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X12 transaction guide · Master data

EDI 841 Specifications/Technical Information

The X12 document trading partners use to send or request product specifications, technical data and engineering changes.

Sent by
Engineering or product owner (buyer or manufacturer)
Received by
Supplier, contract manufacturer or customer
Standard
ANSI ASC X12

What is an EDI 841?

The EDI 841 Specifications/Technical Information is the ANSI X12 transaction set for exchanging technical descriptions of a product, process or service. It can transmit specifications, request them, or carry engineering changes and engineering change requests, and its detail area can hold text, parametric, tabular, graphic, image or other data with identification information that tells the receiver how to interpret it.

The 841 lets technical data travel over the same EDI connection as orders and schedules, so suppliers receive the revision that applies to what they build. In practice many companies use it to send references to drawings and files, with the files themselves exchanged through a secure file transfer.

How the EDI 841 worksDiagram of the EDI 841 Specifications/Technical Information. Engineering or product owner (buyer or manufacturer) sends it to supplier, contract manufacturer or customer. It usually starts the exchange. It is usually followed by 997. Inside the ISA, GS and ST envelopes, X12 release 008010 requires, in the heading: the required SPI loop with SPI (Specification Identifier) and detail: the required HL loop with HL (Hierarchical Level). 8 optional loops are listed by their first segment.How the EDI 841 worksSpecifications/Technical Information: who sends it, where it fits and what the standard marks required1 WHERE IT FITSUSUALLY FOLLOWSStarts the exchangeEDI 841SENDEREngineering or productowner (buyer ormanufacturer)RECEIVERSupplier, contractmanufacturer orcustomer997 or 999 acknowledgment back, if the partners agreeUSUALLY FOLLOWED BY997FunctionalAcknowledgment2 WHAT X12 RELEASE 008010 REQUIRESInterchange: sender and receiver IDsISA … IEAFunctional group, ID code SPGS … GETransaction set 841ST … SEHEADINGRequired loop SPI · repeats many timesSPISpecification Identifier+ 2 optional loops, starting with:REFN1DETAILRequired loop HL · repeats many timesHLHierarchical Level+ 6 optional loops, starting with:SPIPIDREFLXEFICIDBlue box: required loop. Optional loops are listed by the segment that starts them; when a loop is used, that first segment is required. Optional segmentsoutside loops are not drawn.Structure: required segments and loops in the X12 008010 listing for the 841. Your trading partner's implementation guide adds its own requirements.
How the EDI 841 worksDiagram of the EDI 841 Specifications/Technical Information. Engineering or product owner (buyer or manufacturer) sends it to supplier, contract manufacturer or customer. It usually starts the exchange. It is usually followed by 997. Inside the ISA, GS and ST envelopes, X12 release 008010 requires, in the heading: the required SPI loop with SPI (Specification Identifier) and detail: the required HL loop with HL (Hierarchical Level). 8 optional loops are listed by their first segment.How the EDI 841 worksSpecifications/Technical Information: whosends it, where it fits and what the standardmarks required1 WHERE IT FITSUSUALLY FOLLOWSStarts the exchangeEDI 841SENDEREngineering orproduct owner(buyer ormanufacturer)RECEIVERSupplier,contractmanufacturer orcustomer997 or 999 acknowledgment back, if the partnersagreeUSUALLY FOLLOWED BY997Functional Acknowledgment2 WHAT X12 RELEASE 008010 REQUIRESInterchange: sender and receiver IDs (ISA… IEA)Functional group, ID code SP (GS … GE)Transaction set 841 (ST … SE)HEADINGRequired loop SPI · repeatsmany timesSPISpecification Identifier+ 2 optional loops, starting with:REFN1DETAILRequired loop HL · repeats manytimesHLHierarchical Level+ 6 optional loops, starting with:SPIPIDREFLXEFICIDBlue box: required loop. Optional loops are listedby the segment that starts them; when a loop isused, that first segment is required. Optionalsegments outside loops are not drawn.Structure: required segments and loops in the X12008010 listing for the 841. Your trading partner'simplementation guide adds its own requirements.

How to read this diagram: the top row shows who sends the 841, to whom, and which documents usually come before and after it. The lower part shows what X12 release 008010 itself requires: the envelopes around the 841 and the segments and loops the standard marks as required, area by area. Optional loops are listed by the segment that starts them rather than drawn in full. This is the standard's minimum, not a trading partner's requirement: each partner's implementation guide usually makes some optional loops mandatory, restricts the codes and may use a different release.

Expand diagram Download SVG

When it is used

  • Sending a supplier a new or revised part specification
  • Issuing or requesting engineering changes
  • Requesting technical data from a supplier
  • Exchanging test or process parameters for a product

Where it fits in the document flow

This document 841 Specifications/Technical Information
Usually followed by 997 Functional Acknowledgment

Structure

Mandatory segments in the 841 (X12 release 008010)

The segments X12 release 008010 marks as mandatory at their level, in order. Segments inside optional loops are needed only when the loop is used. This is the standard's requirement, not your trading partner's: each partner's implementation guide names the release it uses, adds the optional segments it requires and restricts the values. The requirement status comes from one published X12 reference listing and has not been checked against a second source.

  • ST
  • SPI
  • REF
  • N1
  • HL
  • PID
  • PKG
  • LX
  • MEA
  • EFI
  • CID
  • STA
  • CSF
  • SE

Practical example

The 841 in practice

An automotive supplier changes the material grade of a molded housing. Its engineering system sends an 841 to the molder with the part number, the new revision level, the changed parameters and a reference to the updated drawing, along with the effective date. The molder updates its routing and confirms it can build the new revision before releases switch over.

Implementation

Implementation considerations for the 841

  • Tie each 841 to an explicit part revision and effective date, so production uses the right version.
  • Decide whether drawings and models travel inside the 841 or as separate files referenced by it.
  • Route incoming 841s to engineering, not order entry, and track acknowledgment of each change.
  • Check file size limits with your network or VAN before sending embedded binary data.

How ECOM helps

Automate the 841 with ECOM

Industry

Automotive

Schedules, ship notices, labels, self-billing and multi-plant routing for automotive suppliers.

Industry

Industrial Manufacturing

Distributor, OEM customer and supplier integration for industrial manufacturers.

Solution

B2B Integration

Connect every customer, supplier, carrier and bank across EDI, API, file and portal channels.

More general questions about EDI are answered in the EDI FAQ.

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