Customers who use both PDX and the STEP Accelerator for Retail solution to send product information back and forth via a channel as part of their product onboarding workflow must be able to configure:
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proper display of relevant data in the PDX interface
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optimal channel behavior
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effective product data validations
Many elements of how data in the PDX UI displays, is validated, and how the channel performs are determined by configuration decisions made in STEP.
This topic and the topics nested beneath contain information about how the PDX Schema, a digital snapshot of PDX-relevant STEP objects that is imported into PDX, can be controlled in Accelerator for Retail, how an Accelerator for Retail implementation can be updated to account for changes to the PDX Data Model, and how STEP can be configured to ensure retailers and suppliers have the tools they need when sending products via PDX.
Updating the data standard
To enable suppliers to onboard products from PDX into a retailer's Accelerator for Retail STEP implementation, all elements that make up the Accelerator for Retail data model must be replicated in PDX. These elements include, for example, the supplier-facing product hierarchy, attributes, attribute groups, lists of values (LOVs), and asset references. The process of synchronizing the supplier-facing data model in STEP with the corresponding data model in PDX is called a Data Standard update. This update allows suppliers to validate their product information against the retailer’s. Beyond the Data Standard update, additional processes and methods deployed by both STEP and PDX are in place to ensure synchronicity between the two systems.
Data standard update
When a change is made to the Accelerator for Retail data model that affects the PDX channel, the channel-specific Data Standard in PDX must be updated to account for the change.
The following actions are examples of changes made in STEP that require a Data Standard update in PDX:
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Adding, modifying, or deleting supplier-facing attributes or LOVs.
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Adding, modifying, or deleting nodes in the supplier-facing product hierarchy.
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Linking or unlinking attributes within the supplier-facing product hierarchy.
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Adding or deleting supplier-facing asset reference types.
Data Standard updates can either be made by request to your PDX team, or as part of a scheduled process if schema changes are likely to be more frequent.
The Data Standard update is implemented by the PDX team. In the update process, a PDX Channel Schema is exported from STEP using the 'PDX: Schema Export' export configuration. This export, generated from the ‘Approved’ workspace in STEP, then converts the PDX Channel Schema into the channel-specific Data Standard in PDX, so the changes made to the product hierarchy, relevant attributes, etc., are properly reflected in PDX.
Data Standard elements that can be changed in STEP
When suppliers bring products into Accelerator for Retail via PDX Onboarding, the retailer's PDX channel should reflect the relevant part of the data model from Accelerator for Retail. This symmetry of data between PDX and Accelerator for Retail is maintained to allow the suppliers to categorize products, map attributes, and transform values to meet the retailer’s requirements.
Each section that follows describes either an element of the PDX Data Standard that users can configure or change in STEP via the Accelerator for Retail implementation, or an aspect of the PDX-to-Accelerator connection that is helpful for users to know.