Guidelines for the Advance Ship Notice (ASN, 856)

Guidelines for the Advance Ship Notice (ASN, 856) FIRST PUBLISHED Monday, August 13, 2007 Updated: Tuesday, August 21, 2007 Published by Manufacturing Executives Interest Group (MEIG) of the Book Industry Study Group (BISG) The Guidelines for Advance Ship Notice were developed by the Manufacturing Executives Interest Group (MEIG) of the BISG. They may be reproduced without permission but with the appropriate attribution, see copyright information for details. For additional information please contact the BISG office at info@bisg.org or 646-336-7141. 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 1

Table of Contents Table of Contents... 2 Revision History... 3 MEIG Working Committee... 3 Copyrights and Trademarks... 4 Copyright 2007, Book Industry Study Group... 4 Copyright 2006, AGSA.US... 4 Copyright 2006, GS1 US... 4 Introduction... 5 Compliance and Definition of Terms... 5 Overview... 6 Prologue... 6 Preconditions... 6 Getting started... 7 Single Buy/Sell Relationship... 7 Complex Buy/Sell Relationships... 8 Third Party Relationships (3PL)... 9 The Use of Internet or Forms-based EDI:... 12 Flow of Events for Internet or Forms-based EDI:... 15 Additional Supply Chain Notes... 16 810 Invoice... 16 850 Purchase Order... 16 856 Ship Notice Manifest (ASN)... 16 940 Warehouse Shipping Order... 16 945 Warehouse Shipping Advice... 17 Appointment Number (AO):... 17 BOL Number (BM):... 18 Carrier Auth Number (06):... 18 Department Number (DP):... 18 Global Location Number (GLN)... 18 Global Trade Item Number (GTIN)... 19 Hash Totals:... 19 Internal Supplier Number (IA):... 19 Invoice Number (IV):... 19 Load Number (CR):... 19 Manifest Number (MA):... 19 Master BOL Number (MB):... 20 Pack Slip/Inv Number (PK):... 20 PRO Number (CN):... 20 Seal Number (SN):... 20 Trailer Number (TL):... 20 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 2

Revision History Date Version Description Author 07/20/2007 1.0-D Template and Initial Formatting TAS 07/25/2007 1.1-D Initial Design and documentation TAS 07/30/2007 1.2-D Editing and changes TAS 08/06/2007 1.3-D Figures and Images TAS 08/08/2007 1.4-D Figures and Supply Chain Notes TAS 08/13/2007 1.5-D Editing from ASN committee meeting TAS 08/13/2007 1.0 Final Version Published TAS 08/21/2007 1.1 Updated Images & Supply Chain Notes TAS MEIG Working Committee Name Company Email Thomas A. Smith Simon and Schuster Thomas.Smith@SimonandSchuster.com Kevin M. Hess RR Donnelley Technology Services kevin.m.hess@rrd.com Tom Clarkson Cumberland Systems Review Group tclarkson@csrgrp.com Allison Friel Simon and Schuster Allison.Friel@SimonandSchuster.com Attila Toke Simon and Schuster Attila.Toke@SimonansdSchuster.com Angela Bole BISG angela@bisg.org Michael Healy BISG michael@bisg.org' Raffel, Sara BISG sara@bisg.org Steve Land Anderson Merchandisers lands@amerch.com Vivian Underwood Anderson Merchandisers underwoodv@amerch.com Phillip Betzen Anderson Merchandisers betzenp@amerch.com Derek Coleman Anderson Merchandisers colemand@amerch.com Ed Bourgeois Hachette Book Group USA Ed.Bourgeois@hbgusa.com Ray Kennedy Hachette Book Group USA Raymond.Kennedy@hbgusa.com David Lounds Quebecor david.lounds@quebecorworld.com Paul Gardner Offset Paperback Manufacturers paul.gardner@opm.com Mark Stevens Berryville Graphics mark.stevens@bvgraphics.com 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 3

