Last Updated on February 18, 2026 by maximosecrets
Good afternoon and welcome to Maximo Bite Size, a podcast on the functionality of Maximo Manage. Today is the second episode in the series on Inventory and we will be discussing Commodity Groups and Commodity Codes.
Commodity Groups and Commodity Codes form a two-level hierarchy and are used throughout the Inventory and Purchasing module applications but also elsewhere in Maximo. When you look up an item, for example on Job Plan or Work Order Plan Materials, or when adding a Spare PartAn asset may have subassemblies and spare parts, the spare parts are those individual items used to maintain the asset. More to an Asset, you’ll be able to search for items based on their commodity group and code. As many Maximo clients have 10,000+ items, searching for an item is important, you could search based on the description but filtering by commodity group and commodity code narrows the search.
In the three item based applications, Item Master, Tools and Service Items, you will find an action Add/Modify Commodity Codes which has two linked table windows, the Commodity Groups and the lower table is the Commodity Codes for the selected Commodity Group. There is a checkbox for indicating that the Commodity Group or Commodity Code is associated with services. When you are in the Service Items application you would filter by Service.
Both tables are stored in the COMMODITIES object with a PARENT field which will be null for a Commodity Group and will be populated for a Commodity Code. The default field type and width are Upper 8. The key fields are COMMODITY and ITEMSETID, these codes are defined at the Item Set level and can be shared across multiple organizations.
Another reason for using Commodity Groups and Codes is that they are entered onto the lines of purchasing documents, a material requisition, purchase requisition, request for quotation, purchase order and an invoice line. They are also written onto the two receiving records for material and service receipts and on the issues and returns transaction table MATUSETRANS. The commodity groups and commodity codes are then used for material cost and reporting analysis.
The COMMODITIES object is shared with the Service Groups application for defining a two-level hierarchy which is a foundation for Service Management. There is a hidden field Service Type which is set to PROCURE when you define Commodity Groups and Commodity Codes. In the Service Groups application, the Service Type defaults to PROVIDE, you are providing services to internal or external parties. Behind the scenes the Service field is also set. In the Service Groups application, you can change the Service Type to BOTH and then the commodity records will also be seen in the Add/Modify Commodity Codes action, you are using the groups and codes to both procure and provide the services. You can only set the Service Type on the groups all the associated codes will be set to the same value.
Incidentally, existing Service Items in a MAXDEMO database have no commodity group or commodity code and the lookups will show no records as no records where ISSERVICE is set have a Service Type of PROCURE or BOTH.
The Add/Modify Commodity Codes action will be found in the Companies application, and the Associate Commodities action is used to indicate the class of items or services which a company provides. If you want to be able to select companies based on commodity associations, you will need to do a bit of configuration as it is not available out of the box.
Similarly, both actions will be found in the People application. The most likely use for this is to indicate the commodities which a buyer is responsible. The Associate Commodities action is a little different from that seen in the Companies application because it allows you to associate commodity groups and commodity codes to a person for a particular OrganizationA structural element of a Maximo database which is used for data sharing. More, SiteA structural element of a Maximo database that is used for data separation. More or Storeroom.
The Associate Commodities action and dialog will also be found in the Purchase Contracts, Lease/Rental Contracts and Master Contracts applications, but not in Labor Rate Contracts or Warranty Contracts. To find contracts which provide a commodity group or code that uses these associations will require a bit of configuration.
The Add/Modify Commodity Codes action will also be found in the Purchase Orders application. The Commodity Group will be found in the List tab of Item Master, Inventory, Tools and Stocked Tools applications, but not in the Service Items application, although this can be easily configured.
So, why set up these associations? It will be easier to find the right buyer if the items are coded with a commodity group/code, it will be easier to find alternate vendors for an item. Purchase contracts or price agreements are often structured around commodity groups, similarly consignment inventory is also structured around commodity groups.
You needn’t start from scratch; you could define your commodity groups and codes around UNSPSC – United Nations Standard Products and Services Code. This is an 8-digit number with four levels of two digits forming a hierarchy. It is available on a spreadsheet to members which would allow you to filter to find the relevant codes for your commodity groups and commodity codes before they are data loaded.
There is one other use for Commodity Groups in Maximo, they can be used to default a partial GL Account onto transaction records in Maximo, for example Work Plan Materials or Purchase Order Lines. The Chart of Accounts application has an action Resource Codes and there is a table window allowing you to define the Inventory Resource GL Components for a Commodity Group.
Incidentally, the Owner and Owner Group fields on the COMMODITIES object are used with Service Groups and Services, and not with Commodity Groups and Commodity Codes.
I hope you enjoyed this podcast and I look forward to seeing you back on the next episode when we will spend time on Item Master.
The music is called Smoke Jacket Blues from the talented group called TrackTribe, please check them out on TrackTribe.com, all one word.
Until another time, goodbye.
Links
Commodity Groups and Codes – https://maximosecrets.com/2020/07/09/commodity-groups-and-commodity-codes/
Quiz
Quiz – Commodity Groups and Codes – https://maximosecrets.com/2026/02/14/quiz-commodity-groups-and-codes/