Guildford, UK (15 December 2008) - Guoman and Thistle Hotels, one of the UK's most prominent hotel owners and managers, today announced it is to implement Spectrum Enterprise from Freeway Commerce, an Inovis company, to provide a unified electronic trading platform through which it can exchange business-critical information, such as purchase orders and invoices with its suppliers. With more than 50 percent of invoicing conducted through EDI, Guoman and Thistle Hotels will rely on Freeway Commerce to not only communicate inbound and outbound supplier data, but also to make administration of the EDI environment more efficient through a managed service.
"We operate hotels at 38 locations across the UK, so managing the supply chain process can be a complex task, requiring a system that can deliver real-time visibility of e-invoices and other data," said Frances Carr, Project Manager, Guoman and Thistle Hotels.
"We are confident that Spectrum Enterprise will allow us to improve the accuracy of our data, in addition to providing us with advanced functionality that will make our working relationships with suppliers run smoother."
Spectrum Enterprise will allow Guoman and Thistle Hotels' larger suppliers to send and receive invoices and purchase orders using standard EDI messages. Smaller suppliers without EDI capability will be able to trade with them through a user-friendly web portal simply using a standard desktop PC and Internet connection. The solution will be fully integrated with the organisation's SAP back-office system and MyMarket - a separate 24-hour food and drink ordering service ensuring Guoman and Thistle Hotels has visibilty of supply-chain transactions round-the-clock.
Freeway Commerce will manage and administer the hotelier's entire EDI environment, ensuring its stability and availability. Spectrum Enterprise will allow Guoman and Thistle Hotels to scale its EDI operation in the future by greatly reducing the complexity of adding new trading partners to the system.
Guoman and Thistle Hotels requires the maximum level of information available with the minimum level of fuss, and the managed service will deliver this, as Freeway Commerce will take care of the everyday system management, providing an effective platform to communicate with the organisation's suppliers both now and as it grows in the future.
"Growing organisations such as Guoman and Thistle Hotels are today quickly learning that visibility into all aspects of the supply chain cycle is becoming increasingly important to better manage business processes," said John Redfern, Managing Director of Inovis, EMEA.
About Guoman and Thistle Hotels
Guoman and Thistle Hotels is one of the UK's most prominent hotel owners and managers, operating 38 properties across the UK for business and leisure travellers. The chain is renowned for its high quality accommodation and excellent levels of customer service.
About Inovis
Inovis provides the most reliable software and services platform for managing business communities. We help buyers and sellers transact, synchronize data and manage exceptions with their business partners, reducing the complexity and cost of doing business electronically. Each day, over 20,000 companies across the globe rely on Inovis to reliably send and receive orders, lower supply chain costs and get products to customers faster. Founded in 1983, Inovis is based in Atlanta, Georgia. For more information, visit www.inovis.co.uk.
Inovis is a trademark of Inovis, Inc. | 
