Background

As the 17th largest transportation broker in the United States, Allen Lund Company, transportation brokers deal with a large number of documents in support of each load transaction. Dealing with thousands of independent and established trucking companies, factoring companies, along with shipper and receiver documents amounts to millions of pages of documents each year – and growing. With this high volume of documents, a lot of human effort was required to review them, check them for accuracy, match and sort, and correct for errors, before the transaction could be set for payment. ALC looked at the situation and determined that there was a need to create solutions to streamline this process.

Initial Need

ALC was looking for an OCR solution that could split combined PDF document files into separate document files, based on document type. Specifically, they were looking for a solution that could scan their index of invoice numbers, along with keywords to not only identify and categorize the document types contained in a single PDF, but also split the PDF and rename the newly split PDF files, according to document type, using both the invoice numbers and keywords.

One of ALC’s departments receives hundreds of thousands of emails containing invoices and invoice- related documents, but the invoice and its corresponding related documents are often combined into a single PDF file. This department’s employees had to then manually follow the process outlined above for each combined PDF files. Thus, ALC was looking for a document solution, moreover an automated document processing solution that could automate the process as much as possible, so employees could gain back valuable time that could be redirected to more important and useful tasks beneficial to the organization.

After conducting extensive research of the market for possible solutions, reviewing demos and proposals, ALC narrowed their initial search from eight to ten possible solutions to two to three. From there, ALC selected iKAN Software to implement a Cloud based solution based on OCR automation software from ABBYY USA. ABBYY’s product Flexicapture proved to be up to the task at a price point that was affordable for the organization. iKAN’s expertise, along with tying the ABBYY solution into its core Virtual Document Center product was enough to convince Allen Lund Company to implement an initial trail.

“We were looking for an automated document processing solution to help us streamline processing of
our Carrier Load Confirmation related documents. iKAN Software, with the help of ABBYY FlexiCapture
helped us substantially improve our document processing accuracy and turnaround time for processing
these critical documents.” – Chetan Tandon, CIO, Allen Lund Transportation Brokers

As a Cloud-based solution, it was easy to setup and test the solution against ALC documents. What would have taken months before was accomplished in a matter of days, with minimal obligation. ALC found a solution that was flexible and would allow them to process other document types in their organization, as the need arose.

From Test to Implementation to Production

As in most new projects that have substantial volumes of pages, there were some discoveries made in the first iteration that were not considered during the discovery phase. As with all automation projects, adjusting for exceptions as the numbers of documents flow through is a normal process that must be worked through over time. The ABBYY FlexiCapture solution actually “learns” from these exceptions, so the system gets more accurate over time. It took about three months from the start of the test phase, moving into production, for the system to achieve a solid recognition rate and the system continues to improve as it is used.

Results of Automated Document Processing

Allen Lund Company has been able to document a significant improvement in the overall processing efficiency of Carrier Load Confirmations and their related documents with one key metric. Prior to the system installation, their team had to review and upload over 6,000 Carrier Load Confirmation related documents MANUALLY each week. Since the system was installed and tuned, that number is now down to approximately 500 per week, a 90% reduction of the manual work it was taking to process documents. This rate will continue to improve as the system continues to learn from ALC documents. Allen Lund Company continues to look for new ways to leverage this technology in other areas of their business.

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Simply put, Intelligent Document Processing Software also known as Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) uses artificial intelligence (AI) and several other technologies to extract data from your businesses documents (and other sources such as email, servers, scanners, mobile devices etc.) allowing companies to streamline their document workflow.

Capture, Process, Verify, Route & Export Data

IDP is considered the next generation in extracting data technology and evolves with your business needs as more technologies become available. Documents, being structured or unstructured, are transformed into usable data.

First, documents, whether in paper form, email, in the cloud, stored in a directory or PDF are scanned or automatically downloaded and then captured into software such as the iKAN Virtual Document Center. This process can be the manual scanning of AP documents, invoices, receipts or an automated process for data already stored. Some of the technologies used to capture data include Optical Character Recognition (OCR) and Natural Lauange Processing (NLP). Once data is captured it’s then classified and the information sent through the processing cycle.

Then, the information is validated and shared with the business app or verification module. During the verification process, data captured using OCR can be verified by a human at this point. Any data the system is unsure will be highlighted. A human can correct errors while allowing the software to “learn”. Machine Learning (ML) is a crucial step in intelligent document processing and allows for a quicker document workflow in the future.

The documents are stored (along with original image of captured document) for future retrieval in the system of your choice of in-house server or cloud application, allowing for quick access to document extracted data. Furthermore, data can be sent to many third-party software applications and integrated in a way that is best suited for your business niche. This process allows companies and organizations to increase productivity and lower operating cost all while seeing a quick ROI.

