Tideworks Technology Introduces EDI as a Service for the Logistics Industry

SEATTLE – Sept. 14, 2010 – Tideworks Technology®, Inc., a leading provider of full-service terminal management and planning software solutions, today announced the introduction of its latest service solution for the logistics industry – Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) as a Service. Tideworks’ EDI as a Service makes it easier and more cost effective to implement and maintain EDI between the terminal and its trading partners by utilizing the latest technology, visibility tools and industry knowledge of the Tideworks EDI team. Tideworks will debut its EDI as a Service solution during the company’s 2010 Customer Conference, Sept. 15 and 16 at the Bell Harbor International Conference Center in Seattle, Wash.

Tideworks has more than 30 years of experience providing EDI services to marine and intermodal terminals. The company currently supports the EDI needs of more than 40 terminals around the world and has long been one of the top trading partners with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (US CBP). This industry experience, along with Tideworks’ existing EDI trading relationships with most major shipping lines worldwide, enables the company to implement new EDI trading partnerships for customers more quickly than any alternative model. With the introduction of EDI as a Service, Tideworks provides a user-friendly, web-based visibility tool to help customers monitor the status of their EDI messages in an easy and intuitive way, thereby preventing costly errors and delays of critical data. Additionally, the service solution offers a newly-designed open architecture, the incorporation of Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), which allows Tideworks to interact more efficiently with its trading partners, and user-defined processing rules.

“Tideworks’ EDI as a Service offers customers full visibility and flexibility with EDI without the overhead of maintaining a costly EDI infrastructure in-house,” said Wolfgang Stoeckl, EDI Manager of Tideworks Technology. “Not only can this significantly reduce costs for our customers, but it also relieves them from the burden of managing the movement of electronic information, ultimately freeing up more time to focus on their core business of moving cargo.”

The solution consists of the following service components: EDI Translation and Communications Services; Trading Partner Management Services; Automated Manifest System (AMS) Services (for exchanging data with US CBP); Program Management Services; and EDI Visibility Services. Tideworks’ EDI as a Service offers customers several key advantages over alternative models typically deployed in the industry. Specifically Tideworks’ solution:

Does not require the customer to hire dedicated EDI resources or invest in costly infrastructure;
Leverages the company’s extensive experience in the logistics industry, leading to quicker and more successful EDI implementations;
Offers complete EDI program management services and ongoing maintenance and support;
Reduces economic exposure for customers by providing a pay-as-you-go pricing model that affords economies of scale and lower costs for smaller operations;
Provides a user-friendly visibility tool for customers to monitor EDI messages and ensure timely and accurate trading of data;
Can be deployed in conjunction with Tideworks’ Terminal Operating System (TOS) software or with another TOS.

“Tideworks’ primary goal is to help our customers grow their business by providing them with technology solutions that help automate processes, expand customer service capabilities and reduce costs,” said Michael Schwank, president of Tideworks Technology. “Tideworks’ EDI as a Service is the latest example in our continuing efforts to bring value to our customers by partnering with them to deploy solutions that make sense for their operations and scale with their businesses.”

About Tideworks Technology

Tideworks is a leading provider of cost-effective, reliable software solutions for growing terminal operations and shipping lines worldwide. The company helps more than 23,000 users at nearly 70 facilities run their operations more efficiently and profitably. From optimized equipment utilization to faster turn times, Tideworks works at every step of terminal operations to maximize productivity and customer service. For more information about Tideworks Technology, visit www.tideworks.com.