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EDI as a Service, a winning model in the digital transformation of your business

Blog, EDI, EDI2XML

This post was updated to reflect current trends and information.

One major advantage of the digital transformation and the massive adoption of the cloud, is the initiation of a serious discussion between business owners and executives from one side and their IT service providers from another side, for an outsourced IT services based on the best technology available today, at a reasonable price.

IT-outsourcing in the Digital Transformation era

Companies are more and more outsourcing their IT services to service providers. This process was motivated by customers’ desire to optimize their IT costs. There are different outsourcing models: hardware, software, data warehousing and storage, …

For many years we have seen the growing interest of the market towards a model called Software as a Service (SaaS). Although the term SaaS means only “software”, in fact, it is the most developed (to date) model of IT outsourcing, combining all the components listed above

What is Software as a Service?

Software as a service (SaaS) is one of the forms of cloud computing, a service model in which subscribers are provided with ready-made application software fully serviced by the provider. The vendor in this model manages the application, giving customers access to functions from client devices, usually through a mobile application or web browser.

The advantage of the SaaS model

The main advantage of the SaaS model for the consumer is the absence of costs associated with the installation, updating, and maintenance of the equipment and software that is being used by the company.

In the SaaS model:

The application is adapted for remote use
One application is used by several clients (the application is communal)
Payment is charged either in the form of a monthly subscription fee or on the basis of the volume of transactions
Technical support of the application is included in the payment
Updating and upgrading the application is quick and transparent for customers.

As with all forms of cloud computing, customers do not pay for ownership of the software, but for renting it (i.e. using it through a mobile application or Web interface).

Thus, as opposed to the classic software licensing scheme, the customer has relatively small recurring costs and does not need to invest heavily in the acquisition of the application program and the necessary Software and hardware for its deployment, and then maintain its performance, for the years to come.

EDI translation software in the Digital Transformation

Many entrepreneurs realize that using Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is a necessary condition to do successful business. Even in some cases, there is no choice, it is mandatory to be EDI compliant in order to trade with big channels like Walmart, Costco, Canadian Tire or Target. Businesses are looking for the most profitable and cost effective EDI solution to implement.

Read: EDI X12, EDIFACT, CSV, XML – Why is a conversion necessary?

EDI benefits are obvious in business. One of the major advantages of EDI, is that it can quickly improve and develop an enterprise bottom line.

If the company is EDI compliant, it will be able to expand its turnover without a significant influx of new employees. Certainly, another advantage of EDI is that it reduces human errors, increases efficiency and the quality of information.

Read: EDI converter: Benefits of converting between EDI and XML

What are the advantages of using EDI as a Service?

EDI2XML as a Service is an ideal solution for companies of all sizes and from various industries who seek to implement an edi solution to comply with their trading partners and want to simplify the entire integration of their EDI in their Systems and processes.

With EDI2XML as a service, edi is converted to xml and from there, it can be transformed to any format that our client is capable of working with and integrate into his own CRM/ERP.

There is no need for our clients to install any software or hardware. We manage the entire workflow of integration, from setting up new partner, configuring and testing EDI documents and certification with the trading partner. We can even go farther by integrating directly into our clients’ ERP or CRNM systems using certified connectors from the Manufacturer (i.e. SAP, JDE, Microsoft AX…). As a result, our clients have a quick and painless fully integrated solution, and continuous streamlined EDI and data flow between all partners.

Choose to outsource your digital transformation projects

Whatever EDI converter you are looking for: edifact to xml, convert edi to xml online, convert x12 to xml online, etc. We have the best EDI Solution for your business. So, do you want to exchange electronic documents with customers, suppliers, and business partners, with a cost effective and optimal way? Then you have to check EDI2XML as a Services live.

June 19, 2018/0 Comments

EDI Translation Software “On-premises” or “As a Service”

Blog

This post was updated to reflect current trends and information.

As soon as there is a requirement for EDI implementation and integration, company executives, along with their IT personnel, begin by determining how they will comply with their EDI business partner to exchange EDI documents. They will need to acquire EDI translation software, initiate testing, and so on. This however is a complex and lengthy process, which many executives do not look forward to. Difficult questions arise, such as, “Shall we outsource to an EDI service provider? Shall we do it ourselves “on-premises”? Shall we do the translation and conversion of EDI “as a service” using an outside provider?

Which of these options is the best and most affordable way to go?”

Why Do We Need To Translate EDI

As you already know, EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) is the standard to exchange business data between business partners in a very proprietary EDI format. Your business partner would send data such as a P/O (EDI 850), an Inventory Inquiry/Advice (EDI 846), or any other EDI transaction, based on his own terminology of business parameters. It is then up to the “receiving party” to take the sender’s EDI data and information, translate it into a well-understood format, which the receiver’s system will be able to use and process. With EDI2XML, we translate the EDI format of incoming documents to a much simpler, more structured XML format so humans, namely the IT developers, and systems can easily work with.

Translate EDI “On-premises”

Normally, translating incoming EDI documents “on-premises” requires a lot of parameters before launching such a project. As a starting point, a good level of expertise in EDI, EDI communication, and systems integration is required. Integrators should also have a fairly advanced knowledge and expertise in how the company’s software system (ERP, CRM, etc.) works and how to integrate and push data into that system.

While the ability to integrate with the most commonly used ERP and CRM systems does not create any major challenge for experienced IT developers, the main problem is having a high level of proficiency in EDI implementation.

Another major task for the “on-premises” translation is, in most cases, the need for the company to invest on hardware, software licenses, and services (internet, dedicated IP, VAN) to be able to exchange EDI documents with their business partner.

Useful Reading: What are the advantages of using EDI2XML?

