EDI: Effectively Linking Customers And Suppliers

Manufacturers, particularly automotive parts suppliers are using electronic data interchange (EDI) to streamline large volumes of information flow. This streamlined information flow produces greater effectiveness in external partnerships. In the early days of EDI use, many companies provided minimum support in meeting customer demands. This paper describes the support system required to integrate a manufacturer's release management, material planning, and supplier scheduling processes to harness the power of EDI.