Copyrights and Trademarks The MEIG Guidelines for Advance Shipping Notice have been developed and revised through the work of the Book Industry Study Group (BISG) and the Manufacturing Executives Interest Group (MEIG) with assistance and guidance from other standards bodies, consulting groups, members companies and others whose copyright information can be found below. Copyright 2007, Book Industry Study Group This document and translations of it may be copied and furnished to others, and derivative works that comment on or otherwise explain it or assist in its implementation may be prepared, copied, published and distributed, in whole or in part, without restriction of any kind, provided that the above copyright notice and this paragraph are included on all such copies and derivative works. However, this document itself may not be modified in any way, such as by removing the copyright notice for references to the BISG, except as required to translate it into languages other than English. The limited permissions granted above are perpetual and will not be revoked by BISG or its successors or assigns. This document and the information contained herein are provided on an AS IS basis. The BISG disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including but not limited to any warranty that the use of the information Copyright 2006, AGSA.US This document and translations of it may be copied and furnished to others, and derivative works that comment on or otherwise explain it or assist in its implementation may be prepared, copied, published and distributed, in whole or in part, without restriction of any kind, provided that the above copyright notice and this paragraph are included on all such copies and derivative works. However, this document itself may not be modified in any way, such as by removing the copyright notice for references to the AGSA community, except as required to translate it into languages other than English. Copyright 2006, GS1 US This document and translations of it may be copied and furnished to others, and derivative works that comment on or otherwise explain it or assist in its implementation may be prepared, copied, published and distributed, in whole or in part, without restriction of any kind, provided that the above copyright notice and this paragraph are included on all such copies and derivative works. However, this document itself may not be modified in any way, such as by removing the copyright notice for references to the GS1 US community, except as required to translate it into languages other than English. The limited permissions granted above are perpetual and will not be revoked by GS1 US or its successors or assigns. This document and the information contained herein are provided on an AS IS basis. GS1 US disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including but not limited to any warranty that the use of the information 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 4

Introduction The MEIG Guidelines for Advance Shipping Notice have been developed and revised through the work of the Book Industry Study Group s Manufacturing Executives Interest Group (MEIG). The guidelines represent the Book Industry Study Group s best practices recommendations for using the Advance Ship Notice which is also described as the industry s 856 or simply ASN. This guideline which accompanies the BISG EDI x12 856 when used with the BISG s Guidelines for Shipping Container Labeling 1 which describes the creation and placement of Shipping Labels, Product Labels and Carton Marking seeks to improve the velocity of book product to market within the supply chain. By adhering to the recommendations in these guidelines the book industry will simplify the capturing of data at all stages of shipping, warehousing and receiving physical product between publishers, distributors and booksellers. The MEIG Guidelines also serve to align the book industry with global trade in terms of preparing to unify the BISG standard with that of GS1 US and are to be used as a basis for more specific agreements on advance ship notices and labeling between trading partners. It is expected that the MEIG Guidelines will be revised and updated as new standards are developed both within and outside of the book industry and to keep up with emerging technologies. Users of these guidelines are encouraged to provide feedback so that future updates can benefit from user experience. Compliance and Definition of Terms Compliance with all standards developed by the Book Industry Study Group is voluntary and subject to agreement between participating trading partners. The following terms are used throughout this document only in relation to compliance with the MEIG Guidelines. There is no intent to dictate or otherwise affect terms of trade between trading partners. Must Statements using the word must describe conditions that must be present for an action or practice to be in compliance with the MEIG Guidelines. Should Statements using the word should describe conditions that are recommended as good practice in the spirit of the MEIG Guidelines. May Statements using the word may describe options available within the MEIG Guidelines. 1 The Guidelines for Shipping Container Labeling, Updated May 2007 is available here: http://www.bisg.org/documents/shipping.html 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 5

