The application is an advanced PIM (Product Information Management) software, natively supporting ETIM and xChange/BMEcat standards. It allows collecting and processing (cleaning, correcting, completing) various types of product information: identification, description, technical (ETIM), ordering, packaging, pricing, or multimedia. Product information can be handled in multiple languages. The available API programming interface allows integration with other external systems (ERP, webpages, e-commerce).
The application enables the classification of products according to the ETIM standard and supports for xChange/BMEcat files. Product information can also be imported/exported from/to Excel files.
It is a SaaS (Software as a Service) application licensed on a subscription basis and centrally hosted. Users can access it via a web browser (latest versions of Chrome, Opera, Firefox, and Microsoft Edge) or through a Programming Interface (API).
According to customer needs, we offer the following types of accounts with a different starting configuration of available options:
There are the following types of users:
The scope of products visible to a user can be limited by the administrator by setting a built-in product filter (prefilter) for that user.
The application is multilingual. This applies to the following independent aspects of the application:
The user guide is only available in English (no documentation language versions, even with the user interface language selected).
Dashboard is a visualization screen that provides an at-a-glance view of important information about the account, like configuration, completeness metrics and the change in completeness within the last 30 days, as well as current submissions.
By displaying these data from multiple sources in one place, dashboards help users quickly assess what is happening in the product information management and make informed decisions or actions. Dashboards include charts, tables, gauges and other visual elements that are easy to interpret, making them a useful tool as a starting point in the application for monitoring and decision-making.
In practice, classification is performed most often based on the existing files containing the list of products, such as price lists. Except for prices, these files usually contain values of some basic parameters that must be assigned to the appropriate parameters required by the ETIM standard.
To start the classification work, such a list of products should be transformed into an Excel template (see "Excel templates" section) and imported to the classification software. For example, if you know in advance the ETIM description of your products, you can generate the import templates (Excel files) for the corresponding ETIM class or classes. ETIM templates contain the structure of the ETIM classes with all required features and values to be used within this class. In this way, the whole ETIM classification can be prepared in Excel templates and then the template files filled with the product data can be imported into the classification software. It is the easiest and recommended way, under the condition that you know in advance the ETIM description of your products.
In the same way, it is possible to generate an Excel file with product information, such as: general, ordering, packaging, pricing, attachments, LCA, SEO, WWW or related product information and ETIM class codes.
The usage of the template allows also to import all product data used internally in the application, such as additional technical description, labels, attributes, attribute groups, relations by attribute, suppliers, recipients, categories, category trees and custom company completeness mask.
The identifiers are stored as a text, so it is recommended that they are provided as text when importing (the numerical values should be preceded by an apostrophe). Importing identifiers which are numbers is potentially risky because conversion from numbers to text is done. This can result in modification of the identifier, e.g. insignificant zeros are omitted (leading or ending on fractional decimal positions), comma used in some countries as a decimal separator is converted to dot, thousandth separators are omitted, etc. All incorrect information is omitted during the import process, for example, values with incorrect header names, incorrect codes of ETIM classes, features or values, etc.
To see how to generate Excel template files, go to the "Excel templates" section.
If you have previously classified product information in the xChange/BMEcat format, it is possible to import the whole classification automatically.
Before launching the import, it is possible to select the categories of information to be imported. In this case, only selected categories of information will be imported - under the condition that they are present in the imported file. Some categories of information (e.g. labels) are not present in the xChange/BMEcat file, so in the case of selecting this type of information while importing the xChange/BMEcat file will have no effect.
In the case of new products (not existing in the database) the following modes are available:
In the case of existing products the following modes are available:
* import mode "replace" has an additional setting "Empty fields overwrite existing values": yes/no. The default setting of this option to "no" protects against unintentional deletion of existing values by importing empty values. This can be done consciously by setting this option to "yes".
** with one exception: if only empty elements of a given type are imported with the option "Empty fields overwrite existing values" set to "no", then existing elements of that type are not deleted.*** all non empty values of the existing element should match with the new/imported element.
Additional elements mean product information structures defined by the user in the menu: "Configuration", such as labels, attributes, attribute groups, relations by attribute, suppliers, recipients, category trees with categories, and custom company completeness mask.
Import of additional element definitions is done ONLY in "replace" mode. It is recommended to export to an Excel file the current state of these definitions, modify the selected definitions to the desired form, and then import the Excel file with the element definitions into the application.
This option allows you to limit imported products to those indicated in the csv auxiliary file or to skip the products indicated in the csv file. The auxiliary file should contain one column with product identifiers to be taken into account (or omitted) during the import.
This option is disabled by default. It can be activated in "Settings / Import" page.
