PO Communication Methods Whitepaper

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods
An Oracle White Paper March 2008
Introduction ....................................................................................................... 5 1.0 Print............................................................................................................... 5 Choosing the format of document for communication.......................... 5 Text Format .............................................................................................. 5 PDF ............................................................................................................ 6 Setting up ....................................................................................................... 6 Report parameters......................................................................................... 6 Launching Printed PO report from Approval.......................................... 7 Printed Purchase Order report output ...................................................... 9 2.0 Fax................................................................................................................. 9 How it works? ............................................................................................... 9 Text Format .............................................................................................. 9 PDF Format............................................................................................ 10 Sample Output ............................................................................................ 10 Output when the format is text............................................................ 10 Output when the format is PDF.......................................................... 11 Fax codes control file ............................................................................ 11 Setup steps ................................................................................................... 11 Select the communication method as Fax for supplier site ........... 12 Faxing at the end of approval............................................................... 12 3.0 Email........................................................................................................... 12 How it works? ............................................................................................. 12 Features of Oracle Workflow............................................................... 12 HTML format......................................................................................... 13 PDF format............................................................................................. 14 Setup steps ................................................................................................... 14 Supplier Site ............................................................................................ 14 Set the Profile Options.......................................................................... 15 Create and Approve PO........................................................................ 15 What happens in Approval? ...................................................................... 16 Sample Purchase Order Emails ................................................................ 17 Important Queries for Email Purchase Orders...................................... 17 Script to check the workflow status and po_wf_debug data........... 17 To check the AdHocUser Setup. ......................................................... 17 To check the Mail status........................................................................ 18 To Verify the Mail content from sqlplus ............................................ 18
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R12 feature to support communication of nontext attachments through email:.............................................................................................. 18 View Attachments in PDF PO ................................................................. 18 Communicate Attachments via Email ..................................................... 19 4.0 PDF In depth......................................................................................... 19 What is XML? ............................................................................................. 19 What is XSL? ............................................................................................... 20 XSL consists of three parts:.................................................................. 20 XSLT = XSL Transformations ............................................................ 20 XSLT Uses XPath:................................................................................. 20 XSL-FO:....................................................................................................... 20 XML Publisher............................................................................................ 21 Advantages of PDF over Text format..................................................... 21 Prereq for PDF Document Generation .................................................. 22 Overview of the PDF document generation solution........................... 22 XML Generation.................................................................................... 23 XSL Style Sheets..................................................................................... 23 Generate Documents API .................................................................... 24 Generate PDF Document (genDoc)................................................... 25 XDO APIs ............................................................................................. 27 Setup Steps................................................................................................... 27 Purchasing Options................................................................................ 27 Select the Style sheets ............................................................................ 28 Triggering Points of PDF generation ...................................................... 28 Sample outputs............................................................................................ 29 Communication on demand...................................................................... 33 PO Output for Communication Concurrent Program .................... 35 Customizing Style sheet ............................................................................. 36 5.0 XML............................................................................................................ 37 Business Events .......................................................................................... 38 Oracle XML Gateway ................................................................................ 38 How it works ............................................................................................... 39 Setup steps for Model2 .............................................................................. 41 Setup by Buyer in Oracle XML Gateway ........................................... 41 Set Up System Administrator Profile Options for XML Gateway. 43 Setup on Suppliers System ................................................................... 43 Process submission by the buyer.............................................................. 43 Create a PO and approve it .................................................................. 43 6.0 EDI ............................................................................................................ 44 Introduction................................................................................................. 44 Oracle e -Commerce Gateway ............................................................. 44 How it works? ............................................................................................. 45 Outbound Flow of a Transaction with Oracle e-Commerce Gateway ................................................................................................... 45 Inbound Flow of a Transaction with Oracle e-Commerce Gateway45 Oracle Purchasings integration with e-commerce Gateway................ 46
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Setup steps ................................................................................................... 46 Setup Profile Options ............................................................................ 47 Purchasing Options Setup .................................................................... 47 Set Up Trading Partners........................................................................ 47 Business Views ............................................................................................ 51 Columns Updated Upon Extraction ................................................... 51 Sample Output ............................................................................................ 52
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INTRODUCTION In business world, communication of documents between legal entities is crucial. They play an important role in driving the business. Oracle Advanced Procurement Suite of Applications supports variety of communication methods starting traditional Postal mails to the recent PDF document communicated through Email and automatic communication of documents through XML and EDI.
This document explains the different types of communication methods supported in Oracle Advanced Procurement Suite of Applications and steps to set them up and salient features of them. Print Fax Email XML EDI
1.0 PRINT
This is one of the traditional communication methods. The legal documents [Purchase orders and Purchase agreements] are printed on pre-printed stationeries and sent to suppliers though normal postal service.
Choosing the format of document for communication
In Setup/Organizations/Purchasing options, there is an option to choose between whether the communication should happen in text format or in PDF format. Choosing this option will determine in which format document will be generated. We will review more about this option in later sections.
Text Format
The Printed Purchase Order report [Landscape and Portrait] generates the document in text format. The document is printed on a printer setup in the system. The document can be printed on pre-printed stationeries, which has the company logo and other required legal declarations [like confidential etc]. To support this the report output we will not hard code any headings/labels.
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PDF
PDF is the new communication functionality for Oracle Purchasing in 11i10. By choosing this, the document generated for communication will be of PDF format rather than text format. PDF output will be used in following communication methods: Print, Fax and email. We will discuss more about this option in later sections.
Setting up Minimum steps for printing are: Setup the Printer
This is explained in depth in system administrators guide. Please refer Printers Section in System Administrators Guide - Con guration document.
Get pre-printed stationeries To give a special touch up to the legal document, get a pre-printed stationary with company logo on Top-Left corner and with labels and legal declarations. Since the report is always printed in Ever green format, these pre-printed stationeries can be used to print out the documents.
Run Printed Purchase Order by feeding the above pre-printed stationeries. Here are some important parameters and their impact on report output.
Report parameters Print Selection This parameter determines what type of documents needs to be printed. This parameter can have the following values: New, Changed, All.
New: Print only the new documents, which are never been communicated. Changed: Print only Changed documents that have been communicated at least once in the past. All: Print all the documents. Purchase Order Numbers From/To Provide the range of document Numbers to Print. Release Numbers From/To Provide the range of Release Numbers to Print Release Dates From/To Provide the range of release dates to print. This is applicable only for Releases. Approved Whether to Print the Approved documents or all documents.
