GS1net Certified Products support the GS1net, National Product Catalogue (NPC) and District Health Board National Catalogue (DHBNC) data sets and validation rules, and that they can upload data to GS1net. They have been tested as part of the GS1net Certification Program, to cover the requirements of your trading partners.
Choosing a GS1net Certified Product
Choosing a GS1net Certified Product can be daunting and it can be hard to know where to start. GS1net Certified Products offer certainty that a minimum benchmark will be met. However, not all products are the same. It is important to check that your preferred GS1net Certified Product can:
- validate your data before it is sent to GS1net, thus reducing potential errors
- integrate with your existing back-office systems
- allow for an integrated and sustainable approach to your data management
- is scalable and able to handle growth in your product data
- is updated in line with changes to the GS1net platform
- improves the effectiveness and efficiency of your business processes associated with the management of GS1net data.
Bizcaps GS1net Certified products provide all these benefits.
More than certification
GS1net certification is only designed to certify a product’s ability to meet GS1net requirements. So you should also ask your preferred provider whether they can look after everything your business needs to create and maintain a catalogue and publish product information to your trading partners. You may want some – or all – of the following services, and these may vary over time:
- design and creation of your catalogue
- secure online access to view your catalogue
- on-going support, maintenance, price changes, product additions and deletions
- management of digital assets such as product images and documents
- ad-hoc assistance during peak workloads or during staff absences
- training.
It is also important that you consider your preferred provider’s processes and project management methodology. GS1net Product Certification does not cover the company or its business practices. A rigorous implementation framework should be transparent, offer a dedicated and experienced project manager, have a detailed and agreed project schedule with milestones and include regular progress reviews to ensure its progress is on-track and will be delivered on schedule and within budget. Product certification is no guarantee of on-going support when you need it most.
Bizcaps Software was the first certified middleware provider for GS1net. A Business Alliance Partner of GS1, our software is certified for suppliers in all GS1net industry verticals. Not all providers have attained this level of coverage.