PO Communication Methods Whitepaper PDF

Article On Purchasing
Communication Methods
An Oracle White Paper
March 2008
Article On Purchasing Communication Methods
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 - ConIguration 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
Po_Email_Body
'PLSQLCLOB:
PO_EMAIL_GENERATE.GENERATE_HTML/'||
To_Char (Documentid) || ':' || Documenttypecode
Po_Terms_Condition
s
'PLSQLCLOB:
PO_EMAIL_GENERATE.GENERATE_TERMS/'||
L_Itemtype || ':' || L_Itemkey
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
Object Of Interest
Workflow File
poxwfpoa.wft
Workflow Process
Email_Doc_Process And
Email_Doc_Process_Co
Workflow Attributes
Email_Document, Email_Address,
Po_Email_Header, Po_Email_Body,
Po_Terms_Conditions,
Po_Wf_Email_Performer,
Email_Add_From_Profile
Procedures Of Interest
Po_Reqapproval_Init1.Email_Doc_Yes_No
And Package Email_Po_Generate
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
m_POXML
// PO data as a CLOB
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)
storeFlag, viewOrCommunicate, testFlag, conn)
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.
Page 27
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
Purchase Order summary form Inquire View Document
Tools->Communicate from PO Summary form
Page 28
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.
Page 29
Page 30
Page 31
Page 32
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.
Page 33
Also optionally the buyers can choose the language of communication as well
decide whether to communicate the terms and conditions or not.
Page 34
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
Page 35
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.
Page 36
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.
Page 37
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
Page 38
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
Page 39
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
Page 40
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.
Page 41
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
Page 42
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
Page 43
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
Page 44
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.
Page 45
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
Page 46
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
Description
ECE:OUT_FILE_PATH
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
ECE_POO_ENABLED
Set this value to Yes to enable the PO

Outbound transaction to be processed
by Oracle e-Commerce Gateway.
ECE_POCO_ENABLED
To enable Change Order PO

Outbound transaction set this profile
to Yes
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.
Page 47
Define Trading Partner Group
Navigate to Oracle e-commerce Gateway responsibility.

SetupTrading 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.
Page 48
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.
Page 49
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 ViewRequests and run the

concurrent program
OUT: Purchase Order {850/ORDERS) for new documents and OUT: Purchase
Order Change (860/ORDCHG) for changed documents.
Page 50
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.
Page 51
Sample Output
File POO7170.dat contains the following output.
Page 52

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

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

R12 feature to support communication of nontext attachments

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Setup steps ................................................................................................... 46

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

This document explains the different types of communication methods supported

This is one of the traditional communication methods. The legal documents

In Setup/Organizations/Purchasing options, there is an option to choose between

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

PDF is the new communication functionality for Oracle Purchasing in 11i10. By

This is explained in depth in system administrators guide. Please refer

Get pre-printed stationeries

Run Printed Purchase Order by feeding the above pre-printed stationeries.

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Indicate whether the document is actually being printed for sending it to

Supplier site window with Print as communication method:

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Printed Purchase Order report output

Next traditional method we are going to see is facsimiles. Oracle Purchasing

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

Next communication method is email. Emailing the Purchasing documents is an

Oracle Purchasing leverages the Oracle Workflows capabilities to email the

Oracle Workflow delivers a complete workflow management system that supports

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

If the document output format in purchasing options is chosen as Text, then

These three attributes are appended to construct a dynamic HTML notification.

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

During approval, purchasing creates an adHocRole in the workflow directory

This adHocRole will be having notification preference set to HTML Mail.

After approval a notification is added. This notification is constructed using

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Set the Profile Options

Create and Approve PO

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

What happens in Approval?

When the PO is submitted for Approval, the Approval workflow process is

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

In the above HYDERABAD2252 is AdHocUser name and 40455 is Email

Run the following SQL to check the AdHocUser setup

To check the Mail status

To Verify the Mail content from sqlplus

R12 feature to support communication of nontext attachments through

View Attachments in PDF PO

Article On Purchasing Communication Methods

Communicate Attachments via Email

When communicating purchase orders via email, it should be possible to

4.0 PDF IN DEPTH

The above-mentioned communication methods can happen in the form of Text or

XML (Extensible Markup Language) is a standard for creating markup languages,