Loparex

The invoice receipt as a competitive advantage with EASY Invoice

As you once again stand in what feels like the longest queue in the supermarket, it is a good time to think about life before the invention of scanners and barcodes. Waiting times become relative as soon as you begin to ask: How long would I have to wait if the shop assistant had to enter every item by hand, digit by digit, price by price, into an old-fashioned till?

The Loparex Germany GmbH is implementing the invoice management by EASY SOFTWARE

Our invoice processing is faster than ever thanks to EASY.“

Christian Wallon, Finance Director, Loparex Germany

The ubiquitous solution used in retail today has become a matter of course; and the same can be true of the solution for company administration, which can be used to increase profitability and efficiency. Take the introduction of electronic invoicing as an example. More and more companies are beginning to rely on the options it brings.

Medium-sized companies, large companies and international corporations are all recognising its benefits: more profit thanks to less lost discount, greater efficiency, security and transparency.

One of the companies utilising this potential is Loparex Germany GmbH & Co. KG. The group, which specialises in the production of high-quality packaging and protective foils, introduced the enterprise resource planning system Oracle Financials some years ago. The Loparex Germany GmbH used the ERP solution to reorganise the invoice-related testing and clearance process. „It was a relief when we introduced it. But, in terms of the current standards, the solution offers considerable potential for improvement in invoice processing, especially when it comes to efficiency“, explains Finance Director Europe Christian Wallon.

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Project information

Automated workflow: Fast and efficient

Invoice processing used to be a painstakingly slow job. From inputting the header and position data to comparing the totals with the quotes in the ERP system, to tax obligations. If the goods were not received, the situation also had to be clarified with the purchasing department. Then there was the archiving in the paper archive: The processes were stored in the accounting department for two years, and then they spent a further eight years in the filing department.

„The invoice management and booking was basically a tiring and fiddly task and, as such, it was ineffective, non-transparent and prone to errors. Errors that simply had to be eradicated in view of operational and legal security“, according to Wallon. In order to achieve this, all of the bookings and account assignments were checked by hand the following day.

Main requirement: Automation

In 2009, the Loparex Germany GmbH began the search for a software solution that could automate the invoice checking, clearance and archiving, and could relieve the burden on members of staff. Perfect compatibility with Oracle Financials, greater efficiency and optimised processes were as important as a modular, scalable structure – freight invoices and electronic invoices were also to be incorporated into the process at a later date.

The Loparex Germany GmbH opted for EASY SOFTWARE AG following the tendering process. Not just because the EASY solution fulfilled all of the requirements. „A project like this is more than just an IT project. It involves colleagues from invoicing, purchasing, logistics and IT. It is important that the chemistry is there as well as the technical expertise. When it came to the project team from EASY, it was immediately clear that this would not be a problem“, explains Wallon.

Individual customizations

The project began at the beginning of 2010: The servers were reconfigured before extensive tests were carried out on the master data in order to be able to just transfer clean, high-quality data sets to the new system. The third step saw EASY SOFTWARE AG develop a draft workflow, which was then constantly adjusted to suit the needs of the client together with the Loparex Germany GmbH. The reason: EASY Invoice allows for extensive customisations in the workflow itself: from automated creditor recognition using account numbers to authorisations for invoice approval to escalation rules if an error is found within an invoice. Once the workflow had been defined, the next step was to integrate EASY Invoice into Oracle Financials. This was achieved with the help of an interface developed by the Loparex Germany GmbH on the basis of IBM Cognos. The final step was to carry out extensive testing before the system could finally be given the green light for operation within the specified time frame.

Slimline and fast: EASY INVOICE in operation

Incoming paper invoices are now transferred to an automated workflow. From this point onwards, they are stored in the system and can be viewed at any time – in line with the appropriate authorisations. At the same time, they are archived in an audit-proof way, thus making paper copies unnecessary.

EASY Invoice reads the contents of the invoice and checks it: Thus, for example, EASY Invoice can recognise the associated order and can identify incorrect unit quantities, and individual and total prices. Duplicate invoices, incorrect invoice numbers and incorrect invoice dates are identified. In addition, the system also checks the invoice in line with §14 of the Value Added Tax Act.If the invoice is correct, EASY Invoice transfers the corresponding posting record to the ERP system, which can be immediately processed so that discount periods can be adhered to.

EASY Invoice is currently processing around 22,000 invoices per annum for the Loparex Germany GmbH. The invoice archive can be accessed at all times directly from Oracle Finance.

Great improvements thanks to EASY

Everything also went to plan in terms of the system‘s further development: Since 2012, EASY Invoice has also been checking and archiving freight invoices and correspondence. In addition, the company has now gradually switched to invoicing its suppliers by email. An extension to the system has meant that EASY Invoice can now process, check and archive PDF invoices received via email in the same way as it can paper invoices. Thus everything runs smoother and quicker.

„We are very pleased. Everything has gone to plan in both the introductory project and its further development“, summarises Christian Wallon. „With EASY Invoice we have achieved great improvements in processing times, transparency and error rates. We also have an audit-proof archive, without the need for a paper archive. Efficiency in invoicing and in the other affected departments has increased massively. And, finally, the large-scale elimination of manual tasks combined with the clear processes has noticeably improved staff motivation. Our invoice processing is, therefore, faster and better than ever. EASY Invoice quickly paid for itself.“

The advantages of EASY Invoice

EASY Invoice has created a faster and more secure invoice processing at the Loparex Germany GmbH.

The benefits of EASY Invoice:

records all purchase invoices and extracts all of the relevant data
is the cockpit for all invoice processes
controls all clearance processes
guarantees auditproof archiving
acts as a connector to Oracle Finance on the basis of IBM Cognos