Here is a list of commonly used terms in the EDI and Commport environment. While it primarily covers EDI terminology, you’ll also find some GDSN and Commport products and services included throughout.
A widely used EDI standard developed by the American National Standards Institute for business transactions in North America.
Business to Business denotes trade conducted over the internet between businesses.
Commport Monitoring Centre is a visibility tool used both internally on the CCI processing environment as well as externally by our customers.
Commport Datapool is a certified data pool. It is both a source (supply side) and a recipient (demand side) data pool that offers customized tools to enable each partner to manage their data synchronization initiative. We help our customers implement GDSN standards as part of an organizational initiative or a retailer mandate. Loading your item data or migrating to our GDSN Datapool solution is simple and secure.
The Commport VAN has established interconnects with all of other major VAN service providers to ensure your documents are forwarded without delay or additional costs. We also operate as an EDIINT gateway, connecting directly with trading partners and customers using AS2, FTP and SFTP whenever that is required.
In order to conduct Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) transactions with a trading partner, businesses need a way of transmitting their EDI messages. Generally speaking, when conducting EDI transactions with a trading partner, there are only two sets of options for transmitting EDI messages. The first option involves a third party service known as a VAN or Value Added Network, while the second option does not. In the second option, known as the Direct or Point-to-Point method, two trading partners connect directly with one another through an agreed communication protocol such as FTP, FTPS, SFTP, AS2, or OFTP. You will still need to select an EDI communication protocol if you transact through a VAN. The main difference with connecting directly is that, when you use a VAN, you will generally only need one protocol – the protocol for communicating with the VAN.
The smallest unit of information in an EDI message, representing a single value, like a price or quantity.
A database is an organized collection of data, generally stored and accessed electronically from a computer system. Where databases are more complex they are often developed using formal design and modeling techniques.
An EDI document is comprised of data elements, segments and envelopes that are formatted according to the rules of a particular EDI standard. When you create an EDI document, such as a purchase order, you must adhere to the strict formatting rules of the standard you are using.
Electronic data interchange (EDI) is the concept of businesses electronically communicating information that was traditionally communicated on paper, such as purchase orders, advance ship notices, and invoices. Technical standards for EDI exist to facilitate parties transacting such documents. EDI implies a sequence of messages between two parties, either of whom may serve as originator or recipient. The formatted data representing the documents may be transmitted from originator to recipient via telecommunications. In EDI, the usual processing of received messages is by computer only. Human intervention in the processing of a received message is typically intended only for error conditions, for quality review, and for special situations.
Refers to map document that identifies the specific segments that an individual organization requires as part of its implementation of the EDI specification.
EDI mapping is a process through which EDI data is translated to a format that is more easily used in new business systems. Through EDI Mapping you can, for example, translate EDI documents from a text, XML formats and other forms.
Every company whom uses EDI to send and receive their business documents has an EDI Profile. It is kind of like a street address used to locate someone’s home. Usually included in the EDI Profile is the ISA ID, Qualifier, GS ID and VAN.
Organizations that send or receive EDI documents between each other are referred to as “trading partners” in EDI terminology. The trading partners agree on the specific information to be transmitted and how it should be used. This is done in human-readable specifications. While the standards are analogous to building codes, the specifications are analogous to blueprints (specifications may also be called “mapping,” but the term mapping is typically reserved for specific machine-readable instructions given to the translation software.) Larger trading “hubs” have existing Message Implementation Guidelines which mirror their business processes for processing EDI and they are usually unwilling to modify their EDI business practices to meet the needs of their trading partners. Often in a large company, these EDI guidelines will be written to be generic enough to be used by different branches or divisions and therefore will contain information not needed for a particular business document exchange. For other large companies, they may create separate EDI guidelines for each branch/division.
The standards prescribe the formats, character sets, and data elements used in the exchange of business documents and forms. The complete X12 Document List all major business documents, including purchase orders and invoices.
The EDI standard prescribes mandatory and optional information for a particular document and gives the rules for the structure of the document. The standards are like building codes. Just as two kitchens can be built “to code” but look completely different, two EDI documents can follow the same standard and contain different sets of information.
A software application that transforms data from one format to another (Ex from CSV to ANSI X12). It uses maps built from mapping Documentation as instructions. Maps are built using EDI Standards, Company Specifications and Business Rules
EDIFACT is an acronymn for Electronic Data Interchange For Administration, Commerce and Transport. It is a form of text or ‘flat’ file. EDIFACT is accepted as the international EDI standard that has been adopted by organizations wishing to trade in a global context. A standard set of syntax rules have been ratified by the United Nations.
The Element in and EDI transaction set are the individual data within the document. Each data element in a transaction set is defined in the EDI Standard by the type of data it represents. For example, it would be important to distinguish numeric data from text data or calendar dates. The data element definition will describe:
A development environment is a collection of procedures and tools for developing, testing and debugging an application or program. The development environment normally has three server tiers, called development, staging and production.
A flat file layout is a definition that represents the data structure of a flat (text) file to be processed. When reading from or writing to a flat file, Commport can use a file layout as a template to identify and correctly process the records and fields of the file. Also known as FF specifications.
A fixed flat file is characterized by the fact that each field has a predetermined number of characters, there is no need to separate the data by a character. This is called a Fixed Length Flat File. A fixed flat file must be accompanied by a complete description containing the position, length, type (digital or alphanumeric), and content of each data field.
A Delimited Flat File is when the data fields are separated (delimited) by a particular character such as a semicolon, vertical line, or tab. CSV(Comma separated variable) format is the best-known example of this. The specification document for a flat, delimited file describes each type of line, the sequence of the data fields, their numerical (or alphanumeric) type, and the file content.
