EDI within the Transportation Business
EDI has become very popular in the haulage and transportation industry as transportation companies and load brokers are adapting their systems to cater for EDI document exchange.
The advantages for those working in the transportation industry is that routine high volume communications can be automated allowing dispatchers and accounts receivables staff more time to focus on more productive/profitable tasks and provide clients with better customer service. One of the main advantages of EDI is that it eliminates a dispatcher from having to manually key information into the dispatch operational and billing system. This results in saving time and money while eliminating any costly data entry mistakes. The other advantage is that transportation companies who are EDI compliant can communicate seamlessly and electronically with all parties in the supply chain process.
All data is communicated between the carrier, shipper, and the consignee in electronic EDI documents known as ANSI X12 “Transaction Sets”. The most commonly used EDI Transaction Sets in the Transportation Industry are:
- 204 – Motor Carrier Load Tender
- 990 – Response to the Load Tender
- 211 – Bill of Lading
- 212 – Delivery Trailer Manifest
- 214 – Shipment Status Message
- 210 – Freight Details and Invoice
- 820 – Payment Order/Remittance Advice
- 997 – Functional Acknowledgement
Being EDI enabled allows carriers to have access to the vital information that helps them perform at optimum efficiencies and effectiveness, while at the same time saving time and money.
