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Product Classification and Data Standards: GS1, ETIM, ECLASS and BMEcat in a PIM
Stephan Spijkers · 2026-10-17 · 9 min read
Product data only travels if both sides use the same words. A supplier who calls a feature "Nennspannung" and a wholesaler who expects "rated voltage" cannot exchange a catalog without manual mapping. Standards remove that mapping: they fix the identifier, the class a product belongs to, the features that describe it, and the file format that carries it. This page explains the four standards PIM teams meet most often and how a PIM puts them to work.
The standards at a glance
- GS1 is the identification and data-sharing standard. It gives every trade item a GTIN and every company or location a GLN, and it runs the GDSN data pool network for exchanging item data.
- ETIM is a product classification for technical products: classes, features and values, with translations. It is widely used in electrical, HVAC, plumbing and building supplies.
- ECLASS is a cross-industry classification with the same logic: classes, properties and values.
- BMEcat is an XML format for electronic product catalogs. It is the envelope; ETIM or ECLASS describes what is inside.
GS1: GTIN, GDSN and 2D barcodes
GS1 develops the standards for identifying, capturing and sharing product information. Three parts matter for a PIM.
GTIN. The Global Trade Item Number is the GS1 key for a trade item, up to 14 digits long. A trade item is anything priced, ordered or invoiced in the supply chain, and each packaging level, such as a pack or a case, gets its own GTIN (GS1). In a PIM the GTIN is the match key: it links a supplier's file, your ERP record and a marketplace listing to the same product.
GDSN. The Global Data Synchronisation Network is a network of interoperable data pools plus a global registry. Companies exchange standardised, synchronised item data through it. Items are identified by GTIN, parties and locations by GLN, and a combination of GTIN, GLN and target market determines which data is shared with whom (GS1). Data pools are run by certified providers; 1WorldSync is one of them.
2D barcodes. GS1 wants checkout systems to read the GTIN from 2D barcodes, such as QR codes carrying a GS1 Digital Link, as well as from linear barcodes. The initial goal in the GS1 implementation guideline is global capability by the end of 2027, the "Sunrise 2027" target. Linear barcodes are not banned: GS1 US says UPC codes keep being accepted after 2027 and that brand owners may drop them once their partners are ready.
ETIM: the standard for technical products
ETIM, maintained by ETIM International, classifies technical products. Each product belongs to a class, and each class has features with defined values and units. Because the classes and features are the same for everyone, a wholesaler can compare cable, switch or valve data from different suppliers without translating each supplier's wording.
Current version. ETIM 10.0 came out in December 2024. It closes 5,264 change requests and adds 119 classes. Its structural addition is feature groups: features sit in sections such as material, electrical or dimensions instead of a flat list on the class. Classes were also regrouped. It is available in English, Dutch, German and Swedish, with other languages following as national ETIM organizations update (ETIM International).
Next version. ETIM International plans the final release of ETIM 11.0 for 1 December 2026. The deadline for change requests was 30 June 2026, and a beta phase of about one month precedes the final release (ETIM International). That date is a plan, not a release.
Exchange format. Updated releases came with a memo on the dynamic ETIM release format. System-to-system exchanges need IXF 3.1; ETIM International scheduled earlier IXF versions to become obsolete in summer 2025.
What it means for your PIM. A new ETIM release is a data-model change, not a label swap. Classes are added or moved, and features are regrouped. Plan the change from the difference reports and the online CMT tool of ETIM International, not from the release note alone. Keep the ETIM version on each product, so you know which release a record was classified against.
ECLASS: the cross-industry classification
ECLASS follows the same logic as ETIM, with classes and properties, and covers many industries. Its website names ECLASS 16.0 as the current release (ECLASS). It is common in industrial purchasing and manufacturing, especially in German-speaking markets. A supplier selling into both electrical wholesale and industrial customers often delivers ETIM and ECLASS side by side, so a PIM needs a place for more than one classification per product.
Where ETIM and ECLASS overlap, treat the mapping between them as data you maintain, not as a one-off project. Decide which classification is the primary one for each product group, and derive the other from it.
BMEcat: the catalog file format
BMEcat is an XML format for electronic catalogs, widely used between suppliers and buyers. ECLASS has published a technical specification for embedding ECLASS in BMEcat, covering the BMEcat versions 1.2, 2005, 2005.1 and 2005.2 (ECLASS). Which BMEcat version and which classification a partner expects is part of their supplier requirements, so ask early. Your PIM should be able to export the same record as a BMEcat file, a GDSN message or a marketplace feed without re-keying it.
How a PIM uses the standards
Identify the product
Match every incoming record on its GTIN. Without a clean GTIN, you cannot compare supplier files, ERP data and marketplace listings. Treat a missing or duplicate GTIN as a blocking error.
