Supplier Logistics

Supplier logistics without the email chains.

Turn purchase orders into structured shipments with ASN, packaging, labels, delivery documents and returnable packaging processes connected directly to your ERP.

Request a Demo Explore the Logistics Flow
ASN / DESADVPackagingLabelsDelivery documentsReturnable packaging
app.esshub.ai · Shipments (ASN)
ESS Hub Shipments: advance shipping notices with plant, pickup date, handling units, gross weight, transport order and status

Automotive logistics standards, in daily use.Messages, documents and labels exactly as they appear in the ESS Hub logistics process, connected to SAP and other ERP systems.

SAP ECCSAP S/4HANADESADV · VDA 4987 / EDIFACTANSI X12 856Delivery note · VDA 4912Transport order · VDA 4922GTL handling-unit labelsPDF · ZPLAS2 · OFTP2

End-to-end logistics flow

From purchase order to the inbound gate.

The supplier prepares the delivery against the order or call-off. ESS Hub turns it into a structured shipment with packaging, labels and documents, and the ERP receives it before the truck does.

01Purchase orderOrder · call-off
02Delivery preparationSelect the demand to ship
03ASN / DESADVShipment notice
04PackagingHandling units
05Label generationPer handling unit
06Delivery documentsDelivery note · transport order
07DispatchTruck leaves
08ERP / inboundGoods receipt prepared

ASN / DESADV

Know what is arriving before it reaches the gate.

The supplier announces the shipment as a structured advance shipping notice: what is on the truck, how it is packed and when it arrives. The plant knows before the goods do, and the ERP receives a DESADV, not a PDF.

  • Order / call-off reference

    Each ASN item points to the scheduling agreement or order it fulfils.

  • Items and quantities

    Part, description and quantity per line.

  • Handling units

    Pallets and boxes with their own identification numbers.

  • Shipment information

    Plant, pickup date, gross weight and volume.

  • Transport

    Carrier, pick-up window and transport order where available.

  • Status on both sides

    Packed, dispatched, acknowledged by the customer.

Learn about ASN & DESADV
app.esshub.ai · Shipments (ASN)
ESS Hub ASN detail: items with scheduling agreement reference, handling units GTL master, shipping documents (delivery note VDA 4912, labels, transport order VDA 4922)
ASN detail: items, handling units and documentsSupplier view · real product UI

How an ASN is created

From selected delivery to DESADV.

The supplier works through one guided sequence; the result is a structured message for the ERP and the documents for the truck.

Select order / deliveryDemand to be shipped
Create ASNShipment header
Add shipment & packaging dataQuantities · handling units
ValidateStructure checked
SubmitLabels · documents
ESS HubDESADV built
SAP / ERPInbound delivery

Packaging

One shipment, one packaging hierarchy.

The ASN carries the packaging structure logistics needs: which handling units are on the truck, what is inside each of them, and the label that identifies every unit.

Packaging hierarchy of one ASNReal product structure
  • ShipmentASN · plant 1200 · pickup date · gross weightDESADV
    • Pallet 1GTL_MASTER · 10 boxesHU label
      • BoxGTL_SINGLE · 24 pcsHU label
      • BoxGTL_SINGLE · 24 pcsHU label
      • BoxGTL_SINGLE · 24 pcsHU label
    • Pallet 2GTL_MASTER · 9 boxesHU label
      • BoxGTL_SINGLE · 24 pcsHU label

  • Handling units

    Pallets as master units, boxes as single units, each with its own identification number.

  • Quantities per packaging unit

    Pieces per box, boxes per pallet, following the packaging data sheet agreed for the part and plant.

  • Packaging data sheets (PDS)

    Packaging specification per part and plant, versioned, with status.

  • Labels per unit

    Every handling unit gets its label from the same structure, ready to print.

Label generation

Shipment data in. Correct label out.

Labels are generated from the shipment and packaging data already in ESS Hub. No re-typing into a label tool, no mismatch between the label on the pallet and the ASN in the ERP.

  • Handling-unit labels

    One label per pallet (master) and per box (single), from the ASN structure.

  • Print all labels

    All labels of a shipment in one print-ready PDF.

  • PDF and ZPL

    Print-ready PDF, or ZPL straight to the label printer.

  • Same identifiers as the DESADV

    The number on the label is the number in the message.

Learn about automotive labels
app.esshub.ai · Shipments (ASN) · labels
ESS Hub ASN: shipping documents and handling-unit labels with PDF and ZPL output per pallet and box
Handling-unit labels per pallet and boxPDF · ZPL · real product UI

Label engine

Data in, label out.

Shipment & packaging dataASN · handling units · quantities
ESS Hub label engineLayout and identifiers from the structure
Print-ready labelPDF · ZPL · per handling unit

Delivery documents

Generate the documents that travel with the shipment.

Delivery note and transport order are produced from the same ASN data, per shipment, as print-ready PDF. They are available to the supplier and to the plant.

  • Delivery note (VDA 4912)

    Per ASN, generated from the shipment data.

  • Transport order / Bordero (VDA 4922)

    For the carrier, from the same shipment.

  • Print-ready PDF

    Download or print directly from the shipment.

