Solutions For A Connected World
MEDIA KIT EDI • E-COMMERCE • ASN • REMOTE WAREHOUSING S U P P LY C H A I N & L O G I S T I C S M A N A G E M E N T BILL OF LADING • BAR CODED SHIPPING LABELS
www.edisoft.com
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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ABOUT US Vision Contact Awards Testimonials Company Customers Industry Partnerships Case Study
PRODUCTS Product Listing Product Summary Product Summary Product Summary
SERVICES Technical Support Consulting Training
ABOUT US
VISION
Committed to Becoming the Mid-Market Standard Edisoft is dedicated to providing reliable state-of-the-art e-Business solutions that integrate seamlessly with end user accounting software. Edisoft's vision is to make Business-to-Business (B2B) commerce simple and accessible to all companies. Edisoft aims not only to stay with the times, but to drive the leading edge of technology, bringing the competitive advantage to all their end users.
CONTACT US
Address Information EMail: Accounts: Address:
General Inquiries info@edisoft.com Sales: sales@edisoft.com Technical Support: support@edisoft.com accounts@edisoft.com Edisoft Ltd. 980 Tapscott Road Toronto, ON Canada, M1X 1C3 Tel: (416) 299-0030 Fax: (416) 297-1289
AWARDS
ACCPAC Solution Provider of the Year Add-On Product of The Month Edisoft continues to impress both users and critics alike. In January 1999, Edisoft was selected by Computer Associates ACCPAC division 'ACCPACONLINE' as the ACCPAC add-on product of the month. Solution Provider of The Year Edisoft was named ACCPAC International's Solution Provider of the Year 1999/2000 at ACCPAC International's annual conference held in Dallas, Texas. This honour is awarded to the software developer that has displayed excellence in computer software design and support
TESTIMONIALS
Total Customer Focus “Using Edisoft Merchant has saved time, which also saves money. It is so easy to use and with the templates, mapping can be done in half the time that it used to take. Now I don't dread getting any new trading partners like I used to with the old software. Once everything is set up, doing the daily EDI transmissions is just a click away.” Sandy Palmer Ichauway Mills “Edisoft Merchant is a program that is 99% superior to the Desktop EDI program that we had been using previously. Even more impressive are the upgrades and improvements that have been made in the two years that we have been using it. Also, the quality of tech support provided and the unfailing assistance of everyone at Edisoft has made this one of our best software purchases, ever! We can not say enough good things about Edisoft and their software.” Larry Black Matchmaker “Edisoft's product has improved the efficiency of our operations departments more than any other three programs combined. We are extremely happy with the way Edisoft Merchant integrates with our order entry system, thereby reducing the amount of time necessary to process hundreds of orders each month, with much greater accuracy than was experienced before. We are happy to endorse Edisoft Merchant, the program as an EDI solution and Edisoft, the company, as a company interested in solving their customers' needs with good products and good support” Larry Black Hot Glove, Inc.
COMPANY
Total E-Business Focus Founded in 1995, Edisoft's mission was to develop a system that would integrate full-featured electronic data interchange (EDI) with the major microcomputer-based accounting software systems. To achieve this objective, Edisoft assembled a multifaceted team of EDI and software experts in its Metropolitan Toronto headquarters and embarked on an intensive R&D program. The result, the Edisoft Merchant Suite of Products, a system of complete EDI products engineered to work seamlessly with the native databases of the most popular accounting systems. Edisoft is an e-Commerce Business-to-Business (B2B), Application-toApplication electronic solutions developer. Edisoft's mandate as the company name suggests, is to develop, market, and deliver Electronic Commerce solutions, geared especially to the EDI needs of small- to medium-sized enterprises. Edisoft technology delivers intuitive and seamless application-to-application integration for B2B commerce to small- and medium-size enterprises. Products include Edisoft Merchant, Edisoft Merchant Express, integrated advanced ship notice (ASN) with bar code capability, stand-alone ASN, VICS bill of lading, remote warehousing, and trading partner templates that facilitate access to the Global 5000. Edisoft serves a growing number of successful companies throughout North America.
CUSTOMERS
Sample Listing
All company names and logos shown above may be trademarks of their respective holders.
INDUSTRY
Edisoft and the EDI Industry For over 30 years, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) has been used by many large companies to exchange purchase orders, invoices, and other business documents with suppliers and customers. Until recently however, only major companies could afford the large expenditures required to introduce this technology into their organizations. As a result, these firms experienced only limited efficiencies and cost savings since most of the smaller companies within their supply chain were financially unable to adopt these technological innovations. Further gains were impossible without the introduction of lower-cost solutions for small- to medium-sized companies. In the United States, there are approximately 7.2 million small businesses with 100 or fewer employees. Despite the fact that the typical small business employs between only 5 to 25 employees, these small enterprises supply many of the largest companies in the world with finished and unfinished goods. Previous attempts to design and market EDI solutions for this lucrative and under-served class of customers had achieved only marginal success. The less expensive EDI software packages available did not include integration with the smaller accounting systems typically employed in small- to medium-sized firms. Despite their investment, these small companies were now faced with the problem and increased expense of manually entering data into their accounting systems. In many cases, they actually hired additional staff to complete the work. Ultimately, the adoption of electronic commerce solutions by smaller companies was failing.