It is possible to import files of an indicated supplier. In the "Files / Import" form a supplier corresponding to the imported file should be selected ("Import as supplier" field). The supplier has to be earlier defined in the "Settings / Suppliers" page.
When importing a file as a supplier:
In the case of duplicate values of the "Product ID by supplier" field, the application merges products. For new products, the value of the "Product ID" field is automatically generated as a concatenation of supplier identifier, "_" (underscore) and "Product ID by supplier" (the application ensures that there are no duplicates of the "Product ID" field).
When importing xChange/BMEcat file without a selected supplier, all products are imported as distributor products and the fields "Supplier", "Product ID by supplier", "Product name by supplier" and "Alt. product ID by supplier" are empty, meaning "no data". In the case of importing Excel files without a selected supplier, all products are imported as distributor products. In comparison to the supplier's Excel file, the distributor’s own Excel file can contain four additional fields: "Supplier" (an existing supplier identifier), "Product ID by supplier", "Product name by supplier" and "Alt. product ID by supplier". Two of these fields: "Supplier" and "Product ID by supplier" constitute a unique product key and must be imported together (importing a file containing only one of these fields will result in the field being omitted).
In the case of duplicate values of the "Product ID" field, the application merges products. The application takes care of the uniqueness of the field pair: ("Supplier", "Product ID by supplier").
It is the format for product data exchange, recommended by ETIM International. The file is exported in a compressed form (zipped).
All products are exported as the distributor's products. When exporting an xChange file, the distributor becomes a supplier of the exported product data. The products are exported without any information about the previous supplier (the fields "Supplier", "Product ID by supplier", "Product name by supplier" and "Alt. product ID by supplier" are not exported).
The following export options are available here (the default values of the options can be customized in the "Settings / Export / xChange" page):
In general, product description fields that have no assigned value are not exported to the xChange file. To avoid errors when validating the xChange file, we recommend providing values for mandatory product description fields.
Prior to the official publication of the xChange format on 19 February 2024, this was the default format, still widely used. The file is exported in a compressed form (zipped).
All products are exported as the distributor's products. When exporting a BMEcat file, the distributor becomes a supplier of the exported product data. The products are exported without any information about the previous supplier (the fields "Supplier", "Product ID by supplier", "Product name by supplier" and "Alt. product ID by supplier" are not exported).
The following export options are available here (the default values of the options can be customized in the "Settings / Export / ETIM BMEcat 2005" page):
In general, product description fields that have no assigned value are not exported to the BMEcat file. To avoid errors when validating the BMEcat file, we recommend providing values for mandatory product description fields.
It is possible to export products "as a supplier". This mode allows you to retrieve production information as if it was generated from a supplier account, that is, if the main product identifier is "Product ID by supplier".
When exporting a file as a supplier, only the products of the supplier with non-empty "Product ID by supplier" are exported.
To use this export mode you have to select a supplier in the "Export as a supplier" field. The supplier must be previously defined on the "Configuration / Suppliers" page.
As stated above, when exporting product information "as a supplier" the "Product ID by supplier" becomes the main product identifier. This way of accessing data forces also the substitution of some other fields. The following fields of the exported product information are treated differently:
It is the auxiliary product data exchange format used for the export/import of all product data. The file is exported in a compressed form (zipped).
All products are exported as the distributor's products. It is not possible to execute the export for an indicated product supplier. The distributor becomes a new supplier of the exported product data. The fields "Supplier", "Product ID by supplier", "Product name by supplier" and "Alt. product ID by supplier" are exported in the corresponding columns.
The following export options are available here (the default values of the options can be customized in the "Settings / Export / Excel" page):
The Power Query (PQ) export option allows you to customize the exported Excel file. A GUI user whose manager has configured a PQ file has access to the PQ file export option. With this option, it is possible to select the products that will be the source data for the PQ file. With each PQ export, a static data file of the selected products is generated. Refreshing the PQ data retrieves the data from the source file again. The source data file remains valid until it is changed by the next PQ export.
You can export the product description in the form of a PDF file (system product cards). The cards are generated according to the system product card settings (for more information read the section "Settings / System product cards"). The product cards are exported in a compressed form (zipped).
The following export options are available here (the default values can be customized in the "Settings / Export / System product cards" page):
You can export the product description in the form of a PDF file (local product cards). The cards are generated according to the local product card settings (for more information read the section "Settings / Local product cards"). The product cards are exported in a compressed form (zipped).
The following export options are available here (the default values can be customized in the "Settings / Export / Local product cards" page):
Before importing BMEcat files into the application, they can first be analyzed for syntactic correctness and validity of the value format. Analysis of a BMEcat file provides information on whether the file is correct and on any existing errors.
