The United Nations Standard Products and Services Code (UNSPSC), is an open, global, multi-sector standard for efficient accurate classification of products and services. UNSPSC is also a flexible classification system for achieving company-wide visibility of spend and inventory analysis. UNSPSC is often used as an MRO taxonomy to group and relate similar items together for purchasing and supply chain analysis. UNSPSC enables procurement and master data teams to deliver on cost-saving demands and helping facilitate integration of electronic commerce capabilities. UNSPSC is a four level hierarchical classification system that enables spend and inventory analysis by grouping at hierarchy levels and drilling down or rolling up the hierarchy.
Many industries only focus on the top four levels in some cases a fifth level is included for services or functional classification rather than additional product types. The fifth level can also be used to introduce further granularity into your analysis process.
UNSPSC classification of line items is a key stage in any governance process when championing initiatives that are commonly referred to as: item master cleansing, MRO classification, MRO data cataloging, MRO data classification, MRO data enrichment and MRO data cleansing.
We offer Data Enrichment services that include UNSPSC classification.
Modern supply chains require faster fulfillment at a lower cost. The need to approach procurement strategically has never been of greater. The UNSPSC is a coding convention that all companies can draw from to speak the same electronic dialect when assigning a category. This allows you to speed-up procurement and rationalize your MRO purchasing decisions and processes within your supply chain.
When the UNSPSC is utilized in electronic documents and media such as product catalogs, web sites, quotes, purchase orders, supply chain buyers, sellers, procurement managers, and other users can "slice and dice" master data records at any level of the UNSPSC to help guide the decision workflow.
There are two ways to have a large number of items classified to the UNSPSC classification.
Software
This is effective when the data you are classifying is high quality and has complete/formatted descriptions. The problem with this is when nobody has verified complete/formatted descriptions it can lead to a large number of items being classified incorrectly. This can then require human auditing of the entire material master to ensure the integrity of the dataset.
Human Software Hybrid
Because most descriptions we classify don’t start with any level of quality or formatting, it takes a human to review, analyze, then apply the correct classification.
We use our network of trusted patners located around the globe to process your data and apply the correct UNSPSC code to your dataset. We are MRO data experts that have correctly classified millions of line items to the correct UNSPSC codes based on years of experience. Using our partners, processes, and internal tools, we can classify your entire dataset to the UNSPSC code set in a timely manner to help deliver your company endless analysis and savings in indirect/direct spend.
We offer a complete suite of UNSPSC Classification Services, for more information and a no cost Data Profile please Contact Us .
All UNSPSC entities are identified with an 8-digit structured numeric code which both indicates its location in the taxonomy and uniquely classifies it, these 8 digits cover the top 4 levels of the hierarchy. An additional 2-digit suffix indicates the business function identifier or other usage specific criteria (the 5th level).
This table provides an example of one path from the top of the UNSPSC hierarchy to the lowest level.
| UNSPSC Level | Leading Digits Populated | Description | Example UNSPSC Code | Example UNSPSC Code Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 - Segment | 2 | Highest and most generalized level of the hierarchy | 23000000 | Industrial Manufacturing and Processing Machinery and Accessories |
| 2 - Family | 4 | Commodities that are logically and commonly related and used in processes considered part of the level | 23150000 | Industrial process machinery and equipment and supplies |
| 3 - Class | 6 | Commodities that share common characteristics | 23151500 | Rubber and plastic processing machinery and equipment and supplies |
| 4 - Commodity | 8 | products or services that are substitutable or similar to each other is purpose | 23151501 | Blow molding machines |
| 5 - Business Function / Custom Modifier | 10 | An additional layer of customization used when the default granularity does not allow for grouping as the client desires unique to each business case | 2315150199 | Repaired Blow molding machines |