Documentation

Trade Item Information

GS1 Trade Item information is a standardised way for sellers and buyers to exchange digital trade item information. GS1 Trade Item Information is also used to exchange, among other things, logistics, market and sustainability information. If you need to send or receive trade item information you can find information about the Swedish implementation of GS1 Trade Item Information in the Trade Item Information Guideline.

If you are a solution provider or a recipient of trade item information, you also need, in addition to the guideline, the technical documentation found under Current specifications and Upcoming specifications below.

Product images

The GS1 Product Image Specification Standard provides technical rules and guidelines for digital product images. It specifies how to store images that are linked to products identified by GTINs (Global Trade Item Numbers). While the standard includes recommendations for image quality, it does not define protocols for image delivery or publication between trading partners.

The standard covers guidelines for product images for both online and print marketing material, as well as planogram images for retail shelf planning.

Section 3.3 of the standard document refers to the marketing image used in the Swedish market.

Quality assurance

Quality assurance of Trade Item Information and Barcodes

Quality assurance of trade item information is the manual verification of your digital trade item information compared to physical or digital product samples.

Quality assurance of barcodes is a manual verification that your barcode on the packaging is readable and complies with the GS1 standard for barcodes. About 20 parameters are checked using advanced scanning equipment.

Quality assurance of product images

Quality assurance of product images for sales and marketing and for planograms, is the manual check of your product images, that provides your dealers with a verification that the images are of a sufficiently high standard.

Measurement

When measuring an item’s dimensions, such as height, width, and depth, it is important that everyone measures in the same way so that there are no misunderstandings. When the dimensions in the item information match the actual item’s dimensions, the store can make an accurate shelf plan. In addition, it is possible to plan transport so that everything fits and the truck’s capacity is optimally utilised.

Measure the outer dimensions of the item

Remember to always measure the outer dimensions of the item since it is the outer dimensions that are needed for shelf planning and transport. Using the inner dimensions you receive from your packaging vendor may result in your customer’s shelf planning not working or the item not being placed in the bin.

Measurement standard for consumer and non-consumer items

Measurement standards for all packaging types can be found in the global standard GS1 Package and Product Measurement Standard. The parts describing measurement for packed consumer and non-consumer items are translated into Swedish in GS1 Standard för mätning av förpackningar och produkter. Please note that consumer and non-consumer items should be measured in different ways.

GS1 Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)

GS1’s two standards for electronic commerce are GS1 EANCOM and GS1 XML. GS1 UN/CEFACT specifies how GS1 standards are to be used in UN/CEFACT XML messages.

ESAP – Business processes for electronic commerce

ESAP is business processes for electronic commerce and is used to facilitate for companies that have chosen to communicate via GS1 EDI (Electronic Data Interchange). The ESAP documentation is primarily aimed at operational managers of suppliers and system developers.

The processes follow GS1 standards and are documented in implementation guides and specifications designed to help different industries get their information flows organised.

Data communication and connections

To send business information over any type of network, such as the Internet, a file transfer protocol is required. GS1 recommends EDIINT AS2 (EDI over INTernet Applicability Statement 2). EDIINT AS2 securely transmits data over the Internet using HTTP as the transport protocol. Some of the benefits of AS2 are:

• Digital signatures make it possible to verify the sender and prevent the information from being manipulated on the way between the sender and the receiver.
• Encryption ensures that the information cannot be read by unauthorised persons during transmission.
• The use of ack/neck signals means that the transmitter and receiver always agree that a message has been sent and/or received.

It is also possible to connect to GS1 Sweden’s services Validoo, My places and Verified by GS1 via API.

Warehouse and transport management

The specifications for warehouse management are developed by an international working group based on GS1 XML. The specifications transport management have been developed by an international working group, while the Transport Invoice has been developed by a local working group.

EPCIS

Electronic Product Code Information Services (EPCIS) is GS1’s standard for sharing event information, which allow you to track a ship-to-customer delivery, track a customer-to-manufacturer delivery, and find out if a product is genuine or counterfeit.

Guides

• Send trade item information

• Measure a product

• Connect to a GDSN data pool

• Create a GLN

Basic documentation

Here you can find basic technical documentation for GS1’s standards for identification, data capture and information sharing.

GS1 General Specifications

The GS1 General Specifications is the core standards document of the GS1 system describing how GS1 barcodes, data attributes and identification keys are used in different organisations.

Read more and see the documentation

GS1 System Architecture

The GS1 System Architecture describes how the different parts of the GS1 system relate to each other and outlines the technical principles that form the basis of the system’s design.

Read more and see the documentation

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