Your ERP ⇄ Luminovo Integration Journey
Connecting your ERP to Luminovo means the data you already maintain — your parts, your stock, your supplier prices — flows into Luminovo automatically, so your team stops copying it by hand. Later, it can flow the other way too: sourcing results Luminovo produces (confirmed prices, new part numbers, purchase orders) can be pushed back into your ERP.
This guide is written for a non-technical reader. Its goal is simply to help you understand where to start thinking about integration and what your first steps look like. You don't need to make every decision up front — integration is a journey you build up over time.
💡 One thing to know before you start: your side always drives the connection. Luminovo never reaches into your systems on its own. Data going into Luminovo is sent by your ERP (or a tool sitting next to it); data coming back out is pulled by your side when you want it. Your purchase orders, goods receipts, and invoices always stay in your ERP. This might be important in conversation with your IT!
The journey at a glance
There are seven steps. The first three are decisions; the last four are the build.
Understand your data — what's in your ERP, and how clean is it?
Choose your integration type — CSV, Standard API, or Full API.
Choose your use cases — what should actually be connected first?
Map your data — match your fields to Luminovo's fields.
Upload and test — get data flowing and check it.
Automate it — put the exchange on a schedule.
Monitor quality — keep an eye on it and adjust.
How long this takes depends heavily on how clean your ERP data is. Messy data slows down every route — CSV and API alike. If your data needs work first, start here: ERP/PLM Data Cleanliness.
Step 1 — Understand your data
Before choosing anything, get a rough picture of what your ERP actually holds and what your IT team can extract from it. You don't need a full inventory yet — just answers to questions like:
Do we have a clean list of internal part numbers (IPNs) linked to manufacturer part numbers (MPNs)?
Do we track stock levels and stock prices, and where?
Do we hold supplier offers / negotiated prices?
Can our IT get this data out — via a database, an export function, or an API?
Keep these answers handy: they decide both which integration type fits (Step 2) and which use cases are realistic to start with (Step 3).
Step 2 — Choose your integration type
There are three ways to connect, each more capable than the last. Each one includes everything the tier before it can do.
| CSV Integration | Standard API (recommended starting point for most) | Full API |
What it's for | Getting your core data in, with little to no IT effort | A proper, live integration for the data that matters most | Two-way integration for enterprises and advanced automation |
Direction | Into Luminovo only | Into Luminovo only | Into and out of Luminovo |
How it works | You upload files (manually or on a schedule) | Your ERP/IT connects to Luminovo's REST API | Same API, plus export and advanced sync |
Data it covers | Components (IPN–MPN) and stock | Adds supplier offers, CPNs, custom parts, MOQ/MPQ price breaks, multi-site, customer-restricted stock | Adds data flowing back to your ERP, plus syncing customers, suppliers and assemblies |
Updates | Once per day | Live | Live |
Error visibility | None | Actionable error messages + monitoring | Actionable error messages + monitoring |
IT effort | ~2–4 hours | ~4–10 hours of developer time | Depends on scope |
How to choose
Match it to two things: how much IT capacity you have, and what data you need to move.
Little or no IT capacity, and you only need parts + stock in Luminovo? Start with CSV. It's the quickest way to get going and requires almost no technical work.
You have some developer time and want supplier offers, richer part data, live updates, or multiple sites? Choose Standard API. This is the recommended default — it's the modern, state-of-the-art way to integrate, and it's the foundation everything else builds on.
You want sourcing results to flow back into your ERP (confirmed prices, new part numbers, purchase orders), or you run multiple sites/systems and need advanced syncing? That's Full API.
A note on effort and cost: CSV is the simplest and is free, but it's limited — once-a-day updates, a single stock location, no error feedback, and only the most basic data. The API (Standard or Full) is the recommended path for anyone with even modest developer capacity. Standard and Full API are paid add-on packages that include integration-onboarding support and dedicated specialist hours to help you get set up. Your Customer Success Manager can walk you through what's included and the commercial details.
Not sure which fits? That's exactly the kind of question to bring to your CSM or the Solutions team — it's easier to decide together once you know what your IT can extract.
Step 3 — Choose your use cases
You don't integrate "everything" at once. You pick use cases — specific pieces of data to connect — and add more over time. Each new one makes the next more valuable.
Where most customers get the most value
From experience, the highest-value place to begin is getting your core purchasing data into Luminovo:
Components — your part library (IPN–MPN links). Supported by CSV and API. This is a must-have.
Inventory — stock levels and stock prices. Supported by CSV and API. Also a must-have.
Supplier offers — your negotiated and quoted prices. API only. This is what turns Luminovo from "aware of your parts" into "aware of what they cost you."
Start with these. Together they give Luminovo an accurate picture of your parts, your stock, and your prices — which is what powers faster, better-informed sourcing.
Growing from there (Full API)
Once the core data is flowing in, you can expand:
Sync more master data — customers, suppliers, and assemblies.
Pull sourcing results back into your ERP — this is where two-way integration pays off:
Update confirmed prices and delivery conditions on your parts.
Automatically create new internal part numbers (IPNs) with their MPN and manufacturer.
Create purchase orders in your ERP from Luminovo's sourcing decisions.
Keep price data fresh automatically for your most important parts.
Automate quoting, planning, and negotiation prep as your integration matures.
For the full menu of what's possible, see the API documentation and Luminovo API — common use cases. If you have an automation in mind but aren't sure how to build it, reach out to your CSM or the Solutions team.
Step 4 — Map your data
Once you know which use cases you're building, work out which of your ERP fields feed each one. This is where you translate "our data" into "Luminovo's data."
For API use cases:
Look at the fields Luminovo expects in the API documentation.
Identify which of those you have in your ERP or data warehouse.
Map one to the other. You can use this template to organise the work: Luminovo API Mapping.xlsx (attached to the published article).
Review the mapping with a procurement expert on your side to confirm every field lands in the right place.
For the CSV route, mapping is simpler: you just provide the data in the format described in the CSV/JSON upload documentation.
Step 5 — Upload and test
Now get data flowing and check it looks right.
Get your API key from Luminovo's API settings page. Don't see it? Ask your CSM to enable it.
Where to test: You can test uploads directly on your live system if there's no real production data being actively used by your procurement team. If your tenant already holds production data, it's safer to test in a separate tenant — contact support@luminovo.com if you need one.
The exact testing steps differ between the CSV and API routes and are covered in their respective documentation.
Step 6 — Automate it
Once you've tested and verified the data, put the exchange on a schedule so it stays current on its own.
CSV: a once-per-day upload is enough.
API — component import: this runs as a daily batch (processed overnight), so a daily send is the right cadence.
API — all other endpoints: these are live. Send or pull data on demand or on schedule, whenever you need it.
Step 7 — Monitor quality
Integration isn't "set and forget." After it's running, keep an eye on how well your parts are linking in the component library, and make adjustments when something looks off. Good, clean data in means good sourcing results out.
Your first steps, in short
If you take nothing else from this guide:
Get a rough picture of your ERP data and what IT can extract (Step 1).
Talk to your CSM about which tier fits — CSV to start simply, Standard API for a real integration (Step 2).
Begin with components, inventory, and supplier offers — the highest-value data to connect first (Step 3).
Expand into two-way (Full API) flows later, once the basics are solid.
You don't have to plan the whole journey today. Getting your core data into Luminovo is a solid first milestone — everything else builds on it.
Who to talk to
Which tier and use cases fit us, data mapping, setup help: your Customer Success Manager or the Solutions team.
A separate test tenant: support@luminovo.com.
Technical reference: API documentation.