Who this is for
Purchasing or operations manager who imports each new supplier file and wants to know what changed before it touches live prices and stock.
A supplier file looks different from last week's, prices moved in ways nobody expected, or a past import changed far more products than anyone intended.
The result
For two named versions of one supplier feed, you receive a report listing each product added, absent from the new file and changed, by key, with the columns that changed, price and stock moves above agreed thresholds, and counts that reconcile on distinct keys: old keys minus absent plus added equals new keys. The number of extra rows that repeat a key is reported separately for each file, and every repeated key is listed rather than resolved. A script reproduces the same report from the same two files.
What is included
- One supplier feed layout and two named file versions of up to 100,000 rows each, as redacted or synthetic copies
- Agree the key columns, the columns to compare and the normalisation rules (trimming, number formats, empty versus missing)
- Compare by key rather than by line order, and report each change with old and new values. A key that appears more than once in a file is listed with all its rows and is not compared, because the report does not choose between them; it still counts as present for added and absent
- Flag price and stock moves above thresholds you set, and list products absent from the new file without calling them discontinued
- Provide a script that reproduces the report, and a plain-English summary
You receive
- The change report as a spreadsheet-ready file and a one-page summary
- The script and the written key, column and threshold rules
- A reconciliation of distinct keys between the two versions, with the extra rows that repeat a key counted separately for each file
- Instructions to run it again on the next version
What is not included
- Deciding whether to import the new file or which changes are acceptable
- Applying any change to your store or database
- Judging whether the supplier's new prices or stock are true
- Detecting whether a file is a complete snapshot; the report only states what the file contains
- Files containing personal data
What we need from you first
- The supplier's column names, as text, and which column identifies a product
- Roughly how many rows each version has and how often files arrive
- The price and stock moves you would want flagged. No real price lists, customer data or credentials in the first enquiry
Never send passwords, keys, customer records or confidential code in the first enquiry. Secure handover is agreed after scoping.
How we check it is done
- On a synthetic pair of files with ten planted differences (two additions, two absences, three price changes, one stock change, one description change, one key that repeats in the new file only) plus reordered rows and whitespace-only differences, the report lists exactly the ten planted differences and no others, and its distinct-key reconciliation holds although the two files differ in how many rows repeat a key.
- Comparing a file with itself reports zero changes.
- For the two agreed real versions, the number of distinct keys in the old file minus keys absent plus keys added equals the number of distinct keys in the new file, the extra rows that repeat a key are reported separately for each file, and every repeated key is listed rather than resolved. When no key repeats, these equal the plain row counts.
- Running the script twice on the same two files gives byte-identical reports.
You inspect the planted-change test and the reconciliation, and sign off in writing. Payment follows sign-off.
When we would stop or decline
- There is no stable key and none can be agreed, so products cannot be matched
- The files contain personal data that cannot be removed
- The files exceed the agreed size and you do not want a quoted larger scope
Questions
Can the report tell me whether to import the file?
No. It shows what changed so you can decide. Your thresholds highlight the moves you care about.
Will it say a missing product is discontinued?
No. It says the product is absent from the new file. Only the supplier can say why.
What if the same product code appears twice in a file?
The report lists that code with all its rows and does not choose between them or compare them. The counts reconcile on distinct codes, and the extra rows that repeat a code are counted separately for each file.
Can I run it myself next month?
Yes. You receive the script and instructions. Running it on future files is yours to do, or a standing check can run it for you.
Price and terms
£225 · untested offer price. £225 after the agreed planted-change test and the real file comparison reconcile as specified and you sign off. No payment before sign-off.
This is a new service with no published client results. The price is a starting point we have not yet tested with buyers. Nothing is ordered or charged by the enquiry. The full specification is on the Synthetic Industry catalogue.