusion and next steps
The SAP Signavio Value Accelerator packages for SDM and RFNO provide structured, downstream-specific process content aligned with SAP solutions and reference architecture.
They reduce the initial effort required to understand operational complexity and establish a consistent baseline for transformation initiatives. By combining architectural alignment with detailed BPMN modeling, they can also support faster and more controlled implementation programs.
The SDM and RFNO packages are available in the value accelerator library for SAP Signavio solutions. To explore how they can support your downstream transformation program, or to request a live demo, reach out to your SAP or Implico contact or visit request a demo.