Tuesday, 16 June 2026

Learning EDI - Day 4: What is an EDI Segment, Data Element, Composite Element and Loop?

 1. What is a Segment?

A Segment is a line of information in an EDI document.

Example (X12 N1 Segment)

N1*ST*ABC HOSPITAL*92*1001

Here, N1 is the segment identifier.

This segment contains Ship-To information.

Common X12 Segments

Segment

Meaning

ISA

Interchange Header

GS

Functional Group Header

ST

Transaction Header

BEG

Beginning Segment for PO

N1

Name Information

PO1

Purchase Order Line

CTT

Transaction Totals

SE

Transaction Trailer


2. What is a Data Element?

A Data Element is the smallest piece of business information.

Example

N1*ST*ABC HOSPITAL*92*1001

Breaking it down:

Position

Value

Meaning

N1

Segment ID

Name Segment

ST

Entity Code

Ship-To

ABC HOSPITAL

Name

Customer Name

92

Qualifier

Assigned by Buyer

1001

ID

Customer Number

Each value separated by * is a data element.


3. What is a Composite Element?

A Composite Element contains multiple related values grouped together.

Example (EDIFACT)

C506:USD:4

Breaking it down:

Component

Value

Currency Code

USD

Qualifier

4

The : separator divides components inside the composite.

In EDIFACT, composites are very common.


Example

PRI+AAA:10.50

Component

Meaning

AAA

Price Type

10.50

Unit Price


4. What is a Loop?

A Loop is a repeating group of related segments.

Imagine a Purchase Order with multiple products.

PO Example

PO1*1*100*EA
PID*Widget A

PO1*2*50*EA
PID*Widget B

PO1*3*25*EA
PID*Widget C

Each PO1 + PID group forms a repeating loop.


Example from EDI Work

Consider this EDI segment:

PIA+5+B0C2ZNX6T8:BP'

Breaking it down:

Segment

PIA

(Product Identification)

Data Elements

5
B0C2ZNX6T8:BP

Composite Element

B0C2ZNX6T8:BP

Component

Meaning

B0C2ZNX6T8

Product ID

BP

Buyer's Part Number


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Learning EDI - Day 4: What is an EDI Segment, Data Element, Composite Element and Loop?

  1. What is a Segment? A Segment is a line of information in an EDI document. Example (X12 N1 Segment) N1*ST*ABC HOSPITAL*92*1001 ...