Custom EAN codebook integration development
In the EAN code book you look up the EAN code of an electricity or gas connection, together with the grid operator it belongs to. The code book is provided by EDSN, the organisation set up by the grid operators to exchange energy data. EDSN also publishes an API for it, described with an OpenAPI specification. Appfront builds the integration that uses that search function in your own systems, so employees and customers no longer have to look up and retype EAN codes by hand.
What is an integration with the EAN code book?
An integration with the EAN code book retrieves the EAN code of the electricity or gas connection for an address, along with the grid operator it belongs to. Every connection to the energy grid has such a code, and anyone who wants to transfer, register or manage a connection needs it. The code book is provided by EDSN, Energie Data Services Nederland, set up in 2007 by the grid operators to make energy data accessible and exchangeable. EDSN's website states that in the EAN code book you can look up the details of an energy connection and the grid operator.
Alongside the website there is the EANCodeBoek API. According to EDSN's OpenAPI description, it is intended for searching via an API instead of scraping the website. You can retrieve the grid operators active in a postcode, with their EAN code and whether they supply electricity, gas or both. You can search connections by product and postcode, optionally with house number and addition. For each connection the response includes, among other things, the EAN code, the address, the product, the grid operator, the grid area, the BAG ID and any linked main connection. For the terms of use, the description refers to EDSN's disclaimer, which gives no guarantee of accuracy, completeness or timeliness. Meter readings and consumption are not in the code book.
We build this custom because the question rarely ends at the lookup. An address in your CRM is written differently from the one in the code book, a property has several connections, or a postcode returns nothing. The integration normalises the address, picks the right connection when there are several results or puts the choice to a member of staff, and places the EAN code and grid operator in the right spot in your system. A lookup that returns nothing ends up in a list with the reason alongside, so nobody has to invent a code.
From the address
EAN code found automatically.
With grid operator
Grid area and product included.
Checked
Doubts go to a member of staff.
How we build your integration with the EAN code book
We start with your process: where EAN codes are currently looked up, by whom, which system they end up in and what goes wrong when a code is incorrect. Then we build the integration with the EANCodeBoek API and test it with a set of real addresses from your data, including the tricky ones: new builds, apartments, commercial premises with multiple connections. We first build the lookup for a single process, such as an application or a new customer, and let you review the results. Other processes follow once that works well. After that, we monitor the integration for changes to the EDSN API.
Where codes come from today.
With real addresses.
Application or new customer.
Go-live, monitoring, and maintenance when things change.
What an integration with the EAN code book actually does
The components below appear in almost every integration with the EAN code book. Which ones you need depends on your processes and on the systems the codes need to end up in.
Search
By postcode and house number.
Grid operator
Per postcode and product.
Address check
Spellings aligned.
Selection
Multiple connections presented for choice.
Storage
Code in the right place.
Log
Every lookup can be traced.
Who we build an integration with the EAN code book for
The integration is intended for organisations that regularly need the EAN codes of connections and currently look them up by hand. The more addresses and processes, the greater the return.
Energy suppliers
Code at sign-up.
Installers
Grid operator at the application.
Cooperatives
Members' connections.
Software builders
Lookup within your software.
Technology and integrations
This page is about looking up EAN codes and grid operators in the EAN code book. If you are building a complete system for energy supply, see our page on energy software; for cooperatives with members and projects there is software for energy cooperatives, and for insight into consumption, the page on energy management. Because the API is described with an OpenAPI specification, our OpenAPI integration is also relevant. You can read about our approach at custom software development.
Why Appfront for your integration with the EAN code book?
An EAN code that has been mistyped, an application sent to the wrong grid operator, or a member of staff who opens the code book website for every new customer all cost time and cause delays when signing up and switching. That is what we build on: lookups from your own system, a check when in doubt and a log that shows you where a code came from.
Accurate
Code from the source, not retyped.
Fast
Lookups without switching systems.
Traceable
Origin of every code.
Security and privacy in an integration with the EAN code book
The integration looks up by address and processes the addresses of your customers or members. These addresses are personal data when they relate to an individual, in which case the GDPR applies. The integration sends only the data the API asks for, such as postcode and house number, stores the results on the right record and logs every lookup with its time and result.
The integration runs in a European data centre, with encrypted connections and storage. Because EDSN gives no guarantee of accuracy or timeliness, the integration shows the source and the lookup date when in doubt, and a staff member can confirm or correct a code. We agree with you in advance who in your organisation may change codes.
Frequently asked questions about an EAN code book integration
Questions that energy suppliers, installers and software vendors ask before they start.
A public search function that lets you look up the EAN code of an electricity or gas connection and the associated grid operator. It is provided by EDSN, the organisation set up by the grid operators for the exchange of energy data.
Yes. EDSN publishes the EANCodeBoek API, described with an OpenAPI specification. According to that description, the API is intended for searching without scraping the website. You look up grid operators by postcode and connections by product, postcode and, optionally, house number.
Per connection, among other things: the EAN code, the address, whether it concerns electricity or gas, the grid operator, the grid area, the BAG ID and any linked main connection. Meter readings and consumption are not included.
For terms and licensing, the API description refers to EDSN's disclaimer. Among other things, it states that EDSN gives no guarantee of the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of the information. For questions about usage, EDSN's service desk is the point of contact.
Then the integration puts the address on a list with the reason, for example a different spelling or an address that is not yet in the code book. A staff member can check the address and have it searched again. A code is never guessed.
Energy software is a complete system for, say, supply, invoicing or customer management. An integration with the EAN code book is one component: reliably looking up EAN codes and grid operators. That integration can be built into an existing system.
For organisations that often need EAN codes, for example with every new customer, request or installation, or that use those codes in multiple systems. If you only look up a code occasionally, the EAN code book website is enough.
Looking up EAN codes from your own systems?
Tell us where you currently look up EAN codes and which system they end up in. We will show how an EAN code book integration takes that over.