TEKO
Digitalization of Invoice Processing
Almost every invoice that a company receives looks different. Nevertheless, the recording, approval and posting can be largely digitalized and thus automated. TEKO was looking for a solution that could be seamlessly integrated with its existing ERP system. But just installing new software is not sufficient – the processes involved had to be adapted first.
For consumers, it is simply a matter of course that chilled and frozen products are stored and offered for sale in the supermarket in the way they should be: properly refrigerated. This involves complex cooling systems and cold chains that use state-of-the-art technologies for effective temperature and climate management. TEKO has specialized in efficient and sustainable refrigeration solutions for over 35 years. The food trade is only one of several sectors for which TEKO individually assembles its products and services. Intelligent refrigeration systems are also needed in manufacturing and transport, for example. There are numerous legal requirements and quality assurance standards to be met.
TEKO was founded in 1982 – its head office is located in Altenstadt in Hesse, Germany. Its almost 200 employees are also spread over three other locations in Hamburg and near Munich and Leipzig. In addition, TEKO has several subsidiaries in Austria, Eastern Europe and Asia. Not only do TEKO’s customers place high demands on the solutions, but TEKO has also set itself the highest quality standards. This means, specifically, that internal processes and cooperation with partners must be optimally integrated and largely automated.
Adding Invoice Verification to an Established ERP System
TEKO has been using the FOSS ERP system from ORDAT for years. The software is tailored to the needs of medium-sized production companies and has proven itself at TEKO in several areas. In addition to production control and planning, FOSS also supports finance and accounting, ensuring process integration of these two areas. The existing solution was now to be supplemented by an electronic invoice verification system. TEKO attached great importance to integrated and effective processes. The overall process was to be further harmonized and digitalized with an electronic invoice verification system. The time spent on managing invoices was to be significantly reduced in order to be both more efficient and less prone to errors.
In their search for a standard solution for FOSS, the TEKO project team came up with a solution. With Sycor.Invoice for FOSS, Sycor offers a solution that is seamlessly integrated into the ERP system. It digitalizes and largely automates the recording, approval and posting of incoming invoices. There are many advantages for users: Thanks to the process-supported, digital processing of all invoices, they will be easy and quick to find in one system for anyone with the appropriate authorization. At the same time, they are filed in accordance with auditing requirements.
First Priority: A Suitable Process
If, as at TEKO, an existing ERP system is to be supplemented by another solution, such additional functionality cannot simply be added to the existing system. “First we thoroughly analyzed the existing processes and described them in detail,” says Christian Offermann, project manager at Sycor, whom TEKO commissioned to implement Sycor.Invoice for FOSS. “Numerous questions had to be clarified in advance: How have the affected processes been handled so far? Who must have access to the process, that is, the invoices, in order to approve them, for example? And how can the process be harmonized in such a way that fully automatic processing becomes possible?”
TEKO was specifically concerned with core processes in financial accounting and purchasing. The processes were prepared accordingly thanks to the advice of Sycor’s experts. Sycor then took over the implementation of the new invoice solution. “Again and again we coordinated with ORDAT, the provider of FOSS, to ensure that the overall solution worked smoothly,” recalls Christian Offermann. Sycor works closely with the software manufacturer ORDAT to offer medium-sized companies useful extensions to the ERP system. “We also integrated other solutions, such as smartFix from Insiders for text recognition. Some adjustments and further developments were necessary for the integration with the existing DMS and for the connection of further systems, such as Microsoft Outlook.”
Sycor.Invoice for FOSS scans incoming invoices automatically using optical character recognition (OCR). The data is automatically reconciled with the master and order data stored in the ERP system. If incoming goods are also recorded, the invoice is posted and archived, and the invoice is released for payment. The manual effort required is extremely low, while transparency is very high thanks to automatically generated invoice overviews. Additional cost efficiency can be achieved through the consistent use of payment discounts (cash discounts). Sycor.Invoice for FOSS can be customized according to individual process requirements, for example, when specific approval procedures must be followed.
Electronic Invoice Processing in Everyday Use
Meanwhile, Sycor.Invoice for FOSS at TEKO ensures significantly more effective invoice processing. The digital process including automatic text recognition runs so well that the read-out data does not even need to be verified by an employee. For invoices to which an order is assigned, processing is completely automated – from receipt to release for payment.
This project also included training by Sycor’s experts to enable users to quickly benefit from the new functionalities. Sycor.Invoice for FOSS is integrated with FOSS and therefore a great advantage for TEKO, not only from a process perspective. Users can access the new functionalities via the familiar FOSS interface. In addition, the presentation is very clear, the documents are easy to find, and yet stored in a legally compliant manner. Thus, TEKO not only saves time with Sycor.Invoice for FOSS, but is also on the safe side of invoice processing in the long term.
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