Get started with Trade Partners
Learn what Trade Partners are, how connection statuses and identifiers work, where to find the module and which article to open for each task.
Applies to: the Trade Partners module under Master Data (the Trade Partner List and Invites tabs)
Audience: Anyone who sets up or maintains the companies a Wholechain account does business with
Prerequisites: a Wholechain account and permission to view and edit master data in the account you are working in
Related: Trade Partner List; Add Trade Partners; Trade Partner details; Invitations; Trade Partners FAQ; Reference Guide: Module overview; Reference Guide: Glossary; Master Data Settings; Get started with Locations; Field and action reference
Purpose
Trade Partners holds the companies you do business with, such as suppliers, buyers, processors and logistics providers. This page explains the main ideas, shows where the module lives and points you to the article for each task.
Before you begin
You need:
- A Wholechain account and permission to view and edit master data in the account you are working in. If you cannot see an Add button or cannot save a change, ask your administrator about your permissions.
- For a single record: the company name and, ideally, an identifier from your own system, such as an ERP code.
- For bulk uploads: Microsoft Excel or a compatible spreadsheet program. Bulk uploads accept .xlsx or .xls files.
- Valid numbers for any PGLN or DUNS you enter. Wholechain checks identifier numbers, and invalid values are rejected.
Key concepts
What master data is
Master data is the reference information that your traceability records point to: who your partners are, where things happen, and which products you handle. You enter it once and reuse it every time you record an event or share information. Clean master data makes every later record easier to enter and easier for your partners to trust.
What a Trade Partner is
A Trade Partner is a company you do business with, such as a supplier, a buyer, a processor or a logistics provider. A Trade Partner can have many Locations. The Location(s) column of the Trade Partner List shows how many. Every Location belongs to exactly one Trade Partner, so a Trade Partner must exist before you add its Locations (see Get started with Locations).
Your own company: the self Trade Partner
Your own company is also a Trade Partner. It appears in the list with (Self) after its name and is called your self Trade Partner. It is Wholechain Connected, and Locations that belong to your own company are attached to it. You cannot invite your own company to connect, and it is not offered in the invitation form.
Connection statuses
Every Trade Partner has one of three connection statuses.
| Status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Wholechain Connected | The Trade Partner has a Wholechain account and your account is connected to it. You can exchange traceability across accounts and use shared features such as Shared Items and Shared Locations. |
| Externally Connected | The Trade Partner is connected through another EPCIS/GDST system or a third-party integration that Wholechain supports. Someone is on the other end of the connection. |
| Not Connected | The Trade Partner is not connected in any way. You keep full control and can record traceability events on its behalf. |
To move a partner toward a connection, see Invitations.
The connection status is not the same as the Connection Type (Buyer, Supplier, Other or Self), which says what the partner is to you. The spreadsheet upload asks for a Connection Type; see Add Trade Partners.
Identifiers
A Trade Partner can carry more than one identifier.
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Trade Partner Identifier | The identifier you use for the record in your own systems, such as an ERP code. Wholechain also calls this an external identifier. |
| Alias | An additional name or number that the same Trade Partner is known by. Alias types: External Identifier, URN or PGLN. |
| PGLN | Party GLN: a GS1 identifier for a company. |
| DUNS | A nine-digit company identifier issued by Dun & Bradstreet. |
| Wholechain ID | The unique identifier Wholechain assigns to a connected company. |
The related GS1 identifier for a physical place, the GLN, belongs to Locations and is explained in Get started with Locations.
Trade Partner, owner and building owner
Three different ideas are easy to confuse:
- The Trade Partner is the company a Location is attached to. It appears in the Trade Partner column of the Locations page.
- The owner is the Wholechain account that holds a Location record. It appears in the Owner column of the Locations page. The account that owns a record is the one that can edit it and decide who it is shared with.
- Who owns the building is a real-world fact that Wholechain does not track.
For a worked example, see Get started with Locations.
Other terms
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| ERP | Enterprise resource planning software, the system where many companies already keep their supplier and site codes. |
| EPCIS | The GS1 standard for exchanging traceability events. |
| GDST | The Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability, whose standards set out the key data elements for seafood traceability. |
How Trade Partners and Locations fit together
Traceability events answer "what happened, where, and with whom." Locations answer where. Trade Partners answer with whom. Before you can record or share events for a shipment, the Trade Partners and Locations involved must exist in your master data. Setting them up first means events can be created from a pick list rather than typed each time, and the identifiers on each event match what your partners expect.
A good order of work is:
Confirm your own company's record and Locations
Check that your self Trade Partner is in the Trade Partner List and that your own Locations are attached to it.
Add your Trade Partners
Create each supplier, buyer or other company. See Add Trade Partners.
Add Locations under each Trade Partner
Every Location is attached to a Trade Partner that already exists. See Add Locations.
