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From The CEO

This month we want to share with you some of our newest and most useful innovations. We have included information on DiIntegrator for QuickBooks, as well as a case study on how DiCentral helped a company build and maintain a large–scale VMI (vendor–managed inventory) system. While your business may not be using QuickBooks, we have numerous offerings for different backend applications, including Sage, SAP, and Oracle solutions. Also, in the event your company is seeking a VMI solution, we wanted to demonstrate our capability to assist our clients in creating such a system.

We give you this information for two reasons: not only do we wish to illustrate the multitude of options we have in place for our customers, but we also want you to understand that our customers are the source for many of our newest offerings. By informing us of your unique business needs, DiCentral is ready to work with you on the development and implementation of any solution you may require.

We recently sent out a customer survey, and I sincerely hope you took the time to answer the questions and return the information to us. As stated, your feedback is the basis for our understanding of the needs you have now, as well as any needs you may have in the future. We look forward to seeing the answers you provided; we depend on our clients to tell us what they need from their EDI source. We thank you for your business, and look forward to serving you for years to come.

Thuy Mai, CEO

April 2007 Newsletter

INTEGRATE SEAMLESSLY WITH DIINTEGRATOR FOR QUICKBOOKS

Do you find yourself spending countless hours re–keying data into your QuickBooks applications when you have other important tasks vying for your attention? Eliminate this manual data entry process and the associated errors with DiIntegrator’s advanced solution for seamless integration to your QuickBooks Accounting Software. DiCentral’s automated technology can ensure secure, accurate importing of all your critical business data, as well as dramatically reduce charge–backs.

Perhaps your company is expanding their client base. Do you find it increasingly difficult synchronizing all the unique EDI data sent from each business partner into QuickBooks? The reality is, QuickBooks isn’t designed to accommodate every partner’s EDI formats.

Allow DiIntegrator to seamlessly synchronize your EDI data through our custom–built Item Synchronization, Customer Synchronization, and Term Synchronization.

DiIntegrator is a powerful desktop solution that can integrate with QuickBooks for automatic input and synchronization of your EDI data. It delivers a comprehensive suite of solutions that is easy to implement, affordable, and highly scalable.

The advantages of using DiIntegrator for QuickBooks include elimination of manual data re–keying and duplicate data entry, prevention of manual data entry errors, reduction of costly and unnecessary charge–back fines, customizable invoices for easy export into QuickBooks, transparent data migration, and the assurance that invoice data is accurate and validated before exporting to QuickBooks.

Item Synchronization

Item information sent from your customer is now compatible in QuickBooks with DiIntegrator’s custom–built cross reference table. Item Synchronization can ensure the UPC codes received from your business partner are exported as an item name recognized by QuickBooks.

Customer Synchronization

When you have multiple trading partners, it is critical that invoices are properly transferred to the appropriate account in QuickBooks. Customer Synchronization provides quick and accurate distribution, eliminating the potential risks associated with improper exporting of data.

Term Synchronization

Identifying special terms with each trading partner is made easy through DiIntegrator’s Term Synchronization. Whether your purchase order contains incomplete business terms, new business terms, or none, DiIntegrator will confirm all information against QuickBooks before exporting is allowed. Validating all business arrangements will save your company time, as well as providing a significant return on investment. Easily synchronize your items, customers, and business terms with DiIntegrator’s synchronization processes, and provide seamless and accurate exporting of EDI data into your QuickBooks application. If you’re using QuickBooks, please contact DiCentral to learn more about how DiIntegrator for QuickBooks can streamline your entire EDI process.

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VENDOR MANAGED INVENTORY SOLUTIONS FOR THE MANUFACTURING COMMUNITY

To date, clients utilizing DiCentral’s™ VMI solutions have not been eager to share this leading technology for competitive reasons. Therefore, in order to present this significant advantage to you, we will refer to the company in this article as “RetailMax, Inc.”

If you are actively seeking a VMI program, or may be in need in the future, contact DiCentral to learn how we can help you in this endeavor

SOLUTION

RetailMax, Inc. chose DiCentral over other providers based on DiCentral’s experience implementing and managing enterprise–wide solutions in the retail and CPG markets. DiCentral was able to provide turn–key integrated and hosted solutions, addressing not only VMI and EDI, but also catalog, GDSN and vendor management, all of which made them the ideal choice not just for the demand, but also the supply–side of the project.