The validation of BMEcat files is carried out on three different levels:
Errors are aggregated, showing the total number of occurrences and the line number of the first occurrence.
The validation report is returned to the user in text form (text file). The report can be used for evaluation of the file's correctness or its correction.
In the validation process, the indicated Excel file is checked for recognizable fields to be imported and for their corresponding values. The following aspects of value correctness are checked: conformity of format, consistency, and range of acceptable values.
The user can choose the scope of file validation (selection of Excel file data sheets that are analyzed). The scope of validation can exceed the permissions of a given user (e.g., in the "Products" data sheet, all elements are validated, even if the user does not have permissions, e.g. for attachments; similarly, the user can validate ECxxxxxxxx data sheets without having permissions for ETIM product data).
Files are not imported, only analyzed, without any reference to the current product data in the application database, then based on this analysis, a corresponding report is generated giving the total number of all errors found in the file. The report contains up to 10000 detailed descriptions of the first errors found.
Excel templates are Excel files containing the structure for managing all information about products and their classification as well as definitions of complementary elements such as labels, categories, attributes, attribute groups, etc. Templates allow you to prepare any data in Excel and then to import it into the application. It is possible to choose which type of product information or element definition should be included in the template. The Excel templates are structured in sheets containing different types of imported information, which are listed below. Each Excel sheet used to import data (except the Info sheet) has a 3-line header. Subsequent rows of the header specify respectively: the format of the product data, the type of product information and the name of the product information. The names of mandatory columns are marked in bold. Product data values should always be filled with the respect to the header. On some sheets, empty columns are intentionally used to make the data structure clearer and to indicate multiple elements (sets of columns corresponding to multiple elements are separated by an empty column).
Excel template sheets:
Important: when importing product information from Excel templates, the names of the Excel sheets and the names in the header must be preserved; sheets with unrecognized names will be omitted.
User can view, edit and delete defined export links. Export links can be used by data receivers to download files without having to log on to the application. Export links can be created on the export pages.
Each account is provided with a disk space remaining at the disposal of the users. The size of the disk space can be adjusted to the requirements of the account owner. The application allows the uploading/downloading of files to/from the disk space and its management (creation of subdirectories). The disk space is available in reading mode for non-logged-in users, so it is mostly used as a storage place for attachments (photos, drawings, certificates, index cards, etc.). File references (access paths) are placed in the uri field, allowing attachments to be downloaded by contractors or external systems.
Important: The original names of uploaded files may contain "language-specific" or "system-specific" characters. On the other hand, file names are also used as links in the application and as such can be a potential source of threats. Therefore, file names must not contain any characters other than the permitted ones: [a-zA-Z0-9_-]. If files uploaded to disk space contain non-permitted characters in their names, any single or multiple occurrences of a non-permitted character will be replaced by a single underscore character.
Selected files and subdirectories can be deleted individually or in bulk (continuous selection with the Shift key or selective selection with the Ctrl key). Deleting a directory deletes all its contents (files and subdirectories). Note: deleting files does not remove any attachments pointed to the deleted files. The attachments can be removed using a dedicated administrative procedure (for more information read the section "Settings / Procedures").
For accounts with an active "suppliers" option, subdirectories with names corresponding to supplier identifiers are created in the disk space. In the case of using also the "supplier users" option, each supplier user has access to a subfolder corresponding to a given supplier.
This page contains a list of all the products loaded for classification.
In this view, it is possible to filter products (filter button is in the upper right corner). Defining a filter involves selecting a field/column and entering values, which are the filtering criteria. The filter can be based on multiple columns (even not visible in the view). Most columns use simple text filtering (with the possibility of using wildcards). There are also columns of select type or date/time or multiple choice type (e.g. labels), which require more filtering conditions. It is also possible to select any non-empty value, or an empty value - as filtering criteria.
To quickly filter products by a selected column, simply click the filtering icon in the column header to set up a filter for that column, or complete the current filter with that column.
It is always possible to clear the filtering criteria of a column without changing the filters of other columns (useful for modifying filters based on multiple columns). All filtering criteria must be met together (implicit "AND"). The filter can be saved - this way the list of products "seen" by a given user will be limited to products that meet the criteria defined in the filter. Several filters can be defined, but only one of them can be active. The product view also allows you to sort products by a specific column.
The displayed columns can be arranged according to the user's needs. It is possible to hide/unhide columns as well as change their order. Just select the option "Arrangement of columns" from hamburger menu , then click on the desired column to hide/unhide it or drag and drop the columns in order you want them to be displayed. At least two primary columns in this view ("Product ID" and "Product name") must remain visible and cannot be hidden.
