Wal Mart EDI
As a supplier there are few days as happy as the day you become
a Wal Mart supplier. That's because with their reach they
can provide the type of market presence a supplier can only dream
of. There are, however, some downsides to dealing with
Wal Mart. One of these is Wal Mart EDI; more specifically,
the retail giant's insistence that its suppliers use a specific
EDI configuration to exchange transaction data with them. This
is what is known as Wal Mart EDI and it can be a source of frustration
for new suppliers. Part of the frustration comes from the
fact that to become compliant with Wal Mart EDI you will need
to pass a series of tests that will ensure the retail giant that
your organization has the requisite software and the requisite
needs to ensure a smooth EDI exchange. Fortunately there
are ways for a smaller operation to become Wal Mart EDI compliant
that do not involve a great deal of expense or technical expertise.
Becoming Wal Mart EDI compliant
The quickest and simplest means of becoming Wal Mart EDI compliant
is to simply use their web-based system that allows you to exchange
transactions with the retail giant ensuring compliance. Because
you are using their system this is the fastest and for many businesses,
most affordable means of becoming Wal Mart EDI compliant. One
of the issues that many suppliers soon face however is that they
begin to realize the benefits of EDI and begin to explore using
EDI with other customers. Once this happens using Wal Mart's
own system is no longer a viable option since it only works with
Wal Mart.
Fortunately companies like EMANIO have created EDI software that
allow you to continue to operate with your larger customers and
maintain your Wal Mart EDI compliance. As you begin to explore
the option of using in-house software you should be aware of the
fact that there are a number of ways to develop EDI software. Specifically,
EDI software packages can be very basic - offering only support
for the entire X12 standard - or very advanced - offering pre-configured
kits that allow you to become Wal Mart EDI compliant quickly and
easily. For the vast majority of business owners the latter
are significantly preferable over the former.
Expanding on your Wal Mart EDI Usage
The first step of becoming Wal Mart EDI compliant deals with ensuring
that you satisfy the retail giant's needs. But what about your
own? More precisely, is there a way to maintain your Wal Mart
EDI compliance but become more efficient in the process? The
answer is of course; and the way of doing this is to enable your EDI
system with full integration into your back-end ERP system. Through
full integration any Wal Mart EDI orders that you receive will be processed,
translated and automatically routed into your ERP system as sales orders. Once
you are ready to ship the goods, the reverse will happen and your ERP's
shipment slips and invoices will be translated and sent as Wal Mart
EDI advanced ship notices and Invoices.
Selecting your Wal Mart EDI Package
This form of integration can be achieved with a number of Wal Mart
EDI compliant software packages, but you should ensure that the package
you select can provide for such an option in the long run with minimal
re-architecting of your Wal Mart EDI setup. In fact there are
a number of Wal Mart EDI solutions available that wold require you
to completely re-engineer your EDI operations to achieve integration. This
type of approach while often less expensive in the beginning can become
very expensive in the long run since it not only requires large amount
of internal re-work, but can also put your Wal Mart EDI compliance
at risk.
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