Assign the classification
Give each product its ETIM class, its ECLASS class, or both, depending on what your partners expect. Store the release version next to the class.
Model the features
Use the features of the class as the attributes of the product, with the defined values and units. This turns free text such as "230V" into a value that a filter, a comparison and a partner import all read the same way.
Validate before you publish
Check mandatory features, allowed values, units and GTIN format per target. A rule set per partner catches errors before the partner's import does. See product data quality and governance.
Export in each partner's format
Publish the same record as a BMEcat file, a GDSN message, a webshop feed or a marketplace listing. The record stays one; the export is what changes. See PIM and marketplaces.
Other sources feed the same flow. Internal systems such as ERP and PLM hold the operational record. Supplier databases deliver bulk data. External content providers such as CNET supply descriptive content, mainly for consumer electronics, while GS1 keeps the identity stable. Each source is strong at one job and weak at another, so judge quality and reliability before you integrate, and count the cost of running the integration after go-live. The split between ERP and PIM is covered in where ERP stops and PIM starts.
Which standard fits which business
- Technical wholesale and installation supplies (electrical, HVAC, plumbing): ETIM first, GS1 for identity. See also PIM for construction and BIM.
- Industrial manufacturers and machine builders: ECLASS first, often ETIM as well for the wholesale channel.
- Grocery, DIY, garden and general retail: GS1 GTIN and GDSN data pools; classification is often GS1's own or the retailer's.
- Exporters to several markets: keep one internal model and map to each partner's classification. Do not remodel the PIM per partner.
Standards are only worth what your suppliers deliver. Ask for the classification and release version in every supplier onboarding, and measure how many records arrive complete.
Example: garden retail moves to GS1
Dutch garden retailers show how hard the transition is in practice. According to a Tuinzaken report, the sector aligned on GS1 data pool standards and moved the deadline, originally January 2024, after logistical gaps and different ways of handling data (Tuinbranche). Three lessons from the retailers quoted there:
- Gate quality before the PIM. Intratuin, with more than 200,000 active SKUs in its PIM, planned a data lake as a quality-control gateway before supplier data enters the PIM.
- Enrich on top of the basics. GRS Inkoop restructured internally to receive standard data, and is now adding its own images and multimedia to the basic product data.
- Make suppliers part of it. Welkoop stressed supplier awareness of the long-term benefit of GS1 compliance, and Intratuin, Welkoop and GRS started a joint effort to monitor and communicate data quality.
What to do next
Related guides
- What is product information management (PIM)?
- Product data quality and governance
- PIM for construction and BIM
- Digital Product Passport (DPP): another reason products will carry a data carrier.
- PIM features and capabilities
Where to go from here
Frequently asked questions
What is ETIM and how does it work with a PIM?
ETIM is a classification standard for technical products. It defines product classes, and for each class the features and values that describe it. A PIM uses the ETIM class and features as the attribute model for those products, so suppliers, wholesalers and installers describe a product the same way.
What is the current ETIM version?
ETIM 10.0, released in December 2024 after 5,264 change requests, is the current international release. ETIM International plans the final release of ETIM 11.0 for 1 December 2026, so check the planning page before you build a model on 10.0.
What is the difference between GS1 and ETIM?
GS1 identifies products and trading parties (GTIN, GLN) and defines how trade item data is shared. ETIM classifies technical products and defines their features. Most technical wholesalers use both: GS1 for identity, ETIM for the technical description.
What is the difference between ETIM and ECLASS?
Both classify products with classes, features and values. ETIM is strongest in electrical, HVAC, sanitary and building supplies. ECLASS is cross-industry and strong in German-speaking industrial purchasing and in manufacturing. Many suppliers deliver both, and the PIM keeps a mapping between them.
What is a GTIN and what is GDSN?
A GTIN (Global Trade Item Number) is the GS1 key that identifies a trade item, up to 14 digits long. GDSN (Global Data Synchronisation Network) is a network of GS1-certified data pools through which companies exchange standardised item data with trading partners.
What is BMEcat?
BMEcat is an XML format for exchanging electronic product catalogs between suppliers and buyers. It carries the product data, and classification systems such as ECLASS and ETIM can be embedded in it.
What is GS1 Sunrise 2027?
Sunrise 2027 is the GS1 target for retail point-of-sale systems to read the GTIN from 2D barcodes as well as linear ones by the end of 2027. Linear barcodes keep working, and brand owners decide when to add a 2D code.
Do I need to classify products in a PIM?
Yes, if you sell to trade partners that expect a standard classification, such as ETIM or ECLASS in technical trade, or GS1 data in grocery and DIY retail. Without it, every partner needs its own mapping of your data, and every import becomes manual work.
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