The iKAN RPA Software & IDP process also allows for increased data usage and decreased errors, again increase productivity and lower operating cost. Intelligent Document Processing Software allows companies to process thousands of documents. Even documents with complex layouts are effortlessly integrated using this system.

OCR Used With IDP Systems

Optical Character Recognition (OCR), as mentioned above, is also utilized in IDP to help categorize, extract, classify, and validate the data from these documents. OCR is not to be confused with IDP. OCR has its limitations compared to IDP.

OCR is relevant for simpler, template styled documents. Any variation detected within these documents can lead to complete failure or processing the document. Hand written documents cannot be processed with OCR but hand written documents can be processed with IDP. Furthermore, semi-structured and / or unstructured documents cannot be processed with OCR alone; it just does not have the capability to process these documents. Moreover, optical character recognition cannot extract context from the data taken but intelligent document processing can.

However, utilizing OCR with the overwhelming capabilities of IDP creates for an extremely useful data extraction and processing system.

Natural Lauange Processing (NLP) Proves Powerful In Intelligent Document Processing (IDP)

Another helpful tool used along side & integrated with IDP software is Natural Language Processing (NLP). This technology is able to discern numbers in tables, graphs, or paragraphs, letters, symbols, and characters in documents, even ones that are handwritten, moreover, it allows for over 99% accuracy in properly extracting the data. There are many technologies used in IDP but NLP is a powerful integration of software into the IDP process technologies of data capture, data process, data verification, data route/export and NLP is arguably the best.

Understanding Document Workflow

There are multiple steps in the workflow of intelligent document processing. First is the preprocessing of the businesses documents. These documents can be anything from invoices, order forms, barcodes, manifests, human resource files, checks, and so on. This step is where the data extraction begins. Documents are scanned using various techniques.

The ScanNow web scanning application is among the highest rated scanning systems in the industry. No indexing is required with ScanNow. Companies scan and save the documents to automatically associate key business metadata with the document. Businesses can review the scanned documents for image quality. Once satisfied with the quality of the scanned document, ScanNow will handle the rest. It does this by utilizing three techniques.

• Noise removal
  • Noise removal is the process of removing patches or small dots from the documents so that the optical character recognition software does not confuse these patches or dots with characters or numbers.
• Binarization
  • The binarization process divides the data received from the document into two groups. Afterwards it assigns one of the two values to all the members of the group selected. For IDP purposes, binarization breaks down the colored images in a document to black and white pixels, making it easier to process the documents.
• Deskewing
  • Finally, the deskewing process straightens an image if it has been scanned or written skewed. The image may be misaligned or slanted which could cause the software to incorrectly extract the data. Luckily the automated process of deskewing corrects this issue to allow for seamless data extraction.

Intelligent Document Processing Software – Document Classification

The second step in the workflow of IDP is document classification. The Intelligent Document Processing Software will first determine what format the document is being received in. Whether it is PDF, PNG, DOC, DOCX, PNG, JPG, TIFF, TIF, HTML, XLS, TXT, or any other possible file format. Next, the AI Software will determine the structure of the document received.

Documents can come in three different structures, unstructured, structured, and semi-structured. Unstructured documents have very little structure to them. They are documents that have values but no key assigned to them. An example of this would be a document that has an email address, address, or date provided but there is no key identifier on the actual document. Letters, articles, and contracts are types of unstructured documents. Even though these documents are unstructured they still provide critical information that businesses need.

Structured documents have a method to their formatting and typically have repeating information found throughout the document. They have a set format that does not change. A great example of a structured document is an Excel file.

Semi-structured documents do not have a strict format like structured files but they do have a common format which makes them easier to compute then unstructured documents. Some examples of semi-structured documents are emails, invoices, and zipped files.

Determine Document Type

IDP software will determine the document type. This step breaks down exactly what kind of document the software is looking at. Whether it is an invoice, contract, letter, Excel file, bank statement, or employee application, to name a few.

Depending on the data inserted into the IDP software determines the ability of the software to properly identify a document type and enable it for data extraction. Did you know iKAN RPA Software uses Abbyy as a key technology partner? Abbyy and iKAN are leaders in document workflow solutions.

Data Extraction

This leads to the third step in the workflow of IDP, data extraction. The two most common types of data extraction are table extraction and key-value pair extraction.

Table Extraction

Table extraction is the ability to detect and extract information and line items from a table format. Typically workers are tasked to do this process manually by taking this table information and placing it in an Excel sheet. Well with IDP technology it does all of the work for you. It collects the data, sorts it, extracts it, and places it all in one easily accessible application.

