Archive

  1. COVID-19 Operations

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    Dear Valued Customers and Partners,

    At Foundational, the safety and well-being of our employees, customers and partners is always top priority. We appreciate the trust you’ve placed in Foundational to handle your critical business data and role we play within your business.

    We are closely monitoring the evolving news from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) to ensure that our staff and their families take the appropriate precautions to care for themselves and others.  Foundational takes the health and safety of our employees seriously and it is no different with COVID-19.  All employees are prepared and able to work from home.  All systems are 100{5080e6b8eec03ac51702ada5b6897314ab7bc3a139127375f379f0820275a75a} accessible to our staff from their locations.  You will receive the same level of service you always expect from us. We anticipate no difference in the operation of our systems, and we are fully prepared to make adjustments as necessary.

    Many of our clients are in industries that are critical to the public during this extraordinary time.  We expect higher demand from those industries and are prepared.  We continue to remain in contact with our partners to ensure they maintain the same levels of service as are needed.  Foundational has robust business continuity plans and systems in place to ensure your business continues to run smoothly, even in uncertain and turbulent times such as these.

    All of us at Foundational wish you, your company, and everyone affected by this situation good health and best wishes during this time. As always, please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns.

    Thank you,

    Brian Eckenrod, Director of Operations
    Foundational e-Business

  2. Foundational Releases Updates to Customer Portal

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    At Foundational, we are always looking to improve our technology in ways that allow our clients to interact with their partners and their data in the best way possible.  Back end systems are under continuous improvement as new client needs arise.  Use of web services and related technologies continues to grow as more and more software allow for interaction with their data via web services.

    In addition to integration improvements, Foundational also strives to create a simple, yet comprehensive experience for our clients to interact with their transactional data. As part of that continual improvement, Foundational has released upgrades that will  now be appearing in the Foundational portal. The core operation of the portal will not change. However, you will see the following changes:

    The first column of the document list will now be “Action” and within that drop down, you can choose actions to take on that document.

    Initially, you will see the following actions available to you:

    EDI Viewer
    Operates the same as when you click in the “RefCode1” field, showing you the EDI data

    Doc Viewer
    Renders a human readable form of the EDI data. Currently works only on X12 EDI documents. EDIFACT, XML and other formats are being worked on to allow those to also be viewed in this manner.

    As more functions are added to the portal, you will see these actions available to you in this list. We will also communicate these options out to you so you are aware of them.

    While we’ve tested many documents from all of your trading partners to make sure things display correctly, if you encounter any display issues with these formats, please let us know so we can take a closer look.

    We appreciate the trust you’ve placed in Foundational to handle your critical business data and we hope these tools and those to come improve our relationship and the services we provide.

    About Foundational e-Business

    Foundational e-Business is a Pittsburgh based division of Paragon Consulting specializing in managed EDI and e-business services.  We offer a cost effective and easy to implement managed EDI service, where we act as the outsourced EDI department for our customers.  Foundational staff has decades of experience with EDI in various industries, including steel processing, manufacturing, distribution, and logistics.  Foundational can be reached by email via info@getfoundational.com or by phone at 888-657-2345.

  3. Foundational e-Business Releases Next Generation Customer Portal

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    In 2015 Foundational began an effort to improve the technology underlying its managed B2B e-commerce services.  Earlier this year that effort resulted in the hire of Mark Duffy as Lead Developer.  This week, the results are starting to show as the first phase of Foundational’s newly redesigned web-based customer portal was released.

    The easy to understand interface has been well received by Foundational users.  Amie Meeken of JT Eaton says “the new portal has proven invaluable when I need to review transmissions for any number of reasons. It is incredibly quick to sort by partner and find the information I need. Clear and concise and easy to use. It saves so much time!!”

    The functionality is similar to the prior portal – giving the end user insight to their EDI activity on Foundational’s Managed EDI Service.   The next phase of the portal is expected to be released later this summer and will include transaction resend capabilities.  By year’s end the portal will support transaction creation and correction, and will offer an API that end users can use to tighten integration with their business systems and mine valuable information about their e-business traffic.

    Beyond the feature set, the more far reaching improvement is under the hood.   The new Foundational Portal is built entirely upon REST web services.  The decision to base all external facing technology, including the Foundational Portal, on web services will enable Foundational to create the systems that will enable real time collaboration across the supply chain.  Already, several users of Foundational’s Managed EDI Service use APIs and web services to interface their ERP systems with the Service.  As these real time communications methods become more prevalent the Foundational Service will be well positioned to enable real time collaboration across business systems with little to no effort on the part of the end user.

    About Foundational e-Business

    Foundational e-Business is a Pittsburgh based division of Paragon Consulting specializing in managed EDI and e-business services.  We offer a cost effective and easy to implement managed EDI service, where we act as the outsourced EDI department for our customers.  Foundational staff has decades of experience with EDI in various industries, including steel processing, manufacturing, distribution, and logistics.  Foundational can be reached by email via info@getfoundational.com or by phone at 888-657-2345.

