Introduction
NuORDER offers integration between our cloud-based wholesale application and your ERP, PLM, or accounting system. When you integrate with NuORDER, the goal is to set up seamless communication between our two systems.
Ultimately we want you to make all your updates to product & customer information in your ERP and then have it sent to NuORDER with as little manual action as possible. On the other end, we want to eliminate any double entry of orders by sending them automatically back to your ERP.
Our integrations team will work with your team (and your ERP or third-party development team, if applicable) to set up the various export & import processes.
What Can Be Integrated
NuORDER supports integration of the following data:
- Orders (NuORDER -> ERP)
- Product Data (ERP -> NuORDER)
- Customer Data (ERP -> NuORDER)
- Inventory/ATS (ERP -> NuORDER)
- Price Sheets (ERP -> NuORDER)
- Order Edits (ERP -> NuORDER)
- Order Shipments (ERP -> NuORDER)
- Order Creation (ERP -> NuORDER)
Data Transfer
Data files can be imported/exported manually within the application or automated via FTP/SFTP.
Upload Errors & Notifications
If a file incurs any upload errors, the uploader will generate a line-by-line error notification. It will be your responsibility to monitor the upload notifications, and take action to resolve the errors in your ERP. You will then need to resend the data to NuORDER.
Implementation
Cost
Please review any estimated integration costs with your ERP or development team prior to signing your NuORDER SOW for integration.
Rollout Steps & Timeline
Below is an overview of a sample rollout, with estimated timeframes for each phase as we work towards your target launch date. Meeting that deadline will depend on both sides — some steps will be our responsibility, and some will be yours. If any stage of the integration process takes longer than expected, we may need to rethink your launch timeline.
Soft Launch Prior to Integration Go-Live
While your NuORDER integrations team and your IT team are working together on the integration, your Account Manager and your sales team will continue to move forward with the onboarding process. A portal will be built for you with data you manually provide. We recommend that a few key members of your sales and operations team review the portal and be trained. Concurrently as the integrations and IT team work through the automation development, your sales team can begin to use the portal.
This is a critical part of the onboarding process as it allows your sales team to validate the set up and work through the selling process on NuORDER. It also helps the integrations team to have confidence that functional design of the automated flows align with the existing business processes as much as possible.
DISCOVERY (est. 2 weeks)
1. NuORDER & Client will have an official "kickoff" call to confirm the requirements, plan, timeline, etc.
- If you have any special workflows, make sure to bring them up during this call!
2. NuORDER will provide data templates for all data feeds based on the setup discussed.
3. NuORDER & Client will review data fields (including business rules & logic) in detail and determine which fields from your ERP should be mapped into your NuORDER data.
DEVELOPMENT, TESTING & VALIDATION (est. 4-6 weeks)
4. Client IT/ERP will generate initial data files for product, customers, & inventory.
- NuORDER will review/test data files and provide feedback.
- Client IT/ERP will make adjustments as needed.
- NuORDER will load data into a "sandbox" account.
- NuORDER & Client will review the sandbox account and provide feedback.
- Client IT/ERP will work through any final adjustments needed.
5. Client team will need to review the "sandbox" portal and confirm that the overall set up is correct:
Product data -- are all active products and required data fields included and accurate?
Customer data -- are all active customers and required data fields included and accurate?
Inventory data -- are the quantities accurate including all inventory statuses (ATS/WIP/Prebook)?
6. NuORDER will generate sample orders using the order format previously discussed.
- Client IT/ERP will confirm if any adjustments are needed.
- Client will validate that the orders look correct after they have been imported.
7. Client IT/ERP & NuORDER will test & validate the automated import/export process via FTP.
- Client IT/ERP will confirm times for automatic daily exports to NuORDER.
- NuORDER will confirm schedule when orders are sent to FTP, and review with Client how these files can be generated manually when needed.
8. NuORDER will prep the "Live" portal for data automation.
- Product data: are the Seasons, Style Numbers, and Colors formatted the same way in both systems?