  • Shipment references

    ASN number, plant, pickup date and transport order on every document.

app.esshub.ai · Labels & Documents
ESS Hub Labels & Documents: delivery note (VDA 4912) and print all labels per ASN
Delivery notes and labels per shipmentSupplier view · real product UI

Returnable packaging

Keep returnable packaging moving.

Pallets, containers and lids circulate between suppliers and plants. ESS Hub keeps the balance per packaging type and plant visible to both sides and lets the supplier confirm or dispute the periodic statement.

SupplierShips full packaging with the delivery
Full packaging / deliveryPallets and containers arrive with the ASN
Empties accountBalance per packaging type · per plant
Empty returnEmpties go back to the supplier
PlantReceives, empties, collects returnables

  • Balances per packaging type

    EUR pallets, KLT containers, lids: current balance per plant and across all accounts.

  • Periodic statement

    Reconciled balances across all packaging accounts, published for the period.

  • Confirm or dispute

    The supplier confirms the statement or raises a dispute in the same place.

  • Postings history

    Every posting with date, direction (to or from the supplier), quantity and reference, per account.

The business problem: returnable packaging is money and capacity moving in a loop. Without shared visibility, balances drift, disputes pile up at year end and containers go missing between plants.

Visibility & exceptions

See what is late, unconfirmed or in transit.

Both sides work from the same status. The enterprise sees inbound shipments and unconfirmed call-offs per supplier; the supplier sees overdue demands and documents awaiting confirmation.

  • Inbound shipments

    ASNs in transit, per supplier and plant.

  • Unconfirmed call-offs

    Who has not confirmed yet, visible to the buyer.

  • Overdue demands

    Late call-offs flagged in the supplier's demand list.

  • ASN status

    Packed, dispatched, acknowledged.

  • Documents awaiting confirmation

    Read-and-confirm status per supplier.

  • Returnables disputes

    Statements confirmed or disputed by the supplier.

app.esshub.ai · Control Tower
ESS Hub Control Tower: inbound shipments, unconfirmed call-offs, call-off confirmations by supplier and read-and-confirm tracking
Control Tower: supplier collaboration statusEnterprise view · real product UI

ERP & EDI

Different supplier maturity. One logistics process.

Portal suppliers create the ASN in the browser. EDI suppliers send the DESADV automatically. Others integrate through API or files. Whatever the channel, the plant receives one structured shipment notice in the ERP.

Web portalASN in the browserGuided shipment creation with packaging, labels and documents.
EDI / DESADVAutomated messagesVDA 4987 / EDIFACT or ANSI X12 856 over AS2 or OFTP2, with self-onboarding and message validation.
APISystem-to-systemFor suppliers that integrate their own logistics system.
SFTP / FilesStructured filesScheduled file exchange where that is the supplier's reality.
ESS HubASN · Packaging · Labels · Documents · Returnables
ASN / DESADVHandling-unit labelsDelivery noteReturnables
ERP / inbound logisticsSAP ECC · SAP S/4HANA · other ERP systems
EDI & B2B Integration

Automotive & manufacturing

Why this matters on the inbound side.

Automotive supply chains run on high-frequency deliveries against scheduling agreements. The processes on this page are not features; they are the daily routine between a plant and its suppliers.

High-frequency deliveries

Daily or JIT call-offs leave no room for a shipment announced by e-mail after the truck has left.

Inbound

Scheduling agreements and call-offs

Long-term agreements with firm releases: every shipment must point to the demand it fulfils.

DemandLearn about scheduling agreements & supplier call-offs

ASN before arrival

Goods receipt is prepared from the DESADV; an unannounced pallet is an exception at the gate.

DESADVLearn more

Packaging discipline

Agreed packaging per part and plant: pieces per box, boxes per pallet, returnable container type.

PDSLearn about Packaging Data Sheets (PDS)

Labels at the gate

Handling-unit labels that scan against the ASN, so receiving is a scan, not a search.

GTLLearn about automotive labels

Returnable containers

Pallets, KLTs and lids circulating between plant and supplier, with a balance that has to reconcile.

Empties
Learn about Automotive WebEDI

Real product UI

Logistics screens, shown as they are.

Screens from the ESS Hub supplier workspace. Demo data, real application.

app.esshub.ai · Shipments (ASN)
ESS Hub ASN detail panel: header, items, handling units, shipping documents and handling-unit labels
ASN: header, items, handling units, documents, labelsSupplier view · real product UI
app.esshub.ai · Packaging (PDS)
ESS Hub Packaging data sheets per part and plant: KLT4147, 24 per box, 32 boxes per pallet, EUR pallet
Packaging data sheets per part and plantSupplier view
app.esshub.ai · Returnables
ESS Hub Returnables: empties account balances per packaging type and plant, total balance across accounts, and the monthly statement with confirm-statement and dispute actions.
Empties account and monthly statementSupplier view

Continue

Request a demo

See your inbound process with your own call-offs and ASNs.

A live walkthrough of ESS Hub from call-off to ASN, labels, delivery note and returnables, connected to your ERP landscape.

Request a Demo Talk to an Integration Expert