Feature

From Document Manager Magazine Vol 17 No 05 - September/October 2009

Leading property developer Crest Nicholson is using ITESOFT's processing solution, ITESOFT.FreeMind for Invoices, to help streamline data capture from invoices

Leading property developer Crest Nicholson is using ITESOFT's processing solution, ITESOFT.FreeMind for Invoices, to help streamline data capture from invoices

"We chose ITESOFT.FreeMind for Invoices for its powerful character recognition capabilities which has reduced the need for administration and re-keying of data."

Crest Nicholson is a leading developer of sustainable communities whose mission is to be the market leader in the design and delivery of sustainable housing and mixed-use communities.
They aim to improve the quality of life for individuals and communities, by providing better homes, work places, retail and leisure spaces. Crest Nicholson have an ongoing emphasis on environmentally responsible housing and a commitment to deliver truly low carbon sustainable schemes.

The Challenge
Receiving in excess of 50,000 invoices per annum, invoice processing was managed across several regional offices. Previously the company was using a Coda ledger but this was fast becoming obsolete. As a result the company examined its Accounts Payable (AP) process with a view to improving efficiency.

 The main challenges for the AP department included:

-Fragmented AP process, meaning delivery notes and invoices processed from several regional offices.

-Labour intensive, manual data entry, photocopying, distribution and checking of documents.

-Obsolete financial system for processing invoices.

-Lack of visibility of regional office activity.

-Data errors caused by manual data entry from paper invoices.

-Complicated audit trail.

Boosting efficiency
To boost efficiency across the purchase to pay process, Crest Nicholson selected ITESOFT.FreeMind for Invoices, for automated invoice capture. The
solution is seamlessly integrated into their Agresso financial system.

 The invoices are now scanned at the company's headquarters and the data is captured, validated within ITESOFT.FreeMind for Invoices and then uploaded as a batch process into Agresso. Invoice header information (index data) and the relevant image of the invoice are up-loaded into the company's Agresso image repository.
Accounts employees can then view corresponding invoice images from anywhere within the Agresso system, greatly assisting in query resolution, speeding up search and retrieval etc.

Looking to the future
Like many organisations, Crest Nicholson has been under pressure to reduce costs while improving process efficiency. ITESOFT.FreeMind for Invoices has enabled Crest Nicholson to totally automate a manual process, streamlining their AP Department and achieving measurable benefits.
Main benefits of the solution include delivering a centralised, more efficient finance department, a reduction in headcount, reduction in time spent processing invoices and full integration into Agresso. In addition the AP staff team has been freed from manual tasks, enabling them to redirect their resources to other tasks.
In the future the company will have the capability to extend the document capture solution to include statements, delivery notes and other documentation.

More info: www.itesoft.com

Customer needs met:

•           Total automation of a manual process

•           Centralised, more efficient finance department

•           Reduction in headcount

•           Team of AP staff freed from manual tasks

•           Reduction in time spent processing invoices

•           Reduction in invoice processing costs

•           Full integration into Agresso

Feature