Electronic data interchange (EDI) i

Electronic data interchange (EDI) is another means to promote effective supply chain management in the APEC region. EDI, a widely used technology allowing for the standardized transmission of information between trading partners, enables businesses to increase efficiency and reduce costs. Exchanging data in an electronic format within a supply chain has been consistently demonstrated to lower transaction costs by minimizing the administrative burden, improve data quality by eliminating manual entry errors, and reduce cycle time by automating business processes. Although installing an EDI network can bear considerable set-up costs, the ongoing financial and time savings associated with streamlining procurement, receiving, invoicing, and other supply chain processes far outweigh these one-off costs. All trading partners, especially ports, can benefit from the adoption of EDI.