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X12 transaction guide · Transportation

EDI 163 Transportation Appointment Schedule Information

The X12 document carriers and their trading partners use to request and accept freight pickup and delivery appointments.

Sent by
Carrier, shipper or consignee
Received by
The other party to the appointment
Standard
ANSI ASC X12

What is an EDI 163?

The EDI 163 Transportation Appointment Schedule Information is the ANSI X12 transaction set transportation carriers and their trading partners use to request and accept freight pickup and delivery appointments. It identifies the shipment, the location, the requested or confirmed date and time window and the references both sides use.

Distribution centers schedule dock doors and labor around appointments, and many receivers refuse freight that arrives without one. Exchanging appointments electronically replaces calls and web portals, and gives the carrier a confirmed time it can plan its route around.

How the EDI 163 worksDiagram of the EDI 163 Transportation Appointment Schedule Information. Carrier, shipper or consignee sends it to the other party to the appointment. It usually follows 204. It is usually followed by 214 and 997. Inside the ISA, GS and ST envelopes, X12 release 008010 requires, in the heading: B13 (Beginning Segment for Appointment Schedule) and B2A (Set Purpose). 2 optional loops are listed by their first segment.How the EDI 163 worksTransportation Appointment Schedule Information: who sends it, where it fits and what the standard marksrequired1 WHERE IT FITSUSUALLY FOLLOWS204Motor Carrier Load TenderEDI 163SENDERCarrier, shipper orconsigneeRECEIVERThe other party to theappointment997 or 999 acknowledgment back, if the partners agreeUSUALLY FOLLOWED BY214Transportation CarrierShipment Status Message997FunctionalAcknowledgment2 WHAT X12 RELEASE 008010 REQUIRESInterchange: sender and receiver IDsISA … IEAFunctional group, ID code ASGS … GETransaction set 163ST … SEHEADINGB13Beginning Segment for Appointment ScheduleB2ASet Purpose+ 2 optional loops, starting with:N1S5Blue box: required loop. Optional loops are listed by the segment that starts them; when a loop is used, that first segment is required. Optional segmentsoutside loops are not drawn.Structure: required segments and loops in the X12 008010 listing for the 163. Your trading partner's implementation guide adds its own requirements.
How the EDI 163 worksDiagram of the EDI 163 Transportation Appointment Schedule Information. Carrier, shipper or consignee sends it to the other party to the appointment. It usually follows 204. It is usually followed by 214 and 997. Inside the ISA, GS and ST envelopes, X12 release 008010 requires, in the heading: B13 (Beginning Segment for Appointment Schedule) and B2A (Set Purpose). 2 optional loops are listed by their first segment.How the EDI 163 worksTransportation Appointment ScheduleInformation: who sends it, where it fits andwhat the standard marks required1 WHERE IT FITSUSUALLY FOLLOWS204Motor Carrier Load TenderEDI 163SENDERCarrier, shipperor consigneeRECEIVERThe other partyto theappointment997 or 999 acknowledgment back, if the partnersagreeUSUALLY FOLLOWED BY214Transportation Carrier Shipment StatusMessage997Functional Acknowledgment2 WHAT X12 RELEASE 008010 REQUIRESInterchange: sender and receiver IDs (ISA… IEA)Functional group, ID code AS (GS … GE)Transaction set 163 (ST … SE)HEADINGB13Beginning Segment forAppointment ScheduleB2ASet Purpose+ 2 optional loops, starting with:N1S5Blue box: required loop. Optional loops are listedby the segment that starts them; when a loop isused, that first segment is required. Optionalsegments outside loops are not drawn.Structure: required segments and loops in the X12008010 listing for the 163. Your trading partner'simplementation guide adds its own requirements.

How to read this diagram: the top row shows who sends the 163, to whom, and which documents usually come before and after it. The lower part shows what X12 release 008010 itself requires: the envelopes around the 163 and the segments and loops the standard marks as required, area by area. Optional loops are listed by the segment that starts them rather than drawn in full. This is the standard's minimum, not a trading partner's requirement: each partner's implementation guide usually makes some optional loops mandatory, restricts the codes and may use a different release.

Expand diagram Download SVG

When it is used

  • Requesting a delivery appointment at a distribution center
  • Confirming or rescheduling a pickup appointment
  • Sharing appointment times with carriers for planning

Where it fits in the document flow

Usually follows 204 Motor Carrier Load Tender
This document 163 Transportation Appointment Schedule Information
Usually followed by 214 Transportation Carrier Shipment Status Message997 Functional Acknowledgment

Structure

Mandatory segments in the 163 (X12 release 008010)

The segments X12 release 008010 marks as mandatory at their level, in order. Segments inside optional loops are needed only when the loop is used. This is the standard's requirement, not your trading partner's: each partner's implementation guide names the release it uses, adds the optional segments it requires and restricts the values. The requirement status comes from one published X12 reference listing and has not been checked against a second source.

  • ST
  • B13
  • B2A
  • N1
  • OID
  • S5
  • SE

Practical example

The 163 in practice

A carrier picks up a load bound for a retailer's distribution center that requires delivery appointments. Its dispatch system sends the DC a 163 requesting a Tuesday morning slot for the purchase orders on the load. The DC's dock scheduling system confirms 9:00 to 9:30 in a reply 163, and the carrier plans the driver's route to arrive in that window.

Implementation

Implementation considerations for the 163

  • Reference the purchase orders or shipment numbers the receiver schedules against.
  • Handle confirmations, changes and cancellations, not just the first request.
  • Feed confirmed appointments into dispatch and status reporting.
  • Track missed appointments, which often trigger fees or chargebacks.

How ECOM helps

Automate the 163 with ECOM

Industry

Trucking and Transportation

Load tenders, responses, status and freight invoices for carriers, brokers and shippers, integrated with the TMS.

Industry

Retail

Retail and eCommerce EDI for suppliers and retailers, from purchase order to payment, with compliance built in.

Solution

Logistics Automation

Automate tenders, status updates, freight invoices and warehouse orders with logistics partners.

More general questions about EDI are answered in the EDI FAQ.

Related transactions

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