Translate EDI “As a Service”

With the emergence of cloud-based IT services and the affordable plans offered by service providers, the ability to translate EDI “as a service” in the “cloud” and deliver the end result to the ultimate destination, has become a more productive approach.

Typically, an EDI service provider offering EDI translation “as a service” will:

– Act as an intermediary layer between the EDI sender and EDI receiver

– Receives the EDI incoming document (i.e. 850, 860, 864,…) on behalf of the “ultimate receiver”

– Extract the data received in EDI format and translate it into a standard format (i.e. XML)

– Transmit the XML data to its ultimate destination for Integration OR integrate directly into the software system of the ultimate receiver.

To send EDI documents out, the EDI service provider will be acting also as an intermediary hub between business partners and do the following:

– Receive data in XML format to be sent to the business partner from the sender through FTP or sFTP

– Translate data received and convert from XML to EDI format

– Transmit that EDI data to the destination

Dive into the world of EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) with our insightful video explanation. Explore the video

Advantages of EDI Translation “As a Service”

With the EDI translation in the cloud offered as a service, companies have a lot of great advantages:

– Quick implementation cycle

– Secured and proven platform to exchange EDI with partners

– No initial investment on hardware or software licenses

– Get up-and-running quickly: your projects are on-time and on-budget

– Use the wealth of expertise your EDI service provider has in EDI

– Let your team of IT professionals focus on integrating XML files into your system rather than learning EDI

– Predictable and static recurring monthly fee for the service

– Possibility to move to “on premises” mode any time

– Ability to integrate to your system directly without your internal IT resources

Discover how you can streamline and simplify your EDI projects with EDI2XML Fully Managed Services

The Best EDI Solution

Most companies usually lean towards the “on-premises” option when they have “internal policies” and security measures in place or are a large enterprise with their own team of IT experts.

The “as a service” option is much more advantageous for small to mid-sized enterprises, where they may have a lower number of exchanged EDI transactions.

As the “as a service” option’s low initial investment and quick deployment are attractive features, every situation is different and should be dealt with on a case-by-case basis with one of our EDI experts prior to making a final decision.

January 21, 2014/6 Comments

Convert EDI to XML – the Winning SaaS Option

Blog

This post was updated to reflect current trends and information.

In today’s competitive world of eCommerce, mobility, and electronic business transactions, small and mid-sized enterprises are facing more and more challenges with “integration”. It is not an option anymore for an SME to be able to communicate and exchange business data electronically with its partners; it is a “necessity”.

Major retailers, manufacturers, transport companies, health institutions, and insurance companies in North America are requesting, more than ever before, that their trading partners comply and become capable of exchanging electronically business related data.

Whether it be a purchase order (850), an advance shipping notice (856), an invoice (810) or a payment remittance advise (820), all these EDI documents are becoming essential to the daily activities of an SME.

More often than not, SMEs do not contest the demand to comply with these methods of communication enforced by the “major players”, considering the flexibility and efficiency EDI delivers for both business partners in the long run. However, during the process of beginning an EDI project, a lot of pressure is put on the executives and employees of an SME for the following reasons:

Limited IT resources

In general, SMEs have a small team of IT people that are busy running their day-to-day operations. Adding EDI integration projects on their shoulder complicates their lives. In some smaller businesses, there may not even be an IT technician on staff.

Limited or No EDI experience

Even when an SME has enough IT resources, EDI expertise is very rare and hard to find. IT developers and programmers tend to follow the new trends and work with the most recent technologies of data exchange such as XML or JSON, rather than developing expertise with an old complex protocol like EDI.

Expensive EDI consultants

When a company does not have enough expertise in EDI, normally they call the services of outside consultants and developers for such needs. It is not a secret that experienced EDI consultants are very expensive nowadays.

Time consuming to build

Assuming the internal resources and EDI expertise exist within an SME, it takes a long time to build an EDI solution that integrates seamlessly with their own internal ERP systems. In fact, it takes much longer to stabilise such a solution, in the sense that every department in the company will be going through the same cycle of “trials and errors” as the developers, before one could say that the solution is perfect. It could take months or even years to have a stable and strong EDI software solution.

The above points make an EDI integration project a burden for an SME. It can become a very expensive step that most companies cannot afford especially in this economic time. Even worse, it is an option that they cannot escape from if they want to do business with big players, like Wal-Mart, Amazon, etc.

Read: EDI2XML | SAAS EDI translation software

Therefore, what is an alternative option that could provide the possibility to comply with EDI, without incurring the upfront huge investments on labour, software licences, and hardware architecture? Which option will increase efficiency during and after the implementation stage?

Convert EDI to XML “as a Service”

In the last few years, the model of using services and software under the SaaS model (Software as a Service) where companies and individuals pay a monthly subscription fee for its use has become very popular. Many companies are adopting this model for their IT needs since it has been proven to be secure and reliable.

The same concept of “service” exists with EDI also!

EDI2XML

When an SME subscribes to this service, it means that it selected the shortest possible path to integrate EDI into their system, using the most cost effective manner:

No need to install any EDI software or licences on premises (on their servers)
No need for expensive EDI consultants
No need to hire in-house developers with high level of EDI experience

Any integrator with a decent knowledge in data structures, such XML, and an understanding of the architecture of the company’s system and how to integrate external data within, will be able to accomplish such projects on time and on budget.

Basically, EDI2XML would be used as a hub for converting the data:

From EDI to XML in the case for incoming documents
From XML to EDI in the case for outgoing documents

With this model in place, all the complexity related to EDI mapping will be eliminated. SMEs will have easier and better control at the application level, using a structured format like XML.

In addition to the above, the EDI2XML team will support the developers in their projects, by providing assistance and help on how to read and interpret the EDI2XML formatted EDI.

Free EDI and System Integration consultation

December 4, 2013/0 Comments