Glossary

This glossary contains both Transtream and industry terms.

Term	Definition
Accessorial Charge	A fee charged by a carrier for supplementary services, such as additional handling, fuel charges, inside delivery, COD, delivery confirmation, etc.
Advance Shipment Notice (ASN)	An electronically transmitted list to a customer describing contents of a shipment. Content list for an expected receipt, with each inventory item shown by its associated license plate number. Essentially, an expected manifest. ASNs are often receiving using EDI, but not always.
AIAG	Automotive Industry Action Group. A standards body composed of representatives from the major automotive manufacturers, responsible for the development of a common industry bar code symbology and format standard.
Air	Typically refers to a time-sensitive shipment that travels via an expedited method (e.g. Priority Overnight, Express Mail). Shippers will typically employ this service in order to reach a destination by a particular time and date.
Airbill	A document used by air freight carriers acknowledging receipt of goods and agreeing to transport them to a consignee including a description of the shipment, consignee information, and tracking number.
Alphanumeric	Describes a character set that contains alphabetic characters (letters), numeric digits (numbers) and other characters such as punctuation marks.
ANSI	American National Standards Institute. A private nonprofit organization operating in the public interest to coordinate US standards. ANSI was founded in 1918 as the national coordinator for standards in the United States. National standards are developed primarily by trade, technical, professional, consumer and labor organizations. ANSI itself does not develop standards. It only approves standards based on its own evaluation criteria.
AOD (Acknowledgment of Delivery)	An accessorial offered by carriers requiring a consignee to sign a receipt that is returned to the shipper as proof of delivery.
API	Application Programming Interface; an API is typically used by software developers to integrate with other software. The Transtream APIs can service rating, shipping and tracking requests from other ERP, Warehouse Management, or Order Management Systems, without having to use a Transtream user interface.
App	application that runs independently in a browser and connects to its instance. Apps are single XML files and therefore portable across instances. An instance can service many Apps. Typically you'll have Shipping Apps (such as Warehouse App, Store App, Supplier App) and Office Apps (such as MailCenter App, Desktop App).
AQ Rate	An "any quantity" rate applied to any commodity regardless of the weight of the shipment. An AQ rate is an exception to the general rule "rates vary with weight".
ASC X12	The Accredited Standards Committee X12 is a group of volunteers who develop and maintain standards for the use of electronic data interchange (EDI). ASC X12 was chartered in 1979 to develop uniform standards for electronic commerce between external trading partners on a national level. The X12 body meets three times each year to develop and maintain EDI standards. Its main objective is to develop standards to facilitate interindustry business transaction such as order placement and processing, shipping and receiving, invoicing, and payment and cash application. Proposed standards must be approved through the consensus process before a standard, or any change to a standard, is approved and registered with ANSI.
Auditing	In the transportation industry, examining and checking the accuracy of freight bills.
Autodiscrimination	A feature on certain bar code scanners allowing them to distinguish between various bar code symbologies.
Backhaul	A vehicle going from origin to destination loaded and returning empty usually generating less revenue than the original move; or moving a shipment back over part of a route already traveled.
Backorder	Occurs when a product is ordered and it is out of stock. The manufacturer will ship the backorder as soon as it's available to complete the order.
Bar code/bar code symbol	The most commonly used form of automatic-identification technology, consisting of a series of light and dark vertical bars of different widths and adjoining spaces, used to represent a number, letter, or symbol. Bar codes are printed on labels in order to give each label its own identity when read by a scanner.
Bar code label	A label that has a bar code and/or human readable information printed on it and can be attached to an item.
Batch picking	Process by which goods are selected by picking operators in quantities to satisfy the demand for more than one order. Goods are first picked by SKU and later sorted by order number or delivery address.
Bearer Bars	Bars surrounding a bar code to improve print quality of the bar code symbol.
Bidirectional	The ability to scan and read data successfully from left to right or right to left. Bidirectional bar code symbol A bar code or symbol that can be read left to right or right to left.