- Customer data: do the Customer Codes in NuORDER match the codes in the ERP?
- NuORDER & Client will work through any updates that need to be made to existing data.
TRAINING & GO-LIVE (est. 2 weeks)
9. NuORDER & Client IT/ERP will activate the automated feeds.
10. NuORDER will schedule an integration training with Client to review how the integration works.
- How sales reps need to work to ensure successful order import into your ERP.
- How IT/sales operations team will monitor the FTP uploads, and how to troubleshoot/resolve import errors.
POST-LAUNCH VALIDATION (est. 2-4 weeks)
11. Client & NuORDER will closely review the account and data flow and work together to resolve import errors.
Incoming Data
File types accepted:
- CSV – Comma-delimited (NuORDER preferred format)
- TXT – Tab-delimited or Pipe-delimited
- XLS/XLSX – while supported, XLS/XLSX is not recommended for automated feeds, as Excel files can contain hidden formatting that would affect the data upload.
Import process via FTP
- NuORDER checks each directory on set intervals (up to 1x an hour) to process new files.
- Once the files have been uploaded, files will be removed from the respective folder.
- You will receive an email notification with line item details of what was uploaded successfully, and any errors. You will also receive a link in this email to download the imported file.
About data importing
NuORDER’s data uploader matches fields based on the header name and casing. The order of fields does not matter, and non-required columns may be omitted entirely if you will not be using them. Any fields not recognized in your client’s schema will be ignored.
Upload errors
If a file incurs any upload errors, the uploader will generate a line-by-line error notification.
FTP Automation
NuORDER’s FTP service can be used to automate data and imagery uploads and order exports between our platform and your ERP or accounting system.
FTP Setup
NuORDER will set up the FTP, hosted on our server. We will create a secure, direct connection between the FTP and the client portal in NuORDER. Each FTP can only be connected to one client portal in NuORDER, and vice versa; if you have multiple client portals in NuORDER, a separate FTP will be created for each client.
NuORDER supports both FTP and SFTP. For security reasons, we do not allow external FTP servers to be connected to NuORDER.
Directories
Outgoing data (from NuORDER):
• orders
Incoming data (to NuORDER):
- product
- company
- inventory
- buyers
- pricesheets
- images
- orders_incoming
- orders_shipments
- orders_new
Data Templates
Please click here to retrieve the most recent versions of each template.
Orders (NuORDER -> ERP)
NuORDER Standard Exports
NuORDER has a standard order CSV format that is available to all users. It includes all style information, customer billing & shipping information, ship dates, and pricing. If we have set up any custom fields on your product, customer, or order schemas, these fields can easily be added to your default order CSV.
Custom Exports
If your ERP requires a specific file format to import orders, NuORDER can create a fully customized order file based on your specs. (Additional fees may apply.)
You will need to provide:
- List and description of fields
- Sample output file
Fields can be populated by:
- product fields (standard or custom)
- customer fields (standard or custom)
- order fields (standard or custom)
- hard-coded/static values
- logic or calculations based on other fixed values/data fields
File types:
Please inquire if you need a file type not listed here. Some file types can be supported.
- CSV (NuORDER default)
- TXT
- XLS
Additional formatting options:
- Line endings: Windows style \r\n or Linux/unix style \n
FTP Directory: orders
Order Export Process
NuORDER will export new order data on set intervals (e.g. hourly).
You can specify which status(es) you would like to receive:
- Approved
- Pending
- Review
Click here for a workflow on the order export process.
- A separate order file will be exported from each status selected.
- If you work with multiple currencies, a separate file will be exported per currency.
- Once the orders are exported, they will be automatically moved into the Processed status in NuORDER.
- The order file will be uploaded to the Orders directory on the FTP, where it can be retrieved for manual or automated import to your ERP.
- You will receive an email notification that an order file has been exported with a list of orders exported and a link to the order file sent to the FTP.
