How To Automate EDI Fulfilment Compliance

Automate Generating ASNs and SSCCs for Major Retailers

The Critical Challenge of EDI Fulfilment Compliance

Selling to major retailers (like Amazon Vendor Central, Boots, or Sainsbury’s) demands strict EDI Fulfilment Compliance. Every pallet and carton leaving your warehouse must be tracked and labelled precisely according to the trading partner’s specifications. Failure to comply results in significant chargebacks—fines that drastically cut into your profit margins. Automation is the only way to manage this complexity at scale.

Successfully automating EDI Fulfilment Compliance requires synchronising data between your Order Management System (OMS), your Warehouse Management System (WMS), and your EDI platform.

Step 1: Establish the Two Mandatory Data Bridges

Before fulfilment begins, your OMS must ensure two data bridges are securely connected to prevent errors down the line.

1. Purchase Order (PO) to Warehouse Bridge: The EDI platform must translate the retailer’s PO into a format instantly readable by the OMS/WMS. This ensures the picker knows the correct quantities, product codes, and the required ship date.
2. Tracking/Packing to ASN Bridge: This is the most critical bridge. The WMS system must capture detailed packing information as it happens on the warehouse floor. This data—which products went into which carton/pallet—is the foundation of the Advance Shipping Notice (ASN).

Action: Map the required packing data points (e.g., carton weight, dimensions, product serial numbers) from your warehouse scanning devices directly to your OMS data structure.

Step 2: Automate SSCC Label Generation During Packing

The Serial Shipping Container Code (SSCC) is the unique barcode label affixed to every carton or pallet. This code acts as the key the receiving retailer uses to scan and identify the shipment against the ASN.

• System Generation: Your WMS must automatically generate a unique SSCC label the instant the packer closes and confirms a carton.
• Print-on-Demand: The system must trigger a thermal printer to print the label immediately at the packing station. The picker/packer affixes the label before the shipment leaves the area.
• Data Capture: The OMS captures the relationship: Order A, Item X, Shipped in Carton Y (SSCC Z). This real-time data capture is essential for generating a correct ASN.

This automation ensures every shipment adheres to strict EDI Fulfilment Compliance standards, eliminating manual data entry and reducing chargebacks.

Step 3: Trigger the Advance Shipping Notice (ASN)

The Advance Shipping Notice (ASN) is the mandatory electronic document (usually an EDI 856 message) that alerts the retailer’s system to the incoming delivery, detailing what’s in every SSCC-labelled container.

1. The Trigger: The moment the entire shipment is dispatched and confirmed by the carrier (the final ‘Ship’ scan), the OMS must automatically trigger the ASN generation process.
2. Data Compilation: The OMS compiles all the captured data (SSCCs, contents, carrier details) and packages it into the retailer’s required EDI format.
3. Transmission: The OMS transmits the ASN back through the EDI platform to the retailer. This process must happen before the truck arrives at the retailer’s receiving dock.

If the ASN arrives late or contains errors, the retailer levies chargebacks. Automation ensures rapid, accurate, and compliant transmission every time.

Modulus365: Built-in EDI Fulfilment Compliance

Managing the complex data mapping, real-time SSCC generation, and mandated ASN timing for multiple retailers is incredibly challenging. Many suppliers use fragmented systems, leading to errors.

Modulus365 provides a unified platform for EDI Fulfilment Compliance.

• Our system uses pre-certified templates for major trading partners (Amazon, Boots, Asda, etc.), eliminating the complexity of custom data mapping.
• We tightly integrate the scanning and packing process to automatically generate and validate SSCC labels and capture required carton data on the fly.
• Modulus365 guarantees the accurate and timely generation and transmission of the ASN (EDI 856) the moment the pallet leaves your dock, protecting your profit margins from costly chargebacks.