SEEBURGER's 4invoice for SAP Users Adds Ready-to-Use SAP Workflows, Speeding Rollout of Automated Processing for Paper & Electronic Invoices

ATLANTA, Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- SEEBURGER Inc.'s 4invoice, a purchase-to-pay solution that automates invoice processing for organizations using SAP Finance and SAP Materials Management, now features ready-to-use SAP workflows that can cut deployment time in half. 4invoice handles paper, fax, PDF, EDI and web invoices on a single platform that eliminates manual data entry and manual SAP posting even for non-electronic invoices, reducing overall processing time and costs by 40%.

The new templates accelerate 4invoice deployment for SAP users by avoiding weeks of costly customization typically required to define business rules for routing inbound invoices through an organization's approval processes. Finance and/or accounting departments simply need to define business rules such as payment approval thresholds and department routing tailored to their own procedures.

Once 4invoice is deployed, it runs entirely within the SAP environment, automates data entry and other processes for invoices that are typically received by paper, fax, PDF and EDI, and is capable of routing and posting both converted paper and electronic invoices that meet all validation criteria without manual intervention. The ability to monitor all electronic and non-electronic invoice traffic through a common SEEBURGER SAP console eliminates the need for multiple invoice monitoring systems and can be used to generate management reports.

Seamless SAP Integration

For invoices received in paper, fax and PDF formats as well as EDI, the 4invoice application is triggered as soon as a newly scanned invoice/EDI data record is delivered to SAP through the standard archive interface. 4invoice performs freeform data recognition, automatically enters the captured data into the appropriate fields, and validates it for posting in SAP. This includes a full three-way matching process based on the Purchase Order, Goods Receipt and Vendor data in SAP, where invoices are being posted in the background automatically.

If the three-way matching process identifies variances or missing accounting objects, 4invoice routes the document from approval through final invoice posting using the customer-defined workflow rules for either MM-invoices (for SAP-related purchase orders) or FI-invoices (for non-SAP-related purchase orders).

The converted paper invoice stream can be consolidated with electronic invoice processing, leveraging the same SAP workflows for invoice approvals as well as the same SEEBURGER SAP console for monitoring and visibility. This single-platform strategy leverages the ability of SEEBURGER's core Business Integration Platform to accept invoices in EDI, XML and other electronic business formats.

SEEBURGER Workflow in SAP

"With our ready-to-use templates, no workflow development work is needed," said Bill Metallo, VP of SEEBURGER Inc. "As a result, finance and accounting departments operating in the SAP environment can quickly take advantage of 4invoice's rapid invoice processing capabilities, including eliminating manual data entry and associated errors, lost invoices and processing delays for non-electronic documents. This also makes it possible to capture discounts, avoid late payment charges, and archive information to preserve through audit trails."

Other 4invoice features include:

• Rapid invoice processing capabilities, eliminating manual data entry, lost invoices, late payment charges and processing delays for non-electronic documents, as well as enabling opportunities to capture prompt-pay discounts.
• Proven scalability, with the infrastructure to manage processing volumes ranging from 500 to 10,000 invoices per day.
• Intelligent approver identification, enabling the system to identify the appropriate approver for a particular invoice by vendor name, PO#, invoice amount or other parameters and then route the workflow accordingly.
• General Invoice Ledger monitoring and transparency for finance and accounting departments, with an intuitive search tool that provides end-users with real-time status of all invoices in the SAP environment across manual, scanned and electronic invoice sources. Incorporated SAP display functions permit individualized user settings for ad hoc reports and summaries.
• Pre-defined rules for invoice screening and validation, further streamlining 4invoice implementation. The rules control warning and error conditions related to due dates, terms, price variances, additional charges, and other common AP validations.

The 4invoice solution for SAP is available directly from SEEBURGER (www.seeburger.us/4invoice).

About SEEBURGER

SEEBURGER is a global provider of business integration solutions that accelerate intra- and intercompany collaboration, reduce operational costs, and facilitate governance and compliance. The company offers a comprehensive suite of business-to-business and managed file transfer solutions, including ERP-specific solution extensions that optimize transaction flow, document and event automation, community management and other processes critical to efficient business operation. With more than 25 years in the industry, SEEBURGER today is ranked among the top business integration providers by industry analysts, serves thousands of customers in more than 50 countries and 15 industries, and has offices in Europe, Asia Pacific and North America. For more information, visit www.SEEBURGER.com.

SOURCE SEEBURGER Inc.