EDI Transactions
EDI Transactions refer to the EDI messages that are sent between trading partners. EDI transactions are always based on a standard, most frequently the EDIFACT standard developed by the UN and used globally, or the X12 ANSI standard developed and used in the US.
How EDI Transactions Are Defined
In the ANSI X12 standard, EDI transactions are always denoted through a numbering scheme, so an 850 transaction is a purchase order and an 810 denotes an invoice. In the EDIFACT standard EDI transactions use an alpha-numeric identifier; so a purchase order would be an ORDR while an invoice would be an INVOIC. The EDI transactions you use most often will depend on the industry and geographic region you are in. Since EDI transactions are nothing more than an electronic exchange of data that is transmitted using a standardized, computer-based method, the resulting list of EDI transactions can be rather long - covering areas as broad as order information or the exchange of patient information in the health-care industry.
Because EDI transactions are replacements for printed documents, the primary use of EDI transactions is to facilitate the exchange of information between companies. There are instances however where EDI transactions are used within an organization, most often between company departments.
How EDI Transactions are Created EDI Transactions are created and managed by the global standards bodies. These groups are comprised of individuals with technical, business and academic knowledge that is specific to certain industries that employ EDI. The standards bodies update the EDI transactions each year, but receiving updates for them is free only in the case of EDIFACT. Updates to X12 EDI transactions require an annual membership subscription along with a fee for purchasing updates to the EDI transactions.
How EDI Transactions are Deployed in the Market
While EDI transactions are readily available from the standards bodies or from software vendors, they are not delivered in 'ready to use' states. This is because EDI transactions contain a number of elements - which are not always required by each company or trading partner. This "customization" of EDI transactions leads software vendors to create packages that are more easily used by EDI software. EMANIO's Trading Partner Kits for example make it easy to add EDI transactions for specific trading partners without any custom configurations.
Common EDI Transactions:
EDI transactions labeled as "810" are used to send invoice data from a vendor back to the customer. These EDI transactions are typically in response to 850 EDI transactions.
850 EDI transactions, or purchase orders, are the most frequently used and are used by the customer as EDI transactions requesting purchase of goods or services.
855 EDI transactions, or order acknowledgements, are used when a customer requires a notice of receipt of purchase order EDI transactions on the part of the vendor.
997 EDI transactions are also known as "Functional Acknowledgements" and are frequently used to notify the sender of receipt of other EDI transactions.
856 EDI transactions are shipment notice/manifest documents that instruct a customer in advance of receipt of a pending shipment that is about to be delivered. This is why these EDI transactions are also known as "ASNs."
As mentioned earlier, EDI transactions are used for a broad number of document types. For this reason it's important to remember that the EDI transactions listed above are but a small sample of the possible variations. EDI transactions are always industry and geography specific, so it's important to understand if your software vendor supports all the EDI transactions available from the standards bodies. Equally important is your vendor's ability to provide compatibility for future EDI transactions as the EDI transactions are updated. Using EDI transactions to replace their paper equivalents is an effective means of making your business grow. EDI transactions can be processed faster and with far fewer errors than paper ones. Before you embrace EDI you should ensure that you have understood the EDI transactions that are important to your business and industry, giving you the tools to better implement the EDI transactions that make sense for your individual business. |
