EDI Data Standards

Typically, EDI refers to the electronic exchange of standardized business documents between trading partners.  These business documents include purchase orders, sales orders, invoices, etc.  A standard document is one that has common information and should not be confused with a document in a standard form.  For example, each trading partner can have a different purchase order form (PO) as long as each PO contains common information.  With standardized documents, all parties know what information they need to supply and what information they will receive.

There are three sets of standards within EDI.  These standards serve different needs.  The three standards and their relative areas of use are shown in the table below.

Each EDI standard consists of individual elements.  These elements, in combination with the specific syntax, define the standard.  A standard's syntax is a set of rules that govern the relationship of the standard's transaction set to its data elements and segments.  The table below lists the elements that compose a standard as well as a corresponding MAC-PAC component.  The MAC-PAC component is listed for reference only.