You can also choose the order in which the columns are displayed: just select the option "Arrangement of columns" from hamburger menu , then drag and drop column names in order you want them to be displayed. The first column is locked when scrolling the columns to the right, so it is convenient to put there the selected product identifier.
To delete product(s), select the product(s) to remove and choose the option "Delete products" from hamburger menu .
Group modification for multiple products is possible for certain features. To collectively modify such parameters of selected products, you must:
A quick access icon is available for group modification related to the selected column - just click the group modification icon in the column header to open the modification form of that column.
This screen offers also a possibility to:
There are other functionalities available (from hamburger menu ) for selected products:
A list of classified products is available on this page. Products are grouped according to the ETIM classification. A list of products classified in a single class helps to check the correctness of filling of individual parameters of every product.
This view allows you to sort, filter, selectively delete products or globally modify parameters of selected products.
To collectively modify parameters of selected products, you must:
By default, all ETIM features are displayed. Anyway, you can modify this view by choosing the ETIM features (columns) to be displayed: just select the option "Arrangement of columns" from hamburger menu , then click on the selected column names to hide them or make them visible again.
In this view, the user can set the range (scope) of the selected synchronization and trigger it for selected products between the current account (source) and target account (target).
Only products having at least one synchronization label are visible here. If any synchronization is set by the administrator (configuration of source-target relation between accounts), the synchronization label is created and available in the source account. Synchronization labels can be attributed to products that are subject to synchronization.
On this page, there is a list of classified products, affected by the migration. They are called "products for confirmation".
The migration assistant only indicates products that have been changed in some way when adapting them to the new ETIM classification. This applies to cases such as:
If the description of a product remains unchanged in the new version (even if it has been extended with new features or available values), such a product is not indicated in the migration assistant.
When navigating across the migration screen, the following changes in the classification of products are shown:
In the case of non-unique mappings (when a deleted class has multiple successors), the product is migrated to the best-fitting class, and alternative successors are listed after the selected class.
The user can filter products and modify values globally for multiple products (group modification button is in the upper right corner) and confirm its migration (select the option "Confirm the migration" from hamburger menu ). In this way, the modification and the approval of all migrated products can be done in one place.
All the products confirmed by the user are no longer visible on this page. It is recommended to review and confirm all products affected by the migration. Click the "list ul" icon to check the initial number of products for confirmation.
Click the "pencil" icon on the left of the product (on each "Products" view) to open its modification view. The view consists of the following tabs:
The application allows you to mark empty values as "not applicable", which means permanently missing values, to clearly indicate values that cannot be provided (it is useless to ask for them in the future). These values are marked with a dash "-" (see the section "Empty values" for more information).
This page shows the total average product description completeness.
Since products may differ in the total number of elements of the product description (a number of features depending on ETIM class; a number of attributes; a number of multiple elements), the total completeness of the product description is calculated as a weighted average of the respective product description groups. The following percentage share of product information groups was assumed:
By default, the measure of product description completeness is related to the default or custom company completeness mask. In each case, the average completeness description is shown also in every information group. The product description completeness can be calculated and displayed also concerning the previously defined category trees.
The product description completeness can be calculated for all products (it is the option by default - no filter selected) or for selected products (a previously defined filter should be used).
Besides the numerical completeness indicators, bar charts are showing the distribution of products in a few groups of the description completeness:
This product distribution can be helpful to improve and monitor the product description completeness for the selected point of view: completeness mask or category trees, for all or filtered products.
Accounts with suppliers can generate statistics by individual suppliers. In order to generate such a report, in the field "Report type" you should select option "per supplier".
User can view, modify or delete labels. Labels can be used for visual indication of products, filtering or grouping. If an existing label is deleted, it is removed from all products marked with it. Some labels can be marked as "favorites" (by clicking on the "hollow star" icon ). The favorite labels always appear first, making them easier to find when you have a large number of labels in use.
User can view, rename, delete or activate defined product filters. Some filters can be marked as "favorites" (by clicking on the "hollow star" icon ). The favorite filters always appear first, making them easier to find when you have a large number of filters in use.
User can define, modify or delete additional product attributes.
The attribute can be defined as:
Each attribute can be assigned to:
When creating an attribute, it is possible to choose whether it is global or not:
It is also possible to set the importance of the attribute (used for example by e-commerce system). The importance can be set as a numerical value within the range: 0-9.
If an attribute is to be exported in a xChange/BMEcat file, it must be marked as a product characteristic. Attributes marked this way are exported in the "CSItemCharacteristic" elements (xChange file) or in the UDX.EDXF.PRODUCT_CHARACTERISTIC element (BMEcat file).