Overview The Advance Ship notice must take into account the buyer seller relationship in every circumstance. In every case the seller MUST know where the product is, that is to say, as the product moves through the supply chain and the buyer calls with the question where s my stuff the seller has the answer. The Business Processes Guide for Electronic Data Interchange 2 is the most notable outside reference document on the subject of Advance Ship Notices and should be reviewed and held as a reference document for the purposes of Edi and in particular with respect to the Advance Ship Notice. The latest available version (005030) of the document was consulted while creating this guideline. While no one company can expect to use all of the referenced EDI documents; the material contained within The Business Processes Guide for Electronic Data Interchange does lend considerable insight in terms of overview into the process and the subsequent document flows. Prologue In the publishing industry, since the Publisher is the supplier to the retailer and the printer, binder, or manufacturer is the supplier to the publisher it follows that the EDI transactions should proceed accordingly. Preconditions Preconditions for using the Advance ship Notice include the use and acceptance of the BISG s Guidelines for Shipping Container Labeling 3. Individual labeling requirements as represented by many in our industry MUST be reexamined and acceptance of the BISG Guidelines for Shipping Container Labeling must be implemented before the Advance Ship notice can be pursued. The guidelines represent the Book Industry Study Group s best practices recommendations for the creation and placement of Shipping Labels, Product Labels and Carton Marking. Adhering to the recommendations in the guidelines simplifies the capturing of data at all stages of shipping, warehousing and receiving physical product between publishers, distributors and booksellers and embodies the nature of trading partner understanding by reducing costs across the supply chain for trading partners. 2 The Business Processes Guide for Electronic Data Interchange: is only available through the GS1 Solution Center to subscribers to GS1 at https://solutionscenter.uc-council.org/index.html 3 The Guidelines for Shipping Container Labeling, Updated May 2007 is available here: http://www.bisg.org/documents/shipping.html 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 6

Getting started Since the transaction set begins with the order, and in order to ease processing on the part of the sellers, the publishers or buyers, SHOULD be sending an EDI 850 PO to the sellers (printer, binder, or manufacturer) before expecting to receive an Advance Ship Notice in return. This process of leading the transaction set from the beginning of the transaction serves to ensure continuity of the entire process from end to end and make certain that an electronic contract to purchase has been established between partners. Additionally, the predetermined fields associated with the EDI purchase order or 850 which ensures that the returning transaction set including the ASN or 856 responses includes correct information such as shipping, billing, product and packaging information. Figure 1 Single Buy/Sell Relationship The ASN or 856 MUST be sent from the seller to the buyer or as would be expected in the case of a printer, binder, or manufacturer to a publisher or in the case of the publisher to the retailer. In any buyer /seller relationship the key to successful implementation lies in the reliability of the Advance Ship notice reaching the buyer ahead of the shipment. 1. The ASN MUST be sent directly to the buyer from the seller by way of EDI, following the flow of goods from buyer to seller and buyer to seller. Figure 2 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 7

Complex Buy/Sell Relationships Since the seller MUST know where the product is at all times, the Advance Ship Notice process must include the middle tier supplier in cases where the middle tier supplier does not receive the property, rather the property is direct shipped as would be the case in a DFS, Direct factory or Direct Bindery shipment. The middle tier supplier, in the case of the book industry may also be known as the publisher. Since publishing exhibits multiple layers of buying and selling transactions the information must flow to the seller AND to the retailer in the case of a direct shipment. In any complex buy/sell relationship the key to successful implementation lies in the reliability of the Advance Ship notice reaching the buyer ahead of the shipment These complex buy /sell relationships are normally encountered in cases where a printer, binder, or manufacturer would ships directly to a retailer on the retailers instruction to the publisher, known also as direct factory shipments (DFS) or binder shipments; the advance ship notice (ASN) documents must follow the same path as the shipment; this can be accomplished in a number of ways. 1. The ASN CAN be sent directly to the retail buyer in the case of a direct shipment, however it also MUST also be sent to the seller (publisher) by way of an EDI carbon copy process, where the buyer received the advance ship notice copy while the advance ship notice is also sent to the retail buyer in anticipation of receiving the shipment. Figure 3 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 8