- We recommend that you delete the file after retrieval to prevent order duplication in your ERP.
Order Edits (ERP -> NuORDER)
Using the order import feature, you can make changes to existing orders in NuORDER.
What can be updated on the Order Header:
- ERP Order Number
- Customer PO Number
- Sales Rep
- Notes
- Discount %
- Surcharge %
- Ship Start and Ship End dates
- Billing or Shipping addresses
- Any custom fields that have been added to your order schema
What can be updated on the Line Item:
- Price
- Discount %
- Quantity
- Ship Start and Ship End dates
- Notes
- Adding line items
- Removing line items
- Any custom fields that have been added to your order schema
FTP Directory: orders_incoming
If using header and detail files, both the header and detail files will need to be placed together in the FTP directory.
Order Status
Once an order has been modified via FTP import, it will be locked from manual editing in NuORDER. Any further changes will need to originate from the ERP.
Notifications
The buyer and sales rep will receive an email notification that the order has been updated.
Key Identifiers
- NuORDER will use the NuORDER Order Number to identify the order.
- Customers will be identified by the Customer_Code.
- Products will be identified by either the Brand_ID or Style Number + Season + Color
Removing a Line Item
Items can be removed from an order by giving the “Quantity" field a value of = 0.
Canceling an Order
To cancel an entire order, you will need to cancel all line items within the order. If the Quantity field has a value of 0 for all line items in the order, the order will be cancelled in NuORDER. The buyer and sales rep will receive an email notification that the order has been cancelled.
Upload Errors
All products within the order must exist in the NuORDER database. If a line item is not recognized, you will receive an error notification and the order will not be updated. You will need to upload the product data into NuORDER first, and then try importing your order.
Order Shipments (ERP -> NuORDER)
Using the order shipments feature, you can send fulfillment information into NuORDER.
Shipment information will include:
- Line items shipped
- Quantity shipped
- Order Import Shipment
- Shipping method
- Tracking number
FTP Directory: orders_shipments
Key Identifiers
- NuORDER will use the NuORDER Order Number to identify the order.
- Products will be identified by either the Brand_ID or Style Number + Season + Color
Notifications
The buyer will receive an email notification that the order has been shipped, including the tracking number.
Order Status
Once the “Quantity Shipped” is equal to the “Quantity Ordered” for all line items in the order, the order will move into “Shipped” status in NuORDER.
Partial Shipments
An order can be fulfilled in as many shipments as needed. Each shipment will be displayed on the order in NuORDER, with the tracking number and line items included.
Products
Product data is created from your style master and should contain:
- all the information needed by buyers and sales reps to place orders
- any product-level details required by your ERP to process incoming sales orders.
Data Fields
Please download the Product Data Template for the list and descriptions of required and optional fields for product data. In addition to the standard fields listed, NuORDER supports unlimited custom fields (upon request).
FTP Directory: product
Updating Products: Deltas vs Full Feed
If possible, we recommend setting up your product feed to include only style/colors that have changed (deltas); the full feed is not required every time. Any style not included in your file/feed will retain its existing data and settings in NuORDER.
Updating Products: Adding/Removing New Sizes
If you need to add a new size to an existing record, you will need to send the product record in its entirety (all existing sizes plus the new size) when sending your file/feed as our system overwrites the existing record with the data you are sending. So if you send just the new size, you will wipe out all of your existing sizes and it will be replaced with just the new size.
If you need to remove an old size to an existing record, you will need to send the product record in its entirety (all existing sizes minus the old size) when sending your file/feed as our system overwrites the existing record with the data you are sending. If you send the old size with an "archive = y", you will make the entire product record archived and wipe out all of the existing size run except the one on your file/feed, as it is not possible to archive specific sizes for a product.
Key Identifiers
NuORDER uses a combination of season + style number + color to identify a unique product in our database. Using this key, our system will either locate and update existing products, or create new products.
