Understanding the Electronic Data Interchange System

Electronic Data Interchange is the paperless, computer to computer exchange of business transactions, such as purchase orders and invoices, in a standard format with standard content. As such, it is an important part of an electronic commerce strategy.

Electronic commerce is a means to extend business processes to include suppliers, customers, and employees in a fully integrated supply chain. It can yield shorter cycle times, more efficient inventory management, and better knowledge sharing throughout the extended enterprise. To see these benefits, you need an integrated enterprise application system that you can extend and customize for the supply chain, while still maintaining enterprise information integrity.

The JD Edwards EnterpriseOne system includes features for enterprise resource planning that enable you to use electronic commerce for these business interactions:

Business Interaction	Description
Business to business	Planning, processing, and tracking information across the supply chain
Business to consumer	Connecting the company with the customers
Business to employee	Exchanging information and automating key business processes

EDI is a crucial part of business to business commerce. When computers exchange data using EDI, the data is transmitted in EDI Standard format so that it is recognizable by other systems using the same EDI Standard format. Companies who use EDI have their own translator software package to convert the data from the EDI Standard format to their computer system's format. Companies that exchange EDI data are called trading partners.

As an interface between the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne system data and the translator software, the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Data Interface for Electronic Data Interchange system (code 47) acts as a staging area for moving data in and out of the application systems. In addition to exchanging EDI data, you can use this data interface for general interoperability and electronic commerce needs where a file based interface meets the business requirements.

Some benefits of using the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Data Interface for Electronic Data Interchange system are:

• Shorter fulfillment cycle.

• Reduced errors.

• Increased information integrity through reduced manual data entry.

• Reduced clerical work for the manual manipulation of documentation.

• Increased competitiveness in the marketplace.

• Improved delivery of goods and services.

• Decreased time in generating payments and invoices.

• Decreased time in recording receipts of payment.

The JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Data Interface for Electronic Data Interchange system integrates with these JD Edwards EnterpriseOne systems to enable data exchange with the trading partner:

• Sales Order Management

• Procurement

• Inventory Management

• Accounts Payable

• Accounts Receivable

• Demand Scheduling Execution