Test
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Indicate whether the document is actually being printed for sending it to the supplier or is just being printed for internal verification. If it is passed as Yes, then we also print a text This is a test copy of the document. Print Releases Option When printing Blanket Agreements buyer can use this option to specify whether to print the corresponding releases also or not. Sort By Specifies the order in which the documents should be printed Dynamic Precision Option Since the quantities does not have any default rounding mechanism Printed PO report uses this argument to find out the precision to which the quantities needs to be rounded. Most of the purchasing reports use this argument. Fax Enabled / Fax Number This parameter determines whether it is a Print Request or a fax request. If it is a fax request, then the fax number should also be specified. Please refer the Fax communication method section for more information.
Launching Printed PO report from Approval
For any supplier/supplier site, buyer can setup default communication method. This option is available in the Suppliers supplier site screen. Here we can choose the defaults between the traditional communication methods; Print, Fax and e-Mail. The advanced communication methods like EDI and XML needs separate setup like trading partners. Hence in this screen they are not available for defaulting purpose. If the advanced communication methods like EDI and XML are setup, then they take the precedence over the traditional communication methods like Print, Fax and e-Mail.
Supplier site window with Print as communication method:
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If the supplier site Default communication method is choose as Print then the buyer can optionally choose to Print the document at the end of approval process. This option is available in the Approval submission window. Approval window choosing print:
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Printed Purchase Order report output
2.0 FAX
Next traditional method we are going to see is facsimiles. Oracle Purchasing supports facsimile transmission of Purchasing Documents in text as well as in PDF format. For documents text format, purchasing uses the Printed PO report as base. For PDF communication, the PDF document is used as base.
How it works?
Text Format
The fax server is configured as a printer in application. Buyer will choose this fax server (printer) while submitting the fax request. To fax, the buyer submits the Printed PO report with Fax parameter as Yes. In addition the fax number is also provided as parameter. The report prints the document wrapping inside the Fax Control codes. The report output is directed to the fax server (printer). Fax server interprets the control codes and starts transmission when it encounters the Start control codes. The transmission is terminated when the fax server encounters the end control codes.
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PDF Format
The fax should be capable of transmitting the PDF documents. The server is configured to listen to a directory in the system in Oracle applications network. Whenever a new control file is generated in this directory, fax server will pick up the control file and transmit the document to the specified location. To fax the document, the buyer will submit the request PO Output for Communication with Fax as parameter. This program generates the PDF document and also generates a control codes file. The control codes file will be placed in the directory specified in the profile option PO: Fax Output Directory for the PO Document Since the fax server is configured to listen to this directory, once the control file is generated the fax server will transmit the document.
Sample Output
Output when the format is text.
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Output when the format is PDF
Fax codes control file
{{BEGIN}} {{FAX 408524-7661}} {{ATTACH /conclog/log/unclass/lv115dyp/out/o2763510.out}} <Attach the PDF document> {{END}}
Setup steps
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Select the communication method as Fax for supplier site
Faxing at the end of approval
At the end of approval process, buyer can optionally choose to fax the document. This option is available in the Approval window. Buyer needs to check the fax check box and to fill up the fax number. Then at the end of approval process depending on the document format chosen, corresponding output will be generated and faxed to the suppliers automatically.
3.0 EMAIL
Next communication method is email. Emailing the Purchasing documents is an easy to use, cheaper and reliable communication method. Oracle Purchasing supports emailing purchasing documents to suppliers
How it works?
Oracle Purchasing leverages the Oracle Workflows capabilities to email the Purchasing Documents. Oracle Workflow provides a facility to email the notifications to the specified workflow user. Purchasing uses this concept to send the Purchasing documents to the suppliers. The document can be sent in HTML or in the PDF format.
Features of Oracle Workflow
Oracle Workflow delivers a complete workflow management system that supports business process based integration. Its technology enables modeling, automation, and continuous improvement of business processes, routing information of any type according to userdefined business rules. Oracle Workflow sends a notification to a workflow role when the Workflow Engine executes a notification activity in a workflow process. The notification
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activity may designate the role as being responsible for performing some human action or may simply relay processrelated information to the role. To successfully deliver a notification to a role, the role must be defined in the Oracle Workflow directory service. The notification can be delivered to the persons email inbox if the notification preference is set to Plain text mail, HTML mail with attachments, HTML mail, or Plain text mail with attachments in the User Preferences web page. Also the notification mailer should be setup and running. Documents can be added to notifications using the document type attributes. The document type attributes can call plsql functions to get varchar2, clob or blob object as return. This object is embedded to the notification. Please refer the Workflow Developers Guide for more information.
HTML format
If the document output format in purchasing options is chosen as Text, then purchasing emails the documents in HTML format. The document is constructed by three document type attributes.
Po_Email_Header
'PLSQL: PO_EMAIL_GENERATE.GENERATE_HEADER/'|| To_Char (Documentid) || ':' || Documenttypecode 'PLSQLCLOB: PO_EMAIL_GENERATE.GENERATE_HTML/'|| To_Char (Documentid) || ':' || Documenttypecode 'PLSQLCLOB: PO_EMAIL_GENERATE.GENERATE_TERMS/'|| L_Itemtype || ':' || L_Itemkey
Po_Email_Body
Po_Terms_Condition s
These three attributes are appended to construct a dynamic HTML notification. This HTML notification is then sent to the supplier. The Po_Email_Header attribute constructs the header information of the document. The Po_Email_Body attribute constructs the line information of the document. The Po_Terms_Conditions attribute collects the Terms and Conditions from the text file placed in the specific location.
Working Principle
Oracle Workflow sends notifications only to a valid workflow user (role). So Oracle Purchasing uses the following logic to send the notification to the supplier eMail address.
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Collect the email address of the supplier from the supplier site or from the buyer on submission of approval. During approval, purchasing creates an adHocRole in the workflow directory services with name as eMailAddressOftheSupplier||Language. The language is the supplier language, which is specified in the supplier site screen. This adHocRole is created using the directory services APIs. This is done in the activity Po_Reqapproval_Init1.Email_Doc_Yes_No. This adHocRole will be having notification preference set to HTML Mail. Hence any notifications sent to this adHocRole will reach the Supplier email Address. After approval a notification is added. This notification is constructed using the above attributes mentioned. The performer of the notification is chosen as the adHocRole just created. When the workflow engine encounters the above notification, the message is generated and handed over to workflow mailer to send the document to the supplier email address.
PDF format
In Purchasing Options if PDF format is selected then the PDF output is generated and this PDF document is selected in to a document type of attribute [PDF_ATTACHMENT]. This attribute is then attached to the notification. Hence when the mail is sent, the attribute PDF_ATTACHMENT content (which is pdf document) is also sent to the supplier. Otherwise the working principle remains same.
Setup steps
Supplier Site
While creating the Supplier site, make sure to provide the correct language of the supplier site. Choose the default communication method as Email and provide the default email address to use in the E-mail field.
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Set the Profile Options
Now we need to set few profile options to complete the Email PO setup. Navigate to: Sysadmin=>Profiles=>System Set the profile option PO: Secondary Email address to a generic Email address (PurchasingDept@Company.com) to which also the purchase order will be sent. This back up Email can be used for internal reference or to forward to supplier in case if it is missed some how. Set the PO: In File Path profile option to a UNIX directory in which the terms and conditions file will be placed. Make sure that the directory required permissions. Login to Unix and place the terms and conditions in the above-mentioned directory. Set the PO: Terms and Conditions filename option to a valid file name. When the Mail is sent the above file will be attached to the Email. First the system will search for file named FileName_<SupplierLang>. If it is not found then it will search for file named FileName_<BaseLang>. If that is also not found then it will search for file named FileName.
Create and Approve PO
The buyer can optionally choose to email the Purchase order at the end of approval process. This option is available in the Approval window. If the Email option is chosen then at the end of approval process a notification will be generated for the supplier. This notification will be emailed to the supplier email address specified in the approval window. While sending the document, the general Terms and Conditions also added form the location mentioned in the above profile options.
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What happens in Approval?
When the PO is submitted for Approval, the Approval workflow process is triggered from with the Email Notification Option and the Email Address entered in the Purchase Order Approval Window. Normal approval flow happens. At the end of the approval, the document is sent to the supplier as Email. During the approval the data is stored in the workflow tables. Area Of Interest Workflow File Workflow Process Workflow Attributes Object Of Interest poxwfpoa.wft Email_Doc_Process And Email_Doc_Process_Co Email_Document, Email_Address, Po_Email_Header, Po_Email_Body, Po_Terms_Conditions, Po_Wf_Email_Performer, Email_Add_From_Profile Po_Reqapproval_Init1.Email_Doc_Yes_No And Package Email_Po_Generate
Procedures Of Interest
At the time of starting of the workflow, the Email address entered in the approval window is populated in to the workflow attribute EMAIL_ADDRESS. In addition to the supplier address, the document also can be copied to an internal Email address. The profile option PO: Secondary Email Address holds the secondary email address to which the document will be sent. This is used as a
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backup copy. Incase if the supplier does not receive the original copy of the Email, then the secondary copy can be forwarded to them.
Sample Purchase Order Emails
Standard Purchase Order: For Your Review - Standard PO 3510,
Important Queries for Email Purchase Orders

