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Summary
EMANIO is one of the oldest names in the EDI space. Their flagship EDI product, Trading Partner Integrator Studio Edition (TPI Studio) may suffer from a bit of a lengthy name, but is otherwise an outstanding proposition for small and midsized businesses. If the Trading Partner name rings familiar it should, Trading Partner is the same software originally sold by Mercator that so many businesses world-wide still use to this day. The "integration" part of TPI Studio as the company refers to it is powered by EMANIO's own Unite! Data integration engine. Overall as you will see in the review there are several advantages to working with a company focused on small and midsized business. Also important to note is that DiCentral has recently purchased Trading Partner and Unite!, and has plans to soon make improvements and changes to both products. Once more news is available, updates to this review will be made.
Strengths
TPI Studio has a number of strengths, too many to go into in a short review like this, but suffice it to say that installation and set up were very easy. Getting started with the system was extremely straight forward and EMANIO’s methodology for delivering the product is top notch. When you purchase TPI Studio they give you the option of doing all the integration for you (what could be better) or of doing the first few sets of integration adapters with you to teach you as you work on your own system! This hand-holding approach worked really well and got us to a point where we could be self sufficient quickly. The product is also LIGHTNIG fast and came in a close second processing at very close to the 20,000 records per minute EMANIO claims.
Limitations
It is of course not all roses for TPI Studio. The TP side of the equation is starting to show signs of age from a user interface perspective and we wish the built in reporting was a bit sturdier. Having said that, however, the price is very attractive and the company’s support and professional services teams make working with the product easy and extremely intuitive. Given the balance of the two (strength of features vs. the Trading Partner user interface that is starting to look a bit dated) we would much rather do with a product that works, works well, works reliable, doesn’t seem to ever crash and is backed by a company that obviously knows what it’s doing.
Wish List
Our wish list here is relatively short and involves only a more streamlined UI for Trading Partner as well as better reporting functions. Given the advantages, however, the speed and the company’s support of the product we have no qualms giving this product a VERY high recommendation for any small or mid-sized organization.
Product Ratings
The product ratings below reflect our evaluation of EMANIO TPI Studio with a rating score that ranges from 1 to 5, with 1 equaling “fail” and 5 being an “Excellent”. Our overall score for TPI Studio is of 4.29 out of a total possible of 5.
| Product Area |
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| Setup & Installation |
Set up and installation were a breeze as the automated installer set pretty much everything up for us. Adding trading partner support with EMANIO’s pre-built kits is a 5 minute operation |
4 |
| Interface |
The user interface for the Trading Partner side of the equation is looking a bit dated, but Unite! could not be easier to use and the integration methodology lends itself to fast work |
4 |
| Features |
The product is certainly not as feature rich as are Sterling’s or Inovis’, but then again – this is EDI right? After it’s integrated and working why would you want to bother with it if you don’t have to? With TPI Studio it’s just that simple |
4 |
| Ease of use |
Excellent ease of use slightly spoiled only an old Trading Partner reporting module |
4 |
| Automation Capabilities |
A very high degree of automation makes it possible for even the smallest company to have a nearly zero touch EDI system |
4 |
| Integration capabilities |
Excellent support for multiple file types including XML and an integration methodology that can shave days off your project |
5 |
| Performance |
Second in performance to a product that is much more expensive. TPI Studio is a workhorse |
5 |
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Overall Score |
4.29 |
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Our Team
About Team 
The strength of EDI Software Review is the individuals that make up the team. In fact, we believe that our team consists of a group of uniquely talented individuals. Each of the team members is an experienced consultant that is operationally savvy, demonstrating a deep levelof experience. Each member of the team has an intense commitment to board service and to working closely with the management teams of software companies to provide an unbias independant review. |