Each attribute of type "reference" is a reflection of a selected field from the "General" section. Physically, it is the same field, visible under a different name, as a user-defined attribute. Changing the value of one of these attributes alters the value of the indicated field.
Attribute groups can be used to group user-created attributes. This makes it easier to organize and complete attributes, especially when there are a large number of attributes. In the basic version, an attribute group has an identifier, a (language-dependent) name, and a list of identifiers of the attributes that belong to the group. Attribute groups are not hierarchical, they are all created at the same level. In the product edit view, attributes are displayed according to the definition and order of the groups and attributes within each group, set by the user when defining the groups. Attribute groups with the same name are displayed together under a common name.
In a more advanced version, it is possible to make the list of attributes in a group partially or completely dependent on a logical attribute (question). In this case, lists of attribute identifiers are provided, which are valid for a positive or negative answer to the attribute used in the question. One or both lists can be used simultaneously in the group definition.
User can view/create/modify the relations by attribute. All existing relations by attribute are listed here with their identifiers, names, grouping attribute and related products. User can add a new relation or modify the existing relation(s). To add a new relation it is necessary to select one of the global attributes as the grouping attribute, add a relation identifier and enter the name(s) of the relation. Once the relation is created it appears on the list of relations. Here, there are two buttons to modify the relations by attribute: one for basic modification (grouping attribute, identifier or name) and the second to assign product(s) to the relation by indicating/searching their identifiers.
It is also possible to add a virtual product to the relation by attribute. A virtual product is a concept used to represent a group of similar products that differ in only one parameter (e.g. color, size). All virtual products have a system label "Virtual" (letter V in the gray circle). An existing virtual product can be added to the relation or a new virtual product can be created and added to the current relation by copying one of the products already present in the relation - in such case all fields of the source product are copied into the new virtual product, except the labels and the grouping attribute (the grouping attribute in the virtual product should be empty; only real products should have it assigned).
Removing a virtual product from a relationship does not remove it from the product database.
Allows users to manage the information concerning the product data suppliers. When a user creates a supplier, a unique alphanumeric identifier must be assigned to the supplier. This identifier is then used for referencing a supplier in the application (for example in import options).
With this option it is possible to define product information recipients (recipients). This allows to generate dedicated product information for specific recipients.
The word "catalog" refers to files containing product information, transmitted in a standard format (e.g. xChange, BMEcat). The supplier can manage the names and versions of the catalog files in a structured way, often in agreement with the recipient of the product data. For this purpose, it is possible to create catalogs (ID, name, version) in the application and use them throughout the cycle of exchanging product information with the contractor(s).
This setting option allows us to define or modify category trees to be able to assign a product to categories.
To create a category tree it is necessary to give a unique identifier. Optionally, it is possible also to define a tree name (in every language available for the user). Then, it is possible to define a hierarchy of categories by giving their identifiers and names. Categories can be nested (every category can have one or more subcategories). It is possible to cut (remove) categories or subcategories together with the whole branch or move it into another place in the category tree (important: cutting a category or subcategory removes all the assignments of product for the removed branch).
Every additional product attribute can be assigned to:
These attributes are the basis for calculating the measure of product description completeness from the category tree point of view.
Category trees can be also imported and exported via Excel files or API.
An option typically used by wholesalers, or product data centers, to allow commercial access to their own products via APIs for third parties. This option allows you to:
Designated, trusted users, in agreement with the administrator, may be permitted to modify the translation of phrases used in the application, in one or more languages.
The regional manager can view here the data of:
The managers and regional managers can view here the system logs for:
The regional manager can view here the API request statistics (broken down by the request type: "GET", "PUT", "DELETE") made by API users during the last seven days.
Here, the regional manager can create/edit/delete companies in his region and create/edit/delete GUI and API users.
Manager can grant or withdraw permissions to standard GUI users.
The manager can configure Power Query export files for any standard GUI user. The Power Query (PQ) export option allows the customization of the exported Excel file. The data source for the PQ file is a classic Excel export file containing all product data, which can then be subject to modifications such as deleting, adding, filtering, or reordering rows or columns; changing text, cell type, or format, including performing advanced analysis, calculations, transformations, etc., according to Excel Power Query capabilities.
A special Power Query button on the standard GUI user edit page opens the PQ configuration screen, where the following fields are available:
Uploading a PQ file opens the PQ file export option for this user.
Manager can manage standard API user permissions (if only such users have been created in the account).
A user with the "supplier users" permission can create GUI users for suppliers, enabling them to access or modify their own products. Supplier GUI users only have access to the products of a particular supplier (they cannot see the products of other suppliers).
The scope of product information available for editing or viewing can be defined here (using the "Permissions" button). The settings for visible and editable fields are shared across all supplier GUI users, with no personalized configurations for individual suppliers or users.
