Reading EDI Without an EDI System
An EDI file is a business document written for software: BEG*00*SA*4500123456 means an original stand-alone purchase order, and N1*ST starts the ship-to address. Small suppliers on web EDI or with a new trading partner often need the same document in a form people can read: to pick and pack from, to file with the shipment, or to check a total before they invoice.
This converter reads the file the way a trading partner's translator does, decodes the qualifiers into words and lays the document out as a purchase order, acknowledgment, packing list or invoice. It runs the same checks as the EDI Inspector, so a file with a wrong count or a bad UPC prints with its problems marked rather than looking correct.
What each document becomes
- 850, 875 and ORDERS: a purchase order with ship-to, bill-to, requested dates, lines, prices and the order total.
- 855 and ORDRSP: an acknowledgment showing each line as accepted, backordered, changed or rejected.
- 860 and ORDCHG: the changed lines, with the type of each change.
- 856 and DESADV: a packing list by carton or pallet, with SSCC numbers and shipped against ordered quantities.
- 810, INVOIC and TRADACOMS invoices: an invoice with terms, charges, tax and totals, flagging a stated total that does not add up.
Need to reply to a purchase order? The EDI response builder drafts the 855, 856 and 810 from an 850, and Compare EDI documents checks a PO against its ship notice and invoice line by line. For EDIFACT details, use the EDIFACT Inspector.