Future proof your EDI and unleash growth


Business rarely stands still, but the current and anticipated rate of change is almost unprecedented – the only certainty is that things will get more complicated. With this in mind, advocating the widespread adoption of EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) may surprise some. They may regard it as a decades-old technology, requiring major investment, understood only by a few IT enthusiasts. They may see it as only being economic for a few ‘top of the chain’ companies and their major suppliers exchanging large quantities of very similar messages?

But they would be wrong. EDI is moving onto the Cloud as a managed service or Software as a Service model. Not only does this make EDI affordable and manageable to firms of all sizes and capabilities, but it also future proofs one of the most important business capabilities: the timely communication of accurate information in a usable form to partners that need it.

As a managed service EDI future proofs in a number of ways. First comes its neutrality towards standards and protocols, be they old favourites such as Odette or EDIFact, newer standards such as PEPPOL (in the public sector) or the open standards being developed. The service manager or VAN provider ensures that all these formats, upgrades and developments are mutually translatable, and the cost of that is amortised over many thousands of users. New business partners enjoy the same reassurance. That is particularly important as the pioneer generation of in-house EDI specialists, who understand both IT and business processes, are hitting retirement age and not being replaced.

Even in B2B, the trend is towards customers placing smaller orders, and in greater numbers, often directly rather than through a dealer or wholesaler.

EDI users also look to be future proofed against the consequences of growth, both in the size of their overall business and, more pertinently, in the volumes of business data to be handled. Even in B2B, the trend is towards customers placing smaller orders, and in greater numbers, often directly rather than through a dealer or wholesaler. The volume of orders and invoices, carrier bookings, manufacturing or warehouse instructions and advance shipping notices grows at least in proportion. A firm that cannot handle these increased message volumes efficiently will find its growth stifled.

Transform your approach to supply chain management

Talk to an Expert

RELATED ARTICLES

Why Scalable EDI is Integral to Rapid Business Growth

How to Pick the Right EDI File Transfer Protocol

An Introduction to OFTP2 (Odette File Transfer Protocol)

What are the Costs of EDI Implementation?

What is PEPPOL?

A Guide to EDI Protocols

EDI VAN Costs: Get the Right Solution for your Business

How Much Does EDI Cost?

How Do On-Premise EDI Solutions Work?

Our Plan at Data Interchange to Change EDI and Supply Chain Management

Integrating EDI with your ERP

In-house vs Managed Service EDI

What is an API Integration? And how does it affect EDI?

Epicor Acquires EDI Provider Data Interchange

6 Benefits of EDI in the Logistics Industry

4 Challenges Facing the Logistics Industry and How to Overcome Them

Top EDI Solution Providers in 2023

Solving Supply Chain Problems in the Logistics Industry

B2B EDI Integration Best Practices in 2023

How to Choose The Right EDI Provider in 2022

Supply Chain Analytics Trends in 2022

Future-proof your business: Take Advantage of Market Growth

Announcement: Andrew Filby becomes CEO of Data Interchange

7 Advantages of EDI in The Automotive Industry

Consumer Expectations cause Demand for Integrated Data

How to Optimise Your Automotive Supply Chain Processes

Post-Pandemic Supply Chain Challenges Increase the Pressure

EDI Made Simple for the Automotive Industry

Overcoming Supply Chain Visibility Issues in the Automotive Industry

Complex Supply Chain Problems and Simple Solutions

Supply Chain Flexibility: Why your customers need it

5 Automotive Supply Chain Challenges Facing the Industry

Supplier Performance Management Reimagined in 2023

How to Unite Emerging Supply Chain Management Technology Trends

Digital Supply Chain Trends Impacting 2021 and Beyond

Meet the Team: Marketing

Supplier Management Best Practices after COVID-19

The Future of EDI: Looking Beyond 2025

The top three supply chain data exchange requirements

The Advantages of EDI in E-Commerce: How to Gain a Competitive Advantage Online in 2021

A Crash Course on EDI Industry Standards: ANSI x12 vs EDIFACT vs OFTP and more

What is EDI Mapping?

What is EDI: The History and Future of Electronic Data Interchange

The Future of the Automotive Supply Chain

Supplier Relationship Management: How to reduce risk and improve performance

How to Manage Global Supply Chain Complexities in 2021

How EDI-as-a-Service Changes Supply Chain Best Practices in 2021

What is the Future of Supply Chain Management in 2021?

How to Overcome Supply Chain Risk in 2021

Agile Supplier Onboarding: Supply Chain Security in Uncertain Times

The impact of failed EDI on Supply Chain

How to Improve your Supply Chain Strategy Ready for 2021

Cloud-Based EDI Solutions vs On-Premise

Different Types of EDI Compared

5 Most Common EDI Implementation Issues and How to Solve Them

Are your EDI documents ready for the new EU/UK customs border?

B2B Integration Challenges

EDI vs API: Bridge the B2B connectivity gap

Ten things to look for in an EDI Managed Service Provider

World Mental Health Day 2020

Logicalis & Data Interchange – partnering for success

EDI – A data integration service critical to business success

Joining forces with SnapLogic: bringing together market leading iPaaS and EDI solutions

Joining Data Interchange: My lockdown experience

Data Interchange announces strategic partnership with SmarterPay

Access new trading partners quickly for COVID-19 support

Keeping supply chains moving

Our Web EDI solution gets a makeover

Coronavirus: Our Business Continuity Plan

With love from Data Interchange ♥

A new decade, renewed ambition and the next generation

Brexit and EDI

Data Interchange transform their Support service for an improved customer experience

Interview: An update on Data Interchange’s new CEO, Robert Steiner

Data Interchange appoints Robert Steiner as new CEO

MQ messages over ENX – Renault

Five key questions for your EDI provider

Data Interchange at the Odette Conference 2018

How to select the right EDI provider

EDI: the Supply chain performance enhancer

Taking cost out of the chain

Non-EDI users held up in the mail

Over 41% of companies at risk without EDI

​Consolidating VAN providers

Increase visibility and productivity of supply chain logistics with Data Interchange’s B2B integration solutions

Data Interchange wins large business of the year award

Data Interchange launch new Support Portal

Data Interchange will be showcasing our EDI solution offerings and promoting the benefits of MMOG/LE

Metaldyne receive special recognition from Ford for 11th consecutive year

Making the move to cloud based EDI Solutions

Top 5 reasons to switch to EDI Managed Services

Data Interchange to power QAD Managed EDI On Demand