Bill of Lading (BOL)	A contractual document usually issued by the carrier and shipper listing the goods in the shipment, terms of the contract, charge terms, delivery instructions, etc. It is the receipt from the carrier when accepting the shipment.
Black Box	Typically refers to the software that services another system through an API also referred to as “Lights Out” shipping.
Break-Bulk	The separating of a consolidated load into smaller individual shipments for delivery to the ultimate consignee.
Broker	An intermediary between the shipper and the carrier.
Carrier	Shipping service provider who physically handles the goods. Available carriers are implemented through Carrier Components
Carrier Component	Software component that when enabled in provides access to a carrier and its services. Support for a carrier can be provided by more than one Carrier Component. For example, a carrier could have Carrier Components for different geographical locations, for parcel and or freight services, and for different technologies used such as an API or third party engine.
Case	A container that holds a fixed, pre-determined quantity of a product. Products may be checked in and stored by the case. A case is generally identified by a license plate (but not always).
Case Break	Generally refers to the process of opening cases for supplying merchandise for less-than-case quantity shipping.
Charge Terms	Indicates responsibility for freight payment: prepaid (PPD)- the freight charges are paid by the shipper. prepaid and add (PPA) - the consignee pays the freight charges added to the order invoice. collect (COL) - the consignee pays the freight charges to the carrier when the shipment is delivered. 3rd party (3RD) - a party other than the shipper or consignee pays the freight charges.
Check Digit	A character in a bar code symbol used to perform a mathematical check to ensure the data is read correctly. 275 '---.-/
Claim	A charge made against a shipper or carrier for loss, damage, delay, or overcharge.
Class Rate	A "sticker price" rate, usually the most expensive. Class rates are the base rates from which discounts are taken.
Collect on Delivery (COD)	A collection service a carrier may offer to collect cash payment of the seller's merchandise from the consignee for a fee.
Commodity Code	An arbitrary number associated with a class of goods or product's freight class.
Common Carrier	A "for hire" carrier that provides service to the general public on a regular schedule at published rates.
Compliance Engine	Provides the backend shipping capability. Set at installation in Transtream Setup.
Composer Design Studio	Utility that enables enterprises to adapt integrate with a customer's internal system, apply business rules, to and adapt to role-specific processes.
Contract Rates	Rates that are negotiated by a shipper and a carrier, which are most often a discount off published rates based on volume. These rates are typically reflected both in an invoice and visible on a customer's shipping system.
Concatenation	Combining multiple data elements into one bar code symbol.
Consignee	The person or company to whom the freight is being shipped, usually the buyer.
Consignee Billing	A method of sending a shipment or packages when the consignee will be paying for the freight.
Consolidation	Placing several shipments together to form a single larger shipment to qualify for a lower freight rate.
Consumer Unit	The smallest unit or item intended to be sold for end customer consumption.
Contact Reader/Scanner	A bar code reader that requires physical contact between the code medium and the scanner. An example is an ATM card.
Container	A big box usually 10 by 40 ft. in length, used to hold smaller cartons, boxes or pallets. Containers reduce the potential for damage and theft, and improve handling efficiency because only the container is moved, not each individual box, carton or pallet. A truck trailer is an example of a container on wheels.
Contract Carrier	A for-hire carrier that does not serve the general public but services shippers that have contracted with the carrier.
Contract Rate	A base rate with a negotiated discount applied.
Courier Service	A fast door to door service for high valued goods and documents.
Cross Docking	Process of moving merchandise directly from the receiving dock to the shipping dock, which eliminates the need to place the inventory in storage.
Customer Order	One or more items ordered by a single customer which are shipped in one or more cartons in a single shipment. Orders consist of line items referencing single SKUs.
Customer Service	Activities between the buyer and seller that enhance or facilitate the sale or use of the seller's product or services.
CWT	An abbreviation for one hundred pounds, or hundredweight.
CWT Rates	Rating by cents or dollar, per hundredweight.
