Frieght Invoicing Automation - Freight Bots

“Alzone has executed Freight Invoice Process Automation which we have done with one of the South India’s Biggest manufacturer and exporter of Consumer Goods. The business was able to avoid revenue loss by eliminating duplicate entries, amount value mismatches and was able to release payments to vendors by speedy invoice processing.

The company deal with almost 100 vendors for servicing the same as the manufacturing per day is high volume and they wanted to move the goods the same day as well. So the vendors send their invoices by email to the company and monthly they will submit a monthly bill recording all the transactions for the month. Once the bills are received at the corporate office the back operations team has to update the same in SPA and verify the same against each invoices raised. Also they need to verify for the agreed rates as per their agreements. If the valueas are all put to correct the invoices will punched and send to finance for payment realization and if else they have to adjust the amount against the product and has to make the values matching. 10 to 12 people are deployed to do this process but still has huge back logs due to high volume data coming in.

Let’s see how Alzone automated this process using un attended automation.

Here the Bot will read the monthly bill and capture the vendor name. Then we can see that the BoT is logging into the SAP and searching for Stock Order Transport report from the sale details. Once the report is found the BoT is downloading the report into an excel sheet ranging for a particular period.From that report the BoT identifies the vendor and is searching for the Purchase orders raised against this vendor for transportation of goods. Then the BoT verifys the same against the monthly bills for Quantity, Stock Order Transporter agreement conditions and value check as well based on agreed rates and If there is any change the BoT will adjust the same against other line of items and make the report matching and if there is no mismatch we can see that the BoT is submitting the same for Invoice generation and send it to finance for payment realization.”

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India 695581

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An integrated banking group based out of Saudi Arabia, also having branches across different regions has been looking for digital transformation. As part of their digital transformation journey, they collaborated with Alzone for automating some of their time consuming and repetitive financial tasks. Alzone had automated the ATM Setup Process, by implementing RPA technologies for processing setup request of 700 to 800 ATM outlets for the client. The setup of an ATM involves several steps to ensure its proper installation, configuration, and integration into the banking or financial system.

Integrating an ATM (Automated Teller Machine) with a banking system can present various challenges due to the complexity of the financial ecosystem, security considerations, and the need for seamless communication.

Here are some common challenges associated with ATM integration:

Ensuring daily that the ATM system (900 to 1000 numbers) can effectively communicate and interoperate with different banking systems, including core banking systems, payment gateways, and transaction processing platforms
Adhering to regulatory requirements and compliance standards specific to the financial industry, which may vary across regions and jurisdictions.
Integrating with existing legacy systems within the banking infrastructure, which have different technologies, architectures, and data formats.
Managing transaction processing and settlement processes to ensure accurate and timely recording of financial transactions.
Designing the integration in a way that allows for scalability as the number of ATMs and transaction volumes grow Manually processing 100 to 200 requests daily within a specified time

Automating the integration of 1000 ATMs with the banking system can offer numerous benefits, improving efficiency, security, and overall operational effectiveness. Here are some key advantages:

Reduced Manual Effort: Automation eliminates the need for manual intervention in the integration process, reducing the risk of human errors and streamlining the overall deployment. This is particularly crucial when dealing with a large number of ATMs.
Time Savings: Automation significantly accelerates the integration timeline. Tasks that might take a considerable amount of time if done manually can be completed quickly and simultaneously for multiple ATMs through automation.
Consistency and Standardization: Automation ensures a consistent and standardized approach to the integration process across all ATMs.
Cost Efficiency: By reducing the need for manual labor and expediting the integration process, automation contributes to cost efficiency. It minimizes the expenses associated with prolonged deployment timelines, potential errors, and the need for extensive human resources.
Scalability: Automated systems are inherently scalable. They can handle the integration of a large number of ATMs without a proportional increase in the effort required. Real-time Monitoring and
Reporting: Automation allows for real-time monitoring of the integration process. Any issues or anomalies can be quickly identified and addressed, enhancing the ability to proactively manage the entire ATM network.
Faster Response to Changes: When updates or changes are necessary, an automated system allows for quick and efficient implementation across all ATMs.
Minimized Downtime: Automation can contribute to minimizing downtime during the integration process. With automated testing and deployment, disruptions to ATM services can be reduced, leading to improved availability for users.
Enhanced Data Accuracy: Automated processes are less prone to data entry errors, ensuring accurate and reliable data integration between ATMs and the banking system. Centralized Control and
Management: Automation allows for centralized control and management of the entire ATM network. This centralized approach simplifies monitoring, updates, and maintenance activities.