2. The ASN CAN be sent directly to the publisher who MUST resend the ASN to the retailer so that the retailer may receive the product in good order. Figure 4 Third Party Relationships (3PL) Third party or Third Party Logistics (3PL) can be described as any entity, person or business who encounters the product somewhere between the point of manufacture and the point of retail exclusive of the publisher. A third party may be a producer, printer, binder, manufacturer, freight forwarder, warehouse or value added service who is used by a depositor (owner of the goods) to construct, build, store, transport, or perform some value added service with the product on behalf of the seller. In any Third Party relationship the key to successful implementation lies in the reliability of the Advance Ship notice reaching the buyer ahead of the shipment. In these relationships the Third party encounters the product somewhere between the core manufacture of the product and generally serve as a value added service in the supply chain serving also in the capacity of transferring good from one location to another as in the case of a freight forwarder. Since the transaction set begins with the order, and in order to ease processing on the part of the sellers, the publishers or buyers, SHOULD be sending an purchase order (850) to the sellers (printer, binder, or manufacturers) before expecting to receive an Advance Ship Notice in return. The third party Advance Ship notice relationship can be managed in a number of ways assuming the purchase order (850) has already been received by the third party. 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 9

1. The ASN CAN be sent by the third party to the publisher who MUST resend the ASN to the retailer so that the retailer may receive the shipment in good order. Figure 5 2. The ASN CAN be sent directly to the retail buyer in the case of a direct or third party (3p) shipment, however it also MUST also be sent to the seller (publisher) by way of an EDI carbon copy process, where the buyer received the advance ship notice copy while the advance ship notice is also sent to the retail buyer in anticipation of receiving the shipment. Figure 6 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 10

3. The seller CAN process a Warehouse Shipping Order (940) to advise the third party to make a shipment; the information includes the products to be shipped and the destinations that they are to be sent to. The response from the third party to the Warehouse Shipping Advice (945) including all pertinent package level information can then be used to advise the seller that a shipment was made on their behalf. The seller MUST then send the ASN to the retailer so that the retailer may receive the product in good order. The Warehouse Shipping Order process assumes that the third party stores and maintains general data about the seller s product and the receiver s locations (GTINs and GLNs, items, stores and distribution centers) within their systems or can convert this data from the transaction set in order to build any applicable pick, pack and ship processes enabling visibility in the supply chain documents. Figure 7 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 11

The Use of Internet or Forms-based EDI: The following example illustrates a basic transaction cycle using Internet forms-based EDI. Forms based EDI services are an option for printers, binders, manufacturers or Third Party Logistics (3PL) 4 service providers without any present EDI infrastructure or for those who have a low transaction volume. 1. Sends 850 Purchase order Buyer The initiating company, using traditional EDI, transmits an 850 Purchase Order to a third party Internet forms-based EDI provider. 2. Loads the 850 to the web service EDI Provider The third party provider loads the purchase order received from the buyer to their web service 3. Views the purchase order data Seller The initiating company s trading partner (e.g., the Seller) accesses the website and views the purchase order data, which was brought to their attention via email. 4. Prints or downloads/imports the data to process the order. 5. Processes the Product Ships the product Upon shipping of product to its customer, the seller leverages the data transmitted in the original PO to create the 856 Ship Notice/Manifest and an 810 Invoice on the EDI Provider s web form. This information is housed in the third party s systems 6. Creates an 856 Ship Notice/Manifest 7. Creates an 810 Invoice on the third party web form. 8. Sends this information to the third party s systems. 4 The term; Third party or Third Party Logistics (3PL) refers to any producer: printer, binder, manufacturer, freight forwarder, warehouse or value added service, who is used by a depositor (owner of the goods) to construct, build, store, transport, or perform some value added service with the product on behalf of the seller 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 12

1. Sends the EDI 850 Purchase order Buyer The initiating company, typically using traditional EDI, transmits an 850 Purchase Order to a third party internet or forms-based EDI provider. EDI Web Service Provider 2. Loads the 850 to the party internet or forms-based EDI web service The third party provider loads the purchase order received from the buyer to their web service. 3. Notifies the Seller of the purchase order Typically, third party internet or forms-based EDI web service providers notifies the seller via an email service indicating that a purchase order exists and provides a link and or key to log on to the web service via the email message in order to view or process the purchase order. 4. Views the purchase order data Seller The trading partner, typically the Seller accesses the EDI web service site and views the purchase order data which was brought to their attention via email message 5. Prints or downloads/imports the data to process the order. 6. Processes the product for shipment 7. Ships the product 8. Creates an 856 Ship Notice/Manifest Upon shipping of product to its customer, the seller leverages the data transmitted in the original EDI 850 Purchase Order and stored in the internet or forms-based EDI web service to create the EDI 856 Ship Notice/Manifest. 9. Sends this information to the third party s systems. 10. Creates the EDI 856 Ship Notice/Manifest EDI Web Service Provider 11. Transmits the EDI document to the Buyer s EDI Mailbox 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 13

