Mary has hit it directly but just a note: VAN charges and Translation
Service charges are different.
VAN's have made things complex in the past - but some of us are changing
that in order to compete.
Commport (and possibly others) have a very simple pricing structure when it
applies to VAN only services.
Pay for what you transmit NOT How you Transmit.
We don't have the costs you lay out below. Plus, you can determine your
method of either per doc, per kilo character, per quarter, flat rate, etc.
Its no wonder some people view VAN's with such criticism when faced with
charges listed below.
Derrick Hammett
Director of Sales & Marketing
Commport Communications International, inc.
41 Industrial Parkway S., Unit #2
Aurora, Ontario, Canada, L4G 3Y5
Phone: 905-727-6782 Fax: 905-727-7251
-----Original Message-----
From: Mary DeGroot [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Thursday, September 06, 2001 6:22 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: Fee structure question
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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