DIreplenish is a replenishment tool built to manage point of sale data as well as verify in-store inventories and calculate in-transit merchandise. A comprehensive demand-based supply chain application for suppliers and distributors, DIreplenish™ is a cost-effective, scalable solution for managing thousands of items across as many as 50,000 locations. DIreplenish support and services include all trading partner profiles, bringing additional value to the scenario by reducing labor requirements while increasing the speed and accuracy of order distribution. DIreplenish requires no additional technology or staff to support a company's VMI or replenishment efforts. By bundling comprehensive EDI and supply chain tools, RetailMax, Inc. was provided with the most reliable path to quantifiable results.

RESULTS

The project was launched in October of 2005 with a planned install date of December 2005. Several related projects needed to be addressed prior to install, including: system training and EDI enablement for dozens of manufacturers using DiCentral’s EDI solutions, data synchronization as well as training and discussion surrounding RetailMax Inc’s VMI process. Web seminars and private training included over 375 individuals from participating companies with responsibilities ranging from sales, finance, logistics and technology. Concurrently, preparations were completed for data analysis, which included item cleansing and item verification (checking details on model stocks, ship quantities, etc for over 22,000 items). EDI transactions used prior to DiCentral were: 850, 852 and 810 via VAN. Transactions used after implementations include: 850, 852, 855, 832, 810, 820 and 856 via AS2. Testing and implementation was begun and completed within a four week period, starting in December, 2005. The switchover and migration to their new, completely automated system was transparent to retailer, manufacturers as well as RetailMax Inc. ongoing business (zero distribution delay or downtime). Once the install was completed, RetailMax Inc’s VMI system included Retail, Distribution and Manufacturing relationships under one umbrella, providing all parties visibility from the demand and supply network.

RetailMax Inc. VMI related revenue more than doubled from 2005 to 2006 along with a greater than 30% increase in manufacturers utilizing VMI–based services while noticeably reducing sales-to-invoice time. Along with a 30% increase in manufacturers on the system, RetailMax Inc.’s retail trading partners have doubled the amount of doors being shipped to. The rise in doors and manufacturers has taken RetailMax Inc. from just over 22,000 items being managed to over 48,000 within a twelve month period. The system has proven itself to be truly scalable and as a result, it has not been necessary for RetailMax Inc. to add employees to support growth, allowing the system to pay for itself in less than a year.

With clear ROI, in addition to creating a completely integrated workflow, DiCentral has created an environment which has quantifiably improved internal operations and given increased visibility to operational planning. The automation RetailMax Inc. has accomplished is enterprise–wide, allowing them to focus resources on increasing service levels provided to both retail and manufacturing partners as they continue looking forward to increased growth in years to come. RetailMax Inc. is currently studying the effects of their VMI system as it relates to improved profitability for themselves and their trading partners. The use of new reporting tools, increased visibility, forecasting and greater communication among partners is anticipated to reduce not only inventory expenses, but also manufacturing costs and lead times.

BACKGROUND

RetailMax, Inc. is a Rhode Island–based broker in the business of supporting retail suppliers as either their distributor and/or sales representative within the vertical–specific retail market. RetailMax, Inc. uses vendor–managed inventory (VMI) as one of their service offerings differentiating themselves to retailers such as Retailer, as well as manufacturers such as (Manufacturer A, B, C) and others. RetailMax, Inc’s VMI solution takes in EDI 852 (Product Activity) data, analyzes and forecasts sales trends, and then processes and distributes thousands of orders annually. With so many companies’ retail customers managed through VMI, this is considered a mission critical part of their business.

PROBLEM

In 2005, RetailMax, Inc. faced a requirement their existing VMI software could not accommodate. RetailMax, Inc. was interested in not only becoming fully compliant, but also enhancing their system to provide additional benefits to both themselves as well as both manufacturing and retail partners. RetailMax Inc., wanted to find a solution providing the core VMI application, be able to take in and push out any required documents, and also provide a complete in–house solution for EDI, integration and other mission critical components for function and compliance such as GDSN (Global Data Synchronization).

As part of the upgrade, RetailMax, Inc. wanted to “expand” the level of support and redundancy available, while at the same time integrating applications such as inventory and accounting systems to accelerate order distribution and increase the level of workflow automation. This part of the project was to provide RetailMax Inc. the ability to distribute and receive documents (via EDI) with suppliers based on business rules specific to each relationship. Finally, to improve demand visibility for all parties, RetailMax Inc. wanted an analysis and forecasting tool capable of analyzing thousands of items simultaneously.

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