Allocating barcode numbers
Location and eCommerce
With the advent of electronic communication, and particularly Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) 
, the need for the identification of parties and locations has become acute. The use of numeric identification instead of full alpha numeric names and addresses is the key to the successful implementation of an EDI project.
Global Location Numbers (GLNs) offer an internationally recognised standard solution to the identification of parties and locations. Once assigned at the source - generally by the party owning the location - a GLN becomes a unique and universal reference which can be used by all trading partners.
A GLN is a non significant GTIN-13 identification number, which is automatically assigned by GS1 Australia to the company when they join as a member. If the member company requires subsequent GLNs then they can create one using their own GS1 Company Prefix and from their pool of numbers in the same way other thirteen digit barcodes (GTINs) are allocated.
Companies that are not members of GS1 Australia, who require a GLN, need to contact us for further information.
This number is simply used to identify:
- Legal entities such as registered companies
- Functional entities such as a specific department within a legal entity
- Physical entities such as a door of a warehouse or a particular room in a building
GLNs can be used to identify anything which is, or can be, addressed. Examples include companies, departments, rooms, factories, shelves, delivery points and EDI network addresses.
Details associated with a GLN, such as:
- name and address
- location type
- contact person
- communications numbers
- banking information
- delivery condition, etc
are stored in the computer files of system users for later retrieval.
Although a GLN does not carry any information on the location it identifies, its standard format and structure allow each GLN to be unambiguous and unique worldwide.
The format of a GLN is structured in the same way as the GTIN-13 numbering structure. They are mainly used in EDI transactions to identify the sender and recipient of an electronic transmission, as well as any other party involved in the transaction.
They can be used in barcode format to identify a physical location or to encode the identification of relevant parties in logistic applications, such as a 'ship to' number.
GLN and EDI
In an EDI Message Interchange Header segment, there is a need to identify both sender and receiver and a GLN is ideal for this purpose. At the beginning of a commercial relationship using EDI, trading partners would advise each other of their GLNs. The information could subsequently be used to associate GLNs with location information and related operational, administrative, commercial and financial data of the trading partner.
These details would be stored in each party's computer system, in readiness for exchanging EDI messages.