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INDUSTRY
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Edisoft recognized this fatal flaw and was determined to develop a technology to link popular accounting systems directly to an electronic commerce engine. Edisoft, initially a small company itself, boasted a strong team of experienced software developers, designers, and accountants. Edisoft understood first-hand the myriad of ways in which different businesses operate, set up financial systems, and manage many other logistical details typically overlooked by other EDI solution providers including, GE, Sterling, and IBM. Each business is different in their manufacturing approach as well as the manner in which they deal with their suppliers. For example, a supplier may sell their products to more than one large customer (e.g.: WalMart, Costco, etc.) who in turn distribute to the public. In order to trade with a variety of customers, the supplier must conform to the EDI specifications and business practices of each customer, all of which are quite different. This adds an additional layer of complexity for the supplier. Edisoft developed trading partner template kit technology to help facilitate this need. One template contains support for all documents required by a single customer, allowing compliance with even the most challenging of trading partner requirements. Blair Johnson, a member of faculty with the John Hopkins University in Washington D.C., was previously an EDI channel manager at General Electric (GE). He explains "GE chose to partner with Edisoft because of their innovative business template technology. [These templates] enable their customers to purchase pre-configured modules allowing them to communicate with virtually any supplier they wish." He adds "GE took several weeks and hundreds of person-hours to develop a single module [whereas] Edisoft's process and technology reduced the process cycletime to 1 or 2 days". Edisoft is truly at the leading edge of technology, and continues to bring innovative solutions to the marketplace and ultimately, to each of their end users.
PARTNERSHIPS
Industry-Leading Alliances Edisoft is dedicated to creating partnerships with trading partner hubs, accounting software producers, value added networks (VANs), value added resellers (VARs & dealers), sales and solution partners, and independent software vendors (ISV). Edisoft provides a completely integrated electronic commerce solution for the end user. Edisoft continues to develop these kinds of relationships with other companies to facilitate end-to-end integrated electronic commerce. In today's complex e-commerce landscape, strong partnerships are crucial when providing customers with seamlessly integrated solutions. By building development partnerships with leading accounting software companies and forging strategic alliances with the top VANs in the industry, Edisoft is fueled by a synergy that enables the provision of a complete and integrated electronic commerce solution. Global eXchange Services (NYSE: GE), is one of the largest business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce networks in the world, managing one billion transactions annually for more than 100,000 trading partners. GE struck an agreement with Edisoft to provide software designed to enable small- to medium-sized companies to integrate their back-office systems directly with supply chain networks, such as the GE Global eXchange Services (GXS). Small- to mediumsized enterprises can now eliminate costs by integrating their PCbased accounting systems directly with their supply chain networks.
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PARTNERSHIPS
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Sterling Commerce, a wholly-owned subsidiary of S B C Communications Inc., (NYSE:SBC) is a worldwide leading provider of B2B e-commerce solutions for companies of all sizes. Sterling Commerce's software and service solutions power global e-business communities through its Electronic Trading Network Services, EBusiness Integration Software, and Outsourcing and Professional Services. CTI Communications is a leader in hardware communications solutions and an authorized business partner with leaders such as IBM, Hewlett Packard, and 3COM. CTI Communications provides Edisoft with hardware for bi-synchronous communications which enable Edisoft's end users to seamlessly and effortlessly connect to VANs. Edisoft continues ongoing negotiations to build strategic partnerships that will help deliver quality products to their customers through select distribution channels. Edisoft aims to make their products the standard in electronic commerce through building alliances with other companies that understand the potential of a symbiotic relationship with Edisoft. Edisoft remains committed to working with industry leaders that have vision and are on the cutting edge of technology.
CASE STUDY
Finding the Right Solution Company: Location: Industry: IT Structure: Trading Partners:
G.H. Meiser & Co. Posen, Illinois Automotive - Accessories Windows based, ACCPAC Accounting Pep Boys, Advance Auto, Sears USA
Scenario As a growing company with a fabulous product line, management at G.H. Meiser knew that big changes were coming. Based out of Posen, Illinois they were feeling increasing pressure from their bigger customers to begin trading documents electronically. Then a new relationship with Sears USA brought matters to a head. Sears mandated that its customers must trade electronically and failure to comply within a specified period of time would result in having a thirdparty EDI system imposed on them. Challenge Kerry Shipman, the company's director of engineering, explains what happened: "Our Web-based provider had server/system problems and we had no access for over three weeks. With the expansion of EDI and the proliferation of documents and templates, it was important for us to have control over our own destiny." A desktop solution was needed that provided full functionality and ease of use.