Key-value Pair Extraction

Key-value pair extraction is the process of extracting values given to specific key identifiers within a document. An example of this would be a contract with name and age being the keys and the value being the actual name and actual age input under those keys. Another example would be a company’s invoice with the keys being the items purchased and the values being the amount per item. The main difference between table extraction and key-value pair extraction is that key-value pair extraction mainly deals with unstructured and hand written documents.

Intelligent Document Processing Software Data Validation

The next step in the workflow of IDP is data validation. If the software detects any inaccuracy or discrepancy it will be flagged for further review.

This is a critical step that is not to be overlooked or set aside in ensuring the data extracted has been done so correctly. Although the IDP software is 99% accurate, items will still slip through the cracks. All red flagged documents will need to be reviewed by a human to ensure they were captured accurately.

This process not only confirms documents have been scanned and processed correctly; it also helps the intelligent document processing software “learn” through integrated Machine Learning (ML) Software and improve the accuracy of the system.

After all the data is reviewed, extracted, and straightened out, the documents will be sent to the database or exported to whichever form the company prefers. Using the workflow of IDP businesses can covert documents into the format of their choosing, whether it be PDF, XML, or JSON, to name a few. Overall, there are endless benefits to using IDP in any industry and it’s adaptable to many document-centric businesses or organizations and can be tailored to fit the business niche.

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The iKAN Virtual Document Center helped achieve the implementation of a comprehensive information governance & document solutions that securely and properly managed all company records.

Results Of iKAN Document Solutions

• Hines edocs contains 150,000+ documents (over 2 million pages) with 1,240 users worldwide.
• The company saved $612,000 in due diligence, audit and discovery. Any user can find and gather thousands of documents in just seconds.
• Using edocs for the last three years, Hines Houston offices have reduced offsite storage space by 3,960 cubic ft and saved the company $40,629 in storage cost.
• Environmental impacts include the recycling of 137,899 pounds of paper and have saved 1,172 trees, 482,648 gallons of water and 282,693 KW-hrs of electricity.

About Hines

Hines is a privately owned real estate firm involved in real estate investment, development and property management worldwide. The firm’s historical and current portfolio of projects that are underway, completed, acquired and managed for third parties includes 1,208 properties representing more than 488 million square feet of office, residential, mixed-use, industrial, hotel, medical and sports facilities, as well as large, master-planned communities and land developments. With offices in 104 cities in 18 countries, and controlled assets valued at approximately $23.8 billion, Hines is one of the largest real estate organizations in the world. Hines is also a world leader in sustainable real estate strategies, with extensive experience in LEED®, ENERGY STAR®, BREEAM, Haute Qualité Environmental and DGNB green building rating systems. Visit www.hines.com for more information.

Executive Overview

Hines moved its records repository from a departmental system into a company-chosen global platform – Microsoft Sharepoint. Working with iKAN Software, the Central Records department at Hines turned Sharepoint from a collaborative tool into a first class records management system known as edocs, a first of its kind creation. Hines and iKAN transformed the Hines edocs system into a corporate standard information governance solution from data creation to final disposition with a built-in file plan which enables Hines employees worldwide to securely and properly manage their records in compliance with the current laws and Hines policies. edocs is now endorsed by upper management as indispensable and vital to continued business growth and maintaining operational excellence across the globe.

Business Objectives

Hines Central Records was challenged with developing and deploying a system that could meet the needs of a growing and diverse organization that was constantly acquiring new lines of business and expanding globally. Central Records anticipated the need for Hines to have a comprehensive information governance solution to securely and properly manage all company records from creation to the end of life which involve six key processes – Capture > Retrieve > Retain > Archive > Review > Destruction.

System Objectives

1. Provide employees worldwide with secure and easy access to all documents 24/7
2. Meet complex user security and user access requirements
3. Provide a single-point access and a standard user import/index platform that can be easily adapted by Hines offices world-wide
4. Enhance e-discovery and due diligence through robust search and legal hold capabilities
5. Provide cost savings and corporate sustainability and green initiatives
6. Integrate seamlessly with other company accounting management systems
7. Build-in compliance records management module to manage physical and digital documents
8. Provide audit trail in governing documents from creation to disposition
9. Provide access to outside counsel and auditors for quality assurance and audit purpose

Microsoft Sharepoint & The iKAN Solution

In 2009, Hines Central Records was challenged to evolve the basic Sharepoint into a workable document management system. Hines engaged iKAN Software to provide design, development and deployment capabilities for the system.

