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ERP integration
TraxSystem has no ready-made connector for any particular ERP system: not for SAP, not for Comarch and not for IFS. It has a programming interface on which such a connector is built, and two working production connectors written for specific deployments.
Integration with the system you run is therefore a separate project with its own scope and its own price. It is not included in the licence price and has to be planned separately.
What TraxSystem integrations do not cover
TraxSystem does not exchange data automatically with rail carriers’ systems. Data reaches the system through the carrier portal or is entered by hand.
Site ban lists are not exchanged between sites: a ban applies within a single deployment.
Nor does TraxSystem guarantee delivery of an SMS or an e-mail, because delivery depends on the operators. The system records that it sent the message, but has no information on whether it arrived.
What connects without writing code
TraxSystem has ready interfaces, used in production, for these devices and systems:
| Area | Direction |
|---|---|
| Barriers, gates and relays | from the system to the device |
| Cameras, plate recognition, object detection, edge devices | both ways |
| Weighbridge indicators | from the device to the system |
| Access control controllers and readers | from the controller to the system |
| Document scanners | from the device to the system |
| Kiosks and terminals | both ways |
| SMS gateway | both ways |
| Speech synthesis for voice messages | from the system to the device |
| Vehicle registration from an external system | into the system |
| Warehouse withdrawals, car parks, vehicle bookings | both ways |
| Patrols and incidents from mobile devices | into the system |
| Certificates, time, diagnostics, authentication | infrastructure |
Portals for carriers and customs agencies
Portals are a separate integration layer and solve the most common problem with giving access to external companies. The road haulier, the rail carrier and the customs agency get their own accounts in the portals and see only their own data, without entering the site’s system.
Some sites set up accounts for their business partners in the system itself and check by hand that they do not see too much. In a portal, keeping data apart is built into the design, so it does not depend on whether someone set up the permissions properly three years ago.
What an integration project looks like
The project starts by settling direction and scope: what should flow, in which direction, how often, and which side is the source of truth when the data disagrees. That last point is often skipped, and it is the one that later generates the most phone calls.
Then the data has to be aligned. Identifiers for vehicles, business partners and employees must be matchable across the systems. That is usually the hardest part of the project, and it has nothing to do with technology.
Development and testing take place in a test environment, with data close to production data. Once live, the integration becomes part of the system and has its own maintenance cost on both sides, so work that cost out before you decide that something has to flow automatically.
Questions about the API and integrations
Will we get API documentation?
Yes. We provide it at the integration project stage.
Can we write the integration ourselves?
Yes, and some customers do. The interfaces are open, and the documentation describes the formats and scopes.
Can data be exported without an integration?
Yes. Reports export to XLSX and PDF, within the user’s visibility scope, with the option of sending them automatically at a set time. For many purposes that is enough, and it costs less than a permanent data exchange.
Will the system accept bookings from our own system?
Yes, through the interface. We have a connector that works in production in exactly that arrangement.
Who is responsible for the integration after go-live?
We agree that in the contract. Usually we are responsible for our side of the interface, and the customer or its supplier for the other side.
Related
ArchitecturePortals for external companiesSupported hardwareReports and export
Further reading: ERP integration: what to require · An access control system contract: what to watch for