The Unite Mercateo procurement platform connects buyers and B2B suppliers. The system integrates the buyer’s ERP directly with the supplier’s shop system.
Companies today demand absolute control over their indirect spend. Exchanging order data manually by email is highly error-prone, and analogue approaches break down on complex B2B ranges. B2B suppliers need a technical connection to this marketplace.
System integration is a significant part of lasting commercial success. It lets suppliers automate their product data according to the platform’s requirements.
B2B software for the Unite Mercateo integration
The software from Pro3Con automates the technical connection to Unite Mercateo for B2B suppliers and manufacturers.
The cloud-based tools generate error-free BMEcat catalogues and direct PunchOut interfaces for e-procurement systems.
Simply arrange a free demo appointment or read more about the product here:
Unite Procurement Deutschland AG as a central B2B marketplace
Unite Procurement Deutschland AG operates the central procurement platform. The B2B network belongs to the European parent company Unite Network SE. The Unite brand bundles indirect spend for buyers.
Its target group covers mid-sized companies, large corporations and the public sector.
Suppliers choose between three sales models on the platform
- Spotmarket: the anonymous marketplace covering ad-hoc demand. Unite runs the spotmarket on a single-creditor model. The buyer receives a single invoice from Unite for all purchases, and the supplier ships the goods on a drop-shipping basis in Unite’s name.
- BusinessShop: this model establishes direct supplier relationships. The supplier offers a standard range with customer-specific prices.
- BusinessShop Plus: this model creates exclusive ranges for specific buyers. The buyer approves every catalogue update in advance, and partners conclude individual framework agreements in these shops.
What this organised procurement delivers for buyers
- Consolidated procurement: companies reduce their number of creditors through the central system.
- Avoiding maverick buying: maverick buying describes uncontrolled purchases outside official procurement structures. The central system prevents these inefficient one-off orders, so staff no longer buy around the official purchasing function.
- Full transparency: purchasing controls all spend and contracts through a single interface.
Technical standards for a Mercateo catalogue
Suppliers publish electronic catalogues on the platform, and a Mercateo catalogue requires structured product data. Catalogue management therefore processes formats such as BMEcat. The data exchange requires the XML standard BMEcat 1.2, which defines the supplier’s range for purchasing.
Preparing this data has technical requirements:
- Mandatory fields: the catalogue file requires attributes such as prices, delivery time and order units for every item.
- Classification: systematising products such as office supplies requires standards such as eCl@ss 5.1.4 or UNSPSC.
- Data transfer: suppliers submit their catalogue files to the platform over sFTP or FTP connections.
- Media data: the same route carries the supplier’s logo, product images (JPG, PNG) and safety data sheets as PDF documents into directories on the server.
Unite’s system checks these uploads automatically against technical and content criteria, and produces a validation report afterwards. Correcting structural errors manually delays the sales launch.
Primus Catalog by Pro3Con prevents such platform rejections in advance. The tool validates catalogue data automatically before the transfer, so suppliers achieve an error-free go-live with no manual rework.
Read everything about BMEcat validation
Electronic procurement through PunchOut interfaces
Buyers start the procurement process directly in their own ERP system, and Unite provides standardised PunchOut interfaces for exactly that. The process connects the purchasing portal with external networks.
The data exchange uses two established transfer standards
- OCI (Open Catalog Interface): this standard primarily integrates SAP environments into the supplier catalogue, using URL parameters for the data transfer.
- cXML (commerce eXtensible Markup Language): this standard connects cloud platforms such as SAP Ariba or Coupa and transfers structured XML messages.
The user jumps from their ERP system into the catalogue at Unite, with the system transferring the necessary authentication data in the background. The buyer fills the cart on the platform, and the return jump transfers the order data back into the ERP system automatically. This exchange immediately enriches the cart with internal ERP master data such as cost centres or delivery addresses. The final order is released, after internal approval, exclusively in the buyer’s ERP system.
Programming these specific data protocols ties up considerable IT resources at the supplier. The B2B software from Pro3Con automates these complex connections as a ready-made interface solution, so suppliers integrate their range into their customers’ procurement systems without development effort of their own.
Software solutions for B2B suppliers
Pro3Con develops software solutions for B2B suppliers. The tools automate the complex data requirements of the Unite Mercateo platform.
Primus Catalog
Primus Catalog processes unstructured master data from Excel or CSV and converts the source data into the required BMEcat format. During this process the system checks the eCl@ss classification automatically, which prevents errors in the Mercateo validation report.
Primus PunchOut
The Primus PunchOut module creates ERP interfaces in just 30 seconds. Suppliers support OCI versions 4.0 and 5.0 with it, and the software generates cXML interfaces the same way. Users need no IT knowledge for this technical integration.
Primus Exclusion
Primus Exclusion controls the customer-specific selection of items. This whitelisting function structures sales for the BusinessShop Plus model: customers filter their offering through the portal entirely themselves, and after approval the software generates automatic updates for the final catalogue.
Start your technical integration
B2B suppliers check their BMEcat catalogue for free in the validator before it goes to Unite Mercateo. Alternatively, companies can arrange a direct initial conversation about the technical system connection to Unite Mercateo.
Automated access to the platform
System integration raises efficiency in electronic B2B trade. Suppliers minimise the manual effort at every step of the procurement process, and the Pro3Con software organises the supplied product data automatically.
Item names, prices and stock levels are available to the target system immediately, giving the buyer direct access to the current range. The tool converts an unlimited number of records with a single click.
FAQ – frequently asked questions about Unite Mercateo
What is Mercateo Unite?
Mercateo Unite is a digital B2B network. The platform connects buyers and B2B suppliers directly and offers standardised e-procurement interfaces for electronic trade.
Who owns Mercateo?
The company belongs to the European parent company Unite Network SE. Dirk Markus, Harald Fett and Sebastian Wieser founded the original Mercateo AG in 1999. A management buy-out by Sebastian Wieser and Peter Ledermann followed in 2003. Founder Sebastian Wieser leads the board of Unite Network SE today.
What is the Unite platform?
Unite is the new umbrella brand of the former Mercateo group, rebranded at the end of 2021. The brand bundles the B2B marketplace and the B2B network into one central platform, giving users a single system for their procurement.