B2B wholesale warehouse software: GS1 identifiers, EDI and what a WMS has to handle
GS1 standards give each packaging level of a product its own GTIN, with a GTIN-14 indicator digit from 1 to 8 marking case levels, and identify each shipped pallet or carton with an 18-digit Serial Shipping Container Code on a GS1-128 label. GS1 Canada’s EDI guidelines cover the documents that move orders and shipments between trading partners, from the 850 purchase order and 856 ship notice to the 940 warehouse shipping order and 945 warehouse shipping advice.
Canadian consumer-package labelling has bilingual requirements and exceptions; commercial-import records are retained for six years following importation in an authorized location. WarePulse does not exchange EDI documents or print GS1 SSCC labels today. Define those trading-partner requirements before scoping any connection.
Connect workflow fit to rollout context earlier.
Canadian consumer-package labelling has bilingual requirements and exceptions; commercial-import records are retained for six years following importation in an authorized location. WarePulse does not exchange EDI documents or print GS1 SSCC labels today. Define those trading-partner requirements before scoping any connection.
Wholesale distributors whose customers send orders by email, portal or file rather than EDI.
Distributors with repeat B2B customers who need allocation and batch picking (all plans).
Warehouses that label cartons and pallets with their own license plates rather than SSCCs.
Keep the next commercial step visible.
Move from this page into pricing or implementation without losing the next step.
ImplementationCompare related WarePulse options
Compare the next topics buyers usually review: implementation, pricing, trust, field evidence, and operating fit.
Plan the next warehouse step
Bring one customer’s routing guide and a day of orders, and we will show what WarePulse covers on the floor and what would need a scoped connection.
Workflow steps
- Enter a real multi-line B2B order and run it through allocation, batch picking and ship-out.
- Scan your case barcodes with the phone camera and with your hardware scanners.
- List every EDI document and label a customer requires, and scope the connection with us.
Implementation planning
- Customers import from CSV with codes, contacts and addresses, so the customer list can move from your current system.
- EDI and GS1 label printing are not part of the product today; if a customer requires them, scope the connection before go-live.
Security and purchasing context
- Roles run from owner and admin to manager, operator and picker.
- Map order, inventory and adjustment records to the customer’s documentary requirements; validate the export and retention needed for the trading relationship.
Questions to resolve
- Can WarePulse send an 856 to our retail customer? Not today; EDI is scoped during implementation.
- Do we need GS1 barcodes on every level? Only if your customers require them; GS1 standards are voluntary.
Expected business impact
- Scan verification at the pick and at ship-out catches a wrong case before it reaches a customer’s dock.
- Unlimited users and orders on every plan keep the price flat as order lines grow.
The sector rules your WMS has to respect
The operating rules that create the most risk in this sector — and hurt the most when the software gets them wrong.
Trade items (GS1): each packaging level, such as a single unit, a multipack or a case, is identified by its own GTIN; GTIN-14 indicator digits 1 to 8 mark packaging levels, and a mixed case needs its own new GTIN.
Logistic units (GS1): a pallet or carton is identified by an 18-digit Serial Shipping Container Code, application identifier (00), carried in a GS1-128 barcode, which GS1 Canada describes as a distribution and logistics symbol rather than a retail one.
EDI (GS1 Canada): the Canadian guidelines include the 850 purchase order, 855 acknowledgement, 856 ship notice, 810 invoice, 940 warehouse shipping order, 945 warehouse shipping advice and 947 warehouse inventory adjustment advice.
Bilingual labels (Consumer Packaging and Labelling Regulations s. 6): required information on prepackaged consumer products appears in English and French; the name and principal place of business of the company the product was made or packaged for may appear in either language.
CBSA Memorandum D17-1-21 requires importers to keep commercial-import records for at least six years following importation, at their Canadian place of business unless another location is authorized.
Where WarePulse fits this sector
How WarePulse handles the sector rules that actually matter on your floor.
Orders are entered in the operator portal with a customer, due date, external reference and priority, and on every plan allocation runs reserve stock across them.
On every plan, batch picking groups orders into one walk, and on every plan each pick is verified by scanning the location, then the item.
Receiving compares received against expected quantities and blocks over-receipt; on every plan, purchase orders and suppliers set those expectations.
Pick faces carry minimum, maximum and trigger quantities, and WarePulse lists the replenishment needed to refill them.
Carton, pallet and license-plate labels print in Code 128; they are not GS1-128 SSCC labels.
The phone camera reads EAN-13, EAN-8, UPC-A, UPC-E, Code 128, Code 39, Code 93 and QR codes; test ITF-14 case barcodes on your hardware scanners during implementation.
Each item has one unit of measure, so a case and an each are set up as separate items, and there is no EDI or pack-hierarchy import.
Built for warehouses in this industry
Operators and customer profiles where sector-specific rules shape the decision.
Wholesale distributors whose customers send orders by email, portal or file rather than EDI.
Distributors with repeat B2B customers who need allocation and batch picking (all plans).
Warehouses that label cartons and pallets with their own license plates rather than SSCCs.
Not a fit yet if retail customers require an 856 ship notice and SSCC labels on every shipment, unless that connection is scoped during implementation.
Where the customer’s data rules meet the floor
A retail customer’s receiving dock reads the SSCC on the pallet and matches it to the 856 ship notice it received. Neither exists unless the warehouse knew what was in each carton when it closed it. WarePulse records what was picked and shipped against each order; turning that into EDI documents and GS1 labels is integration work, best scoped before the first retail customer asks for it.
List which customers require EDI, which documents, and which require SSCC labels.
Record each packaging level’s GTIN before setting up items.
Decide whether cases and eaches are stocked as separate items.
For imports, retain the required commercial-import records for six years following importation, in the authorized record location.
Where to go next
Wholesale distribution
The broader page on wholesale distribution operations.
See detailsDistributor WMS
Receiving, allocation and picking for distributors.
See detailsFeature hub
Review barcode, lot, billing, and portal capabilities.
See detailsWorkflow hub
Connect the sector rule to the station that must change first.
See detailsComposite operating scenarios
Use disclosed composite scenarios to keep planning grounded in operations.
See detailsEcosystem data exchange
Review CSV, Next Movement, and scoped data handoffs that shape the sector flow.
See detailsPricing
Plans from $699 CAD a month for one warehouse, with unlimited users.
See detailsImplementation
Review the rollout path before the evaluation turns into a risky cutover.
See detailsFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between a GTIN and an SSCC?+
Which EDI documents concern the warehouse?+
Does WarePulse support EDI?+
Can WarePulse print SSCC labels?+
How long must importers keep records in Canada?+
Anchor the evaluation to the hardest rule on your floor.
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