Some of the substantial impact in automating the ATM setup processes are

Number of skilled resources reduced to 2 from 10 resulting in annual savings of $480K
Time taken reduced from 3 hours to 20 minutes

Financial position validation is a crucial aspect in banking for several reasons:

Risk management
credit decision making
regulatory compliance
fraud prevention
customer relationship management
portfolio management
capital adequacy
asset quality

Some of the challenges are

Access to accurate and up-to-date financial information is crucial for making informed credit decisions. However, the quality and availability of data can be inconsistent, leading to challenges in risk assessment.
Ensuring the accuracy of financial data provided by customers can be challenging, as errors or intentional misrepresentations may occur
Adapting to evolving regulatory requirements and compliance standards poses a challenge, as non-compliance can result in legal consequences and reputational damage.
Effectively communicating credit terms, risks, and consequences to customers is challenging, as it requires transparency while maintaining a positive customer relationship
Allocating sufficient resources, both in terms of skilled personnel and advanced technologies, to conduct thorough financial position validation can be a challenge

Automating the financial validation process in banking and financial institutions can offer numerous benefits, including:

Efficiency Improvement:
- Automation speeds up the validation process, reducing the time and effort required for manual data entry and analysis.
- Faster processing allows for quicker decision-making in areas such as loan approvals and credit assessments.
Accuracy Enhancement:
- Automation reduces the risk of human errors associated with manual data entry and calculations, leading to more accurate financial validation.
- Consistency in data processing ensures that validation is conducted uniformly across various cases.
Cost Reduction:
- Automated processes help in cutting down operational costs associated with manual labor, paper-based workflows, and potential errors that may lead to financial losses.
Risk Management:
- Automation enhances risk management by providing real-time data analysis and identification of inconsistencies, enabling quicker responses to potential risks.
- Automated systems can continuously monitor transactions and financial data for anomalies, contributing to fraud detection and prevention.
Regulatory Compliance:
- Automated processes can help ensure compliance with regulatory requirements by embedding rules and checks within the system, reducing the risk of non-compliance.
Data Security:
- Automation allows for the implementation of robust security measures to protect sensitive financial information, reducing the risk of data breaches and unauthorized access.
Scalability:
- Automated systems are scalable and can handle larger volumes of data and transactions efficiently, accommodating the growth of the business without a proportional increase in resources.
Audit Trail and Documentation:
- Automated systems provide a comprehensive audit trail, documenting every step of the financial validation process. This is valuable for regulatory audits and internal compliance reviews.
Customer Experience Improvement:
- Faster processing times and reduced paperwork contribute to an improved customer experience.
Strategic Decision-Making:
- Automation frees up valuable human resources from routine tasks, allowing financial professionals to focus on strategic decision-making, data analysis, and other high-value activities.
Adaptability to Change:
- Automated systems are more adaptable to changes in regulations, market conditions, and business processes, ensuring that the financial validation process remains effective and up-to-date

Some of the significant impacts of automating the financial validation are,

Number of skilled human resources reduced from 10 to 2 resulting in annual savings of $480k
Time taken reduced from 3 hours to 10 minutes

Bank statement Mirroring & Reconciliation Process

An internationally acknowledged biotechnology company, which is India’s largest stem cell bank with accreditations from WHO, FDA NABL and many more. There are 6 sub-brands owned by them for the preservation of stem cells, Placental Tissues, DNA etc., They have a pan-India presence with 200+ centers with footprints in GCC nations.

