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Foundations

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Standards

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Tools

X12 204 — Motor Carrier Load Tender

The 204 is the transportation order sent by a shipper to a road carrier. The cornerstone of automated TMS tendering in the United States.

Purpose

The 204 offers a load to the carrier with its operational characteristics: pickup location, delivery location, time windows, requested equipment type (dry, reefer, flatbed…), weight and pallet count, shipper references, customer PO references, and rate when imposed. The carrier replies with a 990 to accept or decline, then emits 214 (Shipment Status) and 210 (Freight Detail and Invoice) downstream.

In North American practice, the 204 is the automatic output of the shipper's TMS when a lane is tenderable: the TMS picks a carrier per routing-guide logic (first-call, returning tender, spot-market trigger), generates a 204, and waits for the 990. If the 990 declines, the 204 is forwarded to the next carrier in the routing guide.

Envelope structure

The 204 travels in an SM functional group (Motor Carrier Load Tender). A didactic 204 for a Chicago → Atlanta load:

x12 example-204.x12 
ISA*00*          *00*          *ZZ*ACMESHIPPER   *ZZ*ACMECARRIER   *260519*0800*U*00401*000001401*0*P*>~
GS*SM*ACMESHIPPER*ACMECARRIER*20260519*0800*1*X*004010~
ST*204*0001~
B2*04*ACME*001**LOAD-2026-7780*L~
B2A*00~
L11*PO78901*PO~
G62*10*20260520*1*0830*LT~
N1*SH*ACME WAREHOUSE 1*92*WH-001~
N3*1500 INDUSTRIAL BLVD~
N4*CHICAGO*IL*60601*US~
N1*CN*ACME RETAIL DC 5*92*DC-005~
N3*420 LOGISTICS PKWY~
N4*ATLANTA*GA*30303*US~
LX*1~
L5*1*GUITARS AND ACCESSORIES*4421*N~
AT8*L*N*12000*LB*4*PLT~
SE*15*0001~
GE*1*1~
IEA*1*000001401~

The B2 opens the transaction: status code, carrier SCAC code, Bill of Lading number, reference code, load identifier, payment code. B2A carries the function code (00 = Original, 01 = Cancellation, 04 = Change). G62 states the pickup window. The N1/N3/N4 loops carry the shipper (SH) and consignee (CN). The LX loop details stops or cargo: L5 (Description), AT8 (Shipment Weight, Packaging and Quantity Data).

Common segments

  • Header — ST, B2 (Beginning Segment for Shipment Information Transaction), B2A (Set Purpose), L11 (references — PO, BOL, equipment), G62 (expected date/time).
  • Parties / Addresses — N1 + N2 (Additional Name) + N3 (Address Information) + N4 (Geographic Location) loops for Shipper, Consignee, Pickup, Delivery.
  • Stops / Cargo — LX loop with L5 (Description, Marks & Numbers), AT8 (Shipment Weight, Packaging), L7 (Tariff Reference), OID (Order Information Detail).
  • Summary — L3 (Total Weight and Charges), SE.

When you'll see it

  • Retail / CPG — Walmart, Target, P&G send 204s throughout the day to their carrier routing guides (Schneider, JB Hunt, Werner…).
  • Manufacturing — planned LTL and FTL flows from the ERP via the TMS.
  • 3PLs and freight brokers — Total Quality Logistics, C.H. Robinson take 204s from shippers and re-tender them to subcontracted carriers.
  • Foodservice and food distribution — fine-grained management of chilled and frozen delivery windows.
  • 990 — Response To Load Tender (carrier accept/decline)
  • 214 — Transportation Carrier Shipment Status Message
  • 210 — Motor Carrier Freight Details and Invoice
  • 856 — Ship Notice/Manifest

Documentation

The code 204 and the name Motor Carrier Load Tender are public and listed on x12.org/products/transaction-sets. Detailed B2, B2A, AT8 grammar and the LX loops belong to the proprietary Implementation Guides (TR3); ediverse.io does not redistribute them. For SCAC codes, see the public NMFTA (National Motor Freight Traffic Association) registry.