Within three months, a better, smarter, and more efficient document management system, known as edocs, was delivered with the following essential components:

1. Distributed Data Capture – Web parts were built to automate and standardize the process of importing electronic documents from any user into SharePoint using a simple drag and drop operation. Users worldwide can scan documents directly into SharePoint using any local printers/scanners.
2. Data Integrity – The built-in iKAN system barcodes and OCRs all documents before exporting to Sharepoint, allowing each document to be uniquely identified and key-word searchable. This provides audit and e-discovery readiness and compliance.
3. Security – A comprehensive security approach was created to accommodate the company’s complex business operation, and now serves as the Hines standard security model.
4. mySearch – A user-friendly, customized search engine was created, enabling users to quickly gather data profiles for potential business, audit and litigation support.

After accomplishing the above essential components, Hines Central Records and iKAN went further, building a Records Management system within the same Sharepoint environment, culminating with an information governance solution that encompassed data creation to end-of-lifecycle support. This system integrated with the Hines Records Retention Schedule allows:

1. Identification of inactive data to be placed into the edocs archive library for retention
2. Review for destruction per the company policy
3. Proper destruction of electronic and physical records in line with Hines sustainability and green initiatives

System Deployment Integrated Document Solutions

Once the platform and the objectives were decided, the document solutions system from iKAN Software was architected to meet the company’s needs. The system was deployed in four phases.

1. Migration of over 120,000 existing documents from the legacy system – This involved syncing taxonomy, data mapping and recreating security. During the process, problem documents were identified and updated before moving into the new system.
2. edocs core function enhancements – Robust system security, distributed data capture and customized search engine were implemented, as previously described.
3. Sync with other Hines core business systems – This allowed seamless updating of any company information changes and ensured the most reliable data is immediately available to edocs users worldwide, as well as users of the core business systems.
4. edocs archive library and records management implementation – This was employed to simplify e-copy and physical records management in conjunction with the third party vendor’s storage system.

Results & Benefits Of iKAN Document Solutions

• 24/7 secure access to users worldwide
• Document management and retention from users desktop
• Time saving “drag & drop” document importing
• Security control from data capture to importation to archive
• Better controlled and compliant information governance
• Standardized adaptable information management process
• A green and sustainable “paperlite” office for everyone
• Enhanced e-discovery and due diligence
• Incorporated document management, record management and retention and disposition core modules into a single SharePoint platform
• The governance conventions developed are now company standards used in managing email retention and will be expanded to other digital data repositories and social media

Conclusion

Hines Central Records and iKAN converted a completely paper-driven file process into a state-of-the-art electronic document solutions information management system that exceeds compliance and industry standards. Utilizing the existing basic Sharepoint system licensed by Hines, we created a complete information governance solution incorporating document management, records management and retention and disposition functions and saved the company millions in purchasing licensing and development costs. Since the roll out of the system, users have grown 500%, expanding from US-only to Hines employees in eighteen foreign countries. Consistent 24/7 access and drag & drop importing enables users to be more self-sufficient and do their job better, faster and more cheaply. Hines users and outside counsels and auditors praise the ease of use, security and flexibility of the system. Hines successfully met the challenges of modern information governance with this unique solution.

Hines has been a client of iKAN Software for over 15 years!

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The Virtual Document Center® was implemented for intelligent data capture to minimize manual, hard copy management tasks within the accounting department.

WHAT THE COMPANY DOES

Zone Energy specializes in the extraction of natural gas from aging production fields using the latest technology and production techniques. This small cap company seeks less productive fields because of large cap organizations gravitating toward untapped fields that present the ability to add to reserves and support their legacy structures. Zone Energy takes advantage of this migration to maximize margins in the existing fields with a lean and effective cost structure. In two offices and 14 employees, Zone Energy has enjoyed success in this evolving vertical energy industry segment.

THE BUSINESS CHALLENGE

Fracking technology has resulted in a Catch-22 marketplace. While the technique has proved effective in creating huge new sources of natural gas, the increased supply has pushed wholesale and retail prices down to historic levels. Additionally, the older fields require higher maintenance and replacement parts to keep production levels up to profitable volumes. Keeping revenues ahead of expenses requires a high degree of visibility to cash flow and coordination between field and administrative staff. Greater emphasis to maximize administrative workflow to support core operations is imperative.

Thousands of documents are sent to Zone Energy, including an average of 1,000-1,500 vendor invoices each month. Traditional methods would require a small army of clerks to manually process the volume of hard copy documents. The combination of the economics of supply and demand and the higher costs of maintaining three fields, Zone Energy needed to leverage technology in their offices as they had in the gas fields.

