Synchronizing the Convenience and Petroleum Retail Channel
A service offering of PCATS, the Petroleum Convenience Alliance for Technology Standards, in collaboration with 1SYNC™, a not for profit subsidiary of GS1 US (formerly the Uniform Code Council) and sponsored by NACS, the Association for Convenience and Petroleum Retailing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What does it mean to synchronize the convenience and petroleum retail channel?
Q. What is the principal benefit of the PCATS Gateway?
Q. How does the PCATS Gateway work?
Q. What is the secure electronic method of transmission?
Q. How do retailer subscribers benefit?
Q. How do supplier subscribers benefit?
Q. What roles do PCATS, 1SYNC, and NACS play in the PCATS Gateway program?
Q. How does a company participate in the program?
Q. What type/size of supplier should participate in the program?
Q. What size retailer is eligible to subscribe to the PCATS Gateway?
Q. How can a retailer prepare for participation?
Q. How can a supplier prepare for participation?
Q. How will the PCATS Gateway improve efficiencies in exchanging price information?
Q. What are the costs for retailers and suppliers?
Q. Why was the PCATS-NAXML standard chosen as the messaging format?
Q. Has the program been piloted in the industry?
A. The PCATS Gateway is a pipeline that connects retailers and their suppliers regardless of size for the exchange of item price and promotion information via 1SYNC in a low cost, efficient and standard manner using the PCATS-NAXML EB2B standards.
Q. What does it mean to synchronize the convenience and petroleum retail channel?
A. Data synchronization is the only cost-effective and standardized method to ensure that trading partners share relevant and accurate information with each other, helping both retailer and supplier achieve an efficient supply chain and positively affecting their bottom lines.
Q. What is the principal benefit of the PCATS Gateway?
A. Retailers in the convenience and petroleum industry will be able to achieve the same benefits that “big box” retailers are getting by interfacing electronically with their suppliers. These benefits include lower costs to maintain pricebooks, faster time to shelf of new products, quicker and timelier response to price and marketing changes, and fewer invoice discrepancies and invoice deduction reconciliation.
Q. How does the PCATS Gateway work?
A. Suppliers send their information through the PCATS Gateway in a variety of ways – by a machine-to-machine connection, by completion of web based forms, or by submission of the data in a pre-formatted spreadsheet. 1SYNC, the engine driving the PCATS Gateway, translates the data received from the supplier into PCATS-NAXML standard and sends it via secure electronic methods to the designated retailer. The retailer can review the data and when satisfied import it directly into the back office system without having to do any manual data entry.
Q. What is the secure electronic method of transmission?
A. The recommended communications method is AS2, an internet secure protocol for the transmission of electronic documents. PCATS has made arrangements with CLEO Communications to provide AS2 software to PCATS Gateway subscribers at a very favorable rate.
Q. How do retailer subscribers benefit?
A. Benefits for retailers include:
- Easier administration of pricing as changes are received in a consistent format from all participating suppliers.
- Dealing with one format eliminates communicating with each supplier in a different manner.
- Eliminating manual data entry saves clerical time, effort and expense.
- Streamlining and expediting invoice processing and reconciliation with discrepancy issues eliminated and /or reduced.
- More efficient management of incoming price changes from suppliers.
Q. How do supplier subscribers benefit?
A. Benefits for suppliers include:
- Prevention of costly data entry errors
- Reduced invoice deductions and unpaid invoices
- Reduced labor costs
- Prevention of out of stocks
- Faster time to market for new products
- Increased supply chain efficiencies
Q. What roles do PCATS, 1SYNC, and NACS play in the PCATS Gateway program?
A. The roles of the respective parties are:
- PCATS provides marketing and branding support to the program.
- NACS provides venues for publicizing the program.
- 1SYNC provides the technology infrastructure, implementation services, help desk, and subscriber support.
Q. How does a company participate in the program?
A. Retailers and suppliers who wish to subscribe should send an email to gateway@pcats.org. Additional information including subscriber agreement, fees, and timelines will be provided.
Q. What type/size of supplier should participate in the program?
A. There is no minimum company size for participation nor is there a minimum number of items loaded or retailers served.
Q. What size retailer is eligible to subscribe to the PCATS Gateway?
A. There is no minimum retailer size for participation. However, in order for a retailer to participate, the company must be capable of receiving PCATS-NAXML item price and promotion documents and utilizing the data contained in them to populate its pricebook.
Q. How can a retailer prepare for participation?
A. PCATS has created a “Readiness Assessment” for retailers and it can be downloaded from the PCATS website – www.pcats.org.
Q. How can a supplier prepare for participation?
A. PCATS has created a “Readiness Assessment” for suppliers and it can be downloaded from the PCATS website – www.pcats.org.
Q. As a retailer, how can I be sure my back office software is capable of handling PCATS-NAXML pricebook updates?
A. PCATS has created a PCATS Gateway Ready program for back office solution providers.Companies displaying the logo or who publicize they are part of the program are ready to assist their retailers. Retailers who are customers of solution providers who have not yet indicated they are “PCATS Gateway Ready” should speak with their solution provider to determine their readiness. Solution providers who are unfamiliar with the PCATS-NAXML standards should contact PCATS at info@pcats.org.
Q. How will the PCATS Gateway improve efficiencies in exchanging price information?
A. Today, the majority of retailers receive new item information, price changes and promotional pricing deals via mail or email from their suppliers. The information must be manually entered into their pricebook, which frequently delays getting the new to the shelf, ready for sale. Electronic receipt of the information coupled with electronic pricebook entry speeds time to shelf and prevents data entry errors - resulting in improved sales.
Q. What are the costs for retailers and suppliers?
A. The subscriber fee is based on annual merchandise sales of a company (excluding motor fuel for retailers). Applicable company fees will be provided upon request.
Q. Why was the PCATS-NAXML standard chosen as the messaging format?
A. PCATS-NAXML messaging standard for retail merchandise has been widely accepted within the convenience and petroleum marketing industry as the common standard for electronic document exchanges.
Q. How will the PCATS Gateway eliminate technology barriers that have previously stalled implementations of electronic business document exchange?
A. Previously the only alternatives to doing business electronically for the majority of small retailers and their small suppliers were either X12 EDI or proprietary implementations , which were both too costly. PCATS-NAXML is a simple, cost effective means of transmitting data in an standard format, thus creating simplified integration to retailer back office solutions.
Q. Has the program been piloted in the industry?
A. A pilot program was conducted during the first quarter of 2007 and a report was issued at NACStech 2007 in Nashville, TN. Five retailers ranging in size from 6 stores to over 1,500 stores participated in the pilot program. There were 6 suppliers participating ranging in size from multi-national companies to small regional companies. All participants successfully completed the pilot and recommended the program be made available to the entire industry. A white paper prepared by one of the participants can be downloaded from www.pcats.org/
A. PCATS maintains the PCATS-NAXML standards on which the program is based. The primary mission of PCATS is to drive implementation of its standards for the benefit of the convenience and petroleum retailing industry.
A. NACS created its Technology Standards Project in 1995. PCATS acquired the intellectual property (IP) that was developed in the project and for which NACS invested over $5 million in development costs. One of the many results of the project was the development of EB2B standards for retail. NACS has a vested interest in helping to drive implementation of those standards that it was so instrumental in developing.
A. 1SYNC has a proven data synchronization program that works well with the PCATS community's needs.1SYNC is a not for profit subsidiary of the GS1 US (formerly the Uniform Code Council). Its not for profit status fits very well with PCATS and enabling both organizations to offer the PCATS Gateway on a cost recovery basis.