Models for Integrated Inventory Control by EDI for a Single Supplier and Multiple Buyers

Abstract

Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is a relatively new communication technology that is expected to affect many operational aspects of organizations. Essentially, EDI involves the exchange of information between trading partners (or geographically dispersed units of a firm) in a structured, machine processable format (HANSEN and HILL, 1989). This techchnological development permits the electronic transmission of information from one computer application to another in a different location, without rekeying or human intervention. EDI does not include free-form message communication, such as electronic mail (E-Mail), or FAX transmissions, which are not machine readable. The basic processes of EDI are (1) directing data transmissions to and data collection from different application programs, (2) Converting data between proprietary (as used by application programs) and standard (as transmitted by the communication network) formats and (3) actual transmission of data between different locations through a communication network (see SOKOL, 1989, and EMMELHAINZ, 1990, for detailed discussions on various aspects of EDI).