| name | edi-engineer |
| description | Guides design, implementation, and operation of B2B electronic data interchange—X12 and EDIFACT,
transaction mapping (850/855/856/810/997, ORDERS/DESADV/INVOIC/APERAK), canonical-to-segment
translation, partner implementation guides, syntax and SNIP validation, functional acks and
exceptions, transport (AS2, SFTP, VAN), healthcare variants (834/835/837) without PHI in outputs,
certification testing, production monitoring, idempotency and reconciliation.
Use when the user mentions EDI engineer, electronic data interchange, X12, EDIFACT, 850 purchase
order, 856 ASN, 810 invoice, 997 acknowledgment, EDI mapping, AS2, partner onboarding,
implementation guide, EDI validation, or VAN—not generic API integration without EDI
(senior-software-engineer), WMS warehouse workflows (wms-developer), supply chain strategy without
EDI build (supply-chain-manager), healthcare compliance program only (compliance-engineer), or
OR routing and solver math (operations-research-algorithm-developer).
|
EDI Engineer
When to Use
- Design or operate B2B EDI integrations—inbound/outbound pipelines, partner profiles, replay
- Map canonical business objects (order, shipment, invoice, inventory) to X12 or EDIFACT segments and loops
- Implement partner-specific rules from implementation guides, companion guides, and trading partner agreements
- Configure validation—syntax (X12 envelope/segment rules, EDIFACT UNB/UNH), implementation conventions, SNIP/business edits
- Build acknowledgment and exception flows—997/999, CONTRL, APERAK, negative acks, operator queues
- Onboard trading partners—certification, test environments, cutover, production monitoring
- Choose and operate transport—AS2 (sign/encrypt, MDN), SFTP/FTP, VAN mailbox patterns at integration level
- Handle healthcare EDI variants (834 enrollment, 835 remittance, 837 claims) as structured messaging—never embed PHI in docs or logs
- Implement idempotency, deduplication, and reconciliation between EDI documents and ERP/WMS/OMS state
When NOT to Use
- Generic REST/GraphQL or event-bus integration with no EDI standards or segment mapping →
senior-software-engineer
- WMS waves, pick paths, RF scanning, slotting, or warehouse operational logic →
wms-developer
- Supply chain strategy, sourcing, forecast policy, or supplier QBRs without EDI implementation →
supply-chain-manager
- SOC/ISO/HIPAA compliance program, audit evidence, and control attestation without EDI engineering →
compliance-engineer
- VRP, MIP, scheduling, or solver-based routing optimization →
operations-research-algorithm-developer
- Penetration testing or offensive security of partner endpoints →
penetration-tester
- Legal review of trading partner contracts →
commercial-counsel
Related skills
| Need | Skill |
|---|
| WMS/ERP message consumption after canonical translation | wms-developer |
| Supply chain process design and inventory policy | supply-chain-manager |
| Application services, APIs, and integration code quality | senior-software-engineer |
| Audit controls, HIPAA/SOC evidence pipelines | compliance-engineer |
| Optimization models for routing or allocation | operations-research-algorithm-developer |
| Enterprise integration architecture across systems | senior-system-architecture |
| CI/CD and production deploy for integration services | devops |
| Cloud messaging and object storage for payloads | cloud-engineer |
Core Workflows
1. Scope and boundaries
Define standards in scope (X12 version, EDIFACT release), transaction sets, direction, systems of record, and PHI handling.
See references/edi_engineer_scope.md.
2. Standards and message families
Select transaction sets, envelopes, and version/agency identifiers.
See references/standards_x12_edifact.md.
3. Mapping and translation
Build canonical models, segment/loop maps, code lists, and transformation rules.
See references/mapping_and_translation.md.
4. Validation and acknowledgments
Layer syntax, partner, and business validation; define ack and exception paths.
See references/validation_and_acknowledgments.md.
5. Transport and partner onboarding
Configure connectivity, certificates, mailboxes, certification, and cutover.
See references/transport_and_partner_onboarding.md.
6. Testing, monitoring, and reconciliation
Certification suites, observability, replay, and financial/operational tie-out.
See references/testing_monitoring_and_reconciliation.md.
Outputs
- Partner profile — IDs, qualifiers, versions, allowed transaction sets, test vs prod endpoints
- Canonical data model — entities, keys, UOM, dates, references, allowance/charge patterns
- Mapping specification — segment/loop map, conditions, code conversions, sample in/out pairs
- Validation matrix — syntax, IG, SNIP/business rules, severity, remediation owner
- Acknowledgment design — 997/999 or CONTRL/APERAK triggers, negative ack content, SLA
- Runbook — stuck interchange, MDN failures, duplicate control numbers, reconciliation breaks
- Test pack — positive/negative cases, volume samples, certification sign-off checklist
Principles
- Map EDI → canonical → domain systems; avoid EDI-shaped tables in core business schemas
- Treat every interchange as idempotent—control numbers, message refs, payload hash, dedupe store
- Fail closed on validation; route exceptions to quarantine with actionable codes—not silent drops
- Separate test and production profiles; never cross-wire ISA/GS or UNB interchange IDs
- Log metadata only for healthcare payloads—no member names, diagnoses, or claim detail in tickets
- Plan reconciliation jobs comparing document totals to ERP/WMS open items and payments
- Document partner drift—IG revisions, segment usage changes, and coordinated version upgrades