Business Challenge
The primary challenge faced by the financial department of the company was updating their internal finance system MS Dynamics with bank transactions and the controlled accounts details hence to perform the reconciliation on time. The large number of transactions having various rules made the system more complicated and error prone. There are 14 banks and 9 controlled accounts involved in the day-to-day financial transactions.
The reconciliation process are mainly divided into such as Bank Statement Mirroring and Bank Statement Reconciliation.
In Bank Statement Mirroring, the statement received from 14 Banks are mirrored after applying a set of validation rules. Thus created Mirror Statement is uploaded to the ERP system.
In Bank Statement Reconciliation, the collection and realization reports received from the 9 bank control accounts are reconciled against the Mirror Statement created for the main bank accounts in the ERP system. To complete this reconciliation, the following activities are being performed;
(a) Deposit slip creation & upload
(b) Banking statement creation & upload
(c) Validation & Posting to ERP
(d) Unique ID & transaction ID identification from Mirror Statement
(e) Realization statement creation & upload
(f) Validation & Posting to ERP
(g) Reconciliation using ERP

Solution
Using Robotic Process Automation (RPA) , Alzone has derived an end to end Bank statement Mirroring & Reconciliation, with zero human intervention. Individual RPA BOTs were deployed to perform the statement mirroring and reconciliation activities on a daily basis as per the schedule.
In Mirroring process the BOT performs the following activities;
(1) Identification of the valid emails and downloading the bank statements attached
(2) Mirror statement creation using a pre-defined ERP accepted template
(3) Validating the mirror statement created for data correctness
(4) Uploading to the ERP

Activities performed by the BOT in Bank statement Reconciliation process are;
1. The collection/Realization reports are downloaded from email/TPA websites
2. Deposit slip creation & upload
3. Banking statement creation & upload
4. Validation against Mirror Statement
5. Realization statement creation & upload
6. Validation & Posting to ERP

Automated Invoice Processing

An aviation and aerospace component manufacturing company, which is a new industry champion focuses on the long-term growth in the global aerospace and industrial sectors. They are a leading provider of aircraft engine Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) solutions and have been leading the way in engineering excellence and innovation for more than three decades. Invoice processing for an aircraft maintenance company involves the handling and management of invoices related to the services, parts, and maintenance activities performed on aircraft. This process is crucial for the financial and operational efficiency of the company. The key aspects of invoice processing are receipt of invoices, verification and approval, matching with purchase orders and contracts, coding and data entry, discrepancy resolution, payment processing, record keeping and compliance and reporting.

Challenge:

Increased operational expense: Each supplier will be having their own invoice format. To extract details from those invoices, a separate team was maintained who manually reads and enters the details from the invoices. When business volume surges, the number of invoices increases which was creating stress on this team. So, team size has to be increased. Unintentional data entry errors starting coming up and the invoice has to be processed again. This whole process was becoming a big expense for the firm who was looking for a way to reduce it.

Solution: Using Robotic Process Automation (RPA), Alzone has derived an end-to-end solution for invoice processing of flight engine repairs and maintenance. In the first phase, the set of invoices for training was selected based on the volume of transactions and a consolidated invoice data sheet with the track of all the financial workings is shared with the business for their review and feedback. In the second phase, the bot picks up the confirmed invoice data sheet and converts it into the invoices. These invoices are shared with the respective customer via email/designated websites in the last phase of the bot process. This way, only the invoices which was not trained was handled by the team. This helped the firm reduce the team size and save the cost.

Impact: The impact of automating invoice processing is,

Human resources reduced to 1 from 5
Time taken reduced to 10 mins from 2 hours per invoice