1. Off purpose EDI Documents
Extracting more value from the system

2. Why?
Since 2000, 52 percent of the companies in the Fortune 500 have either gone bankrupt, been acquired or ceased to exist
Competitive advantage is the lifeblood of any organization.
Moving faster, cheaper, better than the competition means you win.

3. Concept
It is faster and cheaper to reuse existing tools than to create new ones
EDI systems provide features, some or all of which would need to be added to any new business solution:
Cross platform communication
Established data sets
Communication protocols and formats
Transaction based functionality
Built in error handling / response

4. Berlin Airlift
It is frequently referenced that EDI has it’s roots in the Berlin Airlift. But what is actually meant by that is somewhat vague.
But in general it refers to the flight crews sending telex via radio to Berlin at “wheels up”, so the Berlin field could plan for distribution of the inbound materials.
But more than the “electronic message”, the core concepts were:
Translating multiple languages
Standardizing formats for inbound flight manifests

5. Today’s EDI professional will recognize Common EDI Tasks including:
Translation
Application Data -> EDI File
EDI File -> Application Data
Mapping
Field xx -> Field yy
Transmit
Physically send file from
A -> B

6. I want to take a step back from that and look at the bigger picture
I want to take a step back from that and look at the bigger picture. Looking at what it took to land a cargo plane in Berlin every 60 seconds for 15 months.
The raw logistics of getting trucks, trains and cargo ships to the points they needed to be at the time they needed to be there, unloaded / loaded in time to clear
space for the next one in line.
All while balancing the quantity and flow of consumables into Berlin
when needed…..
No earlier…. No later.

7. Someone had the foresight to realize they had a list of goods, and a rough timetable of arrival in Europe. They had the Shipping Manifest
Using that data to determine when, where and what kind of transportation to have in place. What goods needed faster (or slower) transport to the airports. What mix of goods to put together on each train, truck and plane to ensure needed products arrived when needed.
Those were not the intended use of those documents. But the data certainly filled a pressing need…….

8. What do we mean by Off Purpose Document use?
Where can we find new uses for existing data, documents or transactions that already exist in the EDI system
Lets review some examples

9. ASN As Invoice
With issues such as Multiple PO in a shipment, Split PO shipments and Dynamic Routing, invoices can become quite challenging to implement, track and pay. Due to inclusion of all the required data elements to facilitate payments, with minor processing changes an ASN can serve as an invoice.
ASN as Invoice is now so common it is no longer considered “Off Purpose”

10. Bill Only PO
A PO by design is an instrument created to create the sale of products but also to initiate other processes, primarily; creating and processing a shipment and generating an invoice.
In circumstances where a variety of products are on hand and the buying organization needs to be invoiced for products actually used. An entirely manual process for invoicing must be maintained. This is a very common practice in joint replacement and vascular surgeries.
Where the exact products and quantities used is not known until the
surgery is performed. Because of the nature of the transaction, it
needed to be processed manually as a
reference to products used and a
request for an invoice.
Some enterprising folks at Belmero, a
specialized ERP & HCM services &
solutions company, have worked with
hospitals, their vendors and the
existing PO (850) in PeopleSoft and
other major ERPs to create the aptly
named “Bill Only PO” solution. If the
vendor can configure correctly for the
Bill Only PO, the entire process can be
brought back into electronic commerce and EDI. With all the
attendant efficiencies, accuracy and savings.

11. Validated Data PO / INV / ASN
Rather than using 3rd party software to validate inbound data against internal systems data. Using the existing EDI system, to validate the data prior to processing.
Process
Reject PO
Data
INV/ASN
Data
Rules

12. How hard is it to find new uses for existing tools?
How many of you have an Atlas SM-65
Intercontinental Ballistic Missile?

13. The Reigning King of “Off Purpose Use”
Originally developed to protect the outer skin and, more importantly, the paper-thin fuel tanks of the Atlas missile from rust and corrosion. The WD 40 company now maintains a library of over 2000 uses for WD 40.

14. How to do it
Stop looking at what you do.
Stop looking at how you do it.
Ask Why?
Why are we doing this?
With new people, during training, explain why a process is done, the outcome

15. Q/A