     

     

  4. Foundational e-Business hires Mark Duffy to lead web development efforts

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    In 2015 Foundational began an effort to rebrand the business and revamp the technology underlying its Managed B2B Services.  This week Mark Duffy was hired to lead the development effort for Foundational’s web based customer portal and web services based technologies.

    Mark brings a wealth of experience with PHP and other web development tools as well as valuable experience with interface design, SEO, digital marketing, and technology leadership.  Prior to joining Foundational, Mark was a Lead Developer at Yellow Bridge Interactive.

    Bob Raida, Director of Business Development at Foundational offered strong praise for Mark: “at Foundational we have big ideas about the evolution of e-business.  A pain-free customer experience and smooth processing is key.  Mark’s experience and insight to web-enabled technologies will be extremely valuable for us as we continue to develop real time, integrated business to business e-commerce solutions that make EDI and e-business a cost effective and beneficial tool for our customers.”

    About Foundational e-Business

    Foundational e-Business is a Pittsburgh based division of Paragon Consulting specializing in managed EDI and e-business services.  We offer a cost effective and easy to implement managed EDI service, where we act as the outsourced EDI department for our customers.  Foundational staff has decades of experience with EDI in various industries, including steel processing, manufacturing, distribution, and logistics.  Foundational can be reached by email via info@getfoundational.com or by phone at 888-657-2345.

     

     

  5. Foundational e-Business Completes Migration of Technology Infrastructure to Expedient Data Center

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    This month Foundational e-Business completed a complete migration of technology infrastructure to Expedient data centers.  The move was made in order to maintain Foundational’s excellent track record of reliability and uptime as the service grows, and to take advantage of features and certifications that were not offered by Foundational’s prior data center.

    The most prevalent features that drew Foundational to Expedient are SSAE16 certification (required by Foundational’s publicly traded customers), improved network hardware availability and responsiveness, and redundancy/roll-over capability of the Internet connection to Foundational’s servers.

    The migration is part of Foundational’s overall effort to revamp the technology behind its Managed EDI Service, and position itself for projected strong growth.  The migration project was completed with virtually no disruption in the Managed EDI Service, as down time was minimal and scheduled in advance.

    About Foundational e-Business

    Foundational e-Business is a Pittsburgh based division of Paragon Consulting specializing in managed EDI and e-business services.  We offer a cost effective and easy to implement managed EDI service, where we act as the outsourced EDI department for our customers.  Foundational staff has decades of experience with EDI in various industries, including steel processing, manufacturing, distribution, and logistics.  Foundational can be reached by email via info@getfoundational.com or by phone at 888-657-2345.

     

  6. Foundational’s Bob Raida to speak at the NEECOM Fall Conference on October 15

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    Bob Raida of Foundational e-Business will speak at the NEECOM Fall Conference on Thursday, October 15 in Westborough, MA.

    The session will explore alternatives to traditional EDI, focusing on one company’s implementation of “PDF to EDI” as a means to capture transactional data from trading partners that cannot support traditional EDI.  Discussion will include the business reasons for pursuing this project, the technical side including data capture and flow into the ERP system, and the results of the project.

    Bob Raida is a veteran of the EDI, e-business and ERP industry with over 15 years of experience.  He was a co-founder at TrueCommerce and has been with Paragon / Foundational since 2013.

    NEECOM, or the New England Electronic Commerce Users’ Group (http://neecom.org/), is a nonprofit organization established in 1990.  Members are large and small organizations in a variety of industries including manufacturing, distribution, retail, hospital, insurance, and more.  The common thread is members’ interest in EC/EDI and related technologies.

    About Foundational e-Business

    Foundational e-Business is a Pittsburgh based division of Paragon Consulting specializing in managed EDI and e-business services.  We offer a cost effective and easy to implement managed EDI service, where we act as the outsourced EDI department for our customers.  Foundational staff has decades of experience with EDI in various industries, including steel processing, manufacturing, distribution, and logistics.  Foundational can be reached by email via info@getfoundational.com or by phone at 888-657-2345.

     

     

  7. Foundational’s Bob Raida to speak at the Guardian Software User Group Meeting on September 21

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    Bob Raida of Foundational e-Business will speak at the Guardian Software User Group Meeting on September 21 in Lancaster, PA.

    Since 2013, Foundational and Guardian have partnered to offer business to business electronic commerce solutions, powered by Foundational’s Managed EDI Service, to Guardian ERP users.  The Managed Service enables Guardian ERP users to electronically receive transactions such as purchase orders, schedules, and payment information, and enables them to send electronic transactions to their trading partners including invoices and shipping information.

    During the presentation Guardian users will be introduced to the rebranded Foundational e-Business (formerly Paragon B2B) and will get a glimpse of new technology developments that are in the works at Foundational.

    Bob Raida is a veteran of the EDI, e-business and ERP industry with over 15 years of experience.  He was a co-founder at TrueCommerce and has been with Paragon / Foundational since 2013.