The iKAN Virtual Document Solution

The VDC & intelligent data capture solution proved to be a cost-effective solution for Zone Energy, helping them to maximize the productivity of their administrative staff and improve document workflow. The VDC not only minimized manual hard copy methods, the system supported centralized billing and advanced resource planning at their Houston office. The option to integrate with their enterprise resource planning (ERP) system provided a solution to digitally synchronize all incoming and outgoing transaction documents with ERP data. This integration eliminated any need to maintain hard copy files.

Utilizing remote capture and file-it-right modules, the company was able to simplify purchase order and invoice reconciliation by enabling field offices to scan documents into the VDC, which automatically filed into the correct vendor-transaction folder within the system. This synchronization process eliminated the need to manually sort the individual hard copy pages into the rest of the traditional transaction workflow. Finally, once the hard copy documents were scanned, any pages that were once filed into a cabinet were shredded.

RESULTS

The hosted option eliminated the need for capital investment of new equipment or software, allowing funds to be reinvested into core operations. Additionally, the investment to integrate with their ERP system enabled more accurate long-term planning and improved profitability. The company has eliminated delays in processing transactions, building their reputation as a superior business partner and supporting consistent just-in-time equipment deliveries from their suppliers. The VDC has saved the company countless hours of tedious paper handling work and freed them up to spend more time on core business functions. Software from iKAN VDC can be integrated with several third-party software products.

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Relative to the different types of documents that enter an organization in various formats and via different channels, document capture is the ability to automatically import different types of documents in different formats into a document management system.

Using Optical Character Recognition (OCR)

This inbound document automation has its beginnings with inbound fax routing functionality. With the emergence of Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology, organizations have gained the ability use the content of inbound faxes by converting images to a “readable” format. Rules-based automation technology enabled routing and archiving of inbound documents arriving by fax. But recognizing and using information contained in the inbound faxes for processing documents such as sales orders was prohibitive, as it was necessary to define a business rule for each type of sales order.

Document Sources

Business cycles that have a direct impact on a company’s performance involve processes that begin and end with a document. For example, the order-to-cash cycle starts with receiving a sales order and finishes with sending an invoice. Sales order documents reach a company via fax, email, mail (paper documents) or even by phone.

In the case of phone order processing, customer service staff enter orders directly into the customer order system, often after filling out a form. But if the document arrives by fax, email or mail, the customer service representative must manually enter the sales order information into the appropriate system. The process of managing such documents is inherently inefficient and labor-intensive, and carries considerable risk of errors and/or lost documents.

And the issue of documents in relation to business process efficiency improvement is here to stay — because the volume of documents received every day by companies is constantly increasing.

Document Types

• Structured documents
• Semi-structured documents
• Unstructured documents

To put things into perspective, today 20% of incoming documents are structured documents while 80% are semi-structured and unstructured.

Change In Business With OCR Technologies

Doing business is about exchange — of goods and services, and of the information to support it all. This exchange is facilitated by documents entering the enterprise and going out to customers, suppliers and other stakeholders.

To optimize this exchange and achieve process improvement goals, businesses today need to ask these questions:

• How do we cost-effectively insert incoming documents into our business processes so that they get to the right places as efficiently as possible?
• How can we remove human intervention and manual paper handling from document processes?
• How can we improve the efficiency of our back-office operations and reduce human errors?
• What capabilities do we need?

As companies seek to reduce the use of paper, document capture is only part of the answer. The issue is much broader, raising the larger question of how to manage business processes that rely on information received in paper form as well as by fax or email. In answering that question, what matters most is what you want to do with the information.

No matter what channel a document comes through and what type of document it is, the challenge is how to remove manual handling inefficiency and risk of errors. When the information from incoming business documents has been captured, it needs to be analysed, understood and managed. This means putting the information through a workflow for validation and eventually routing this information to a business application and/or a storage repository. The more you can automate this process from end to end, the more value you can extract from inbound business documents.

Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology has provided a functional means of making business documents machine-readable, OCR is most practical for structured documents, which have formats and layouts that do not vary.

But with OCR, human intervention may still be required to assure the quality of the captured data. Today, Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) technology offers additional automation intelligence for automated processing of semi-structured documents like sales orders and invoices, which contain consistent information in varying layouts and formats. Intelligent Document Processing technology improves recognition and accuracy, helping organizations eliminate traditional issues with managing different types of inbound business documents.

The ultimate purpose of this post is to help CEOs and CIOs understand the business value of operational efficiency gains, cost savings and error reduction resulting from document processes automation. In reading this paper, it is crucial to keep in mind what you want to do with the information in documents that come into your company and launch business processes every day.

