Release Date: 06/15/2023
Version: 8.x & Up
Q - We currently use SPS Fulfillment Portal for our EDI processing. We are getting too great of a volume of EDI orders and we are evaluating whether to automate it with Elliott. Can you give me an outline of how the integration will work from the Elliott end? How does the import/export work?
A - The integration with Elliott is done through the Sales Order Import and Export functions. In addition, there's the ESS (Elliott SPS Services) serving as the communication (with FTP & SFTP servers) and translation of the EDI documents (in XML format) to Elliott Sales Order Import/Export document format. Typically, you will need to host an FTP server in-house and allow ESS to access and communicate with the SPS SFTP server.
Let's start with the 850 (PO). The EDI PO you receive from your trading partner will be automatically be translated by ESS into the Elliott Sales Order Import format. Optional email notifications can be set up from SPS when the PO is available. Some users prefer to stick to a specific schedule, such as importing at 8:30 AM every morning. You can choose when to do the import based on your preference. The import process consists of two steps: "Pre-Interface" and "Interface." The Pre-Interface step shows you how the sales order import will look without actually importing it. You can use Pre-Interface to check for any warnings or errors. One common warning is pricing mismatch. A common error is the ship-to store is not set up in your system. It is rare but also possible that the item your trading partner ordered is not in your system for some reason. If the Pre-Interface looks good, you can proceed to the Interface step, where the 850 EDI document will become an Elliott order. If you are confident in the process, you can also automate it by scheduling it with "defer processing." However, since you would skip the pre-interface in this case, you should be cautious about errors that may occur during the import. Typically, the import function can move the file with an error to a different folder and send an email using our "event" function to notify someone to look into it.
The 855 (Acknowledgement) can be generated automatically upon successful sales order import. Please refer to the KB Article for more information:
Currently, we do not support the automation of sending changed POs through EDI. If you need to cancel or change a PO (Sales Order) for any reason, you must go to the SPS Fulfillment portal in order to notify your trading partners through the EDI method.
Regarding the ASN, there is a "Shipped Data Export" function. When you choose to export the "Shipped Data," the exported Elliott ASCII file will be automatically translated into an EDI document by ESS and sent to SPS.
Lastly, for the 810 (Invoice), there is an "Invoice Data Export" function. When you choose to export the invoice, the exported Elliott ASCII file will be automatically translated into an EDI document by ESS and sent to SPS.
To prevent operational mistakes, systems can also optionally prevent invoices from posting if the corresponding ASN or Invoice has not been exported yet. Additionally, we allow the exporting of ASN and Invoice data through the invoice history database. But that is to be used for exceptional scenarios.
Some of our customers choose to automate the exporting of invoices through defer processing. If this is the case, they typically schedule it to occur at night before the invoice posting.
EMK