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EDI for Logistics
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is the electronic transmission of data between your company and the businesses/trading partners with whom you are working. An agreed-upon data structure is used to transfer data from one computer to another without human involvement. Use of EDI will reduce the manual labor of data entry, thus increasing productivity and reducing data-entry errors.
EDI technology and usage is not new, in fact, one of the first uses was implemented at Heathrow Airport in London in 1971 to assist in the customs clearance process. There are hundreds of pre-defined EDI specifications for a multitude of different industries. From schools to banks to government agencies to manufacturers to medical facilities to transportation the list goes on.
At Allyn International, we work with our clients to implement the usage of EDI for their transportation needs. The EDI processes that Allyn is currently using are the EDI 204, EDI 214, EDI 315, EDI 990 and EDI 997.
EDI 204 allows Allyn to tender contract loads for our clients via EDI
EDI 990 confirms that carrier will accept or reject the shipment
EDI 997 confirms that EDI 204 was processed correctly by the carrier
Carriers will provide shipment status messages via EDI 214 for ground transportation and EDI 315 for air and ocean transportation
When our Operations team sends a request to tender a shipment to a carrier via EDI, it eliminates the need for the router to call or email the carrier. The carrier then responds via EDI rather than calling or emailing. Based upon the carrier’s response, our transportation management system (ALA) will automatically send the shipping paperwork to the carrier. Again, eliminating the need for the router to email the carrier. When the shipment is picked up and when it delivers the carrier can transmit an EDI status message to us with the dates of occurrences which will update into ALA. This eliminates manual entering of the dates. By reducing manual intervention we can increase productivity and accuracy for Allyn and for our carriers.
Allyn continues to research other EDI protocols that will be beneficial to our clients and we will expand our usage as needed.
If you have any questions about the EDI process or if you would like additional information, please call Allyn International at (239) 489-9900 or email us at sales@allynintl.com.
Contributor: Pamela Leever
References:
ANSI ASC X12, EDI Transactions For Supply Chain and Transportation Logistics
https://www.truecommerce.com/resources/what-is-edi
About Allyn International
Allyn International is dedicated to providing high quality, customer centric services and solutions for the global marketplace. Allyn's core products include transportation management, logistics sourcing, freight forwarding, supply chain consulting, tax management and global trade compliance. Allyn clients range from small local businesses to Fortune 500 firms. Allyn conducts business in more than 20 languages and has extensive experience in both developed and emerging markets. Highly trained experts are positioned throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. Allyn’s regional headquarters are strategically located in Fort Myers, Florida, U.S.A., Shanghai, P.R. China and Prague, Czech Republic. For more information, visit www.allynintl.com.