History of NAED’s SPA Process Efficiencies
The initiative to improve the SPA process began in response to distributor member feedback that SPAs were a considerable business challenge that needed examination. NAED first held open forum town hall meetings at regional conferences in 2003 to encourage discussion on SPAs, followed by articles in tED magazine and a survey to the industry. In May 2004, NAED organized distributor and manufacturer SPA Task Forces, involving over 75 volunteers from 21 companies. The Task Forces analyzed the various issues involved and considered recommended best practices that would simplify the processes involved with SPAs. The task forces targeted the SPA Claim Filing Process in 2004-05, followed by the SPA Set-Up and Update Process in 2006.
Implementation Progress
The task forces decided to use EDI document activity on IDEA’s IDX2 to gauge the industry’s progress in implementing the recommended best practices. The use of electronic SPA transactions has grown tremendously since January 2006. Curious about which distributors and manufacturers are capable of EDI SPA Transactions? View a listing of 2008 KNOWN SPA EDI Capability.
Special Pricing Authorization (SPA) Tools
Industry Standards for Data Formatting
To file SPA claims electronically, Distributors submit an EDIPro 844.
Electronic SPA credits are sent by Manufacturers with an EDIPro 849.
Electronic quotations---including Special Pricing Authorizations (SPA) ---are sent by Manufacturers with an EDIPro 845.
The industry standards for formatting data in both EDI and Flat File format were developed by the Industry Standards Committee (ISC). Please direct all questions on these documents to Mary Shaw, at 1-647-722-3406 or mshaw@idea-esolutions.com.
NAED’s SPA Software Integration StatusThe Task Force worked with leading industry software providers to incorporate the SPA Recommended Best Practices into standard software releases.
| Software Vendor |
Integration Status |
| Activant Acclaim |
EDIPro 844 & 849 included in cores systems; “maps” required. |
| Activant Array |
EDIPro 844 & 849 included in cores systems; “maps” required. |
| Activant Eclipse |
EDIPro 844, 845, and 849 included in Release 8.06; Release 8.07.02 provides increased SPA functionality; Release 8.65 allows one to scan for errors and review contracts without first updating items in the queue. |
| Activant Prophet 21 |
EDIPro 844 & 849 included in cores systems; “maps” required. |
| Infor |
EDIPro 844 & 849 supported in Release Sx.e 1.0 to 5.5.
EDIPro 845 included in Sx.enterprise version 5.5. |
| SAP Wholesale Distribution |
Fully complies with EDIPro 844, 845, and 849. |
Don’t see your software vendor listed above? Email NAED's Customer Service at customerservice@naed.org or call 1-888-791-2512 to see what you can do get your software vendor to integrate the SPA Recommended Best Practices into standard software releases.
Distributors and manufacturers who have declared their support of this effort. Don’t see your company listed? Download a "Count Me In" declaration form. Fax completed form to NAED at 1.877.312.9801.
Need more information or have questions about NAED’s SPA Process Efficiencies? Email NAED's Customer Service at customerservice@naed.org, or call 1-888-791-2512.