Script to check the workflow status and po_wf_debug data.
Get the Item Type and Item Key from the po_headers_all table. SELECT wf_item_type, wf_item_key FROM po_headers WHERE segment1 = &PO_Number; Run the wfstat from $FND_TOP/sql using the above Item_Type and Item_key @wfstat.sql POAPPRV <ITEM_KEY>. Spool the output for reference. Run the following SQL to get the po_wf_debug SELECT debug_message FROM po_wf_debug WHERE itemtype = POAPPRV and itemkey = &ItemKey ORDER BY execution_sequence;
To check the AdHocUser Setup.
Get the AdHocUserName from the wfstat output in the User Column for EMAIL_PO_NOTIFICATION activity. 22-AUG-03 22:59:52 EMAIL_DOC_PROCESS/EMAIL_PO_NOTIFICATION #NULL HYDERABAD2252 40455 O
COMPLETE
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In the above HYDERABAD2252 is AdHocUser name and 40455 is Email notification id.
Run the following SQL to check the AdHocUser setup SELECT * FROM wf_users WHERE name = &UserName;
To check the Mail status
Run the following SQL to verify the notification status. This should be SENT and not FAIL. If it is OPEN, it means the notification mailer is not yet sent the mail. SELECT status, mail_status FROM wf_notifications WHERE notification_id = &NotificationId
To Verify the Mail content from sqlplus
Run the bde_wf_notif.sql with the Email Purchase Order Notification id to verify the Email content in the sqlplus.
R12 feature to support communication of nontext attachments through email:
The Enter PO form supports various types of attachments (excel sheet, pdf files, MS document etc) to be used along with the PO. The current PO PDF 11.5.10 functionality, however, allows only for text attachments (both short text and long text) at the header, line and shipment levels when the PO Communicate option is used for printing, faxing or emailing. This functionality is extended to support the other types of attachments that are already supported in the Enter PO form.
View Attachments in PDF PO
The PDF PO can be accessed from the following forms: Enter PO, Enter Releases, PO Summary, and Approval Notification. This pdf would display the names of the attachments according to the level they reference. All HTML files and web pages will appear as hyperlinks. When the user clicks on one of these hyperlinks, a new window should open with the attachment. All other types of attachments would be classified as type File. Their contents cannot be viewed directly from the purchase order.
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Communicate Attachments via Email
When communicating purchase orders via email, it should be possible to communicate the File type attachments. All File type attachments would be zipped into a single zip file. By default this zip file will be named Attachments.zip. The filename for the compressed file can be changed by the user in the Purchasing Options page. The maximum size of the zip file would be defined as Maximum Attachment Size under the Document Control section of Purchasing Options. If the zip file is below the maximum allowable size, then it would be e-mailed along with the pdf PO. Otherwise, the PO would be e-mailed without the attachment and workflow mailer would send a notification to both buyer and supplier to alert them of the fact that attachments could not be communicated. The snapshot below shows the new fields Maximum Attachment Size (in MB) and 'Email Attachment Filename' in the Purchasing Options page.
4.0 PDF IN DEPTH
The above-mentioned communication methods can happen in the form of Text or in the form of PDF. The text format of output enforces a fixed layout. This is a major restriction as some customers might have some special attributes that need to be communicated to the suppliers. So they end up in customizing the reports. Oracle Purchasing provides a new flexibility to the customer by separating the data layer from the presentation layer. Before we get in to the complete PDF flow, let us re-collect some important concepts.
What is XML?
XML (Extensible Markup Language) is a standard for creating markup languages, which describe the structure of data. It is not a fixed set of elements like
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HTML, but rather, it is like SGML (Standard Generalized Markup Language) in that it is a meta language, or a language for describing languages. XML enables authors to define their own tags. XML is a formal specification of the World Wide Web Consortium. Please refer http://www.w3schools.com/xml/ for more information on XML
What is XSL?
XSL stands for Extensible Style sheet Language.XSL describes how the XML document should be displayed.
XSL consists of three parts:
XSLT - a language for transforming XML documents XPath - a language for navigating in XML documents XSL-FO - a language for formatting XML documents
XSLT = XSL Transformations
XSLT is the most important part of XSL.XSLT is used to transform an XML document into another XML document, or another type of document that is recognized by a browser, like HTML and XHTML. Normally XSLT does this by transforming each XML element into an (X)HTML element. With XSLT you can add/remove elements and attributes to or from the output file. You can also rearrange and sort elements, perform tests and make decisions about which elements to hide and display, and a lot more. A common way to describe the transformation process is to say that XSLT transforms an XML source-tree into an XML result-tree.
XSLT Uses XPath:
XSLT uses XPath to find information in an XML document. XPath is used to navigate through elements and attributes in XML documents. In the transformation process, XSLT uses XPath to define parts of the source document that should match one or more predefined templates. When a match is found, XSLT will transform the matching part of the source document into the result document.
XSL-FO:
XSL-FO stands for Extensible Style sheet Language Formatting Objects.XSL-FO is an XML-based markup language describing the formatting of XML data for output to screen, paper or other media. XSL-FO documents are XML files with output information. They contain information about the output layout and output contents. XSL-FO documents are stored in files with a .fo or a .fob file extension.
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It is also quite common to see XSL-FO documents stored with an .xml extension, because this makes them more accessible to XML editors.
XML Publisher
Oracle XML Publisher is a new java based product available within the technology stack of the E-Business suite. Utilizing a set of familiar desktop tools such as Adobe Acrobat and Microsoft Word users can create and maintain their own report formats based on development delivered xml data extracts. XML Publisher will then convert these documents to the XSL-FO format. Users can also obtain 3rd party provided PDF forms e.g. government tax forms and merge xml data generated from the E-Business Suite to fill the forms with the required data.
Please refer http://xdo.us.oracle.com/ for more information
Advantages of PDF over Text format
Buyers can customize the document layout as per their business needs to include:

