EDI 846 is an Inventory Inquiry/Advice document used to report stock levels, product availability, and inventory changes between trading partners.

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Why EDI 846 is important to do business with big-box retailers

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Many vendors these days want their products to be sold at Big-box store  such as Target, Walmart, Home Depot or Costco. If you want your product on their shelf, you should be complying with their EDI requirements. EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) is the standard electronic messaging between two business partners.

B2B Integration Matters to Business Success

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Nowadays, big box retailers work exclusively with companies that are capable of complying with their EDI requirements, and there is a good reason for it.

Large stores move a huge amount of goods, so all that they track in their inventory systems, must comply with a variety of requirements. This means that your inventory data must be properly formatted and transmitted on time and in accordance with their requirements.

Before starting EDI Integration, you must to identify the trading partners you want to do business with. The reason for this is that each trading partner you deal with, has his own unique requirements. One of the most popular EDI document in demand these days for big-box retailers is the EDI 846 Inventory Inquiry / Advice.

What is the EDI 846 and how is used?

Based on the ASC (Accredited Standards Committee) X12 format, the transaction set Inventory Inquiry/Advice (EDI 846) could include vendor number, products, and quantity in stock. 846 documents can be used by manufacturer or supplier in the following ways:

  • for a vendor of goods and services to provide inventory information to a prospective purchaser, with no obligation to the purchaser to acquire these goods or services;
  • for a seller’s representatives of goods and services to supply inventory information to that seller;
  • for one location to supply another location with inventory information;
  • for an inquiry as to the availability of inventory with no obligation on the seller of goods and services to reserve that inventory.

 Benefits of EDI 846

There are benefits of 846 Inventory Advice to both business partners as for the supplier and for the purchaser. Some of the benefits:

  • Enable the supplier to advise when product is out of stock or no longer being manufactured
  • Allows better management of manufacturing and logistics
  • Communicating to the purchaser when the item will be available again if out of stock
  • The purchaser is able to better plan warehouse and store ordering
  • Supports the ability to order non-stock items or make some special orders

How to send/receive an EDI 846?

For the most part, the transmission of EDI is carried out via the Internet or Value-Added network (VAN). To make EDI more accessible, today most of the EDI data is carried out via the Internet using AS2 or a secure FTP. This eliminates the need for expensive VANs. The file is protected by encryption to ensure data security.

 Need to know more about EDI? View our SlideShare Presentation on EDI in the Business World

Connect to large retailers with EDI2XML

Don’t miss your opportunities to trade with big chains, because of their requirements of EDI. Using our service, even small companies can get the opportunity to trade with large stores and send 846 documents.

Delegate EDI to a third party and focus on running your business. We are well-qualified EDI-as-a-Service provider and we produce results rapidly while avoiding common errors that can endanger business operations and trading partner relationships.

If you need EDI Integration, let us show you what our popular translation and communication service EDI2XML as a Service can do for your business. Don’t give up big retailers, Contact us today!

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