Digital Vs Electronic Documents - The Difference

The digitization of trade, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, has taken an uphill turn. Organizations are starting to go paperless as much as possible, and with the official announcement of the Electronic Trade Documents bill in the UK Queen's Speech, the digital version of all types of documentation will also be given the same legal standing as that of their paper counterparts very soon.

Digitization helps improve an organization's workflow and streamline the management of their records, thereby giving them an opportunity for faster data retrieval, lesser overhead costs, and reduced overall costs. However, before transitioning from paper documents to digital ones, you need to understand the difference between digital and electronic documents.

The Definition - Digital & Electronic Documents

A digital document is a readable document that, in its original form, is paperless. One of the best examples of the same could be an invoice in its PDF form since both the sender and the receiver can interpret the data mentioned in the document with ease, making it feasible to enter the information into the organization's ERP. A digital document, even though similar to its paper counterparts, can solely be viewed on any electronic device. So, more often than not, when someone receives a digital document, they are printed for ease of internal transfer.

An electronic document, on the other hand, is pure data written in binary digits that only a computer will be able to interpret. This means that it will be challenging for anyone to understand, making it solely meant for transfer from one system to another, without any human intervention. As soon as it is received or sent, all data present in the electronic document is easy to access or modify, and you don't have to spend any extra resources or time on printing.

How can Timber Exchange Help with Electronic Documentation?

We can partially blame industry jargon when, even with basic differences, most people use the words electronic document and digital document interchangeably. Timber Exchange aims to change that through its smart electronic documents feature.

In the platform, once you register yourself, you can add your staff and the counterparties you are trading with for ease of access. Once all the parties are on the platform, you can communicate with each other through electronic documents. Starting from a smart contract that acts as a central source with correct information where you can keep track of the milestones, shipment status, warnings, deadlines, and manage compliant documents, you get the option of accessing every single document required during trade on the platform anytime at once.

On the platform, depending on the port of loading and the port of destination, step-by-step, you get prompted about the documents you have to file to complete the trade deal successfully. This includes customs documents, phytosanitary certificates, ACID, and EUR1, among others. Timber Exchange is also integrated with 1 customs authority and 20 chambers of commerce along with 18000 bulk vessels, 60 container lines and 10 couriers for ease of flawless operations throughout the supply chain, paperlessly.

The best part of the Timber Exchange platform is that you can assign roles to your staff and ensure that only those authorized can see, modify, or access specific deal-related data, including documents, which makes the data secure and private. Also, in places where you have to update bulk data, you can download the sample CSV documents given inside the platform, fill in your data, and upload the same. To know more about the electronic document feature of Timber Exchange and understand how it might help you, feel free to contact https://www.timber.exchange/.