Lou:
Every VAN charges a little differently. The types of charges that I have run into are:
*Per kilocharacter in
*Per kilocharacter out
*Peak/off peak kilocharacter charges
*Per connection to the VAN
*Per connection to the mailbox at the VAN (sometimes this is different than the
connection to the VAN)
*Fixed fee per month per interconnect
*Per kilocharacter surcharges for interconnects
*Monthly minimum fees
*Monthly mailbox fees
*Mailbox setup fees
*Account setup fees
*Trading partner setup fees
*Interconnect setup fees
*Charge per document (find out what their definition of 'document' is . . . per ST/SE?
Per GS/GE? Per ISA/IEA? I actually had one service that couldn't give me their
definition. I had to wait for my first bill to figure it out. - I was forced to use
that service and had no choice.)
If you have the VAN translate document formats, XML <-> X12/EDIFACT/etc., you may be
charged per kilocharacter for the translation.
*Mapping fees to setup the document translations.
*Fees associated with the use of any other 'Value-Added' services of the VAN.
Lou, also check into these issues:
* Are you required to use a certain VAN? I am inferring from your original message
that you have at least one trading partner in mind. Most trading partners can be
reached by using any VAN.
* If you are not on your trading partner's van, your VAN can can forward the data to
your trading partner's VAN. This is known as an 'interconnect'. There are a few
companies out there that will not accept interconnects. If you choose to use an
interconnect, ask some questions of the potential VAN regarding how they handle
interconnects. What protocol do they use to deliver data to the other VANs? How
often is data processed that goes to the other VANs? How do they ensure that the data
doesn't get dropped when handing it off to another VAN? (i.e. use of Interconnect
mailbag, their customer service departments talk to each other, etc.)
* Internet-based VANs are also available. They are accessible via IP-based protocols
and can usually interconnect with all/most other VANs.
* Does your trading partner have any non-VAN alternatives for exchanging data? Is
your company equipped to exchange data via these methods?
I have compared VAN costs before. What I usually do is identify the VANs that I want
to evaluate. I then gather a master list of 'cost factors'. The cost factors are
everything, and maybe more, that I listed above. You just need to list those for the
VANs you are evaluating. I then develop 'budget' numbers for these factors. This is
my 'best guess' at the volume for the cost factors. You may or may not have a good
handle on these figures. Be sure to factor in any seasonality. I have spent
considerable time analyzing projected volume with a new project, only to have the
actual VAN bills be 33% higher than initial estimates. This is not because of hidden
charges, etc. - It is because data volumes can be hard to project. I calculate two
numbers for each VAN, first year setup costs and estimated monthly cost. I find it
easier to deal with smaller and more meaningful numbers. I divide the monthly cost by
the number of documents (ST/SE envelope). This levels the playin!
g field when evaluating the VANs and makes the estimated costs easier to explain to
those outside of the IS organization.
-Mary DeGroot
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