EDI Mini Tutorial

EDI transactions are electronic equivalents of business documents, such as a bill of lading, an invoice, etc. EDI transactions are most useful when they interface directly with each trading partner's operational computer systems. For example, when a shipper transmits a load tender to a carrier, the load can automatically be placed as a shipment order directly on the carrier's freight management system without incurring time consuming and error-prone manual data entry. When a carrier transmits shipment delivery status back to the shipper, it precludes phone calls and manual data entry of the shipment status into the shipper's order processing system.

Taylor uses the Gentran EDI system from Sterling Commerce to exchange EDI transactions via a value added network (VAN). Taylor's preferred VAN is Kleinschmidt. The EDI transactions are interfaced directly to our freight management system and warehouse management system, Logimax from ICS. The transactions outlined below are only those used at Taylor.

Freight Transactions

The most frequently used freight transactions are the Load Tender (204), the Shipment Status (214) and the freight invoice (210):

Load Tender (204):

The shipper uses this transaction to place a shipment order with a carrier. It can include detailed bill of lading and scheduling information for TL, LTL or pool orders.

Shipment Status (214 to Shipper):

The carrier uses this transaction to inform the shipper of the current status of a shipment. A 214 is sent for each relevant event in the life of the shipment, e.g. delivery appointment made, delivery made, etc. 214's usually include appointment date and time, delivery arrival and departure date and time, and may also carry freight cost, consignee appointment and receiver contacts, as well as limited exception (OS&D) information.

Freight Invoice (210):

The carrier uses this transaction to invoice the shipper. It replaces the paper invoice and may be transmitted to the customer or to a third party payment provider such as PowerTrack, CASS, Nistevo, etc.

Some less frequently used transactions are the Shipment Status to Consignee (214), Shipment Status Inquiry (213), Freight Pickup Ready (216) and Load Tender Acknowledgement (990):

Shipment Status (214 to Consignee):

A long version of the 214 described above is sometimes used by the carrier to inform the consignee of the current status of all the shipments on a delivery run. A 214 is sent for each shipment's appointment and another 214 is sent for the delivery run that reflects all shipments of all the consignee's shippers that are on the carrier's truck.

Shipment Status Inquiry (213):

This shipper uses this transaction to inform the carrier of missing or late status information or upcoming deadlines. The effect is to improve data quality and timeliness.

Freight Pickup Ready (216):

The shipper uses this transaction to inform the carrier when freight will be ready to be picked up. The effect is to reduce phone calls and improve pickup performance.

Load Tender Acknowledgement (990):

The carrier uses this transaction to accept or decline a shipper's load tender (204). In most cases, where regular EDI exchanges are established between a shipper and a carrier, all load tenders are assumed to be accepted and 990's are not used or are used only for declines.

Warehouse Transactions:

The most frequently used warehouse transactions, for a public warehouse, are the Shipment Order (940), the corresponding Shipment Order Status (945), the Stock Transfer (943), the corresponding Stock Transfer Receipt (944), the Advance Ship Notice (ASN) (856), and the invoice (810):

Shipment Order (940):

The storer (depositor) uses this transaction to instruct the warehouse to ship an order to the storer's customer.

Shipment Order Status (945):

The warehouse uses this transaction to advise the storer that shipment to the storer's customer has been made. It identifies the carrier and can be used to reconcile order quantities with shipment quantities.

Stock Transfer (943):

The storer uses this transaction to advise the warehouse that a transfer (replenishment) shipment has been made. This enables the warehouse to prepare for receipt of the inbound freight.

Stock Transfer Receipt (944):

The warehouse uses this transaction to advise the storer that a transfer shipment was received and to report any receipt exceptions.

Advance Ship Notice (856):

The warehouse or the shipper uses this transaction to advise the consignee of the contents of a shipment that is en-route so the consignee may plan workloads and receipt processing. The 856 provides a hierarchically organized description, e.g. pallets on a truck, part numbers on the pallet, cartons that parts are packed in, etc. to an agreed level of detail. It is often used in conjunction with barcoded labels on the product to aid receipt processing.

Invoice (810):

The warehouse uses this transaction to invoice the storer for receiving and storage charges and, in some cases, shipping costs.

Other useful transactions include the Inventory Advice (846), the Delivery/Return (894), and the Inventory Adjustment (947):

Inventory Advice (846):

The warehouse uses this transaction to report to the storer the inventory status of the storer's product at the warehouse.

Delivery/Return and Acknowledgement (894/895):

The warehouse uses the 894 for either or both of the two purposes: to advise a consignee of an impending delivery to aid the consignee's dock check in, and/or to invoice a consignee on behalf of the storer. The 895 is used to acknowledge the 894 and to report any exceptions the consignee may identify such as a price discrepancy.

Inventory Adjustment (947):

The warehouse uses this transaction to inform the storer of adjustments made in inventory quantities.