Every industry has its own language, and procurement and supply chain is no different.

If you’re looking for a new opportunity in this field, make sure go into your job search armed with the following terms. These will show that you have the industry expertise a potential employer is looking for.

1.ASN

Stands for “Advanced Shipping Notification.” Information sent from the shipper to the customer that includes contents of the shipment, shipping time, estimated arrival time, and the like.

2. Bill of Lading

A shipping document that shows which goods are in a shipment, the quantity, and destination. Operates as a receipt of payment.

3. Drop Shipment

When a vendor ships directly to an organization’s customers, but the organization receives the payment from the customer directly.

4. EDI

Stands for “Electronic Data Interface.” Formats data so that it can be read by multiple systems.

5. FIFO

Stands for “First In, First Out.” Means that the first shipment you receive is the first to be sent out. The opposite is “LIFO”: Last In, First Out.

6. Groupage

Multiple shipments are combined in order to streamline transportation. More than one order with individual Bills of Landing will exist in one shipment or container.

7. Hitchment

More than one shipment with the same sender and receiver are sent together with one Bill of Landing. These shipments do not have to originate from the same place.

8. JIT

Stands for “Just in Time.” Refers to shipments sent with very little wiggle room in their timelines.

9. Knocked Down

An item that must be broken into multiple pieces in order to transport it. The item is reassembled before it is delivered to the customer.

10. TAT

Stands for “Turnaround Time.” Time it takes to repair an item. Does not include transportation time.

If you’d like to learn more about the Procurement and Supply Chain industry, please reach out to our expert consultants and browse our Michael Page advice page.