Updating the Key Identifiers (Alternate Identifier)
If the season, style number, or color can be changed in your system (e.g. a carryover style advances to the newest season), you will need to include an alternate identifier. The field name is "brand_id" but it is also referenced as the "product id". This field, which is defined by your system, will be used to identify the unique product, allowing the season, style number, or color to be changed.
Note: There is no maximum length or character limits to Brand IDs.
Alternate ID Requirements:
- Must be unique at the style/color level (not at the size/SKU level)
- Cannot be changed once it is set
Most clients/ERPs use a concatenation of STYLE-COLOR to generate this field.
Manual override option: All data fields (including key identifiers) can be edited manually within the application by Admin users.
Supported Data Limits
Number of Sizes: we support unlimited size buckets per style/color.
Number of Products: we support unlimited active styles/colors per client portal.
Note: In certain parts of Admin, there is a limit to the number of products that can be visible. However, there are no limits in the database and in the part of the portal where reps and buyers will be accessing products.
Removing Styles
The only way to remove a style from NuORDER via automated feed is using the "archive" field (see Appendix A at bottom of page). Any style not included in your file/feed will retain its existing data and settings in NuORDER.
Cancelling Styles
You can cancel styles via automated feed by using the "cancelled" field (see Appendix A). When you send "cancelled = y", NuORDER will automatically also mark "archive = y". This means any product you cancel, will also be archived and removed from the customer facing product gallery. Please note that if a cancelled style is on orders that are in Review, Pending, or Approved status, sales reps that have orders containing the cancelled styles will receive a "Daily Cancelled Styles Digest" email alerting them of this information, if the cancelled digest is enabled for your portal. You can reach out to your account manager if you would like to enable this feature. You can also view orders with cancelled styles by hovering over the orders tab in NuORDER > select "Cancelled Styles". Here you will see all orders with cancelled styles.
Please click here to see a flowchart of a typical product lifecycle in NuORDER.
Customers
Customer data is usually generated from your customer master and will include:
- Account names and codes
- Billing & shipping codes & addresses
- Payment terms
- Other account-level information required by your ERP to process incoming orders.
Data Fields
Please see Appendix B (below) for the list and descriptions of required and optional customer fields. In addition to the standard fields listed, NuORDER supports unlimited custom fields at the customer level (upon request).
FTP Directory: company
Updating Customers: Deltas vs Full Feed
If possible, we recommend setting up your customer feed to include only customers that have changed (deltas); the full feed is not required every time. Any customer not included in your file/feed will retain its existing data and settings in NuORDER.
Updating Customers: Adding/Removing Addresses
If you need to add a new address to an existing record, you will need to send the customer record in its entirety (all existing addresses plus the new address) when sending your file/feed as our system overwrites the existing record with the data you are sending. So if you send just the new address, you will wipe out all of your existing addresses and it will be replaced with just the new address.
If you need to remove an old address to an existing record, you will need to send the customer record in its entirety (all existing addresses minus the old address) when sending your file/feed as our system overwrites the existing record with the data you are sending. If you send just the old address with an "active = n", you will make the entire customer record inactive and wipe out all of the existing addresses except the one on your file/feed.
Key Identifier
NuORDER uses the customer code to identify a unique customer in our database. Using this key, our system will either locate and update existing customers, or create new customers.
Updating the Key Identifier
The customer code can be edited manually within the application by any client user. It cannot be updated via data feed—this will create a new customer entry.
Supported Data Limits
Number of Addresses: we support unlimited billing/shipping addresses per customer.
Number of Customers: we support unlimited customers. The NuORDER database does not enforce any strict limit on customer entries.
Removing Customers
The only way to remove a customer from NuORDER via automated feed is using the "active" field (see Appendix B). Any customer not included in your file/feed will retain its existing data and settings in NuORDER.