Seller 12. Creates an 810 Invoice on the third party web form. After successfully sending the EDI 856 Ship Notice/Manifest from the internet or formsbased EDI web service, the seller leverages the data transmitted in the EDI 856 Ship Notice/Manifest and stored in the internet or forms-based EDI web service to create the EDI 810 Invoice. 13. Sends this information to the third party s systems. 14. Creates the 810 Invoice EDI Web Service Provider 15. Transmits the EDI document to the Buyer s EDI Mailbox 16. Receives the 856 Ship Notice/Manifest 17. Receives the 810 Invoice Buyer Using their standard EDI processing method the buyer process his or her inbound EDI messages to close the transaction. End of activity. 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 14

Flow of Events for Internet or Forms-based EDI: Figure 8 Figure 9 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 15

Additional Supply Chain Notes 810 Invoice The Invoice (810) message is generated by the supplier to bill the buyer for products and services provided. The Invoice (810) allows a buyer to record payment-request information and automatically update applicable systems. The data contained in the business message provides automated cross-referencing of purchase order and receiving data. If a consolidated invoice is used, receiving and reconciliation must support multiple invoices being combined into one Invoice (810) 5. 850 Purchase Order The Purchase Order (850) is used by the buyer to advise the seller or broker of a request for the delivery of product. The broker uses the Purchase Order (850) to communicate the buyer s request for product to the seller. The Purchase Order (850) is used to express purchase order information for receiving locations. A Purchase Order (850) may be an original, or it may be a confirmation of one already communicated to the seller or broker. It may also be used to express distribution requirements for receiving location(s), such as in cross-dock and/or drop-ship environments. For each purchase order, the buyer must supply a purchase order number and date, indicate which location is to receive the product, specify either a requested delivery date or a shipping/pickup date, and define the products needed with their respective quantities. When processed by the seller, a single purchase order may be result in one or more individual orders or shipments 6. 856 Ship Notice Manifest (ASN) The Ship Notice/Manifest (856) business message may be used by either the seller or public warehouse to advise the buyer of shipment information. In addition it may also be used by a seller to notify a public warehouse when a shipment of product is made from the seller s plant or producing location or from another public warehouse. Exchange of information is accomplished using a flexible data structure to report information. The structure of this message allows reporting at shipment, order, tare (pallet), pack and item levels. The Ship Notice/Manifest (856) provides the receiver with information necessary to schedule shipment receipt and storage 7. 940 Warehouse Shipping Order The Warehouse Shipping Order (940) is a business message used by the seller to authorize the public warehouse to make a shipment to a buyer. It specifies what products to ship and the quantity of each. Using this message, the seller can advise the warehouse of an original, confirmation, change, replacement or cancellation of an order. 5 GS1 Solution Center, The Business Processes Guide for Electronic Data Interchange Available to GS1 subscribers at https://solutionscenter.uc-council.org/index.html 6 GS1 Solution Center, The Business Processes Guide for Electronic Data Interchange Available to GS1 subscribers at https://solutionscenter.uc-council.org/index.html 7 GS1 Solution Center, The Business Processes Guide for Electronic Data Interchange Available to GS1 subscribers at https://solutionscenter.uc-council.org/index.html 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 16