Add identifiers, aliases and documents
Record the identifiers, aliases and files that help you and your partners recognize each record. See Trade Partner details.
Group Locations as needed
See Location Groups.
Invite Trade Partners to connect
See Invitations.
Find the Trade Partners module
Open Trade Partners
Select Trade Partners under Master Data in the left-hand navigation bar. The page opens on the Trade Partner List tab. The Invites tab sits next to it. A gear icon at the top of the page opens the Trade Partners settings (see Settings that affect Trade Partners).
Open a record
Select a Trade Partner's name. A drawer (a panel that slides in from the right) opens with the record's details. See Trade Partner details.
Common actions
| I want to... | Go to |
|---|---|
| Add one Trade Partner | Add Trade Partners (Single Trade Partner tab) |
| Add many Trade Partners | Add Trade Partners (Bulk Upload tab) |
| Find a Trade Partner, filter the list or change columns | Trade Partner List |
| Download master data for selected Trade Partners | Trade Partner List |
| Archive a Trade Partner | Trade Partner List |
| Fix a detail, add an alias or attach a file | Trade Partner details |
| Prepare or send an invitation | Invitations |
| Update external identifiers | Gear icon at the top of the Trade Partners page, then Master Data Settings |
| Get quick answers | Trade Partners FAQ |
Articles in this guide
| Article | Use it to |
|---|---|
| Find and manage the Trade Partner list | Search, filter, choose columns, download master data and archive Trade Partners |
| Add Trade Partners | Add one Trade Partner with a form, or many with an Excel spreadsheet |
| Trade Partner details, aliases, and documents | Correct details, add aliases and attach documents |
| Invite Trade Partners to connect | Prepare and send an invitation |
| Troubleshooting and FAQ for Trade Partners | Find quick fixes and short answers |
The Reference Guide has one chapter for each screen and topic: Module overview, Trade Partner List, Adding Trade Partners, Trade Partner details, Invitations, Archive and restore, Rules and restrictions, Export files, Messages and Glossary.
Settings that affect Trade Partners
Some options apply to the whole module and live in Settings. Click the gear icon at the top of the Trade Partners page (or open Settings with the gear icon at the bottom of the left-hand navigation bar), which opens Master Data Settings > Trade Partner. You can also open Settings with the Settings button on the Dashboard. These options are not repeated here:
- External Identifier Manager, the account-wide alias bulk upload, Download master data and the Default Invite Message are described in Master Data Settings.
- Archived Trade Partners are restored in Master Data Settings > Archived, as described in Archived.
Expected result
You know how a Trade Partner differs from a Location, what each connection status means, and where to open the Trade Partner List and Invites tabs. You can pick the right article for the task in front of you.
Troubleshooting
- I cannot see Add Trade Partners or cannot save a change. Ask your administrator to check your permission to edit master data. See Users and Permissions.
- My own company is missing from the list or I cannot invite it. Your own company appears as the self Trade Partner, marked (Self). It cannot be invited, because it is already Wholechain Connected.
- A GLN, PGLN or DUNS number is rejected. Wholechain checks identifier numbers, so check the digits against your GS1 or Dun & Bradstreet record and enter the number again.
- A file will not upload. Bulk uploads accept only .xlsx or .xls files.
- Something else. See the Trade Partners FAQ or contact support@wholechain.com.
Field and action reference
For the full lookup reference, see Module overview and the Glossary.
Records and key concepts
| Record | Description | Relationships |
|---|---|---|
| Trade Partner | A company you do business with. Your own company is a Trade Partner marked (Self). | Has any number of Locations, aliases, documents and invitations |
| Alias | Another identifier for a Trade Partner | Belongs to one Trade Partner |
| Document | A file attached to a Trade Partner | Belongs to the record it was added to |
| Invite | A request for a Trade Partner to connect with you | Belongs to one Trade Partner |
| Concept | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Self Trade Partner | Your own company's Trade Partner record. It cannot be invited to connect. |
| External identifier | The identifier you use for a record in your own systems. Shown as Trade Partner Identifier. |
| Connection | Whether a Trade Partner is connected to you in Wholechain (see Connection statuses above) |
| Connection Type | What the partner is to you: Buyer, Supplier, Other or Self. The single Add form and the Trade Partner drawer offer only Buyer and Supplier; the spreadsheet accepts all four (see Add Trade Partners). |
| Type | Shown in the list and in the Details drawer (for example NonWholechain). It is read-only and cannot be edited. |
| Owner | The Wholechain account that holds a Location record |
Pages and tabs
| Module | Page or tab | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Trade Partners | Trade Partner List | Lists every Trade Partner, including your own company |
| Trade Partners | Invites | Lists invitations and opens the Add Invite drawer |
| Trade Partners | Gear icon at the top of the page | Opens Master Data Settings > Trade Partner (see Master Data Settings) |