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ABBYY helps a transport & logistics company automate their invoice and Automate Document Processing via AI & OCR Document Capture techniques. The Shared Services Centre (SSC) of the global logistics service company is currently using the ABBYY solution to process up to 1.8 million documents annually in the form of incoming invoices, delivery notes, and many other paper documents. Following central processing and classification, data from incoming invoices are read using a rules-based process and passed on for the workflow-based approval in SAP.

Challenge

Processing different, time-critical documents and invoices for the Transport Companies 80 international sites.

Involved in the fields of contract logistics, freight logistics, port logistics and public transport, the Transport Company operates more than 460 sites, in more than 40 countries worldwide. The company developed its own Shared Services Centre (SSC) to support their complex supply chain processes. This unit processes a vast number of documents for 80 sites in the Transport Companies global network, including purchase invoices, clearing documents, delivery notes, loading records and order-picking notes. Up to 1.8 million essential documents have to be processed each ear, the majority of which are time-critical due to the strict deadlines entailed in logistics processes and also demand a high level of control and transparency. Furthermore, incoming invoices have to be balanced on time in order to benefit from discounts and avoid any arrears fees. The SSC has extensive IT systems in place to overcome this challenge. One key aspect of this process is ensuring that data is recorded efficiently.

iKAN RPA Software uses vendor ABBYY to successfully automate document processing, AI document capture and is a leader in document management services. Request a quote.

Solution – Document Capture Software

Automated document capture of all relevant document data using ABBYY FlexiCapture, a type of document capture software, for verification and further processing in the appropriate SAP workflows.

Using ABBYY FlexiCapture®, The Transport Company has been able to implement a new component for automated data capture. This tool processes documents as efficiently as possible and centrally by means of the corporate IT solution.

In replacing the previous solution, ABBYY was selected for its high quality data capture, its flexible and transparent architecture, scalability and fast implementation options. This means that established processes, including existing automation, could be retained in their entirety.

“ABBYY won us over from the very start with an outstanding capture rate and a very good
price-performance ratio. In addition, the expert support made fast implementation possible.”
– The Transport Company

Upon implementing the ABBYY software, a test phase was completed to train the system for the highly complex processes in the Shared Services Centre. The solution needs to fulfil a wide range of requirements, depending on the type of document, the individual procedures required and the specific data items. As such, the capture settings for each scenario were adapted based on test documents in order to make sure they could meet the necessary demands. As a rule, incoming documents are now scanned at the relevant site and transmitted in TIF or PDF format via a central server to the Shared Services Centre. Using ABBYY’s input management platform and the associated ABBYY FlexiCapture for invoices add on, all relevant invoice data is automatically captured then subsequently verified via ABBYY web clients. Integrated middleware handles archiving and sends status reports to the various logistics
systems and/or partners. Incoming invoices are indexed and passed on with the recognized values to the respective SAP workflows for archiving. This means that the different departments have direct access to the data and documents they require, while also ensuring smooth business processes.

Results

150 employees are currently working at 130 verification stations. Every month they process up to 150,000 documents – up to 1,000 documents per day. The recognition rate for captured information is up to 95%. The 1.4 million invoices and documents received on average each year can thus be effortlessly managed.

“The software was test-ready just four days after being installed, and we were able to adapt it to match our processes. In addition, the expert support made fast implementation possible. Over all, we are extremely satisfied.”

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The iKAN Virtual Document Center was implemented to supplement the existing legacy document management system. The VDC is an RPA Software cost-effective solution for remote capture of hard copy documents.

WHAT THE COMPANY DOES

This energy company focuses on discovering new reserves of oil and gas and supporting production facilities for both offshore and on-land leases. Operations are active in the U.S. Mid-Continent, Rocky Mountain, and Gulf of Mexico regions. Foreign operations are primarily in the waters near Malaysia and China. The company employs more than 1,500 people in six field offices.

THE BUSINESS CHALLENGE

The company was utilizing hard copy document management technology as a business practice for many years. They developed policies for which types of documents were to be archived, how long each should be stored, and created a document services department that provided the personnel to scan the paperwork into the system. HR records, accounting, and contractual documents were mandated for imaging. Otherwise, each department had the freedom to determine what documents were scanned and stored. Records center personnel made daily rounds to collect documents and imported them into the system the same day. This legacy system resided on-site in the operations center at company headquarters.

