What is EDI?
EDI, or Electronic Data Interchange, is a system that allows businesses to exchange important documents and data electronically in a standardized format.
Think of it like this: when two companies need to do business together, they often need to send each other documents like purchase orders, invoices, or Quotations. Traditionally, this would involve a lot of paperwork, phone calls, or emails, and there's always the risk of human error in transferring that information.
With EDI, instead of manually handling these documents, the computers of the two businesses can automatically send and receive data in a pre-agreed format. This format is designed so that both companies' systems can understand the information without any confusion. This means that processes like ordering products or paying for services can be done faster and more accurately.
EDI automates the exchange of business documents between companies, making it quicker, more reliable, and less prone to errors than manual methods.
EDI in Kojo
Kojo can send and receive transactions from suppliers via EDI. These transactions include:
Kojo -> Vendor
EDI 840 - Request For Quotation - This is the RFQ that is sent from Kojo to the supplier
EDI 850 - Purchase Order - This is the Purchase order that is sent from Kojo to the supplier
EDI 997 - Functional Acknowledgement - This is a confirming transaction that Kojo sends to the supplier to let them know that one of the above transactions was successful.
Vendor -> Kojo
EDI 810 - Invoice - This is the invoice that the supplier sends to a Contractor
EDI 855 - Order Acknowledgement - This is the Order acknowledgment that the supplier would send to the contractor once the supplier has placed the order in their system.
EDI 843 - Quotation Response - This is the quote that the supplier would issue to a contractor. This quote could be in response to an EDI 840 (highlighted above) or from an RFQ provided by another source.
Please note: Not all suppliers will have EDI capabilities or may not support every transaction stated above.
What do these files look like?
EDI files are not like a traditional PDF file. If you download and open one of the EDI files from Kojo you will see data like below. This has all of the information required for the given EDI transaction and should capture all relevant information you would traditionally see on a PDF. This is not meant to be printed or reviewed in this format.
ISA*00* *00* *ZZ*KOJOTECHT *ZZ*HAMMERMILL *240520*2014*U*00401*000000001*1*T*:~GS*PO*DUNDER*HAMMERMILL*20240520*2014*1*X*004010~ST*850*0001~BEG*00*NE*500003**20240520~REF*CR*clwfeh7n30003wmp9l8sfxlcc~REF*P4*12412423*Salesforce Tower~REF*JB*12412423*Salesforce Tower~REF*KT**000002~PER*BD*Procurement Agent*EM*procurement@usekojo.com*TE*650-382-9051~N1*VN*HAMMERMILL VENDOR~N1*BY*Dunder Mifflin~N3*1725 Slough Avenue~N4*Scranton*PA*18501*US~N1*ST*Jim Halpert*92*clw81uhjz01aoa92f037y9zcd~N3*1720 Slough Avenue~N4*Scranton*PA*18501*US~PO1*1*6*EA*7.25*PE*BP*1" EMT~PID*F****1" EMT~PO1*2*40*EA*1.75*PE*BP*1 1/2" PVC~PID*F****1 1/2" PVC~PO1*3*21*EA***BP*1/2" Set Screw Coupling~PID*F****1/2" Set Screw Coupling~PO1*4*1*EA***BP*3/4 PVC FA~PID*F****3/4 PVC FA~PO1*5*500*EA***UL*78325030452*BP*Ideal 452~PID*F****Ideal 452~CTT*5~AMT*TT*113.5~SE*27*0001~GE*1*1~IEA*1*000000001~
What if I still need the PDF?
EDI does not attach or contain a PDF. It is industry standard that once EDI integrations are in place that PDF file transfer is no longer supported. This is to reduce data transfer costs and streamline workflows. If you require a PDF file, you would need to contact the supplier directly and request that they send both the EDI transaction and the PDF.