Autumn 2006

Is traditional mediated EDI (electronic data interchange) effectively dead, having been replaced by internet communications and direct computer-to-computer communications?

Yes, says Freeway Commerce, which is said to be one of the fastest growing XML/EDI/e-commerce software and services providers in the UK.

No, say a large selection of US businesses such as Wal-Mart, which have been switching to the latest version of the ANSI EDI X-12 system, already in wide use in that country.

Freeway's argument is that the latest AS2 communications standard, there's effectively no need to use the VANs (value added networks) who have traditionally operated as intermediaries in the EDI process. AS2 (it stands for Applicability Statement 2) is more direct, bypassing the VANs, and therefore potentially cheaper.

"Once IT departments realise just how quick and easy it is to move across to AS2 technology, and benefit from significant cost savings and reliability, there will be a flood of organisations migrating to the technology." That's the company's view, anyway.

Among enthusiasts of the concept is the Optimum Foodservice Supply Chain Initiative (OFSCI), which includes a number of leading manufacturers, distributors and retailers. According to Matthew Pearce, chair of the e-Trading group: "By adopting AS2, our members are not only able to take advantage of lower running costs, but also have the capability to share almost any type of data with their trading partners with the knowledge that it is totally secure."

Things are perhaps different across the Atlantic, where users still upgrading their traditional EDI systems include Wal-Mart and JC Penney, both of whom are using CovalentWorks to provide the upgrades.

* Wal-Mart is also reported to be extending its use of RFID technology 500 more stores and clubs by the end of its current financial year.