The jan/san & packaging attributes buyers filter on — and most catalogs miss
Jan/San and packaging buyers filter by dilution ratio, EPA reg number, and case pack, not marketing copy. Here's how to structure the data so it survives search.
A distributor selling floor care chemicals, disinfectants, and packaging supplies is really selling a spec sheet with a barcode. Buyers on procurement portals, and increasingly AI answer engines fielding "what's a Green Seal certified neutral cleaner that dilutes 1:256," don't filter on adjectives. They filter on structured values. Most Jan/San catalogs still bury those values inside a paragraph of marketing copy, which means the SKU never shows up in a filtered search even when it's the right product.
Why this category is unusually attribute-dependent
Jan/San and packaging sit at an intersection few other categories share: regulatory data (EPA registration, kill claims), chemistry data (dilution ratio, pH, active ingredient percentage), sustainability certification (Green Seal, EcoLogo, Safer Choice), and physical packaging data (case pack, ply, core size) all have to live on the same product record. Miss one axis and the SKU drops out of an entire filter path, even if the product itself is right for the job.
This isn't hypothetical. GS1's own guidance on packaging hierarchies notes that a change to case pack quantity or pallet configuration requires a distinct GTIN, because downstream systems key ordering, receiving, and pricing off that exact packaging level — see GS1's explanation of GTIN packaging hierarchy. If a distributor's feed collapses "each" and "case" into one ambiguous field, the buyer's ERP either orders the wrong quantity or can't place the order at all.
The attributes that actually drive filters
Chemical / performance attributes
| Attribute | Why it matters | Typical source |
|---|---|---|
| Dilution ratio | Determines cost-per-use and whether it fits an existing dispensing system | Product label, TDS |
| pH range | Facilities teams filter by pH for floor type and surface compatibility | SDS |
| Active ingredient % | Compliance and reorder matching | SDS, label |
| Form (concentrate, RTU, wipe) | Filter buyers narrow by immediately | Label |
| Flash point / VOC content | Required for shipping class and green building filters | SDS |
Regulatory attributes (disinfectants specifically)
| Attribute | Why it matters | Typical source |
|---|---|---|
| EPA registration number | Confirms the product is a legally registered pesticide, not just a cleaner | EPA label, EPA's registered disinfectants list |
| Pathogen kill claims | Facilities and healthcare buyers filter on specific organisms (e.g., C. diff, norovirus) | EPA master label |
| Contact / dwell time | Shorter dwell time is a real differentiator buyers filter on directly | EPA master label — see explainer on master labels and contact time |
| Surface compatibility | Excludes SKUs that would damage a listed surface | Label |
Certification / sustainability attributes
| Attribute | Why it matters | Typical source |
|---|---|---|
| Green Seal / EcoLogo / Safer Choice status | Institutional and government RFPs often mandate a certified SKU | Green Seal certified product listings |
| Fragrance-free flag | Hospitals, schools, sensitive environments filter this as a hard requirement | Label, cert docs |
Packaging / logistics attributes
| Attribute | Why it matters | Typical source |
|---|---|---|
| Case pack quantity (each/case/pallet) | Drives order quantity math and GTIN assignment | Supplier pack spec |
| Ply count / sheet count / core diameter | Paper products are functionally different SKUs at each spec | Supplier spec sheet |
| Unit of measure and pack level | Ambiguity here causes ordering errors downstream | GTIN hierarchy data |
Before / after: a floor cleaner concentrate
Here's a description pulled straight from a typical distributor feed, next to what an enriched record looks like once the same source documents (label, SDS, pack spec) are actually read and structured.
Raw feed description:
"Powerful concentrated floor cleaner, cleans grease and grime, great value, dilutes easily, case of 4."
Enriched attribute record:
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Product form | Concentrate |
| Dilution ratio | 1:256 (general cleaning), 1:64 (heavy soil) |
| pH (concentrate) | 10.5–11.5 |
| Certification | Green Seal GS-37 |
| Fragrance | Fragrance-free |
| VOC content | Below applicable state VOC limits (per SDS) |
| Container size | 1 gallon |
| Case pack | 4 x 1 gal |
| Case GTIN | Distinct from each-level GTIN |
| Compatible surfaces | Sealed VCT, terrazzo, sealed concrete |
| Not recommended for | Unsealed wood, marble |
Ask an answer engine "what floor cleaner concentrate is Green Seal certified and dilutes at 1:256 for daily cleaning" and the raw description never surfaces — none of those tokens exist in it. The enriched record answers the question directly, in the buyer's own filtering language.
Where this data actually comes from
None of this is invented. Dilution ratios and pH come from the technical data sheet and SDS; EPA registration numbers and kill claims come from the registered master label; certification status comes from the certifying body's own published list; case pack and GTIN data come from the supplier's pack spec. The work is extraction and structuring, not guessing — pull the value from the document, score confidence, and flag anything that can't be verified rather than filling it in.
Structuring it so it survives both filters and AI answers
The practical fix is treating each of these as its own attribute field, not a phrase inside a description. That means: separate fields for dilution ratio by use case (not one blended number), a structured EPA reg number field distinct from free-text compliance notes, explicit each/case/pallet levels with their own identifiers, and certification as a controlled value tied to the certifying body rather than a marketing claim. A retailer's or GPO's filter logic, and an AI answer engine's retrieval logic, both depend on the value existing in a field they can query — not on a human reading the paragraph and inferring it.
Where Anglera fits
Your PIM stores the record; Anglera does the work of getting it there. Anglera plugs into Akeneo, Salsify, inriver, or whatever system a distributor already runs (or none, starting from a flat file), pulls the dilution ratios, EPA numbers, certifications, and pack specs out of supplier source documents, quality-scores each value, and gap-fills what's missing — live in weeks, not a multi-year integration. For a category where a missing pH field or an ambiguous case pack can silently remove a SKU from the exact search where it should win, that's the difference between a catalog that ranks and one that doesn't.