Company logo image Standard legal disclaimers
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Important DFF information
Buyers can communicate the contract terms attached to the purchasing document. Just changing the layout without changing the code can do all this. Also PDF document gives a professional appearance. Since the data and presentation layers are separated, customization of the lay out (XSL-FO) is simple and easy. There are many UI tools that assist in customizing the templates. Buyers will be able to view the Purchasing documents online through View Documents before communicating to the supplier. Also the same PDF format will be accessible through iSupplier Portal too. Please note that at this point, Oracle Purchasing does not support the Planned Purchase order and Scheduled Release documents in PDF format.
Prereq for PDF Document Generation
The pdf document is generated by the XML Publisher APIs. Hence the XML Publisher should be installed to generate the pdf documents. Also to use Contracts Terms in purchasing documents, Procurement Contracts should be installed.
Overview of the PDF document generation solution
The following flow depicts the flow for generating PDF purchasing documents. The PO communication API receives the communication request from different modules within Purchase applications: Sourcing, iSupplier and Core Purchasing. To fulfill the request the communication API must: Generate the XML PO meta-data Store style sheets (xsl-fo) or pdf templates in the template repository. Associate the stylesheets/PDF Templates in the template repository to PO Document Types. Make use of the above association to apply the preferred style sheet to the XML at run time. Invoke the XMLPublisher provided API's to generate the pdf documment based on the XML/XSL-FO or XML/PDF templates combinations. Store the PDF document generated as attachments to the PO and in the Contracts repository. Retrieve the stored PDF documents for online preview/Print/Email/Fax operations.
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XML Generation
To generate the PDF, the data is collected in the form of XML. For purchasing documents we might need two different XML documents; One XML for purchasing document and another XML for the contract terms document
The procedure PO_COMMUNICATION_PVT.POXMLGEN generates the xml content. It uses DBMS_XMLGEN utility to generate the xml. For 8i database it uses DBMS_XMLQUERY utility. To avoid the compilation issues, the complete block is constructed and executed as a dynamic block.
The following business views are used to get the xml data. The XML is merely a select * from these views: po_headers_xml, po_lines_xml, po_line_locations_xml, po_distribution_xml, po_headers_archive_xml, po_lines_archive_xml, po_line_locations_archive_xml, po_distribution_archive_xml.
Depending on which revision to communicate, either the main tables or the archive tables are used to construct the XML data.
XSL Style Sheets
Oracle purchasing seeds standard style sheets with frequently used layout. The following are the seeded style sheets.
Standard Purchase Order Style sheet
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Blanket Agreement Style sheet Contract Agreement Style sheet Blanket Release Style sheet
In addition to the XSL style sheets, purchasing also supports PDF templates. These PDF templates can be easily created using the Acrobat Writer.
Generate Documents API
The following are the important class variables and their purpose. m_documentId //represents document id (po_header_id or po_release_id)
m_documentType m_languageCode m_revisionNum m_documentSubtype //if required m_orgId m_authorizationStatus m_withTerms // Y,N,C m_storeFlag // Y, N.Y indicates that PDF document needs to be stored in the repository m_PDF APIs // has the generated pdf as a BLOB/Stream based on XMLPublisher // PO data as a CLOB
m_POXML
m_POXSL // this will have the po stylesheet in the form of BLOB/Stream based on Template Repository APIs m_POHasTermsConditions //indicates whether the po has Terms and Conditions m_POIsSigned //indicates whether the po has been signed atleast once or not m_archiveOn // print or communicate m_amendmentProfile m_viewOrCommunicate //view or Communicate m_documentTemplateType //XSLFO or TEMPLATE (pdf template) m_contractsXML m_contractsXSL m_fileName m_documentTemplateID
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m_connection m_testFlag m_regenFlag