When the company began to expand, opening new offices in other regions and countries, management was sensitive to privacy concerns associated with off-site storage, insisting that all electronic archiving be performed at their headquarters facility. Documents were shipped to the records center to be scanned, causing visibility lag times and creating the need to copy the documents as a precaution to loss. Time sensitive information contained in hard copy documents was being faxed, further adding to costs. Legacy document systems were expensive to upgrade, making remote scanning from field offices cost prohibitive with the existing system. Instead of improving hard copy workflow productivity, extra manual activities were mandated, decreasing the return on investment of the existing system. Mixing the demands of management and the budgetary limitations of the legacy system proved to be a burden.

The iKAN Virtual Document Solution Using RPA Software

The iKAN Virtual Document Center provided a comprehensive RPA Software solution in three key areas: flexibility to integrate with older legacy document applications, information security, and cost-effective remote file capture. Each remote office utilized The VDC software as a service delivery option. This option allowed them to budget incrementally on a monthly basis, drastically reducing the expense of remote scanning versus that offered by the legacy application provider.

For smaller scanning volumes, existing scanning equipment (multifunctional copier) could be used, eliminating the need for capital outlays for new equipment. Using 128-bit encryption, the hard copy documents were secure during the transfers from remote locations, through the iKAN server, and to the headquarters location. By customizing the VDC protocols to meet the metadata requirements of their legacy system, a seamless transfer was possible with no additional user steps. This was critical due to the significant investment to integrate their legacy application with Oracle and MS Sharepoint.

RESULTS

The iKAN Virtual Document Center with the Distributed Capture module has saved the company countless hours of tedious manual paper handling and reduced hard-dollar costs (copying, faxing, and mailing expenses). The flexibility of iKAN’s RPA Software application enabled the company to have a choice of increasing their investment in the old system or leveraging a low-cost, compatible alternative to meet their policy of best business practices. Additionally, real-time collaboration between corporate and field managers was improved, all without the sacrifice of security and privacy.

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Document imaging solution integrated with Oracle Financials running over Citrix.

What The Company Does

The company provides natural gas transportation, processing and storage services and natural gas liquids (NGL’s), fractionation (separation), transportation, storage and import/export terminal services to producers and consumers of natural gas and NGL’s. They are the second largest publicly traded midstream energy partnership in North America with an enterprise value of approximately $6 billion.

THE BUSINESS CHALLENGE

Document Imaging Solution To Increase Workflow

The company has distributed processing facilities and field operations across a wide geographical territory, with many locations in remote areas. The company was interested in consolidating paper-based documents originating in the field (primarily A/P invoices) and tying them into their Oracle Financials and their content management system for faster order processing.

The iKAN Virtual Document Imaging Solution

The company had been trying for a long time to implement a document scanning solution that would work in a Citrix Metaframe environment to no avail. One of the biggest hurdles to overcome was being able to actively attach document scanners to PC’s that communicated through the Citrix Metaframe system. iKAN Software solved this with their Virtual Document Center scan module and customized development to allow the system to be invoked through the Oracle Financials Order Entry system. During the process of entering a new Purchase Order into Oracle, users now scan the source document and “attach” it to the Oracle record. Learn more about iKAN’s Document Imagining Solution.

Results

The company has been able to roll the system out to over 300 locations, with additional locations being planned. The solution has replaced two different internal client/server based systems. By allowing documents to be scanned and connected to specific records within Oracle Financials, they have been able to greatly shorten the paperwork processing time between the field and home office, improving decision making, reducing costs, and improving the overall purchasing process.

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1. Quick Return On Investment

First and foremost your company will see a quick ROI. The automation process, especially for miniscule administrative tasks, will not only save on time it will also save a significant amount of money. No longer will multiple employees need to be tasked for an extended period of time on items that digitization software can complete in minutes or hours. Automation allows employees to focus their time and attention on the areas within your business that earn the most profits. This allows more focus on the aspects of your business that drive it forward.

2. Streamline Document Workflow With Digitization Transformation

With the digitization of your company’s documents, your business is allowed to streamline and not get hung up on the small everyday processes. As your business grows, so does the ever-evolving technology. Invoices are one area that businesses can really streamline and improve upon. What used to be a small group of employees entering data manually have now become various departments, needing more employees and managers overseeing these processes, as your company expands. This turns the once small cost of processing an invoice into an exuberant amount of money. Luckily, through digitization transformation these invoices can be processed faster and more reliably.

3. Happier Employees

An extra bonus to implementing RPA and IDP software is the moral of your employees. Surveys have shown, time and time again, that employees who work with AI software and digitized documents are happier and the workplace morale is way up. Employees will fatigue at the cumbersome task of inputting data, day after day. Employee retention is also higher at companies that implement digitized documents, saving money on the costs of new hires and training.

