Processing Load Tenders (EDI 204)

The Motor Carrier Load Tenders (EDI 204) transaction is sent by shippers (such as manufacturers, retailers, or third-party logistics providers) to carriers to offer a shipment (a load) for transport. It contains pickup and delivery stops, shipment quantities, weight, equipment requirements, and carrier instructions.

This guide details how to receive, view, and manage Load Tenders in the EDI Generator, and outlines the follow-up documents needed to complete the logistics lifecycle.

Receiving Load Tenders

When a shipper transmits a Load Tender (EDI 204) to your account, it is processed and listed in two views in the EDI Generator:

  • Inbox: Lists all incoming files received from all trading partners. Load Tenders will appear with the type SM.

Inbox List View

  • Tenders / Shipping > Tenders: Under the side menu, selecting Tenders (nested under the Shipping section if you have multiple domains enabled) displays a dedicated list of all received Tenders.

Load Tenders List View

To review the details of a received Load Tender, click the View button (represented by a preview icon) at the end of the row in the Inbox or Tenders list. The detailed view presents three main tabs:

Formatted View

This translates the raw, complex X12 EDI 204 segments into a clean, human-readable layout. The Formatted View organizes the parsed transport details into logical sections:

  • Header Information: Displays general tender details and key metrics:
    • Key Metrics: Displays the carrier’s Standard Carrier Alpha Code (SCAC), unique Shipment Identification Number (Shipment ID), Gross Weight, Lading Quantity, and Shipment Method of Payment.
    • Tender Status & Response Window: Indicates the nature of the tender (e.g., Original, Cancellation) and the date/time by which the carrier must respond.
  • Parties: Lists organization-level contacts such as the Bill to Party with detailed columns for Identifier/Name, Additional Names, Address Information, Location, Administrative Contacts and Date/Time References.
  • Stop-off Details: Lists all stop locations in chronological order. Each stop shows:
    • Stop sequence number and reason (e.g., Load or Unload).
    • Scheduled pickup/delivery dates and times.
    • Reference numbers (such as Bill of Lading Number).
    • Stop-specific Parties: Identifies the locations involved (e.g., Ship From for pickup stops, or Ship To for delivery stops).
    • Order Information Detail: Lists specific order references (such as PO Number), packaging, quantities, and weights.
    • Description, Marks and Numbers: A tabular list of items showing item numbers, descriptions, commodities, packaging types, and marks/numbers.
  • Equipment Details: Displays trailer specifications (such as trailer number, length, and description) if provided in the tender.
  • Route Information: Shows routing info and interline carrier assignments if applicable.

Raw Message

Displays the exact, raw EDI text envelope (ISA, GS, ST, and transaction segments) received from the shipper. This is useful for troubleshooting syntax or validation errors.

JSON Representation

Displays the internal JSON structure generated after parsing the EDI data.

Next Steps & Generating Follow-Up Documents

Once you open a Load Tender’s Formatted View, you can trigger follow-up transactions directly using the action buttons in the top-right header (or via the Generate action menu at the end of the list row):

Received Load Tender (204) ──[Accept/Reject]──► LT Response (990) ──[Tender Accepted]──► Shipment Status (214) ──[Shipment Delivered]──► Freight Invoice (210)

Accept or Reject the Tender (EDI 990)

Carriers are required to respond to a Load Tender to accept or reject the cargo.

  • Click Accept Load Tender or Reject Load Tender.

    [NOTE] These actions are only enabled when the Load Tender is in the NEW status. Once the tender is accepted, rejected, status updates are sent, or invoiced, these buttons will be disabled.

  • The EDI 990 editor will load, pre-populated with reference details (SCAC, Shipment ID, and stop references) from the 204.
  • See Creating Load Tender Responses (EDI 990) for step-by-step instructions.

Send Shipment Status Updates (EDI 214)

Once a tender is accepted and the shipment is in progress, you must send milestone updates to the shipper (e.g., arrived at pickup, departed, or completed delivery).

  • Click Generate Status Update.

    [NOTE] This action is only enabled after the Load Tender has been accepted.

  • The EDI 214 editor will load, pre-populated with stop locations, addresses, and order references.
  • See Creating Shipment Status Messages (EDI 214) for step-by-step instructions.

Request Payment (EDI 210)

Once the cargo has been successfully delivered, you request payment by sending a freight invoice.

  • Click Generate Freight Invoice.

    [NOTE] This action is enabled once the Load Tender has been accepted.

  • The EDI 210 editor will load, pre-populated with routing info, stop addresses, lading weights, and carrier rates.
  • See Creating Freight Invoices (EDI 210) for step-by-step instructions.

When generating any follow-up documents (Load Tender Responses, Shipment Status Updates, or Freight Invoices) from a received Load Tender, it is highly recommended to verify the correctness of all auto-populated data. You should also ensure that you manually add any relevant transaction details that were not auto-populated before validating and sending the document.

Tender Status Lifecycle

The Status column in your Tenders list view automatically updates as you execute the shipping lifecycle:

  • NEW: The Load Tender has been received but has not yet been accepted or rejected.
  • ACCEPTED: You have successfully validated and sent an accepted EDI 990 response.
  • REJECTED: You have sent a declined/rejected EDI 990 response.
  • STS_SENT: You have sent at least one EDI 214 shipment status update.
  • INVOICED: You have sent the EDI 210 freight invoice requesting payment.

Additionally, the Tenders list view displays a Functional Acknowledgment (FA) status icon directly next to the tender’s lifecycle status. This icon shows the FA status of the most recently sent outbound document associated with that tender (e.g., if you just sent the 990 response, it shows the 990’s FA status; if you later generate and send a 214 status update, it updates to show the 214’s FA status).

Each of the individual outbound document list views (Responses, Statuses, and Invoices) also displays its own respective FA icon to confirm whether the shipper has accepted your document, if it is pending, or if it has been rejected.

Manual Status Override & Row Actions

By clicking the three-dot action menu (⋮) at the end of a Load Tender’s row, you can perform the following actions:

  • Mark as: Manually override the tender’s current status. You can select from New, Accepted, Rejected, Status Updated, or Invoiced. This is useful for keeping your records in sync if any part of the shipping lifecycle was handled outside of the system.
  • Show Inbox Message: Navigates directly to the original incoming transaction file in your Inbox list.
  • Delete: Permanently removes the Load Tender entry from your list.