Constructors
GenerateDocument (documentId, RevisionNum, documentType, documentSubType, orgId, AuthorizationStatus, languageCode, withTerms, storeFlag, viewOrCommunicate, conn) GenerateDocument (documentId, RevisionNum, documentType, documentSubType, orgId, AuthorizationStatus, languageCode, withTerms, storeFlag, viewOrCommunicate, testFlag, conn) GenerateDocument (documentId, RevisionNum, documentType, documentSubType, orgId, AuthorizationStatus, languageCode, withTerms, storeFlag, viewOrCommunicate, regenFlag, conn)
Methods
GetDocument () //which checks in the repository whether the pdf file exists or not GetPOXML () //generates the XML for the given document GetPOXSL () //retrieves the document template/type from the template repository GetContractXML () //get the Contract XML GetContractXSL () //retrieve the contract template from the template repository GenDoc () //generates the pdf document and returns a BLOB
Generate PDF Document (genDoc)
Generate documents API uses the below logic to determine whether to generate the PO or to retrieve the PO from the DB. Also this determines whether to or not to store the generated pdf document in the database.
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XDO APIs
After generating the XML data and retrieving the XSL from the database Generate Documents API calls the XDO APIs to generate the PDF document. This API takes the XML and XSL as parameters and generates the pdf. Below is the systematic flow of pdf generation when the document and contracts layout is a style sheet.
If the document and contract uses different types of layout (style sheet, pdf template), the generate pdf follows the below logic to generate the pdf document.
Setup Steps
Purchasing Options
In the Setup->Purchasing options screen choose PDF value for the PO Output format field. This value is used to determine the format in which the document needs to be communicated.
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Select the Style sheets
For each document type, buyers can choose the layout in which the pdf would be generated. The layout can be selected for the document as well as for the contract terms. The layout can be a seeded or a customized one. These layouts are stored in the XML Publisher repository. Navigate to Setup->Purchasing->Document Types and associate the style sheets as shown below:
Triggering Points of PDF generation
The pdf document generation can be initiated from the following points. The generated documents are used to communicate the supplier/approver and to buyers. Depending on the triggering point the generated document could contain different contents.
The generated PDF document is marked as DRAFT if the document is in one of the following conditions:

Document status is Incomplete or requires re-approval Document status is Pre-Approved because of pending approval Document status is In-Process because approval is not complete
If document is pre-approved, the internal flag requires_signature is checked, and acceptance required is document and signature (binding design), the draft word doesnt apply. In this situation the document is pending signature and the supplier shouldnt see the word draft. Following are the triggering points of PDF generation: Enter Purchase Order form Inquire View Document