An EDI transaction set (e.g., X12 997) used to confirm the receipt and syntactic correctness of an EDI message.
The Global Data Synchronization Network (GDSN) is a network of interconnected data pools (Commport is one certified data pool) that trading partners use to efficiently and securely share product information. It was developed by GS1 (Global Standards), the entity that creates and updates these standards..
Some Companies may ask for a GS ID, as well. Also known as the Group ID, your GS ID is usually the same as your ISA ID.
The Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) is an identifier for trade items, developed by GS1. Such identifiers are used to look up product information in a database (often by entering the number through a barcode scanner pointed at an actual product) which may belong to a retailer, manufacturer, collector, researcher, or other entity. Commport uses GTINs with our Datapool services.
EDI term for a company that initiates a B2B program with its business partners, usually a buyer.
An IDOC (Document Intermediate) file is an example of a fixed flat file. It is a form of text file.
A single EDI transmission that may contain multiple transaction sets and functional groups between trading partners.
A unique identifier assigned to an interchange to track and validate its processing
Commport’s Internet EDI offers functionality, automation and control to organizations looking to automate their fulfillment processes and become EDI compliant. Simple order picking, staging and packing is built into the Internet EDI platform, fully automating complex tasks to insure order accuracy. Shipping notices, ASN shipping labels are quickly and easily generated in Internet EDI, eliminating costly shipping errors. Order management, tax compliance, fulfillment automation, ASN label generator and trading partner contract pricing are all features of the Internet EDI platform. No specialized EDI knowledge, training or large IT resources are required due to Internet EDI’s intuitive and familiar interface.
Both the sender of an EDI transaction and receiver of an EDI transaction must have an ISA ID present in the data in order for the transaction to be sent and received successfully. Additionally, each ISA ID has a Qualifier associated with it. This is essentially a business’s license plate.
A Kilocharacter is a way to measure the size of a file and is equivalent to 1,024 electronic characters. In practical terms, average purchase orders will equal about two kilocharacters.
Sender, Receiver, Transaction type, File format (.txt, .edi), Identifiers
A block or section of an EDI file is called a Loop. Each loop contains several different Segments, which are comprised of Elements and Sub-Elements. Although Loops are the biggest component in an EDI, they are often the hardest to distinguish.
The actual code that supports data transformation from one format to another.
The process of defining how data from a business document (e.g., a purchase order) is translated into an EDI standard format.
A network path specifies a unique location in a file system. A path points to a file system location by following the directory tree hierarchy expressed in a string of characters in which path components, separated by a delimiting character, represent each directory. The delimiting character is most commonly the SLAsh(“/”), the backslash character (“\”), or colon (“:”), though some operating systems may use a different delimiter. Paths are used extensively in computer science to represent the directory/file relationships common in modern operating systems, and are essential in the construction of Uniform Resource Locators (URLs). Resources can be represented by either absolute or relative paths.
A Product or solution is a set of instructions or programs instructing a computer to do specific tasks. They are generic terms used to describe computer programs that run on PCs, mobile phones, tablets, or other smart devices. Product/Solution is often used to describe all the functional aspects of a computer that do not refer to its physical components (hardware). Everything that “runs” on a computer, from an operating system, to a diagnostic tool, video game, or app can be defined as software.
The Qualifier comes before the EDI ID, and is used to identify and describe the content that follows.
A customer that purchases our EDI services through a reseller of Commport’s services.
A reseller is a company that purchases Commport’s EDI services with the intention of selling them to their customers – rather than consuming or using them themselves.
Software as a service is a method of software deliver and licensing in which software is accessed online via a subscription, rather than bought and installed on individual computers. Commport provides SAAS.
Segment is a structural part of any EDI message and is represented as a group of related data elements. Being an intermediate information unit, EDI segment usually contains one or more data elements. Segment starts with a three-character data identifier and ends with a segment terminator.
A segment terminator is a special character that marks the end of a segment. The segment terminator must be defined in the EDI data format. Select a character that is not likely to be used in any content information. This will help prevent translation errors during processing. The tilde (~) and new line (N/L) characters are common segment terminators for the ANSI X12 standard. The single quote (‘) is a common segment terminator in the UN/EDIFACT and TRADACOMS standards.
A business entity involved in exchanging EDI documents with another business, such as a supplier, retailer, or distributor.
Any document sent via Electronic Data Interchange. An EDI Transaction set is a document defined by the ANSI X12 EDI standard that prescribes the exchange of information between two businesses using electronic means. A type of EDI transaction set is the EDI 810 for instance which covers how invoices are to be exchanged between trading partners.
EDI can be transmitted using any methodology agreed to by the sender and recipient, but as more trading partners began using the Internet for transmission, standardized protocols have emerged. This includes various technologies such as:
Uniform Resource Locators are addresses used by site owners on the Internet to designate their specific internet location. They follow the same naming convention as a Network Path. Essentially URLs are network paths used on the Internet.
United Nations rules for EDI for Administration, Commerce, and Transport, an international EDI standard primarily used outside North America.
A private network provider that acts as an intermediary for EDI transactions, offering secure and managed data transfer.
Validates the format of a data element in an EDI file based on the value of other data elements. This is used in situations where the format of an element changes based on the value of another element in the same segment. Violation of the minimum or maximum length of an element can cause EDI files to be rejected.
X12 is a text based file that is formally known as ASC X12 EDI (Accredited Standards Committee X12, Electronic Data Interchange), and it follows the standard established to govern the use of EDI to electronically exchange information between organizations. X12 EDI includes a set of standards and corresponding messages that define specific business documents widely used across industries today.
XML is a means of formatting EDI data in an Extensible Markup Language (XML) format.
