BETHESDA, Md. – The Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA) has announced the release of version 6.5 of the Product Information Exchange Standard (PIES). Included in the latest version of PIES is full support for the exchange of coded product attributes, increased capability to express market copy and additions to the recognized media types of digital assets.
 
“The ability to provide robust product information, including images and other digital assets, is a critical differentiator and can provide significant sales and margin lift to those companies that master these techniques,” said Scott Luckett, chief information officer, AAIA. “As more business is conducted online without the benefit of advice from a parts pro, vivid electronic product information is essential to selling the right product the first time and keeping it sold.”
 
The documentation of PIES version 6.5 has undergone restructuring to eliminate ambiguity and inconsistency, according to AAIA. Restructuring of the "Market Copy," "Product Attribute" and "Kit" segments contribute to added capability. Almost all PIES elements from the previous version continue to exist in version 6.5, but due to the re-sequencing of specific elements, care should be taken to update PIES mapping and software tools, the association advises. PIES version 6.5 was released to the industry for review and comment in April. Minor corrections have been incorporated in the final specification.
 
PIES defines the industry-recognized best practices for the management and exchange of more than 250 elements of information about an automotive product. PIES is the preferred format and method of exchange for product information with all of the leading automotive wholesale and retail chains. PIES is an open industry standard specification available at no cost at http://aftermarket.org/Technology.
 
For more information, e-mail [email protected].