Enter Releases Order form
Inquire
View Document View Document
Purchase Order summary form
Inquire
Tools->Communicate from PO Summary form
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Approval of the PO or Release
During the approval process three pdfs will be generated. The PO document will be stored in the fnd repository as an attachment to the PO or Release header and the contracts document will be stored in the contracts repository. PDF with Ts & Cs in Buyers Language PDF without Ts &Cs in Buyers Language PDF without Ts &Cs in Suppliers Language
Sample outputs
Here is a sample output of the pdf document with contract terms. First page of the document is the cover page. This page is generated separately and added to the main document. The next section is the document details. The next section is the contract terms and conditions. The last page contains space for signature of the buyer and the supplier for legal purpose.
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Communication on demand
In addition to the normal communication methods a new option is added in the Purchase Order summary form. Using Tools Communicate option the buyers can communicate the purchasing documents to the suppliers on need basis. This option supports all communication methods.
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Also optionally the buyers can choose the language of communication as well decide whether to communicate the terms and conditions or not.
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PO Output for Communication Concurrent Program
The concurrent Program PO Output for Communication is designed to generate the PDF documents. This program allows printing a range of purchasing documents in one request. Following is the request submission screen. The arguments are self-explanatory.
One important argument to note is the Test flag. This can be Yes, No or Debug. The values Yes and No has the same meaning as the Printed Purchase Order report. If the value for this flag is passed as Debug, then the XML and XSL contents are printed in the log file. Also the XML Publisher APIs are not called. This option is very useful to debug any issues with this program. This can be used
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to separate the issues between purchasing, Procurement Contracts and XML Publisher.
Customizing Style sheet
As we saw already the style sheets are maintained in the XML Publisher repository. If the customer has any need to customize the style sheet, they can navigate to the XML Publisher Administrator responsibility. There they can query for any existing style sheets.
But important point to note is, the customer cannot customize the seeded style sheets. They need to make a copy of the seeded style sheet and then customize it as per their requirement. Duplicate a style sheet.
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After duplicate the style sheet, they can download the same from XML Publisher.
Then the customer can make the required modifications to this downloaded style sheet. Once the modifications are done, they can upload the style sheet again to XML Publisher. Now click on Update to update the template file with throne you have modified
Now the modified style sheet should be selected in the Document Types form. Incase if there is any issues with the customized style sheet, the customer can test the PDF generation using the seeded style sheet. This will help them in identifying whether issue is with the style sheet or with the code.
5.0 XML
XML is one of the automatic methods of communication used by Purchasing to send the Purchase orders to the suppliers. This communication method leverages Business Events Feature of Oracle workflow for communication.
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Business Events
The Oracle Workflow Business Event System is an application service that leverages the Oracle Advanced Queuing (AQ) infrastructure to communicate business events between systems. The Business Event System consists of the Event Manager and workflow process event activities. The Event Manager contains a registry of business events, systems, named communication agents within those systems, and subscriptions indicating that an event is significant to a particular system. Events can be raised locally or received from an external system or the local system through AQ. When a local event occurs, the subscribing code is executed in the same transaction as the code that raised the event, unless the subscriptions are deferred. Subscriptions can include the following types of processing:

Executing custom code on the event information Sending event information to a workflow process Sending event information to other queues or systems
You can set up subscriptions, which cause messages to be sent from one system to another when business events occur. In this way, you can use the Event Manager to implement pointtopoint messaging integration.
Oracle XML Gateway
Oracle XML Gateway integrates with the Oracle E-Business Suite to create or consume XML messages based on application business events. Oracle XML Gateway creates or consumes standards compliant XML messages without the use of a translator. Oracle XML Gateway provides a common, standards-based approach for XML integration between the Oracle E-Business Suite and third party applications, both inside and outside of your enterprise. Please refer the below link for more info: http://www.oracle.com/technology/products/applications/XML_EDI_Gateways /index.html Oracle Purchasing integrates with Oracle XML Gateway to generate an XML document. XML Gateway generates XML document based on the following:

PO document data in Oracle Applications Document type definitions (DTDs) stored in Oracle Applications Setup in XML Gateway including optional data mapping
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XML Gateway does not support all the document types. XML Gateway supports only the following purchasing documents.
How it works
When a purchasing document is approved, approval workflow raises a business event Raise Set XML with the po_header_id/po_release_id. This event is enqueued to the AQ used by workflow event manager.
The workflow even manager dequeues the AQ for events and looks out for the subscriptions. In this case the POXML workflow is subscribed to this event. This workflow receives the event with document header id and does the necessary checks to ensure that XML is chosen in the PO approval window and the trading partner is setup and then raises an event Raise XML Poevent
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The Event is received by the below process and generates the XML document. Additionally, XML Gateway provides optional data mapping that enables the buyer to convert certain data in the XML document before transmitting it to the supplier.
XML Gateway then passes the generated XML document to an AQ to be picked up by the Oracle Transport Agent.
OTA offers a message transport layer between two systems (in this case buyer and supplier). The key benefit is guaranteed, exactly one-time delivery of message over HTTP (S), when both systems are using OTA. This is how it works: OTA in the buyers Oracle Applications system picks up the XML document from the outbound AQ where the XML Gateway placed it. When OTA in the buyers system communicates with the transport layer in the suppliers system, the XML document is sent to the suppliers
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system over the Internet. The security of the document when transmitted depends on whether an HTTP or HTTPS protocol is set up for transmission. XML Gateway uses the following two models to send the XML documents to the supplier
Model1: XML documents are sent to the supplier by the way of the
Oracle Exchange
Model2: XML documents are sent to the supplier directly.
Setup steps for Model2

