Advance ship notice

An advanced ship notice or advanced shipping notice (ASN) is a notification of pending deliveries, similar to a packing list. It is usually sent in an electronic format and is a common EDI document. In the EDI X12 system, it is known as the EDI 856 document and the EDIFACT equivalent is the DESADV (Dispatch Advice) message. The ASN can be used to list the contents of a shipment of goods as well as additional information relating to the shipment, such as order information, product description, physical characteristics, type of packaging, markings, carrier information, and configuration of goods within the transportation equipment. The ASN enables the sender to describe the contents and configuration of a shipment in various levels of detail and provides an ordered flexibility to convey information.