Inventory Restaurants: EDI Integration Ingredient Data Management

Overview

When completing a supplier EDI integration there are a number of Ingredient data values that should be reviewed, using Fourth's Recipe and Menu Engineering solution (RME - also known as 'Starchef').

Requirements vary by supplier, and these will be communicated during the integration, but this article covers all key data considerations.

It is the customer's responsibility to ensure Ingredient data is accurate and in the format required by the supplier.

Fourth can help update Ingredient data in bulk - this is scoped on an individual request basis.

Data Review

The quickest way to review EDI data in bulk is to utilise the 'Ingredient Price Update Template with Invoice Price' report in RME. This report can be run for individual suppliers or all ingredients.

• Log in to RME
• Go to the reports tab
• Filter the reports by Ingredient and select Ingredient Price Update Template
• Apply filters as required and then select Create Report

Fig.1 - Running the Ingredient Price Update Template report in RME

Key fields returned are:

• Ingredient Name
• Supplier Name
• Supplier Code
• Supply Quantity (split across 3 columns)
• [Supplier] Order UOM
• Cost Price
• Invoice UOM (applicable to variable weighted ingredients only)
• Invoice Cost Price (applicable to variable weighted ingredients only)

Further details are provided in the next section.

Fig.1 - Ingredient Price Update Template with Invoice Price report

Data Values (customer's responsibility to manage)

Ingredient Name

The Ingredient Name is typically used for reference only (with Supplier Codes being preferred for actual order transmission).

This field can be utilised to suit the customer naming requirements

Supplier Code

The Supplier Code is a key data point used for order transmission, and document updates/reconciliation.

The Supplier Code must match the supplier's requirement exactly.

Examples of common bad data are:

• Missing leading zeros
• Trailing spaces

Any variation to the supplier's exact code requirement will cause mismatches and additional manual work to all documents impacted.

Supplier Order UOM

This value is not utilised by all suppliers but is a mandatory field to enable a transmission to process.

If this field is blank for an Ingredient, any orders containing that Ingredient will fail.

Every Ingredient must have a Supplier Order UOM applied.
The 3 options are:

• EA - For split packs/individual items
• CS - For cases
• KGM - For Variable Weighted items (pay by kilogram)

Bulk updates to this value can be completed using the Bulk Edit Ingredients Tool.

Supply Quantity

The Supply Quantity is typically used for reference only (the key elements in an order are quantity x supplier code)

The Supply Quantity should match the expected delivered quantity from the supplier for inventory purposes.

Cost Price

The Cost Price should be accurate to the supplier's current pricing. Suppliers should provide notice when prices change and the customer should then update these. Prices can be set with a future effective date in advance where known.

Bulk updates to this value can be completed using the Bulk Price Update Tool.

Variable Weighted

Variable Weighted is the term Fourth uses for Ingredients that are priced by weight (KG for example).

These are identified by a tick in the Variable Weighted field.

Where an Ingredient is variably weighted, it should be configured as per the Setting Up Catch Weight Product in Recipe and Menu Engineering article.

Key points to note:

• Cost Price is the expected total cost based on the typically delivered amount
• Invoice UOM defines the weight used for payment (KGM)
• Invoice Price is the price per Invoice UOM (price per kilogram)

Date Available to Order

The Date Available to Order value will determine if the ingredient can be ordered or not:

• Date is in the future (tomorrow onwards) = Not orderable
• Date is current or in past (today and earlier) = Orderable

Bulk updates to this value can be completed using the Bulk Edit Ingredients Tool.

Fig.2 - Ingredient Setup

Bulk Data Updates

There are a number of ways to update data in bulk, saving time and effort:

Bulk Edit Ingredient Tool

The Bulk Edit Ingredients Tool allows updates to the following EDI-related values:

• Ingredient Name
• Supplier Order UOM
• Date Available to Order

Fig.3 - Bulk Edit Ingredient Tool

Bulk Price Update Tool

The Bulk Price Update Tool allows updates to the following EDI-related values:

• Pending Cost Price
• Pending Invoice Cost Price (for variable weighted ingredients)

Fig.4 - Bulk Price Update Tool

Custom Data Exercise

For bulk updates to any fields not covered in the above (EDI related or not), a custom data exercise can be scoped and quoted on an individual request basis.

Related Articles

Bulk Price Update Tool
Bulk Edit Ingredients Tool
Setting Up Catch Weight Product in Recipe and Menu Engineering
Unknown Products on Electronic Documents
Creating an Ingredient: Video Overview