Setup by Buyer in Oracle XML Gateway
The setup for Oracle XML Gateway by the buyer includes entering data in the Trading Partner Setup window. Select the XML Gateway responsibility.
Trading Partners Setup Window
The Trading Partner Setup window is used to enable messages to be processed through the XML Gateway engine for the trading partner (in this case supplier site). During message processing by Oracle XML Gateway, trading partner setup data is used to: Link a particular address location in Oracle Applications to the trading partner definition in XML Gateway. Provide a means of telling the execution engine which trading partner message map to use. Enable specific transactions for trading partner and mode of delivery.
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Details Information - Trading Partner Setup Window
In the Trading Partner Details region, enter information for the New PO document as follows
Transaction Type It is the standard product short code for the base Oracle Application. Type PO is for Purchasing, and subtype PRO is for Process PO (i.e. a new purchasing document). For change order transmission POCO subtype should be selected. The last letter of the subtype signifies the direction of messaging.
Standard Code This code represents the XML format to be used. Oracle supports most widely accepted OAG standard. This is best suited for any B2B applications communication. Note: The Open Applications Group, Inc. (OAGi) is a not-for-profit open standards group building process-based XML standards for both B2B and A2A integration. The Open Applications Group was formed in late 1994 as the first postEDI organization focusing on improving the state of application integration. Website: http://www.openapplications.org/ External Transaction Type External Transaction Type and subtype are the primary external identifier for the XML message. For new purchasing document, text SOP is used.
Direction This code identifies the direction of the transaction. The value IN identifies an inbound message, and the value OUT identifies an outbound message. The value displayed is OUT.
Map This is the name of the map created using the XML Gateway Message Designer. Select PROCESS_PO_007 from the LOV. (Although you can customize this map, Oracle does not support the customizations.)
Connection/Hub This option is used to select whether it is a direct communication to the supplier site or through a hub like Oracle Exchange. If it is DIRECT communication
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method, then the following details must be furnished: Protocol, Address where the xml document should be posted by the Transport Agent and the username/password for authentication in the destination server.
Set Up System Administrator Profile Options for XML Gateway ECX: Log File Path
This is used to define the XML Message and Process Log Directory. This directory should be listed as one of the utl_file_dir. Also make sure that the directory has correct permission settings.
ECX: System Administrator Email Address
This is used to identify the XML Gateway system administrator or contact person email address to notify when a system or process error is detected.
ECX_OAG_LOGICALID
This is used by the sending application to enter the Identifier in the XML message.
Setup on Suppliers System
The supplier company needs to perform all necessary setup to enable the suppliers system to receive the XML documents transmitted by the buyer directly. The supplier should use the same OAGI standard XML documents used by the buyer company. In addition, the supplier needs to use the same Extensions DTD as used by the buyer company to ensure all information transmitted by the buyer is received. The Extensions DTD specifies fields used by Oracle to provide additional information.
Process submission by the buyer

Create a PO and approve it
On submission the XML flag will be checked automatically. During approval based on the xml_flag in the approval window, the xml flag is updated on the headers
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table. Later in approval, this flag is used to check whether to send the document in xml gateway or not.
6.0 EDI Introduction
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is the computer-to-computer exchange of structured information, by agreed message standards, from one computer application to another by electronic means and with a minimum of human intervention eliminating paper work. In common usage, EDI is understood to mean specific interchange methods agreed upon by national or international standards bodies for the transfer of business transaction data, with one typical application being the automated purchase of goods and services.
Oracle e -Commerce Gateway
Oracle e-Commerce Gateway provides a common, standards-based approach for EDI integration between the Oracle E-Business Suite and third party applications. Oracle e-Commerce Gateway integrates with the Oracle E-Business Suite to extract or import ASCII flat files. A third party EDI Translator is required to map the flat
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file data between the Oracle E-Business Suite and the EDI standard of choice such as ASC X12 or EDIFACT.
How it works?
Oracle e-Commerce Gateway collects all of the business data needed to map to a standard EDI transaction, which the receiving Trading Partner can interpret properly into their receiving application using their equivalent of Oracle eCommerce Gateway/Translator setup. Oracle e-Commerce Gateway extracts outbound transaction data from application tables and loads inbound transactions into the base Oracle Application Open Interface tables.
Outbound Flow of a Transaction with Oracle e-Commerce Gateway
During outbound flow the document first recorded in the Oracle system. Then the e-Commerce Gateway collects the data and generates in to a flat file in Oracle standard format. Then a third party translator converts the flat file in to ASCII standard format. This file is then transmitted to the supplier site by conventional means.
Inbound Flow of a Transaction with Oracle e-Commerce Gateway
During inbound flow, the oracle host system administrator receives the flat file (in ASCII format) from the trading partners. The EDI Translator converts this flat file in to oracle standard format. Oracle e-Commerce Gateway processes flat file and populates the business data into the open interface tables of Oracle Applications.
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Oracle Purchasings integration with e-commerce Gateway
Oracle Purchasing uses the e-Commerce Gateway to communicate the documents to the suppliers and to record the acceptances. The following purchasing transactions are supported by e-Commerce Gateway.
The following table lists the transactions that integrate with Oracle Purchasing
The following purchasing documents are supported for EDI communication

Standard PO Blanket PO Blanket Release Contract PO Planned PO
Setup steps
Here is the flow for setting up and running e-Commerce Gateway for Oracle Purchasing.