A user with the "supplier users" permission can define a pop-up visible to supplier users, appearing at login. The defined window can contain a title and content, with no formatting options. It is possible to insert line break characters (enter) and URL links, placed in square brackets, which will be automatically converted into active links (clicking on the link will open a new tab in the browser with this URL).
A user with the "supplier users" permission can create API users for suppliers, enabling them to access or modify their own products. Supplier API users only have access to the products of a particular supplier (they cannot see the products of other suppliers).
The scope of product information available for editing or viewing can be defined here (using the "Permissions" button). The settings for visible and editable fields are shared across all supplier API users, with no personalized configurations for individual suppliers or users.
A user with the "recipient users" permission can create GUI users for product data recipients, granting them online access to products. Recipient GUI users have read-only access to approved products.
A manager with the "recipient users" permission can configure Power Query export files for any recipient GUI user (see "Standard users (GUI)" section).
A user with the "recipient users" permission can create API users for data recipients, granting them online access to products. Recipient API users have read-only access to approved products.
The concept of adding predefined administrative procedures to the application has been introduced. Such procedures can be performed for all products as well as those selected by the filter or indicated by the tsv file.
The following procedures are available:
The application allows users to report problems with the operation of the application.
Submissions cannot be edited or deleted once created, although users can continue to add new entries. The status of a submission is marked as "open" when saved and can be changed to "closed" after the problem is resolved. The system notifies users of unread submissions with a message in the top bar and a dot next to the "Submissions to administrators" option in the menu. Unread submissions are also highlighted in bold in the submission management view.
Adding submissions with the indication of products is possible directly from the list of products. After selecting products (up to 20 products can be selected), select the "Add submission to administrators" option. This will create a new submission with previously selected products. The remaining fields in the form must be completed manually.
This feature allows direct communication with supplier users to inform them about specific requirements or to request completion or updates of product-related data. Submissions can be addressed to one or multiple suppliers and may include sample products relevant to the issue being reported.
A user with submission management rights (hereafter referred to as the supervising user) can view all submissions. Other users have access to all submissions directly involving themselves or another user from their company as authors or submission recipients.
Submissions can be created directly via the submission management screen. When creating a submission, the author selects a category (from a predefined list), chooses the supplier(s) from the list, and can then add an entry and attach files. The author or another user from their company can close or reopen the submission if needed.
Submissions can also be created from the "All products" view. In this case, users first filter the relevant sample products and then select the "Add submission to suppliers" option from the hamburger menu. Based on the selected products, a non-editable list of suppliers (up to 30) is generated, each with up to 5 sample products. The submission is then automatically split and sent via email to each relevant supplier. If no supplier user has been created, no notification is sent, and responsibility for follow-up lies with the supervising user.
In the submissions view, users can expand the list of products (showing product identifiers). It is also possible to navigate directly to the "All products" view with the products from the submission pre-filtered. Users from the supplier’s company, the sender’s company, and the supervising user can add entries, attach files, and close or reopen the submission if necessary.
Submissions cannot be edited or deleted once created, but users can add new entries. The submission state is set to "open" when created and can be changed to "closed" once the issue is resolved by assigning an appropriate closure status. The system notifies users of unread entries via email, a message in the top bar, and a dot next to the "Submissions to suppliers" menu option. Submissions with unread entries are also highlighted in bold in the submission management view.
Each supplier has a mailing list (up to 5 email addresses). Upon creating a submission and with each new entry, an email is sent to all listed addresses containing the submission title, default text, and a link to the submission. The supervising user may define additional text to be included in these emails.
This functionality allows direct contact with data recipients, initiated by suppliers, to inform them of specific changes, updates, or provide important information regarding their product data. These submissions are informational and can be addressed to one or more recipients.
As with other submissions, a user with permission to manage submissions (hereafter referred to as the supervising user) has access to all submissions. Other users only see submissions in which they are directly involved, either as authors or recipients.
Submissions to recipients can be general, created directly in the submission management interface without prior selection of specific products. In this case, they can be used to provide general product information to recipients. The author selects the recipient(s) from the list and can then add an entry and attach files. Submissions to recipients can also apply to specific products. In this case, it is necessary to first filter the products in the "All products" view (maximum 1000), and then create a submission by selecting the "Add submission to recipients" option from the hamburger menu.
Information about the created submission is sent to each selected recipient by email. In the submissions view, users can expand the list of products (showing product identifiers). It is also possible to go directly to the "All products" view filtered by products included in the submission. Submissions to recipients do not change status (open/close) but are archived after 1 month.