Inventory
Inventory data should represent the current available-to-sell (ATS) quantities. Quantities will be deducted in NuORDER as orders are placed, and users will be alerted if they attempt to order more stock than is available. If no inventory data has ever been uploaded for a style/color, the quantity will be unlimited.
Data Fields
Please see Appendix C-1 for the list and descriptions of required fields for inventory.
Updating Inventory
Full Feed Inventory feeds should include a full feed every time: all active sizes/SKUs and WIP dates per style/color.
When an inventory file is uploaded:
- Products whose dates/quantities did not change will be skipped; products that did change will have their existing inventory data wiped and the new data applied.
- Products omitted entirely from the file will retain their existing inventory data.
- If some but not all sizes are included for a product, any sizes not included will be set to 0.
- Any products not found in NuORDER will be ignored; everything else will be updated successfully.
- If you have multiple warehouses, all warehouses need to be included on the same upload file.
Data Layout
We accept 2 possible templates for inventory data. See Appendix C-2 for samples of each template.
Option 1: Size-per-line.
- Use this template if products have varying size scales, or if your inventory export defaults to a sku-per-line format.
- Any extra columns will be ignored.
Option 2: UPC. **Most Common Format**
- If your client is using UPCs in NuORDER, you will usually be using this format.
- Any extra columns in this file will be ignored.
Immediates, Future Quantities, and Pre-Bookings
NuORDER supports 3 statuses of inventory data:
- IMMEDIATE: stock that is available to sell and ready to ship immediately.
- FUTURE: stock that will be available at a future date (aka “work in progress” or “WIP”).
- PREBOOK: styles that have not been produced yet, and/or are accepting unlimited orders.
A product can have any combination of these three values in the inventory data.
If a product has no inventory data in NuORDER: it will be treated as unlimited. When a new product has been added to NuORDER, it allows "open" ordering until inventory data is loaded for that product.
For this reason, many clients/ERPs set up their feeds to fully exclude new seasons from the inventory feed, until production has been confirmed.
Formatting the DATE Field
Each date value must be on a separate line. You can include as many “dates” as needed per product. If multiple dates are set for a product, users will see a dropdown in the app to allow them to review and order immediate vs. future availability.
- For current stock-on-hand, enter today's date for the date. Date must be formatted as MM/DD/YYYY.
- For future arrivals, enter the corresponding date. Dates must be formatted as MM/DD/YYYY
- To allow unlimited future bookings in addition to other WIP/ATS, enter another line with “PREBOOK” for the date. (The quantity should be left blank.)
How It Works in the App
In NuORDER, when a sales rep selects a ship date for a style, our system will calculate the maximum available stock for that date. If you are using future dates, this is where they will come into play. For example, let's say you have uploaded a SKU with the following data:
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What this means for the user:
- If the style was ordered for today, the system would allow 25 units to be sold.
- If the style was ordered for December 5th, it would allow 125 units to be sold. (25 on the shelf now + 100 incoming)
Earliest Ship Dates
NuORDER will restrict the Ship Dates that can be selected on the working order. The earliest ship date that can be ordered will be determined by a combination of your product data, inventory data, and portal configurations.
- For IMMEDIATE stock: the earliest ship date allowed will be the "Available Start" date specified in the product data.
- For FUTURE stock: the earliest ship date depends on your portal configurations and permissions.
- If you allow users to over-order, they will be able to submit an order for the "Available Start" date (or later) regardless of whether there are units available on this date.
- If you do not allow users to over-order, they will be forced to select a ship date corresponding to the date specified in the inventory data or later (i.e. a date when there are units available).
- For PREBOOK items: the earliest ship date depends on your portal configurations.
- If you are using Preset Delivery Windows (set up in Admin), the earliest ship date will be the first delivery window that is designated as “prebook" and which can fully contain the "Available Start" date + “Minimum Length Of Ship Window” (defined in Admin).
- If you are not using Preset Delivery Windows, the earliest ship date will be the "Available Start" date. (Note: This can cause issues with carryover items that are available now + prebooking for a future delivery. If this scenario applies to you and you do not wish to use Preset Delivery Windows, contact NuORDER to learn more about our “Replenishment Inventory” option.)