Data Element	The basic unit of information in the EDI standards. A data element may be a single character code, a series of words constituting a literal description, or a numerical quantity. The elements contain the actual data from the equivalent business form. Examples are price, product code, size or color.
Data Segment	The data segment is an intermediate unit of information in a transaction set. A segment is composed of a segment identifier, one or more related data elements each preceded by a data element separator (delimiter) and a segment terminator. Individual data segments can repeat and groups of data segments can repeat or loop in a transaction set.
Data Segment Identifier	Each data segment has a unique two- or three-position identifier. The identifier servers as a label for the data segment.
Declared Value	The value of a package stated on a manifest or bill of lading for insurance purposes.
Deficit Weight	The difference between the billable weight and the actual weight of a shipment when using the next higher weight break to lower the cost of the shipment.
Delimiters	Delimiters are characters which separate different parts of EDI data . EDI has three types of delimiters: segment terminator, data element separator and the component element separator. The segment terminator appears at the end of each segment and is used to separate each segment in a transaction set. The data element separator appears at the beginning of each data element and is used to separate the elements in each segment. The component element separator is used to separate different parts of the same element.
Designer	The tool for developing Apps.
Desktop Shipping	The ability to produce a shipping label from a desktop (PC) environment, instead of having to process in a central mailroom or shipping facility. Desktop shipping reduces the need for manual air waybills, thus controlling costs and increasing shipment visibility.
Deregulation	Revisions or complete elimination of economic regulations controlling transportation. For example the Motor Carrier Act of 1980 revised economic controls over motor carriers and the railroad..
DISA (Data Interchange Standards Association)	The organization responsible for performing all administrative duties of the ANSI X12 subcommittee.
Dimensional Rating	Used to rate odd shaped packages by its volume rather than its actual weight when the dim weight (length x width x height divided by a weight factor) is greater than the actual weight.
Direct	Movement of freight using one carrier from origin to destination.
Distribution Warehouse	A finished goods warehouse from which a company assembles customer orders.
Drop Ship	To save money, large numbers of prepaid and labeled parcels are trucked from the shipper's processing location across several UPS or USPS zones to a post office or other parcel carrier. The parcel carrier then delivers the parcels to the consignees. Cost savings are realized by paying the lower 1 or 2 zone rate in addition to the truckload charges, but the combination is often much less than paying the individual parcel costs to zones 7 or 8 to hundreds of consignees.
DSD	Direct Store Delivery. Each Unit of measure which signifies a quantity of one.
EDI (Electronic Data Interchange)	The exchange of business data (documents) between two parties in a standardized digital format. The process by which companies can exchange business documents directly from application to application by computer without paper documents being produced.
EDI Standard	The rules for turning a business document into an EDI document.
EDI Translation	The conversion of application data to and from an EDI standard format.
EDI Translator	The software used to convert the application data to and from an EDI format.
Electronic Catalog	A database of information describing a group of products that can be accessed electronically. An example is the UPC catalog containing product codes and related product information of the product lines of a vendors contributing to the catalog.
Electronic Commerce (EC)	Transacting business electronically. Electronic commerce includes faxes, e-mail and EDI.
Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT)	The process of transferring money from your account to a partners account for the purposes of payment. EFT uses the 820 transaction set typically sent both to the bank of choice and the partner receiving the funds. The bank will then do the actual transfer of money while the partner monitors the transaction using the received 820 information.
Electronic Mailbox	The place where EDI transmissions are stored for pickup and delivery within a 3rd party service provider's system. Exempt carrier A for-hire carrier that is exempt from economic regulation.
Expected Weight	The weight of an entity calculated from product standard values. Generally, includes tare weight.
Fixed Length	The term used to describe a number or bar code with an established number of characters.
FedEx International Priority DirectDistribution (IPD)	FedEx International Priority DirectDistribution® is a consolidated shipping service. It allows you to send multiple-package shipments, from a single origin location to multiple recipients in one destination country, using one FedEx® International Air Waybill. After customs clearance, the shipment is broken down into individual packages and delivered to the final recipients within the same destination country.