At a minimum, the seller must specify the seller s order number, the buyer s purchase order number, the shipping date, the buyer s receiving location and the products to ship with their respective quantities. Within the manufacturer/public warehouse relationship, the seller s product code may be used in addition to the GTIN. Depending on the information available to the seller and the business relationship with the warehouse, the seller may also specify standard and custom mod pallet configurations, carrier information, other parties involved in the order (such as a broker), temperature requirements, special handling services, bill of lading notes and other product information (such as lot numbers and production codes). The Warehouse Shipping Order (940) uses one of two distinct methods to communicate shipping instructions to a third party warehouse. The first method, Item Warehouse Shipping Order, conveys instructions to ship the same product to multiple locations. The second, Carton Warehouse Shipping Order, conveys instructions to ship specific cartons to a single location. The cartons (and the carton content) are identified by their container serial numbers. Parties trading the Warehouse Shipping Order (940) are providing accurate data to the third party warehouse as well as improving operating efficiencies through reduced data entry and substantially reduced paper flow 8. 945 Warehouse Shipping Advice The Warehouse Shipping Advice (945) is used by the public warehouse to advise the seller that a shipment was made. It is used to reconcile order quantities with shipment quantities. The contents of the seller s order, coupled with the shipping information reported by the warehouse, are used to generate order corrections prior to the invoicing of an order. The exchange of information is accomplished using a flexible data structure that allows for the reporting of data at the shipment, order, tare (pallet) and pack. Depending on the seller s requirements, the warehouse may report the complete order as shipped or shipped with exceptions. The warehouse usually reports the buyer s purchase order number, actual shipping date, carrier used, bill of lading number (if different from the order number) and master bill of lading number (if consolidations were done). The tare level accommodates pallet identification, such as the SSCC. The pack level allows for case/carton identification and product quantity. Structures exist for the warehouse to report a reason for a change in the shipping date, a reason products were cut from a shipment, and product substitution information. As in the Warehouse Shipping Order (940), the seller s product number may be used in conjunction with the seller s GTIN 9. Appointment Number (AO): A conditional field for most publishers, this field is required for Wal-Mart under certain conditions and is a required field for Burlington Coat Factory 8 GS1 Solution Center, The Business Processes Guide for Electronic Data Interchange Available to GS1 subscribers at https://solutionscenter.uc-council.org/index.html 9 GS1 Solution Center, The Business Processes Guide for Electronic Data Interchange Available to GS1 subscribers at https://solutionscenter.uc-council.org/index.html 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 17

BOL Number (BM): Neither the form nor the usage of the Bill of Lading (BOL) is standardized at present 10. The Bill of Lading is a document issued by a carrier, e.g. a ship's master or by a company's shipping department, acknowledging that specified goods have been received on board as cargo for conveyance to a named place for delivery to the consignee who is usually identified. A required field for most publishers,, this field is required for Amazon, Indigo, Kohl s, Anderson Merchandisers, Anderson News, American Wholesale Book Company (Books a million), Wal- Mart, Booksource, Burlington Coat Factory, Target and Levy. Pro Number CN is held in the REF02 127 Reference Identification. Preference is for the 17-digit VICS BOL number. Carrier Auth Number (06): A conditional field for most publishers, this field is required for Kohl s. Carrier Auth Number is held in REF01 128 Department Number (DP): An optional field for most publishers, this field is also optional for Kohl s. Department Number is held as DP in REF01, 128. Global Location Number (GLN) The GLN is simply a 13-digit number used to uniquely identify any legal, functional or physical entity. The GLN is a unique identifier that specifically that can be used to identify any supply chain location, legal, functional or physical.. Also referred to as party, a party (or) Location is any legal, functional or physical entity involved at any point in any supply chain and upon which there is a need to retrieve pre-defined information. A party is uniquely identified by a Global Location Number (GLN). In terms of the EAN.UCC schema is identified as, GlobalLocationNumber (GLN). In March of 2001 in a letter indicating that Wal-Mart was undergoing some EDI restructuring with their purchase orders, the changes included use of the GLN instead of the Duns numbers which previously appeared on the order. Since Wal-Mart is expanding internationally, we must require you to discontinue using the DUNS number and adopt the 13 digit Global Location number. The Uniform Code Council and EAN international govern the GLN, which implements the international location number standards. The GLN primarily affects the EDI 816 document, but will also impact other EDI transactions that require the DUNS number. Source: Wal-Mart Purchase Order restructuring guidelines March 2001 11. See GLN Allocation Rules 12 10 VICS Standard Bill of Lading, Retrieved from the World Wide Web, Wednesday, August 08, 2007, http://www.vics.org/standards/bol/ 11 AGSA.US, 2002, Understanding the Attributes of Data Synchronization Student Guide, www.agsa.us 12 GLN Allocation Rules are available here: http://www.gs1.org/glnrules/ 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 18

Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) An umbrella term used to describe the entire family of GS1 data structures for trade items (products and services) identification. The Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) is the GS1, EAN.UCC System identifier for trade items, which encompasses both products and services. GTINs provide the capability to deliver unique identification world wide. The most commonly recognized and used GTINs are the U.P.C. and EAN-13 symbols. The family of data structures include: EAN/UCC-8, UCC-12, EAN/UCC-13, and EAN/UCC-14. Products at every level of product configuration (consumer selling unit, case level, inner pack level, pallet, shipper, etc.) require a unique GTIN. GTIN is a new term, not a standards change 13. Hash Totals: Although the CTT02 (hash total) is an optional field The MEIG highly recommends the use of Hash totals. The rationale for which is that after a document is de-enveloped the hash total provides a way to independently confirm that a document has been received in its entirety. The common use of the CTT02 (hash total) field is to accumulate units while de-enveloping and compare the total with the original CTT02. With respect to Sarbanes Oxley, this is a good measure with which to respond to auditors when asked how the supply chain assures that all transactions have been received in their entirety. Internal Supplier Number (IA): A conditional field for most publishers, this field is required for Wal-Mart under certain conditions. Invoice Number (IV): A required field for most publishers,, this field is required for Anderson Merchandisers, Anderson News, Bookazine, Booksource, NACSCORP (subsidiary of National Association of College Stores), and Optional for Kohl s. Invoice Number is held as the PK reference in REF01, 128. Note: 3rd party shipments should list both pack slip and invoice number. Load Number (CR): A conditional field for most publishers, this field is required for Wal-Mart under certain conditions. Manifest Number (MA): A conditional field for most publishers, this field is optional for Barnes and Noble and conditional for American Wholesale Book Company (Books a Million), and Levy. Manifest NUMBER MA is held in the REF02 127 Reference Identification 13 AGSA.US, 2002, Understanding the Attributes of Data Synchronization Student Guide, www.agsa.us 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 19

Master BOL Number (MB): Neither the form nor the usage of the Bill of Lading (BOL) is standardized at present 14. The Bill of Lading is a document issued by a carrier, e.g. a ship's master or by a company's shipping department, acknowledging that specified goods have been received on board as cargo for conveyance to a named place for delivery to the consignee who is usually identified. A conditional field for most publishers, this field is required for Target Stores. The Master BOL Number MB is held in the REF02 127 Reference Identification. Pack Slip/Inv Number (PK): A required field for most publishers, this field is required for Baker Taylor, and Optional for Indigo and Kohl s. Pack Slip/Invoice Number is held as the PK reference in REF01, 128. Note: 3rd party shipments should list both pack slip and invoice number. PRO Number (CN): The terms pro number and freight bill number mean the same thing; where "PRO number" or PRO, short for progressive number, is a transportation industry term used primarily by transportation providers and where "freight bill number" is used primarily by shippers. A required field for most publishers, this field is required for Amazon, Burlington Coat Factory, Target, Wal-Mart and others. Seal Number (SN): An optional field for most publishers, this field is required for International shipments as well as Barnes and Noble shipments. Seal Number (SN) is held in the TD303: TD301 segment, TD309 v5010. Trailer Number (TL): A required field for most publishers, this field is required for Anderson News, Burlington Coat Factory, Target, and Bed Bath and beyond. Further, our Customer Service group requires this information for customer support. Trailer Number TL was added to the TD301 segment, TD309 v5010. 14 VICS Standard Bill of Lading, Retrieved from the World Wide Web, Wednesday, August 08, 2007, http://www.vics.org/standards/bol/ 2007, 2008 by the Book Industry Study Group, Inc. Page 20