EDI Glossary

EDIFACT messages are the common language retailers and suppliers use to exchange business information. Each message type has a specific purpose and a typical direction; exact timing and per-line details vary by retailer (you can check those on each retailer's page, Documents exchanged section).

Below are the EDIFACT messages currently in use across the EdiEz system. Each definition covers what it is, who sends it to whom, and what information it carries.

ORDERS — Purchase order

  • Typical direction: retailer → supplier
  • Purpose: the retailer issues you a new purchase order. This is the start of the sales cycle.
  • Contents: order number, requested delivery date, delivery point (store or warehouse), lines with item (EAN/GTIN), quantity, agreed price, and discounts if any.
  • What you do: register it, prepare it, and usually acknowledge receipt with an ORDRSP (if the retailer requires one).

ORDCHG — Order change

  • Typical direction: retailer → supplier
  • Purpose: the retailer modifies a previous order (changes quantities, dates, or cancels lines).
  • Contents: reference to the original ORDERS plus the changes.
  • What you do: apply the changes and, depending on the retailer, confirm with a new ORDRSP.

ORDRSP — Order response

  • Typical direction: supplier → retailer
  • Purpose: you confirm receipt of the order and indicate whether you accept it as-is, accept with changes (e.g. partial quantity), or reject it.
  • Contents: reference to the original ORDERS, per-line status (accepted, modified, rejected), and a reason when applicable.

DESADV — Despatch advice (shipping notice)

  • Typical direction: supplier → retailer
  • Purpose: you tell the retailer that a shipment is on its way, before it arrives physically.
  • Contents: reference to the order (ORDERS), delivery note number, departure date and time, carrier, number of packages, weight, and per-line detail (item, shipped quantity).
  • Why it matters: many retailers require the DESADV to arrive before the physical goods and before the invoice (INVOIC) — otherwise they reject the receipt.

IFTMAN — Arrival notice

  • Typical direction: carrier → recipient
  • Purpose: the carrier announces that the goods have arrived or are about to arrive at the destination.
  • Contents: shipment reference, location, estimated time of arrival.

RECADV — Receiving advice

  • Typical direction: retailer → supplier
  • Purpose: the retailer confirms what quantities they actually received (which may differ from what was ordered or shipped if there were breakages, shortages, or surplus).
  • Contents: reference to the order (ORDERS) and the shipment (DESADV), lines with received quantity, reason when there's a difference.
  • Why it matters: you receive this before issuing the invoice. It's the basis you invoice from — you invoice what was actually received, not what was shipped.

INVOIC — Invoice

  • Typical direction: supplier → retailer
  • When to send: after the RECADV. You invoice the quantities the retailer has confirmed receiving. Invoicing earlier means you'd need a corrective invoice whenever the RECADV reflects differences.
  • Purpose: you invoice the retailer for the delivery. This is the accounting document that triggers payment.
  • Contents: invoice number, date, sender and recipient details (with GLN), references to the order (ORDERS), the despatch advice (DESADV) and the RECADV, lines with item, invoiced quantity (= received quantity from RECADV), price, discounts, taxes, and total amount.
  • Why it matters: any discrepancy with the RECADV (price, quantity, EAN) leads to rejection or dispute. Invoices usually have a maximum cut-off from the receipt date (check each retailer's schedule).

REMADV — Remittance advice

  • Typical direction: retailer → supplier
  • Purpose: the retailer announces an upcoming payment, indicating which invoices it covers.
  • Contents: total payment amount, value date, list of invoices (INVOIC) being paid, retentions or discounts applied.

INVRPT — Inventory report

  • Typical direction: retailer → supplier
  • Purpose: the retailer shares the stock held in its warehouses/stores, typically on a fixed schedule (daily or weekly).
  • Contents: per item (EAN), location, available quantity, reserved quantity, report cut-off date.

SLSRPT — Sales report

  • Typical direction: retailer → supplier
  • Purpose: the retailer shares the sell-out of your products, typically by store and period.
  • Contents: per item (EAN), store, period (day/week), units sold, amount.

Which message types does each retailer support?

Not every retailer uses every message. To see which messages each retailer supports and in which direction, check the retailer's individual page in the Your EDI clients section of the dashboard.

Per-retailer differences

The definitions above describe the general case. Each retailer may have its own particularities:

  • Schedule: when ORDERS are received, what the maximum lead time for INVOIC is, etc.
  • EDIFACT version: different retailers use different versions of the standard (D93A, D96A, D01B…); EdiEz handles the translation.
  • Extra mandatory fields: some retailers require additional information in certain lines.
  • Identifiers: in addition to the product's EAN/GTIN, some retailers use their own internal codes.

Any retailer-specific particularity is documented on the retailer's individual page.