Of all the supply chain solutions which we have seen over the last number of decades there are few which have provided the range of benefits which Electronic Data Interchange has been able to. In fact EDI supply chain solutions are actually continuing to evolve and improve, despite the fact that the technology has been around for a long amount of time. Each business within the supply chain must do all that they can in order to find successful solutions, because of the fact that so many other businesses are relying on them doing the very best job that they can.
When it comes to EDI, this is the bare minimum for so many businesses and here are just some of the benefits which this technology can provide.
Less Mistakes
EDI instantly connects businesses to each other and it is an automated way to deal with orders, invoicing, resourcing and delivery of goods. Thanks to the fact that it is automated this ensures that there is a significant reduction in the number of mistakes that are made. Over or under ordering is a real problem that costs money and creates issues with other businesses inside the supply chain. When you strip human interaction out of this it is far more efficient and delivers few, if any, mistakes.
Less Waste
For all of those businesses on the production side of the supply chain, waste is expensive. This is not just with regards to the materials which are used when not needed, but also regarding the man hours and the effort which is put into the production. EDI gives such clearer visibility of demand and this means that companies within the supply chain can plan and position themselves to deliver only what is required, thus minimizing the resources which they use in creating waste.
Positive Relationships
Two businesses doing deals together is not hard but in the supply chain there are often a great number of moving parts and that is where things can get tricky. Through the use of the electronic data interchange however, clear messaging is easy and business can increase their relationships as a result. This is critical to a well run supply chain and EDI helps to deliver this.
Cost Saving
It is not just through the minimizing of waste that EDI can help to save money. The automation of this also creates a big cost saving on labor hours, not to mention the decreased need for resources and materials which would usually have been involved in documentation. The system also provides high level security which ensures that costly data breaches don’t take place and thanks to this increased efficiency which it delivers, companies are able to be far more streamlined. There is no doubt that above all this particular technology is very much a cost saving option for those companies in the chain.
These are just a handful of benefits which businesses can count on when they implement EDI technology.
