Glossary
openTRANS
openTRANS is an XML standard for business documents in the order process, such as orders, order responses, dispatch notifications and invoices. It is built on BMEcat, the format for product catalogues.
In short
openTRANS is an XML standard for business documents in the order process. It is built on BMEcat, the format that carries product catalogues.
It plays the role that EDIFACT and ANSI X12 play elsewhere, but in XML. It is used in German-speaking B2B trade between buyers, wholesalers and manufacturers that already exchange catalogues in BMEcat.
The openTRANS 1.0 specification names these documents: RFQ (request for quotation), QUOTATION, ORDER, ORDERCHANGE (change of order), ORDERRESPONSE (order confirmation), DISPATCHNOTIFICATION (notification of dispatch), RECEIPTACKNOWLEDGEMENT (acknowledgement of receipt of goods) and INVOICE.
Example
A manufacturer receives an ORDER from a wholesaler as an openTRANS file. It answers with an ORDERRESPONSE, the order confirmation. It sends a DISPATCHNOTIFICATION when the goods leave, and an INVOICE afterwards. The messages follow the order of the business steps.
That is the same chain as a purchase order, an order acknowledgement, an advance ship notice and an invoice. Only the format differs. openTRANS is XML, while EDIFACT and X12 use segments.
The specification of openTRANS 1.0 was prepared in 2001 by a joint working party, with authors from Fraunhofer IAO and Universität Essen BLI, in cooperation with the BME. „openTRANS“ is a registered trademark of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft.
What to watch for
Agree the openTRANS version with each partner before the first document is exchanged.
Article numbers and units must match the catalogue (BMEcat) that both sides use.
Many smaller customers still order by email or PDF. Expect both channels to run side by side.
Ask each partner which documents it exchanges. A partner may use only some of them, such as the order and the invoice.
Not to be confused with
BMEcat: a product catalogue, not an order document. openTRANS builds on it, but the two do different jobs.
EDIFACT: the UN standard with segments, not XML.
ANSI X12: the EDI standard used mainly in North America.
Related terms
EDIFACT
EDIFACT (UN/EDIFACT) is the international EDI standard of the United Nations, maintained by UN/CEFACT. Its syntax rules are set out in ISO 9735, and it defines messages such as orders and invoices.
Purchase order (PO)
A purchase order (PO) is the buyer's document that orders goods or services from a supplier. It states the PO number, the buyer, the ship-to address, the line items, the requested dates and the terms.
Order acknowledgement
An order acknowledgement (Auftragsbestätigung, AB) is the seller's confirmation of a customer's order. It states the items, quantities, prices, delivery dates and terms.
Advance ship notice (ASN)
A Lieferavis (advance ship notice, ASN) is the supplier's electronic notice that goods have been dispatched or are ready for dispatch. It is sent before the goods arrive and says which order, packages and items are on the way.
Punchout catalog
A punchout catalog lets a buyer’s procurement system use a supplier’s online shop. The buyer jumps into the shop, fills a cart, and the cart returns to the buyer’s system, where the order is placed.
UGL (German trade data exchange)
UGL (Übergabeschnittstelle lang) is a data exchange format between installer software and wholesalers in the German SHK and electrical trades. It carries the documents of a job, from the price request and offer to the order and the invoice.
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