4. Easy Access to Data

One of the best aspects of the digitization transformation of your businesses documents is the availability of your company’s documents. Whether the information was on an email, text, handwritten invoice, letter, table, PDF, or Excel sheet, your employees will be able to find what they are looking for with lighting fast speed. The efficiency of being able to locate documents quickly will save your employees valuable time and save your company money.

5. Simple Integration

iKAN software and processes are easily integrated into third party systems. First your company’s documents are captured, either by scanning or uploading. Then the documents are processed, where the text is extracted from the document and assigned a category. Afterwards the documents are validated, where the data is shared with the business app. Finally it is routed and stored for future retrieval in the third party system of your choice. The process is simple and uncomplicated. Once the documents are integrated your company can allow or deny access to any document, depending on the access level of your employee. This allows businesses to enforce file security with using monitored document access.

6. Quick Problem Solving

Even if your business does not have a third party platform already in place, iKAN Software Solutions can provide your company a solution to increase document workflow. iKAN has been in business for over 20 years and has helped hundreds of companies solve their document workflow problems. Utilizing IDP, ML, and NLP, all with the assistance of the latest AI has made iKAN software a leader in transforming companies document processes into low cost, money-making businesses.

7. Ongoing Support

iKAN Software Solutions prides itself on offering quality support that will continue as long as we are in business together. The software is easy to use and simple to set up. Getting started is a breeze with our professional team that is in place to walk you and your company through every step of the way. Once you embark on the digitization transformation of your document centric business you will wonder why you didn’t start sooner.

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Implementation of iKAN Virtual Document Center using OCR & Data Extraction to handle paper and electronic document collaboration for core service operations using OCR & Data Extraction technologies.

What The Company Does

Naegeli Transportation performs point-to-point heavy equipment transportation services for engineering, construction, and the petrochemical-oil field industries. Their dispatch department initiates each revenue-generating activity including coordinating fleet logistics, delivery commitments, ensuring local regulatory compliance, load routing, and bill-of-lading receipt preparation and confirmation.

The Business Challenge

Naegeli’s business is focused on reliable, safe pickup and delivery of oversized loads that require specialized trailers, escort procedures, and municipal, county, and Texas Department of Transportation authorizations. The company averages 100-150 jobs per day. Each transaction has collaboration needs, beginning with initial due diligence and continuing through delivery of the load. During this planning process, different parties need access to varying levels of document-based information. In addition, transaction sequence requires certain documents to be verified, transported, delivered, and executed on strict timelines based on expectations of their customers and verbal agreements. Missing a deadline or mismanagement of critical documentation can be very costly in loss of future revenue, the incurrence of regulatory fines, or legal liability. Additionally, time, motion, and copying costs to assemble the necessary documentation for each job are significant using traditional administrative methods. Simple filing mistakes in the dispatching process could cause service delays, fines, and even injuries.

The iKAN Solution: Virtual Document Center

The iKAN Virtual Document Center using OCR & Data Extraction technologies integrated with Naegeli’s AS400 system proved to be a perfect solution to their document control needs. Multiple parties with specific logistics responsibilities are able to assemble the job documentation “virtually”. Driver assignments, routing, permits, logistical scheduling, bills of lading, and invoices are generated and verified in a quarter of the time as compared to the previous manual procedures. A bar code is generated to link the job to the customer, and is applied to the bill of lading. Once the bill of lading is signed by the customer and scanned into the system, an invoice is automatically generated. Naegeli can control who sees which documents, allowing different users to access information that pertains specifically to their business need. The company has eliminated delays in delivering due diligence information. This streamlined process has saved the company countless hours of tedious paper handling and frees up employee time to focus on core, revenue-generating business functions.

Results

By converting from a paper-based system to an automated electronic document solution, Naegeli’s workflow processes, visibility and accountability have significantly improved. As a result, the company has developed a superior reputation in the regional marketplace for better on-time delivery, safety, and reliability. The company’s information and business processes are organized and efficient as compared to its competition. Naegeli employees, most notably the dispatchers who were formerly truck drivers with little previous IT experience, appreciate the document management system’s convenience and ease-of-use.

The system has increased management visibility into the workflow process, which has enhanced employee autonomy and accountability. In addition to higher productivity and decreased manual labor, an evolution in the company’s culture has occurred. By improving collaboration and communication, employees have embraced a technological change that provides significant business efficiency.

Information storage, security, and accessibility also significantly improved due to redundant offsite backup via the Cloud. This was of particular importance following Hurricane Ike in 2008. After the storm, the iKAN Document Management System enabled Naegeli to restart operations quickly. While most other companies were severely impacted by flooding, power outages, and employee absence, Naegeli was able to provide uninterrupted customer service remotely via the offsite document storage and retrieval capability.

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