10 Common EDI Communication Standards

1. ANSI ASC X12

ANSI stands for American National Standard Institute founded the Accredited Standards Committee (ASC) in 1979 to develop uniform standards for the inter-industry electronic exchange of business transactions, namely electronic data interchange (EDI). This standard is also sometimes called ANSI X12 Standard or just simply X12.

Each EDI X12 transaction type is differentiated by a unique 3-digit number and there are more than 300 different types of X12 EDI standards for various industries from finance, government, healthcare, insurance, banking, transportation, and many more.

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2. TRADACOMS

Tradacoms stands for Trading DAA Communications is an early EDI standard that was originally introduced in 1982 and was primarily used in the UK retail sector.

Each TRADACOMS message, much like EDIFACT, is given a six-letter application reference. For example, an invoice message is INVFIL, a payment order is PAYORD, a utility bill is UTLHDR, and so on.

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3.UN/EDIFACT

UN/EDIFACT stands for United Nations/Electronic Data Interchange for Administration, Commerce, and Transport is the international standard that was developed by the United Nations). Comprise a set of internationally agreed standards, directo­ries, and guidelines for the electronic interchange of structured data, between independent computerized information systems.

The EDIFACT standard provides a set of syntax rules to structure, an interactive exchange protocol, and provides a set of standard messages which allow multi-country and multi-industry exchange of electronic business documents..

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4. ODETTE

ODETTE stands for Organization of Data Exchange by Tele Transmission in Europe is a group that represents the interests of the automotive industry in Europe. ODETTE’s mission is to improve the efficiency and enhance the competitiveness of the European automotive industry within the global economy. 

The great strength of ODETTE standards is that they are created by people who are experts in their field and know the real needs of the companies they represent.

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5. EANCOM

EANCOM was originally developed for the retail sector and is now found in a variety of other industry sectors such as healthcare, construction, and publishing.

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Benefits of ENCOM

1. Use a standard numbering convention – EAN unique identification number recognized worldwide. This helps business partners not to maintain complex reference codes for each business partner’s internal codes.
2. Messages are simple and accurate – Simplified EDI messages, reduce transmission costs and facilitate processing
3. Multi-industry standard – The uniqueness of the EAN number allows any item to be identified and consequently any business, regardless of its activity.
4. International – ENCOM messages are used worldwide covering more than 80+ countries.
5. Maintenance and support – Representatives from various industries have established several project teams to analyze specific issues and develop business-oriented solutions

6. VICS

VICS stands for The Voluntary Inter-Industry Commerce Standard VICS has enabled companies in the retail and consumer-focused industries to eliminate billions of dollars of waste and delay. By creating voluntary guidelines, often referred to as “standards,” VICS has created new best practices that ultimately lead to lower costs and better availability of products for consumers.

In 2012, GS1 US and the Voluntary Interindustry Commerce Solutions (VICS) Association signed a memorandum of understanding to merge their operations. The merger is designed to streamline the standards adoption process for the industry and give the not-for-profit organizations’ members access to standards for a broader range of supply-chain functions

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7. VDA

The German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) has its headquarters in Berlin, Germany. VDA serves the needs of the German automotive industry by developing standards and best practices.

The VDA has developed over thirty messages to meet the need of companies such as VW, Audi, Bosch, Continental, and Daimler AG.

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8. HIPAA

HIPPA stands for The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act was enacted by the U.S congress in 1996. It’s a federal law that requires the creation of national standards to protect sensitive patient health information from being disclosed without the patient’s consent or knowledge.  It generally prohibits healthcare providers and healthcare businesses, called covered entities, from disclosing protected information to anyone other than a patient and the patient’s authorized representatives without their consent.

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9. RosettaNet

RosettaNet is a subsidiary of GS1 US, formerly the Uniform Code Council, Inc. (UCC). RosettaNet is a non-profit consortium aimed at establishing standard processes for the sharing of business information (B2B). The standard is widely spread in the global semiconductor industry, but also in electronic components, consumer electronics, telecommunication, and logistics.

The RosettaNet document standard is based on XML. It covers a broad range of logistics and financial transactions, including purchase orders, shipment notices, invoices, return requests, quotes, and more.

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10. SWIFT

SWIFT stands for The Society of Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. It was formed in 1973 and is headquartered in Brussels. SWIFT operates a worldwide financial messaging network that exchanges messages between banks and financial institutions. SWIFT also markets software and services to financial institutions, much of it for use on the SWIFTNet Network.

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