Embedded EDI

Making EDI Easier with Luminous

EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) is often viewed as a complicated and outdated system, especially for brands dealing with big-box retailers. If you’ve struggled with terms like 850s, 810s, and 940s, you’re not alone. At Luminous, we aim to simplify EDI, turning it into a seamless part of your inventory management system. Let’s break down how our approach can help you manage EDI more effectively, especially if you’re using a platform like SPS Commerce.

What is EDI?

EDI is the process of electronically exchanging documents such as purchase orders, invoices, and shipping notices between different systems. For many ecommerce brands, EDI is a requirement when selling to big retailers like Walmart or Target. While it’s essential, it often involves antiquated data formats and manual processes that slow down operations.

How Luminous Integrates EDI

At Luminous, we embed EDI directly into our platform, transforming complex documents into standard sales orders, purchase orders, or invoices that you can manage like any other transaction. Whether it’s an 850 (purchase order), a 940 (shipping order), or an 810 (invoice), we simplify the process by converting them into a format that’s easier to work with.

With Luminous, you can:

• Reduce manual errors and inefficiencies.
• Improve order processing speed.
• Enhance supplier and customer relationships.
• Ensure compliance with EDI standards.

A Typical EDI Flow

Here’s an example of what EDI might look like if you’re using SPS Commerce to sell to a retailer like Walmart:

1. 850 (Purchase Order): You receive an 850 document from the retailer through SPS Commerce.

2. 940 (Shipping Order): You send the order details to your 3PL or fulfillment partner.

3. ASN (Advanced Shipping Notice): Once the order is shipped, you need to send the retailer a notification, often by manually copying details like the tracking number into SPS Commerce.

4. 810 (Invoice): You generate an invoice in SPS Commerce and your accounting system manually.

This manual process is tedious, often requiring you to juggle multiple systems.

How Luminous Simplifies This Flow

With Luminous, the 850 document is automatically received as a normal order. We then push it to your 3PL as a 940, or if you’re handling fulfillment in-house, it appears on your sales order page. Once the order ships, Luminous will automatically generate the invoice (810) and send it to both the retailer and your accounting system, such as QuickBooks, without requiring manual input.

Handling Dropship and Wholesale EDI

Luminous also supports both dropship and wholesale EDI flows. The main difference between the two is in the invoicing process. For example, when invoicing multiple sales orders in a dropship scenario, Luminous can group them into a single 810 document, simplifying the invoicing process.

Other Key Features

• Splitting Orders: Luminous can split specific line items from an 850 or 940 to be fulfilled at different locations while keeping the same order number.
• Multiple Sales Channels: You can manage multiple fulfillment channels through the same EDI flow, streamlining your operations across the board.

Experience the Luminous Difference

Luminous takes the hassle out of EDI by embedding it directly into your operations, turning complex documents into manageable transactions. Our system works with your existing tech stack, integrating with your 3PL’s WMS and accounting systems like QuickBooks, making your fulfillment and invoicing processes smoother. Book a demo today!