Removing Future Dates
To remove a future date, remove it from the file/feed for that style.
Price Sheets
NuORDER supports bulk custom price sheets (aka price lists or pricing templates), which allow you to maintain multiple pricing scales per product.
- Customers can be assigned to a price sheet, and prices will automatically update for that customer within the wholesale application.
- Any customers not assigned to a special price sheet will see the default wholesale pricing.
- Any products not included in the price sheet will use the default wholesale pricing.
- Customers can be assigned a price sheet via the customer data feed.
- Price sheets can also be used to disable (hide) certain products from a group of customers.
Data Fields
Please see Appendix D for the list and descriptions of required fields for price sheets.
Updating Price Sheets:
If possible, we recommend setting up your price sheets feed to include only the products where the pricing has been changed (deltas); the full feed is not required every time. Any products not included in your file/feed will retain its existing pricing on the associated pricesheet in NuORDER.
Any products not found in NuORDER will result in an upload error.
Data Layout
- Price sheet files must follow the required template.
- Each price sheet must be a separate file.
- File name should match the name of the price list.
Removing Products
To remove a product from a price sheet, you will need to send the default wholesale price to remove the special pricing.
Deleting Price Sheets
Price sheets cannot be deleted through an automated feed. This action can be done via Admin.
Imagery
NuORDER supports unlimited product image processing via FTP. Images that are named according to your image naming profile will be linked automatically to products. Images that do not link will be saved within the app where Admin users can manually assign them to products.
Image files must be loose within the FTP /images directory; subfolders or zip files will not be processed.
Image file specs
- At least 500 x 500 pixels
- JPG format
- Recommended: save for web (quality: 80)
Maximum images per product: 4
- Image 1: (“Hero image”) Displays in the product gallery, orders, and linesheets.
- Image 2: Displays on linesheets.
- Images 3-4: Display on product detail page only.
Recommended file size limit: 250KB
NuORDER does not strictly enforce a file size limit on images. However, files greater than 250K will take longer to process, and at very high volumes (4,000+ image files at a time via FTP) can run the risk of timing out. Additionally, your image file size will impact how quickly your iPad can load the collection. 250KB is the recommended “safe” file size to ensure optimal upload and use within the app.
Image File Naming Convention
You can define a custom “image naming profile” per client. Using this profile (set up in Admin), the system can automatically link images to products when the images are uploaded.
Requirements
- In order to link to products, image names will need to include the following:
- Item Identifier: typically style name or style number
- Color (if applicable): color name or color code
- A custom suffix: so our system knows how to arrange each image within the specific product (position 1, 2, 3, or 4).
- Defining fields must be separated by an underscore, hyphen, or period AND this separator cannot exist within the data values. (e.g. If you are using a hyphen separator for the image names, you cannot have a hyphen within the style number or color.)
- All defining fields must be an exact match to the product data.
- If slashes exist in your style name or color: slashes are accepted, or you can substitute a hyphen or space.
Defining fields
Image naming profiles can include any NuORDER standard product field or custom fields that have been added to your schema.
Inconsistent Image Naming
If your images are not named consistently, or are not directly matched to the values in the product data, we can set up a custom field called Image Name where you can provide the actual name of the image per SKU as part of your product data. Rather than map the image names to a concatenation of Style, Color, etc, you can simply map it to this single Image Name field.
Changing Image File Naming Convention
If you change your image file naming convention, then you will need to upload all of your product data again to NuORDER in order for the changes to filter through your products. The support team can assist with this.
Appendix A: Product Data Fields
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Appendix B: Customer Data Fields
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Appendix C-1: Inventory Data Fields
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Appendix C-2: Inventory Data Fields
Option 1: Size-per-line
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Option 2: UPC
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Appendix D: Price Sheet Data Fields
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