Electronic Data Interchange (EDI): Using Electronic Commerce to Enhance Defense Logistics

Abstract : Electronic data interchange (EDI) has been advocated as one of the most important applications of computer technology, and one that holds the greatest potential for improving the nation's productivity--for with EDI will come 'electronic commerce,' a technology that will allow both private and public sector business to move from a paper-based world to one based solely on electronic transactions. Each EDI transaction is formatted in such a way that it can be recognized and processed by a firm's computer without human intervention- -that is to say, without the need for a person to interpret the transaction for the computer. Even more important, EDI enables businesses as well as DoD to use many new techniques in pursuit of more effective resource management.