ETIM is an international standard for classifying technical products. With its standardized structure of clearly defined product classes and characteristics, ETIM enables the flow of technical information within the value chain. It ensures that interaction between B2B partners worldwide is efficient and error-free.

As part of the product classification process, products are first assigned to an ETIM class. This could be the “LED lamp” class, for example. Each class has defined characteristics, such as light color, voltage, power, and socket. These characteristics have fixed values or value ranges. This enables IT systems—i.e., shops, planning tools, BIM systems, and so on—to automatically compare, search, and filter products. An example: A sink could be classified in ETIM under the class “sanitary sink” and have characteristics such as width, material, and mounting type. An LED lamp would have characteristics such as base type, power, light color, and whether it is dimmable.