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CASE STUDY
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Solution G.H. Meiser's past experience left it skeptical as to whether it would find a software provider capable of delivering on its urgent needs. That's when they were introduced to Edisoft Merchant and immediately the outlook changed. "I managed to set up Pep Boys for invoice and purchase orders myself after observing Edisoft's technical support setup Advance Auto. It was much easier than the first software system we had used", says Shipman. All of G.H. Meiser's EDI requirements were now fulfilled including Sears' need for the more complicated Advance Ship Notice (856) document. The future looks bright as well: "As we start using the full functionality of Edisoft," says Shipman, "we can start driving EDI to achieve data integration that, in turn, will lead to business efficiencies." Results Increased functionality Satisfied trading partners Savings in time and money Outstanding return on investment (R.O.I.)
PRODUCTS
PRODUCT LIST
The Edisoft Merchant Product suite EDI Core Products Merchant Express (ME) Merchant
Internal Modules/Features ME Report ME Carbon Copy ME Document Alert ME Quotation EDI eCompliance Products
Trading Partner Templates Bar Coded Label Templates
Add-on Modules
e-ASN Visual ASN Bar Coded Shipping Label
VICS BOL Remote Warehouse Manager Edisoft Support Services
Tech Support Services Consulting Services
Edisoft Training Services Reseller Training User Operations Training User Maintenance Training User Implementation Training Introduction to EDI
PRODUCT SUMMARY
Product Descriptions The Edisoft Merchant Product Suite offers out-of-the-box integration with major accounting systems as listed below. All solutions have integrated components, built-in Internet/VAN communications, eBusiness translation, and over 800 pre-configured trading partner document template kits available that are compliant with the Global 5000 EDI requirements. No other EDI system offers this many preconfigured templates ready to meet user's needs, and more are being developed daily. Edisoft's solutions allow businesses to comply with large trading partners without re-keying data between their eBusiness solution and their accounting system.
Accounting System Integration File Level Integration
System Level Integration Microsoft Great Plains Small
Business Manager* Microsoft Great Plains eEnterprise Microsoft Great Plains Dynamics ACCPAC for Windows ACCPAC Plus
MAS 90 / MAS 200* Peachtree Peachtree DOS MYOB Simply Accounting Oracle Financials Quicken* QuickBooks QuickBooks Pro Visual AccountMate* Navision* AS400 Daly Commerce
PRODUCT SUMMARY
Product Descriptions Core EDI Products Edisoft Merchant Express is a one-stop eBusiness tool encompassing both EDI and sales order processing functions. Integrated with popular accounting systems such as MAS90, MAS200, QuickBooks, Peachtree, Simply Accounting, and Visual AccountMate, Merchant Express enables small- and medium-sized businesses to manage their supply chain with the click of a few buttons. Communication with host networks, translation and transmission of EDI documents, reporting, and trading partner management, are but only a few of the features included in this product suite. Merchant Express comes with a built-in order processing system that allows the quick transfer of EDI orders into sales orders, invoices, and even pick lists. The need to re-key data is eliminated with the power of importing and exporting orders and invoices to and from virtually any accounting system. Users can print reports for any inbound EDI document, and trade with any trading partner. It's that simple. Edisoft Merchant is a powerful eBusiness tool that enables businesses to manage their trading partners and EDI documents with a few simple keystrokes. Edisoft Merchant includes a fully functional EDI translator and network communicator that integrates with popular accounting systems such as MS Great Plains solutions and ACCPAC for Windows. With just a few clicks the user can communicate with their network, translate EDI documents, complete sales order processing in their accounting system, and send outbound EDI documents. A batch of sales orders can be posted to their accounting system in just minutes. Edisoft Merchant eliminates errors, re-keying, and the paper trail. Managing trading partners and EDI transactions while saving time and money, has never been this easy.
