Abstract

Electronic Data Processing (EDP), born of military necessity, is now controlling inventories, making marketing decisions, performing Operations Research, keeping books for banks and making up countless payrolls not only for large firms who have their own computers, but, in some communities on a contract basis for small business too. This article is generally concerned with business type centers without any restriction. This means that all types of problems and applications are included within the scope of processing. Many companies carry through a feasibility study as the prelude to deciding in which direction to move with regard to electronic data processing. Prior to 1959, the usual practice was to study a company's operation and costs, calculate the costs of EDP and required running time and come to a decision as to whether there was an EDP application or not. It was then recognized that a decision to go ahead with EDP implied in fact that a company was satisfied with setting up a data processing center of its own, generally leased for one shift, if the feasibility study indicated at least a dollar breakeven by displacing costs on the routine bread and butter operations.