Frequently Asked Questions

I can’t remember my login user ID or password. What do I do?

Contact the NMMA’s MDX Software Partner, Tony Funari at Link Corporation. Tony can be reached by telephone at 814-742-7700 or via e-mail at tfunari@linkcorp.com.

Q: As a distributor, can I use the MDX to communicate with my suppliers who are mostly marine accessory manufacturers?

Yes, the MDX is specifically designed for supply chain enablement between marine accessory manufacturers and distributors, but can also be used by boat builders to communicate with their suppliers.

Q: I’m a boat builder and get a lot of my supplies from marine accessory manufacturers. Can I use the MDX to communicate with my marine accessory suppliers?

Yes! The MDX enables marine accessory manufacturers to communicate with both distributors and boat builders – really any company who buys from marine accessory manufacturers.

Q: What transactions does the MDX carry?

Purchase Orders, Purchase Order Acknowledgements, Purchase Order Changes, Advance Ship Notices, and Invoices.

Q: What is the data file format used?

The MDX uses flat text files as the format.

Q: Do the MDX transaction data files adhere to any industry data standards?

The MDX data files are based on the 4010 version of the ANSI standard for traditional Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). This was done to ensure that each transaction (i.e. PO, Invoice, Ship Notice, etc.) was comprehensive in the data fields available to satisfy virtually any company’s data requirements. As such, there is no expectation that the transaction data file formats will have to change for a very long time, if ever. The 4010 ANSI EDI standard was simply used as a template or guideline, and there is no requirement that the MDX files match or keep up with the ANSI version changes. The advantage here is that if a company is already generating and sending/receiving EDI via traditional means through a value added network (VAN), the EDI data can simply be saved as a text data file and sent at no charge through the MDX to the appropriate trading partner(s).

Q: Is the MDX easy to integrate into my back office computer system?

Yes. The MDX uses text files with fixed record types that are communicated via FTP. As such, no matter what information is passed in or out of the MDX, the integration file formats do not change, even if the information should vary by trading partner within a document type. This enables easy integration to your order processing, warehouse management, and accounting systems for purchase orders, advance ship notices, and invoices.