Once created, submissions cannot be edited or deleted and discussion within them is not possible (no entries can be added). The system notifies users of unread submissions with a message on the top bar and a dot next to the "Submissions to recipients" option in the menu. Unread submissions are also highlighted in bold in the submissions management view.
Each recipient has a mailing list (up to 5 email addresses). Once a submission is created, an email is sent to the recipients (to all addresses indicated in the mailing list), containing the title, default text of the submission, content (entry), and a link to the submission. The supervising user can define additional text to be added to these emails.
User can edit the account settings.
User can see here his permissions to different functionalities, assigned to him by the administrator.
User can edit the information concerning his company.
If the account has the custom company mask option enabled it is also possible here to choose which mask (default or custom company) is taken to indicate mandatory fields in Excel files downloaded via export links.
User can specify which types of attachments are to be displayed in the application (local and system product cards, product catalog).
It is possible to define subsidiaries assigned to an account in the company data. This enables the generation of xChange/BMEcat files with subsidiary data in the xChange/BMEcat file header as the author/sender of the file.
User can personalize here the settings corresponding to ETIM classification, such as ETIM classification language (the language in which the ETIM classification is processed and displayed), display settings or settings for automatic suggestion rules. Suggestion rules provide hints at different levels of trust:
Every suggestion rule can be activated or deactivated, and it is also possible to set the priority of the rules - by setting their order (using the drag-and-drop method).
An option that allows you to replace the original feature (EF) and value (EV) names of the ETIM standard with your names. It is also possible to override units (EU) of some numeric and range features (within the allowed conversion range).
Override of features and values is done in the context of particular classes: first, the user has to select the class where the overrides are to be done, then the user has to enter new names for selected elements in individual languages. Once saved, such a class is placed in the list of overridden classes with an indication of the number of overridden features, values and units.
The user can select the languages in which the predefined override is to be applied. The overridden names will be used/visible in:
It is also possible to hide selected ETIM features. A custom company completeness mask is used for this purpose. In this case, only the mandatory features from the completeness mask are displayed.
User can edit default values for import options.
The user can edit default values for export options of xChange files, such as the filter to be used for exporting products, in which ETIM version, xChange version, and in which languages the file is to be exported; which prices are to be exported, whether the version number of the exported catalog is to be given (provided that a catalog with its name and version has been previously created - section "Configuration / Catalogs"). These settings are set by default and will be pre-selected when exporting the xChange file, making it easier and faster to perform regular exports.
One of the available options (not accessible to recipient GUI users) is the possibility to define dedicated settings of exported xChange files for specific recipients (section "Configuration / Recipients"). This allows you to quickly export xChange files for specific recipients, using pre-defined settings dedicated to particular recipients (recipients).
The user can edit default values for export options of BMEcat files, such as the filter to be used for exporting products, in which ETIM version, guideline version, and in which languages the file is to be exported; which prices are to be exported, whether the version number of the exported catalog is to be given (provided that a catalog with its name and version has been previously created - section "Configuration / Catalogs"). These settings are set by default and will be pre-selected when exporting the BMEcat file, making it easier and faster to perform regular exports.
One of the available options (not accessible to recipient GUI users) is the possibility to define dedicated settings of exported BMEcat files for specific recipients (section "Configuration / Recipients"). This allows you to quickly export BMEcat files for specific recipients, using pre-defined settings dedicated to particular recipients (recipients).
User can edit default values for export options of Excel files.
User can edit default values for export options of system product cards.
User can edit default values for export options of local product cards.
User can edit default values for validation options of BMEcat files.
User can edit default values for validation options of Excel files.
User can edit default values for all options of product synchronizations and define the synchronization triggers. For each synchronization trigger, a configuration is defined and saved. Defined synchronization triggers can be started via API or scheduled for an auto-start time. Only one synchronization trigger can be created for each synchronization.
User can choose here the mask of product description completeness (default or custom company) and view/edit the settings of the masks. Mandatory fields determined by the current completeness mask are marked in bold in the application.
The default mask is based on all ETIM features and selected (most frequently used) fields. The view of the default completeness mask is "read-only" (user can only see mandatory fields).
The custom company mask, however, is available in the "read/write" mode. This mask is an alternative to the default completeness mask. It allows us to selectively indicate the required fields/attributes and ETIM features. It is also possible to set the weight for the ETIM class, select the languages and indicate the attachment types taken into the measure of the completeness:
There is a possibility to copy the default mask settings to the custom company mask, using the corresponding buttons.
In accounts with a custom company completeness mask enabled, on the "Settings / Company" page it is possible to choose which mask (default or custom company) is taken to indicate mandatory fields in Excel files downloaded via export links.
