About ETIM
- ETIM is an international product data model – a classification or structure – it is not a database;
- ETIM applies only to the technical information about any product;
- ETIM exists to help B2B customers further along the supply chain find and choose your products.
ETIM started in the Netherlands in 1991. Truly international, this data model is now used by 20+ countries, including the UK.
In the UK work started in 2017 when the EDA introduced ETIM to the sector. Since then, and driven by the popularity and demand for ETIM, a new company structure was formed – ETIM UK Ltd.
In 2020, ETIM UK Ltd became a partnership between the EDA and the BMF, with each organisation championing the data standard for their sector:
- EDA: Electrotechnical products
- BMF: Building Materials, and HVAC and Plumbing Products
From 1 January 2025, the ETIM organisation expanded its scope to include Northern Ireland, and the organisation was renamed ETIM UK and Ireland Ltd.
The UK’s ETIM journey
EDA member research back in 2016 showed that digitalisation was seen by wholesalers as a major opportunity for growth, but that competition from on-line businesses from outside the traditional wholesaler sector was the greatest threat.
Wholesaler businesses rely on manufacturers’ product data to provide content for their web sites. As received, this data varies hugely in terms of accuracy, consistency and completeness and few wholesalers have the resources to restructure it for their own use.
ETIM is that structure. Tailored to the UK market, manufacturers use the standard to classify their products and serve-up their ecommerce-rich data to the wholesaler.
Imagine the transformation if every manufacturer used the same consistent structure of their product data when sharing it with wholesalers along the supply chain – that’s why it’s so important.
