ASA's Industry DataBase (IDB) is now available to wholesale distributors who've been looking for one place to go for standardized, accurate product numbers. Through a unique partnership with Harrison Publishing House, the IDB currently makes available over a million SKUs from hundreds of manufacturers, all in a format that is easily synchronized with distributors' internal systems.

Most major distributor software systems have already made available "data warehouse" modules that have been waiting to be populated with data, which is now available through IDB.

The IDB not only provides basic product information, but is designed to enable manufacturers to go to one place (on-line) to upload pricing changes and other pertinent updates on an as-needed basis. The information is then immediately available on-line to distributors to download as, and when, they see fit.

"Over the course of the next several months, the ASA Center for Advancing Technology will be launching an all-out campaign to solicit manufacturer sign-ups for the IDB," said Kevin Price, the CAT's Director. "Signing up for IDB will enable manufacturers to not only ensure the up-to-the-minute timeliness of their data, but also link it to the other product information that distributors need, such as graphic images, cut sheets, and much more."

The IDB is designed to provide equal benefit for distributors, who will use the information to populate their internal systems, and for manufacturers, who will be able to save money and effort currently spent in producing updates in a variety of media, including print, diskettes, and emails.

For more information, contact the Center for Advancing Technology at 1-800-608-7308, or write to Kevin Price at kprice@asa.net.