PRODUCT SUMMARY Product Descriptions Add-On Modules eASN The advance ship notice module, the eASN, provides users with the capability to produce outbound advance ship notices (ASN/856). With this information companies can track shipments, allocate orders in advance, as well as plan and organize their resources and production lines accordingly. The e-ASN is integrated with Edisoft's core EDI products. Visual ASN As a stand-alone ASN product, Visual ASN provides virtually any user with the capability to produce outbound advance ship notices (ASN/856). The Visual ASN is driven by a user-friendly and intuitive visual interface. The Visual ASN provides a powerful and truly integrated ASN solution that is easy to use. Bar Coded Shipping Label The Bar Coded Shipping Label module generates bar-coded shipping labels, otherwise known as “MH10” or “UCC128” labels. It offers quick in-house label printing for "standard pack" and "pick & pack" environments. The bar code module integrates with Edisoft's eASN solutions. Edisoft Standard BOL Edisoft's VICS Bill of Lading (VICS BOL) module saves time and money by adhering to an established uniform format for accurate shipment documentation. The VICS BOL is a standardized bill of lading (BOL) that ensures the shipper, the carrier, and the customer always receive the accurate information required for timely processing of goods. Remote Warehouse Manager The Remote Warehouse Manager module enables users to manage inbound warehouse shipping orders (940) and outbound warehouse shipping advice documents (945). These two documents are integral when dealing with remote warehouse sites. Fully integrated with Edisoft's core modules, the Remote Warehousing Manager automates and simplifies the process of shipping products through a third party company located off-site.
EDI eCompliance Products Trading Partner Template Kits The Trading Partner Template Kit constitutes a key element in the design of the Edisoft product suite. One template contains support for all documents required by a trading partner, allowing compliance with even the most challenging of trading partner requirements. Templates are quickly updated whenever trading partners revise and release new guidelines. At Edisoft, there are currently over eight hundred tried-and-proven trading partner template kits available and this list continues to grow daily
SERVICES
TECHNICAL SUPPPORT
Quality Customer Care Technical Support (Phone, E-Mail, Remote) Our dedicated team of EDI professionals provide technical support as well as serve as technical consultants to end-users. Edisoft's consultants are committed to the timely resolution of all open issues. Our consultants have the ability to remotely connect to a user's workstation, see their environment and diagnose specific problems. This allows our organization to match the service level of an expert onsite consultant. This level of personal assistance and technical knowledge is unparalleled in the industry, as the team possesses hands-on experience with the requirements of over 800 trading partners. Technical support is available by telephone from 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM EST and via e-mail 24 hours per day, (Monday to Friday). While calls are handled in the order they are received, every effort is made to prioritize response based on the nature and urgency of each issue. Consulting Services Consulting Services Edisoft's team focuses on effectively placing EDI functionality within the scope of a customer's business operation. A staff of specialized implementation experts begins with an assessment of the customer's environment. The team then determines how EDI fits logistically within that business environment, from order processing to product shipping. Edisoft's team has the capability to assist customers in integrating EDI with legacy accounting and/or ERP systems, electronically linking remote warehouses, or streamlining otherwise disjointed business functions. Edisoft's consulting services makes EDI and supply chain management a vital and efficient part of our customers business operations.
TRAINING SERVICES Continuing Customer Education Edisoft offers six levels of training as indicated in the table below. Training may be delivered by one of four methods: On Site One-to-One; Classroom Style at User's Facility; Classroom Style at Edisoft's Facility; or Web-Based. Session lengths indicated are Edisoft-recommended minimums, and price for training varies with the method chosen. Travel and lodging expenses are extra. Methods For practical reasons, limits have been set for class size. Under special circumstances however, Edisoft will be flexible in accommodating a client's needs.
Level
Time
Description
Introduction To EDI
½ Day
Introduction to EDI is suitable for beginners to EDI technology. This self-run tutorial covers basic EDI concepts and the supply chain process, Value Added Network (VAN) basics, and interpreting EDI syntax and guidelines. For those who have never used EDI, this is a pre-requisite to all other Edisoft training offerings.
Modular
½ Day
Modular web-based training is suitable for novice users. It covers targeted topics, rather than entire course loads. It ensures that customers can take full advantage of the latest features, versions, and innovations.
User Operations
1 Day
User Operations training covers all the areas typically needed by users who operate the system on a daily basis. Also included is a brief overview of implementation and maintenance.
User Maintenance
2 Days
User Maintenance training covers the on-going maintenance tasks required to keep the system working properly. Also included is a brief overview of implementation and user tasks.
User Implementation
3 Days
User Implementation training encompasses User Maintenance training, but also includes material needed to install a brand new system from start to finish, or move an existing system.
Reseller
3 Days
Reseller training is similar to User Implementation training, but is geared to dealers and technical consultants alike. With an emphasis on supporting the installed system, this level of training encompasses User Maintenance. It includes everything needed to install or move a system. The sales training component of this course includes how to position and re-sell Edisoft products.
Edisoft Merchant Express, Edisoft Merchant, and Edisoft Visual ASN are registered trademarks of Edisoft, Ltd. All other trademarks are property of their respective holders. All ArtworkŠ 2003 Edisoft Ltd. All rights reserved. Š 2003 Edisoft Ltd.
Solutions For A Connected World
www.edisoft.com