    About Guardian:

    Guardian has been designing software solutions for the manufacturing industry since 1987. Our corporate office is located in the beautiful Midwestern town of Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. A leading developer of manufacturing and financial software for foundries, Guardian is known for its powerful, yet flexible, user-friendly products. All of Guardian’s solutions are aimed at helping customers improve their productivity and workflow. With a proven track record since 1987, Guardian has earned the trust and respect of companies across North America.

    About Foundational e-Business

    Foundational e-Business is a Pittsburgh based division of Paragon Consulting specializing in managed EDI and e-business services.  We offer a cost effective and easy to implement managed EDI service, where we act as the outsourced EDI department for our customers.  Foundational staff has decades of experience with EDI in various industries, including steel processing, manufacturing, distribution, and logistics.  Foundational can be reached by email via info@getfoundational.com or by phone at 888-657-2345.

  8. Foundational’s Bob Raida to speak at TUG Connects! Conference on May 7 in Washington DC

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    Bob Raida of Foundational e-Business (formerly known as Paragon B2B) will speak at the TUG Connects! 2015 Conference on May 7 in Washington D.C.

    The session topic is an EDI case study, including a discussion of the fundamentals of implementing EDI.  An overview of an EDI implementation at an Infor A+ customer site will be provided as well as an overview of the EDI process, tools used in EDI processing, as well as deliverables and ROI of an EDI project.

    The session is geared at companies of all sizes and stages of EDI implementation.  The presentation will include a discussion of the various stages of EDI implementation.  Early stage adopters may see EDI as a “necessary evil” that is simply used to satisfy trading partner requirements.   Companies that truly benefit from EDI see it quite differently – as a tool to streamline operations and optimize the supply chain.  This session will offer suggestions on how to evolve your company’s EDI implementation from the former to the latter.

    Bob is a veteran of the EDI, e-business and ERP industry with over 15 years of experience.  He was a co-founder at TrueCommerce and has been with Paragon / Foundational since 2013.

    TUG (http://www.theusergroup.org/) is an independent non-profit association of Infor Distribution product users.  TUG Connects! is an annual conference coordinated by TUG.

    About Foundational e-Business

    Foundational e-Business is a Pittsburgh based division of Paragon Consulting specializing in managed EDI and e-business services.  We offer a cost effective and easy to implement managed EDI service, where we act as the outsourced EDI department for our customers.  Foundational staff has decades of experience with EDI in various industries, including steel processing, manufacturing, distribution, and logistics.  Foundational can be reached by email via info@getfoundational.com or by phone at 888-657-2345.

     

  9. Paragon B2B Rebrands Itself as Foundational e-Business

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    Outsourced e-Business and Managed EDI Services on a Strong Foundation

    Paragon B2B, the EDI division of Paragon Consulting specializing in outsourced EDI and business to business e-commerce services this month has rebranded as Foundational e-Business.

    Nine years ago, Paragon Consulting created a Managed EDI Service in response to customer need.  Paragon already had over a decade of experience with enterprise IT consulting, and had recently purchased the rights to Metalware, an ERP system designed for metals and steel processors.

    The Managed EDI Service addressed the needs of Metalware clients, and other Paragon Consulting customers to conduct EDI in a more efficient and cost effective manner.  It wasn’t long before the service took on a life of its own and became a separate business unit within Paragon, and it became known as Paragon B2B.

    Since inception, Paragon B2B has been dedicated to providing excellent value and service, acting as the outsourced EDI and B2B department for businesses in various industries including steel processing, manufacturing, distribution, and logistics.

    The rebranding effort coincides with a technology refresh and renewed commitment to cost effective business to business e-commerce solutions that keep pace with new developments in enterprise software.

    About Foundational e-Business

    Foundational e-Business is a Pittsburgh based division of Paragon Consulting specializing in managed EDI and e-business services.  We offer a cost effective and easy to implement managed EDI service, where we act as the outsourced EDI department for our customers.  Foundational staff has decades of experience with EDI in various industries, including steel processing, manufacturing, distribution, and logistics.  Foundational can be reached by email via info@getfoundational.com or by phone at 888-657-2345.

     

  10. Paragon B2B Moves to Larger Office Space to Accommodate Growth

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    This month Paragon B2B moved across town to new office space in order to be better positioned for future growth.

    The new address is:

    Paragon B2B
    5081 Old Clairton Road
    Pittsburgh, PA 15236

    In addition to a better situated workspace with growth potential; Paragon B2B also will enjoy the benefits of sharing office space with one of its business partners, Aktion Associates.  Working in close proximity to Aktion staff will better enable Paragon B2B to collaborate on customer projects, and continue to deliver the high levels of service that customers have grown to expect.

    About Paragon B2B

    Paragon B2B is a Pittsburgh based division of Paragon Consulting specializing in managed EDI and e-business services.  We offer a cost effective and easy to implement managed EDI service, where we act as the outsourced EDI department for our customers.