Feed	Apps are downloaded from cloud based feeds. Administrator users maintain feeds in Admin (what they see when they log into a instance).
Freight Bill	The carrier's invoice for transporting shipments.
Freight Class	A classification number assigned to a commodity using the NMFC numbering system used to calculate freight charges.
Freight Forwarder	An individual or company that accepts LTL shipments and consolidates them into truckloads on a for-hire basis, or an agent who prepares necessary documents or makes arrangements for moving freight..
Freight Rate	The cost or charge to move freight.
Full Case	Items received, stored and shipped in the original product master carton - in standard case quantity.
Functional Acknowledgment	A transaction set used to return a response to the sender of an EDI transaction.
Gross Weight	The total weight of the vehicle and the freight.
Ground	Typically refers to a day definite, less time sensitive shipment that travels via a truck (e.g. UPS Standard, FedEx Ground). Shippers will typically employ this service to achieve greater cost savings than via an expedited method.
Held Reader/Scanner	A bar code reader held and operated by a human, allowing the reader to be brought to the symbol.
Hazardous Materials	Materials that the Department of Transportation has determined to be a risk to health, safety and property. Examples are explosives, poisons, radioactive materials, corrosive liquids and flammable liquids.
Hazmat	Abbreviation for "Hazardous Materials;" typically materials considered dangerous to ship and requiring special certification/licenses to ship.
Hub Airport	An airport that serves as the focal point for the origin and termination of long distance flights. Flights from outlying areas meet connecting flights at the hub airport.
HubCapp	A versatile integration platform that makes it easy to connect Transtream or any cloud app to devices, websites and other data sources.
Hundredweight (CWT)	A transportation pricing unit that equals 100 lbs.
Human Readable	Characters or data in a form such as numbers and letters that can be read and understood by a human, as opposed to a bar code..
ICC	The Interstate Commerce Commission, a 5 member federal agency founded in 1887 whose purpose was to establish a framework for comprehensive economic regulation in the transportation industry.
Identification Code	A code used to identify products and shipping containers. They are typically numeric and have a defined data structure.
Igloo	Pallets and containers used in air transportation.The igloo shape fits the internal wall contours of a narrow body airplane.Industry convention A subset of EDI standards used in a specific industry..
Industry Convention	A subset of EDI standards used in a specific industry.Infrared A spectrum of light used to read bar code symbols.
Instance	An installation of Transtream. An instance can support many Apps, and Designer. Instances are maintained with Transtream Setup. Instances include a Compliance Engine that provides the backend shipping capability.
Interline	Two or more carriers working together to haul a shipment to a destination because one of the carriers doesn't service that destination.
Interstate	Movement between states.
Intrastate	Movement within the boundaries of a state.
Inventory	The number of units and/or value of the stock of goods a company holds.
Invoice	Bill to customer for order or shipment: includes charges for material shipped, freight charges (if appropriate), customizing charges (if appropriate), etc.
ISO	International Organization for Standardization.
Item	Product identifiably different from all other products or packages by nature of its name, package label or material characteristic. An item is generally a single unit of a SKU.
JIT (Just in Time)	The delivery of products at just the right place, in just the right quantity, atjust the right time, reducing waste and inefficiencies in an organization. A JIT management system attempts to reduce inventory by co-originating demand and supply so that an item arrives just in time for use.
Lading	Cargo carried in a transportation vehicle.
Lane	A geographic route used by LTL/TL carriers that connect shipping areas.
Laser scanner	An optical bar code reading device using a low energy laser as its light source.
LIFO (Last In First Out)	An accounting method for valuing inventory that assumes latest goods purchased are the first goods shipped out during an accounting period.
Light Pen	A hand held contact bar code reader that resembles a pen.
Line-haul Shipment	A shipment that is moved between cities and distances over 100 miles to 150 miles.
Logistics	All of the activities involved in planning and carrying out the handling, storage and transportation of goods and materials in a supply chain.
