SAP R/3 to S/4: Your chance to modernize your EDI set-up
The end of life of SAP R/3 systems is approaching and an upgrade to S/4HANA is therefore inevitable in the short term. The move to S/4HANA offers the opportunity to rethink existing processes and realign them for the future.
Especially for interfaces to customers and suppliers there are new possibilities when moving to S/4HANA which you should be taking advantage of for a future-proof set-up.
Migration from SAP R/3 to S/4 HANA
The official support for SAP R/3 will end in 2027. It is therefore clear that the switch to SAP S/4HANA will have to take place shortly.
With S/4 HANA, however, not only business logics and interfaces within the system will change, but also the interfaces that SAP offers to third-party systems: An important time to weigh opportunities and risks for existing EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) processes with customers and suppliers.
Up to now, IDocs (Intermediate Document) have formed the basis for data exchange between SAP and non-SAP systems. These can continue to be used in S/4 HANA on the basis of minor adjustments and enhancements. However, it is already becoming apparent that SAP will increasingly rely on cloud-based systems and APIs for data transfer in the future. Future innovations will thus increasingly be based on these technologies.
Therefore, it is worth taking a close look at the current EDI set-up in the course of an implementation or when using S/4 HANA: Does it only support the legacy IDoc world and classic EDI transmission formats or also future-oriented data exchange via API as well as easy migration scenarios to new technologies?
Considerations for interfaces to trading partners
In particular, local EDI converter solutions or dated EDI systems often turn out to be incompatible with S/4HANA or the selected S/4HANA deployment option during implementation. Especially with a move to the cloud, for example when using SAP S/4HANA Cloud ERP, the use of previous transfer mechanisms such as file-based interfaces is no longer possible.
With the change to SAP S/4 HANA, new possibilities for data transfer via API arise. As a result, many are opting to use other SAP products such as SAP Cloud Integration or to make greater use of iPaaS solutions already procured in the past, such as Boomi or Mulesoft. These products enable the connection of external APIs and thus the sending and receiving of external data tailored to the special and individual requirements of each business process.
In order to weigh up the opportunities and risks of switching to S/4 HANA, it is important to obtain a complete overview of existing trading partner connections, to evaluate the future viability of your current EDI solution and to compare the effort and costs of an interface migration with the effort and costs of using a new EDI provider.
Because: At no other point in time can an EDI provider change be more worthwhile than when changing or migrating an ERP system.
How to make the interface migration to S/4HANA run smoothly
To do an interface migration as quickly and smoothly as possible, it is worth checking the following points with an existing or new EDI provider:
- Centralized connections: If connections are made 1:1 to the trading partners, this means not only massive initial expenses, but also an enormous maintenance effort in the long term. Particular flexibility arises with a provider that only requires a single interface to their S/4HANA instance, and based on this, flexibly carries out trading partner connections. This reduces complexity and costs and forms the basis for a lean system landscape of the future.
- Hybrid integration models: There are many EDI providers that only focus on connections via EDI. Only a few offer, in addition to classic EDIFACT or VDA message types via AS2 or OFTP, the possibility to connect API or have implemented e-invoicing requirements. Precisely this combination is important in order to be able to cover the requirements of traditional trading partners and at the same time have a future-proof set-up for any new requirements.
- Service approach: Have a precise list of the activities and duties that lie with you and which tasks the corresponding EDI provider will be responsible for. If you have little internal experience with EDI processes or limited capacities, it is advisable to choose a provider who handles the complete integration and communication with your trading partners for you.
- Error handling: Especially when migrating an ERP system, data issues and errors can occur at the beginning. It is important when choosing an EDI provider to focus on simple error handling options and process transparency. Ideally, you are not dependent on the response times of your EDI provider or the IT department, but should offer the business department a simple way to quickly and easily correct errors in the process (e.g. due to the master data issues).
If these points are carefully considered, a S/4HANA implementation can serve as an opportunity to position oneself flexibly and leanly for the future, even in the area of EDI.
Do you have any questions or suggestions? Then we look forward to exchanging ideas with you.