EDI interface

Manual purchasing process
without EDI connection

A plant engineering company handles its orders largely manually. The process begins with the order, which can be placed via various channels such as email or telephone. Questions about the order status can only be clarified through time-consuming follow-up calls, as there is no automated status update. The supplier then enters the order into their ERP system – this is the first break in the data flow, and typos or transposed numbers can occur.

Order confirmations, which can be received by the plant manufacturer via various channels, must be checked manually, and the final invoices, which arrive by email or letter, are also individually checked and booked.

In summary, the entire order processing is dependent on the working hours and availability of individual employees, and involves many manual and often slow approval and authorization steps between various departments such as back office, administration, accounting, and purchasing. Numerous documents are still printed for verification purposes, and evaluations can only be carried out after the manual review and data entry into the system are complete.

Conclusion: The entire process appears to be time-consuming and prone to errors.

Digitized purchasing process
with EDI connection

A plastics manufacturer has fully digitized its ordering process, benefiting from a seamless, paperless workflow. Orders are placed using the EDIFACT/EANCOM format, allowing all data to be transferred directly to the relevant systems without any media breaks. Thanks to this automatic data transfer, manual typing is eliminated, thus preventing typos and transposed numbers.

The order status is automatically updated and can be viewed at any time, eliminating the need for follow-up phone calls. Order confirmations and invoices are also transmitted digitally and automatically processed, provided there are no discrepancies. The system immediately detects any discrepancies and sends error messages for review, thus limiting manual checks to exceptional cases.

Since the process is no longer tied to the working hours of specific individuals and the system is available around the clock, order processing is significantly accelerated. Automated approval processes and the relief of accounting, back office, and administration ensure that more resources are freed up for core tasks. Furthermore, up-to-date analyses are available immediately after data transfer, which supports faster decision-making.

Conclusion: The digital process is efficient, low-error and saves considerable time and costs.

Option 1: 
Via electronic catalog

The jointly defined individual product range will be provided to you as a static electronic catalog by DEXIS Belgium and stored directly in your ERP system.

Option 2: 
Via OCI interface

With an OCI connection, customers can also request product data directly from the supplier. A combination of EDI and OCI offers many advantages: An OCI connection involves accessing product data, which is then transferred to the customer's ERP system. The customer's normal ordering process with the supplier remains unchanged. An EDI connection allows various business documents to be exchanged electronically between business partners.