Line Item	A quantity of a specific SKU. Line items are components of orders and cases. Generally, a line item is data which relates to a logical entity which may be repeated an unknown number of times for one entity.
Location	A ship-from address is defined as a designated shipping pick up site identified with a unique 'ship from' address. Also referred to as site; these terms are sometimes used interchangeably.
LTL (Less than truck Load)	The mode of shipping used when a shipment does not fill the entire truck - other shippers share the truck. LTL rates are typically based on weight and freight class.
Machine Readable	Printed information from the direct transfer of information from a printed surface to a data processing system without human intervention.
Mailer ID (MID)	The Mailer Identifier (MID) is a field within an Intelligent Mail barcode that is used to identify mailers. MIDs are assigned by the USPS.
Manifest	A printed or electronic document used primarily by small package carriers that itemizes packages that have been picked-up for delivery. A manifest includes shipping charges, tracking numbers, specialty service charges, etc.
Mapping	The process of identifying the relationship of customer system data elements to application software data elements.
Mileage Rate	A rate based on distance shipped, usually in miles.
Minimum Rate	The shipment weight that the carrier's tariff specifies as the minimum weight required to use their LTL or TL rate.
Mixed Case	A case which contains multiple SKUs.
Mixed Merchandise	Containers that contains a non-standard assortment of various products. Also called pick-pack and variable pack.
Mode	The type of service used to transport shipments. e.g., air, ground, LTL, TL, AMX, etc.
Motor Carrier Act of 1980	The Act of Congress that deregulated for-hire trucking.
National Carrier	A carrier serving the entire US.
National Motor Freight Classification (NMFC)	The NMFC guide, considered the bible of transportation, contains freight classes or class numbers that are required for calculating freight charges. It also contains a list of participating carriers, rules for packaging, handling and service requirements, the application of commodity descriptions and claim filing procedures.
Non Contact Reader/Scanner	A bar code reader with a fixed or moving beam scanner that can read a bar code without making contact with the symbol.
Optical Character Recognition (OCR)	used by readers to read alphanumeric characters, such as letters and words.
Omni-Directional	The characteristic of some bar codes enabling them to be successfully read in any orientation.
Order Pack	The packing type used when you pack the orders and then assign them to shipments. In this type of processing, individual orders are selected for packing prior to being assigned to a shipment. Order picking Putting the customer's order together from inventory.
Order Processing	The activities associated with filling customer orders.
Oversize	An accessorial offered by carriers allowing shippers to ship larger, light weight packages.
Packing List	A list showing merchandise packed and all particulars. Typically, this is a list of contents of a shipping case, package or multiple packages prepared in response to an order. It is normally prepared by the shipper and a copy is sent to the consignee to verify the shipment contents when received.
Pallet	A small wooden or metal platform about 4 feet square, on which packaged goods are placed to facilitate movement or storage. A forklift truck is used to lift and move the loaded pallet.
Pallet Wrapping Machine	A machine that wraps up the pallet's contents, typically plastic stretch-wrap. This ensures items on the pallet don't fall off, and keeps everything on the pallet as one unit.
Parcel	Typically a single package under 150 lbs. going to a destination that is usually tendered to a parcel carrier, such as USPS, FedEx or UPS.
Pick/Pack	Picking mixed inventory or product directly into shipping cartons, boxes or other shipping containers, usually pre-sized based on items to be placed in the container.
Pick Instructions	Instructions to a warehouse person that describe what product to pick and how much.
Picking	Process by which merchandise is selected in piece, carton or pallet load quantities to satisfy demand requirement for a shipping order. Picking is generally donefrom active storage locations, but may be done from reserve locations.
Price Look Up (PLU)	The process by which a bar coded item number is decoded, its price is looked up in a data base and the price information is returned to the scanning source.
Proof of Delivery (POD)	Information proving a package was delivered, usually the date, name and signature of the person who signed for it.
Pool Point	A location between an origin and destination where shipments are consolidated or distributed before reaching their final destinations.