Allows to personalize the contents of the system product card by selecting the elements (fields) to be visible on the product card. It is possible to choose a template for the system product cards between default or dedicated to the company (if it was ordered and created). It is also possible to select a range value separator.
System product cards are used to present information about the products to be seen by people downloading information directly from the system. A link to the system product card allows you to download a product card generated on-line, containing current product information. Settings of the system product card are common for the whole company account (changes made by one user are visible for another user of the same company). System product cards can be exported as external links.
Allows to personalize the contents of the local product card by selecting the elements (fields) to be visible on the product card. It is possible to choose a template for the local product cards between default or dedicated to the company (if it was ordered and created). It is also possible to select a range value separator.
Local product cards allow the user to select and present only product information that is visible to him (only the user can generate a product card according to local settings). The local card settings are individual for each user (changes made by one user are not visible for other users). Local product cards cannot be exported as external links.
Here are the basic settings regarding the display of public products (products with the label "Public" that are visible to non-logged-in users). The settings concern the choice of languages in which the product cards are available, the default language to be displayed and the number of products displayed per page. The link to the page of public products is also given, as well as the current number of public products. Direct links to the system product card (online, pdf) in provided languages are available in the public "Products" view.
Important: information about public products is refreshed automatically once a day. If necessary, the refresh can also be triggered manually (button available for logged-in users on the public products page).
Allows to enable/disable the visibility of archived submissions and define an additional text to be added to emails notifying suppliers of new submissions.
Wildcards are special characters used to represent or match a range of other characters in a search pattern. The following wildcards can be used in filters to be considered as a match for another string:
Examples:
The backslash (\) can be used as an escape character to indicate that the character following the backslash should be interpreted differently from its default "wildcard" meaning.
In addition to filtering products with specific values (which may involve wildcards), it is also possible to filter products with special values. These include:
There is a fairly significant difference between the special symbol for not empty values ("asterisk" icon ) and the wildcard symbol * (multiple characters). The first one (not empty value) will match all values other than empty values, so also "not applicable" or "unknown" values. In contrast, the second one (wildcard *) will only match values containing at least one arbitrary alphanumeric character; so in this case, there will be no match to special values "not applicable" or "unknown".
Filters imposed on text fields have a new option ("chain" icon ) to specify a list/chain of values separated by a semicolon (a maximum of 1000 can be specified). The filtering results in products that match at least one of the specified values (logical "OR"). Only exact matches for the specified values are searched. This option can be useful e.g. for filtering products according to the indicated identifiers.
To ensure the correct operation of the application and its scripts, the following characters are cleared in all data imported by the application:
Empty values of product information fields are commonly present in most products. Blank values in mandatory fields (according to the default or custom company mask) reduce the completeness of the product description. In contrast, empty fields in optional fields do not affect the completeness rate of the product description.
The application gives you the opportunity to mark empty values as "not applicable", which means permanently missing values, in order to clearly indicate values that cannot be provided (it is useless to ask for them in the future). These values are marked with a dash "-". Not applicable values can be exported/imported (using xChange/BMEcat/Excel files, or via the API), depending on the options used. This applies to values other than ETIM values, which already have their own designations: "unknown" and "not applicable".
In exceptional situations, such as urgent maintenance work or hardware failure of the main server, the application can be switched to the "read-only" mode (blocking product modifications for all GUI and API users). Information about the "read-only" mode is displayed in the red bar at the top of the screen.
In such cases, the application is made available in the state of the last available stable state or last stable backup. In the case of switching to the backup server, the last stable backup comes from 3.00 a.m. and may be different from the last state of the products before the failure.
The use of this "read-only" mode is intended, on one hand, to ensure continuous access to product data and, on the other hand, to avoid data inconsistency (between the last product state, data from a stable backup and ongoing changes). At the same time, it will allow to restore full functionality of the application as soon as possible with the last available stable state.
The size limit for a single file uploaded to the application is 64 MB. This limitation applies equally to files uploaded to disk space and to files used to import product data (Excel, xChange, BMEcat). In the case of xChange/BMEcat file import, it is recommended to use compressed (zip) files, which allows for importing files of much larger volume.
The size limit for images shown on product cards (web and pdf) is 20 MB. Files of larger size are ignored when generating product cards. This limitation is due to memory and time constraints (scaling of large images is memory-intensive, in addition, with external links it is necessary to download the file which can significantly increase the time of generating product cards).
Maintenance of the Service requires periodic maintenance work related to software updates, architecture changes, or hardware replacement. This type of work is performed during the so-called "maintenance window" from 23:00-1:00 CET, and during this time the Service may be temporarily unavailable, so any user activities requiring the stability of the Service should not be scheduled during these hours.