Our Commitment

Competitive forces of deregulation caused profit margins to drop at a time when Internet EDI became an economical and secure means of transmitting data between trading partners. Historically many utility companies have relied on Value-added Networks (VANs) to transmit data between trading partners. While these networks were reliable, they were costly. Charging for every transaction and the size of each transaction, VAN fees can range into the $10,000 - $30,000 per month. In a competitive environment these fees inhibit a utility's ability to be profitable.

When the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) required the exchange of capacity release data between trading partners be done via EDI, VANs provided the only option. The Gas Industry Standards Board (GISB) Electronic Delivery Mechanism (EDM) standard, originally developed over 1995-1996, has become a preferred standard for data transactions by utility companies and is estimated to be the most widely deployed EDI standard in the United States.

8760 Inc.'s commitment to the utility industry is evidenced in its history of involvement with GISB, the evolution of the GISB EDM standard, and our involvement on the regulatory level. Jim Buccigross, Vice President-Energy Practice is the current Chairman of GISB Executive Committee, an instructor for GISB training seminars, and represents as 8760 Inc.'s representative on many GISB subcommittees and task forces. Mr. Buccigross was involved in the FERC EBB Working Group process, including design and implementation of the Capacity Release Datasets and EDI standards and implementation that lead to the FERC Order No. 563 series. Mr. Buccigross is also an active member in the Utility Industry Group (UIG).

8760 Inc. has been involved with GISB since 1995, and originally proposed the enhancements necessary to make the GISB EDM EDIINT AS2 compliant. The adoption by GISB of enhancements to make the GISB EDM compliant with the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) EDIINT AS2 has been approved and will be included in the version 1.5 of the GISB EDM.

Our most important representation of our commitment to the Energy industry is our commitment to our customers. Our first implementation of a GISB compliant product was in 1997 when we signed on SONAT as a client. Engaged by SONAT to provide a solution to meet the requirements of the GISB Electronic Delivery Mechanism (EDM) standard, 8760 Inc. embarked on the road that would lead to the ultimate development of InsideAgent®. Our first installation of InsideAgent into an electric utility was in 1999 at Duquesne Light Company. It was 8760 Inc.'s continued recognition as the leading expert in the field of standards and our leadership role in Internet EDI and e-commerce for utilities that lead to our selection by four of the seven electric distribution companies in Pennsylvania's deregulated marketplace. Pennsylvania Power Co., GPU Energy, Duquesne Light Company, and UGI Utilities selected 8760 Inc.'s InsideAgent® and went into production by June 30, 2000 satisfying the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission's mandate to transmit customer data according to the GISB standard. Additional delivery companies and service providers throughout the United States and Canada have chosen 8760 Inc. for the mission critical e-commerce initiatives.

AMR Research, an industry and market analysis firm providing independent advice on e-business strategy and infrastructure, has recently published an opinion that supports 8760 Inc.'s leadership position: "8760 Inc. is leading the pack in terms of Internet EDI and transaction management products. Through its direct sales channels and relationships with other service providers and vendors, such as Logica and Energy Services Group, it has started to build a strong customer base. That growth is expected to continue, especially as GISB EDM emerges as the default standard for EDI transactions in the retail energy market. Group 8760 also has a secret weapon: Its founders and management team have extensive expertise and experience with the GISB EDM standard. In fact, a couple of members of 8760's team actually helped develop the GISB Standard. Let's face it: no one deserves the name GISB Guys like Group 8760.market." (Source: Allison Bacon, The AMR Alert on Utilities Applications , March 14, 2001)