POS (Point of Sale)	Refers to the retail type checkout where UPC and EAN bar code symbols are usually scanned.Postnet code A bar code developed by the U.S. Postal Service for the automation of mail sorting.
Private Carrier	A carrier that provides a transportation service to a firm that owns or leases the vehicles, and does not charge a fee.
PRO (progressive rotating order) number	A reference number used on bills of lading to identify shipments for tracking. On an airbill, the PRO number is the same as the waybill number.
Proprietary Format	A data format specific to a company, industry or group that do not comply with EDI standards.
Protocol	Rules or conventions used between communicating devices such as computers. An example of a simple protocol defines PC hardware configurations. A more complex protocol defines data formats, timing and error correction.
Purchase Order	A transaction set generated by a customer containing all the information required by a supplier to process an order of product or services.
Quiet Zones	In bar codes, the area at each end of the overall symbol. This area must be free of imprinting so the scanner can isolate the bar code for interpretation.
Rate Basis Number (RBN)	A distance factor or index number associated with a given origin and destination ZIP code used to rate LTL shipments.
Reader	A device used for automatically reading data. The data can be stored in a bar code, alphanumeric characters, stored on a magnetic stripe or stored in the memory of a smart card.
Regional Carrier	A carrier serving a specific area or region of the US.
Reverse Logistics	The afterrnarket logistics activities such as returns, repairs, recycling, and disposal.
SCAC (Standard Carrier Alpha Code)	The unique code assigned to a carrier for identification.
Scanner	An electronic device that reads bar codes and converts the information contained in them into code that a computer understands.
Serial number	Unique identification of each instance of a SKU. Some SKUs are tracked by serial number, meaning that each item must be bar coded, or the serial number must be recorded for each item.
Shipment	Goods or merchandise in pieces, parcels, containers, or pallets for transportation from a shipper to a destination.
Shipment Staging Area	A location that serves as an accumulation point. Orders are held prior to loading onto outbound delivery vehicles.
Shipper	Any user authorized to calculate rates, print carrier labels and process Ship Requests that come in to the mail center (also used interchangeably with "workstation")
Shipping Container Code	An identification code used to identify a unit load or transport package. Examples include cases, pallets, barrels, bins, etc. The SCC-14and SSCC-18 can be used as shipping container codes.
Single Point of Clearance (SPOC)	SPOC is when a multi-package shipment is cleared at a single customs point; after which the shipment is broken up for delivery to multiple destination countries. This is used when operating with certain consolidated shipping services.
Single Shipment Through Customs	When shipments move and clear destination Customs as a single shipment. This is used when operating with certain consolidated shipping services. The entire shipment is consigned to (and entry is made) in the name of only one importer of record (IOR). The shipment must also come from a single exporter of record. Individual pieces within the shipment are delivered to the recipients.
SKU (Stock Keeping Unit)	A number generated by a company to identify a product. The item's UPC could be its SKU.
Sleeper Team	The use of two drivers to operate a truck equipped with a sleeper berth so that while one driver sleeps, the other drives.
Slip Sheet	Similar to a pallet, but made of plastic or cardboard.
Smart Card	A floppy disk used to carry EDI transactions from a direct store delivery supplier to a retailer. The smart card contains a copy of the invoice for the delivered product.
Snippet	A piece of predefined functionality that provides a capability within Apps. For example, Address Book. Typically shipping related, but can be anything. Many are supplied, but developers can add their own. Snippets are used alongside tools (controls) in Designer to create Apps.
Software Development Toolkit (SDK)	Typically a set of tools, including API, frameworks, interface elements, etc. used to create software, i.e. applications
Source Marking	Bar coding a specific item with the UPC included in the artwork when the item is initially produced.
Stacked Bar Code	Horizontally stacked bar code with a row number identifier denoting how many rows (2-8) are stacked.This allows multiple bar code scanning in any order bysweeping top to bottom or bottom to top, across the entire block. Also referred to as two dimensional bar code.
Standard Pack/Fixed Content	All items or contents in the packaging unit are identical in standard packaging.
