SupplierProduct

SupplierProduct is a data construct used in procurement and supply chain management to represent a specific product offered by a particular supplier. It functions as a join between the supplier and product domains and is commonly implemented as a separate table or object in ERP, procurement, and sourcing systems. By encapsulating supplier-specific information for a product, it enables precise control over sourcing and purchasing decisions.

Key attributes typically include supplier_id, product_id, price, currency, lead_time, minimum_order_quantity, pack_size, unit_of_measure, delivery_terms, availability_status, and last_updated. Additional fields may cover contract_id, payment terms, regional availability, incoterms, and any supplier-specific catalog identifiers. The record often includes validity dates to reflect price changes and changes in terms over time.

Use cases involve supplier selection, price comparison, catalog enrichment, and purchase order generation. It supports scenarios where the same product is offered by multiple suppliers with different prices, lead times, or terms. Interoperability considerations include integration with supplier catalogs, e-procurement, punchouts, and B2B catalogs, as well as currency conversion and contract management.

Implementation notes emphasize a separate table with foreign keys to both supplier and product, plus indexing on supplier_id and product_id for performance. Data quality is important to ensure correct product mapping and current pricing. Variants of this concept are sometimes called vendor_product or supplier_catalog_item.

See also: supplier, product, procurement, catalog, vendor management.