EDI has hundreds of transaction sets, but a handful do most of the work in day-to-day commerce. Here are the ones you'll see in nearly every retail or distribution integration.
ANSI X12 essentials
| Code | Name | Purpose |
|---|
850 | Purchase Order | Buyer tells supplier what to ship. |
855 | PO Acknowledgment | Supplier confirms (or rejects) the PO. |
856 | Advance Ship Notice | Supplier tells buyer what's on the truck. |
810 | Invoice | Supplier requests payment. |
997 | Functional Acknowledgment | Receiver confirms the file was syntactically valid. |
UN/EDIFACT essentials
| Message | Purpose |
|---|
ORDERS | Purchase order. |
ORDRSP | Purchase order response (acknowledgment). |
DESADV | Despatch advice (the EDIFACT ASN). |
INVOIC | Invoice. |
CONTRL | Syntax and service report — the EDIFACT 997. |
How a normal cycle looks
- Buyer sends an
850 / ORDERS. - Supplier replies with a
997 / CONTRL, then a business 855 / ORDRSP. - Supplier ships, sends a
856 / DESADV. - Supplier invoices with an
810 / INVOIC.
EDIFlux ships parsers for each of the documents above out of the box. Other transaction sets can be added without code changes.