Stop Off Charge	A charge that TL carriers charge for stopping for partial loading or unloading.
Stretch-Wrap	Thin, elastic plastic self-adhering material used to contain product on a pallet.
Super-Regional Carrier	A carrier serving large portions of the US with no geographic break in service.
Supplier	The entity that produces, provides or furnishes an item or service, such as the owner of a UPC company prefix.
Supply Chain Management	A term used interchangeably with logistics referring to the chain of events, industries and firms linked together, from the acquisition of raw materials to the delivery to the end user.
Symbology	A language in bar code technology, or data representation by symbols.
Syntax	The rules that define the structure of EDI standards.
SWOG (Ship With Other Goods)	Multiple orders consolidated or combined into a single shipping carton.
Tare Weight	The weight component of a package which is not merchandise. For example, the weight of the package itself (corrugated or other) and of other packaging materials used.
Tariff	A published collection of a carrier's rates, schedules, accessorial charges, etc. used for applying charges for the movement of goods for a route.
Tariff Bureau	An organization that publishes and maintains libraries oftariffs for a fee.
TL (Truck Load)	The mode of shipping used when a shipment occupies the entire truck. TL rates are typically mileage based.
Tools	Basic web form elements that provide standard ways to display or gather information. For example, a text box.
TPA (Trading Partner Agreement)	A contractual agreement between two parties that outlines specific procedures pertaining to the use of EDI.
Trading Partner	The originator and receiver of data in the exchange of EDI transaction sets.
Traffic Lane	A route or traffic movement into a certain geographic area such as a large city primarily used by LTL/TL carriers. A traffic lane with movement into a consuming area has higher rates, and movement into a producing area has lower rates.
Traffic Management	A fee charged by a carrier for supplementary services, such as additional handling, fuel charges, inside delivery, COD, delivery confirmation, etc.
Trading Partner	The originator and receiver of data in the exchange of EDI transaction sets.
Transaction Set	A transaction set defines in the standard syntax, business information. It consists of a transaction header, data segments and an ending segment. It is the equivalent of a business document or business form.
Transit Time	The total time that elapses from pickup to delivery of a shipment.
Translation	Taking documents in a format and converting them to an EDI standard.
Transportation Broker	Also known as a freight forwarder; also an independent contractor acting as a sales agent for carriers or shippers.
Universal Product Code (UPC)	Product bar code containing manufacturer and product information.
UPC Version A	A version of the basic UPC symbol usually seen on grocery store and retail items.
UPC Version B	A version of the basic UPC for industrial use.
VAN (Value Added Network)	It is like an "electronic post office" where shippers and senders send and receive EDI transactions.
Wand Reader	A hand held scanning device used as a contact bar code reader resembling a large pen.
Wedge Reader/Scanner	A bar code reader designed to fit between a keyboard and a computer. The keyboard is plugged into the wedge and a cable is plugged into the keyboard interface on the computer. Data scanned using a wedge appears on the monitor as if the data was typed into the computer eliminating the need to modify application software.
Weight Break	A point in a weight based rate table where the rate calculation changes, usually set in increments.
Widget	A portable app designed to support a specific function (or set of functions) end-to-end and embedded in a website or other browser application. For example, the Returns Widget.
ZIP (Zone Improvement Plan)	Mail coding system called a ZIP Code introduced in the US in 1963 as a way of speeding up mail service through the use of sorting machines.
ZIP Code	A five digit number that identifies a destination.
Zone	A geographic distance from an origin, usually in 200 mile increments. The higher the zone number, the further distance it is from the origin, consequently a higher shipping cost.
Zone Skip	To save money, large numbers of prepaid and labeled parcels are trucked from the shipper's processing location across several UPS or USPS zones to a post office or other parcel carrier. The parcel carrier then delivers the parcels to the consignees. Cost savings are realized by paying the lower 1 or 2 zone rate in addition to the truckload charges, but the combination is often much less than paying the individual parcel costs to zones 7 or 8 to hundreds of consignees.

Article last edited 18 March 2020