Set up required profile options in Purchasing and e-Commerce Gateway Create supplier, supplier site in Oracle Purchasing Set Up Trading Partners in Oracle e-commerce Gateway
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Create a PO and approve the PO. PO approval window will have 'EDI' communication selected by default as a result of the trading partner setup done in step 3. Run the outbound concurrent program OUT: Purchase Order (850/ORDERS) in e-Commerce Gateway to generate the flat file.
Setup Profile Options
Navigate to e-Commerce Gateway responsibility. Setup->Profile Options.Make sure that the following profile options are entered: System Profile Option ECE:OUT_FILE_PATH Description Indicates the directory to which outbound data files are written. The directory mentioned here should match the utl_file_dir parameter in the INIT.ORA file Set this value to Yes to enable the PO Outbound transaction to be processed by Oracle e-Commerce Gateway. To enable Change Order PO Outbound transaction set this profile to Yes
ECE_POO_ENABLED
ECE_POCO_ENABLED
Purchasing Options Setup
Navigate to Oracle Purchasing responsibility. Setup->DocumentTypes.Set the "Archive on option to Approve" for each document type enabled. Note: DO NOT set the attribute to "Archive on Print." This prevents the eligible purchase orders from being extracted since they will print and archive before the extract can happen.
Set Up Trading Partners
Setting up Trading Partner involves defining a Trading Partner Group and assigning the supplier to the trading partner and entering the transaction details for the trading partner.
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Define Trading Partner Group
Navigate to Oracle e-commerce Gateway responsibility. Setup Trading Partners. Enter a new Trading Partner Group name. Select the new button to define a Trading Partner.
Define Trading Partner Assignment
In the Define Trading Partner window, select the Assignment tab. Associate the supplier and supplier site to the trading partner.
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Define Trading Partner - Details
In the Define Trading Partner window, select the Details tab. select the transaction as: OUT: Purchase Order (850/ORDERS) for new purchasing documents and for changed purchasing documents. Transaction type is the document type of interest. The Map field gets defaulted based on the transaction and transaction type if it is already setup. This map gives the relation between business data fields and the position of the fields in the flat file. E-Commerce gateway seeded predefined standards.
Check the enable check box.
Define Trading Partner - Contact (Optional)
In the Define Trading Partner window, select the Contact tab. The information on the contact tab is optional. It contains contact data for the specified trading partner. It may be used by the EDI Coordinator for the trading partners EDI Coordinators contact data. This data is for reference only. It is not used by Oracle e-Commerce Gateway.
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Create and Approve the PO
Navigate to Oracle Purchasing responsibility, Enter Purchase Orders form. Create a purchasing document with the supplier site defined and approve the document.
Run the concurrent program
Navigate to e-commerce Gateway responsibility and View Requests and run the concurrent program OUT: Purchase Order {850/ORDERS) for new documents and OUT: Purchase Order Change (860/ORDCHG) for changed documents.
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The concurrent program will generate the EDI flat file from the PO data and will write the file to the directory mentioned in the profile option ECE:OUT_FILE_PATH .
Business Views
The outbound Purchase Order transaction is controlled by three database views that are defined according to the Oracle Purchasing data model for purchase orders. ECE_POO_HEADERS_V ECE_POO_LINES_V ECE_POO_SHIPMENTS_V ECE_POCO_HEADERS_V ECE_POCO_LINES_V ECE_POCO_SHIPMENTS_V The ECE_POO_HEADERS_V view is used to identify which purchase orders are eligible for extraction. The extract criteria are as follows:

Trading partner is defined Transaction type enabled for the trading partner Purchase order has not been printed or previously extracted Purchase order status is Approved Purchase order has not been canceled Purchase order is not on hold
Columns Updated Upon Extraction
After the document is successfully extracted and written to flat file it will be marked by Oracle e-Commerce Gateway to prevent it from subsequent extraction. The following table lists the fields updated based on an excerpt of code in the UPDATE_PO procedure defined in the ECEPOOB.pls file.
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Sample Output
File POO7170.dat contains the following output.
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Article On Purchasing Communication Methods March 2008 Author: Himabindu Kuchana Contributing Authors: Rajalingam Ramasamy Oracle Corporation World Headquarters 500 Oracle Parkway Redwood Shores, CA 94065 U.S.A. Worldwide Inquiries: Phone: +1.650.506.7000 Fax: +1.650.506.7200 oracle.com Copyright 2007, Oracle. All rights reserved. This document is provided for information purposes only and the contents hereof are subject to change without notice. This document is not warranted to be error-free, nor subject to any other warranties or conditions, whether expressed orally or implied in law, including implied warranties and conditions of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. We specifically disclaim any liability with respect to this document and no contractual obligations are formed either directly or indirectly by this document. This document may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without our prior written permission. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

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Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

An Oracle White Paper March 2008

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Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Supplier site window with Print as communication method:

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Printed Purchase Order report output

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Output when the format is PDF

Fax codes control file

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Select the communication method as Fax for supplier site

Faxing at the end of approval

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Set the Profile Options

Create and Approve PO

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

What happens in Approval?

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Standard Purchase Order: For Your Review - Standard PO 3510,

Important Queries for Email Purchase Orders

To check the AdHocUser Setup.

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

To check the Mail status

To Verify the Mail content from sqlplus

R12 feature to support communication of nontext attachments through email:

View Attachments in PDF PO

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Communicate Attachments via Email

4.0 PDF IN DEPTH

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

XSLT = XSL Transformations

XSLT Uses XPath:

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Please refer http://xdo.us.oracle.com/ for more information

Advantages of PDF over Text format

Company logo image Standard legal disclaimers

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Important DFF information

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

XSL Style Sheets

Standard Purchase Order Style sheet

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

m_connection m_testFlag m_regenFlag

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Select the Style sheets

Triggering Points of PDF generation

Enter Releases Order form

View Document View Document

Purchase Order summary form

Tools->Communicate from PO Summary form