When it comes to electronic documents supporting the supply chain, the Advance Ship Notice or 856 is just as important to the order to delivery process as the purchase order itself. While it is a robust document, its main purpose is to communicate back to the buying party what is shipping and when, as well as where it is going.

Spring is now winding down, and I have been admittedly a bit neglectful of my to-do list around the homestead. This February, I had convinced myself to plant a small vegetable garden, make some minor landscaping modifications to the yard, and do some heavy duty de-cluttering inside. With only one month of Spring left, I have only managed to mow the lawn a couple of times and trim a few shrubs. When I woke up this past Saturday morning, I was determined to get at least one of those projects started before the Summer heat of the south was upon me.

A new study by accounting and consulting firm BDO USA looks at concerns tech companies have about their global supply and distribution chains. Supply chains are not to be broken. But there’s plenty of risk that they might, and that risk – or at least concern over that risk – seems to be growing.

EDI is deeply integrated into the overall supply chain, and for some companies simply managing the order process is the only expectation (and result) of the technology. But since the basics are now stable and generally functional there are many opportunities to make advanced use of the processes and the data. For this survey we would like to understand what innovative uses of EDI processes and data are being put to use in your organization.

The survey questions are just basic. Please use the comments section to describe your innovations. And if you are willing to talk with us, please leave an email address and/or phone number where we might contact you for additional details.

Please take the survey by clicking HERE