Expanding the Peppol network: new logistics capabilities

The Peppol network is central to facilitating supply chain communications between private organisations and public authorities.

The adoption of this standardised framework for public procurement has accelerated significantly. For example, in the UK this expands beyond just connecting to the NHS and now increasingly includes other local government authorities and even cross-border transactions.

Now with new logistics capabilities, Peppol connectivity is even more efficient. This blog explores what Peppol is and how it supports public and private procurement today.

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What is Peppol?

Peppol stands for Pan-European Public Procurement On-Line. It is widely used throughout Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA, Singapore and South Africa.

The Peppol network utilises a standardised framework, accessed via an Access Point, to facilitate the digital exchange of supply chain messages between trading parties.

It enables the secure exchange of electronic communications, such as orders, invoices, Advance Shipping Notices, catalogues etc. This data is delivered in a standardised format, ensuring consistency and compatibility across the supply chain.

Public organisations readily mandate the use of the Peppol framework for trading connections. For example, suppliers cannot win contracts with the NHS unless they can facilitate supply chain communications via the Peppol network.

As a result, Peppol is rapidly replacing Value Added Networks (VANs) for eInvoicing and Accounts Payable processes, procurement and marketplaces.

Peppol logistics

Expanding on the existing functionality of the Peppol framework, standardised data exchange specifically tailored for logistics has been announced.

Whilst some messaging standards and protocols for logistics already exist, the standardisation offered by the new Peppol Logistics solution overcomes their associated inadequacies. Ensuring visibility to the scale of logistics requirements can be complex and involve a vast amount of supply chain data. Typically, the stakeholders involved sit across different industries, with varying systems, and contrasting processes. Peppol’s solution supports international and domestic data interchange for Pre-Award (Tenders) and Post-Award (Ordering, Invoicing, etc.) stages. It offers a universal approach, supported globally and irrespective of business industry, which cannot be said for other data exchange protocols.

To achieve this, new format specifications have been added to the existing Peppol network, among others that are already known to support B2G and B2B trade. The rollout of Peppol logistics has been underway since 2023, with the establishment of a new service domain in OpenPeppol.

Benefits for Peppol network users

There are several benefits for Peppol Logistics users in addition to overcoming the shortcomings of existing approaches as touched on previously. These include:

• Reduced uncertainty
• Increased transparency
• Reduced administration
• Traceable goods

Transalis are a certified Peppol Access Point provider, with years of experience in supporting businesses with their requirements for B2G and B2B supply chain connectivity. Enquire today to discuss Peppol Logistics and how it can further support your supply chain efficiency.