CASE STUDY FACTS:

CLIENT: Worldwide Integrated Supply Chain Solutions

DIGITECH SYSTEMS RESELLER: Imagetek

PROBLEM: Needed to effectively process and manage thousands more invoices each week

SOLUTION: ImageSilo^®,
PaperVision Enterprise WorkFlow and PaperFlow™

RECOGNIZED BENEFIT:
Streamlined invoice processing to expand offerings and increase revenue with freight payment services

Worldwide Integrated Supply Chain Solutions (Worldwide ISCS) is a 10-year-old logistics and transportation management company that achieved success by streamlining shipping supply chains. When Worldwide ISCS recognized that their clients also needed help managing freight payment processes, it was clear which new direction to take their business. However, it wasn’t obvious how they were going to successfully handle the surge of freight invoices and supporting documents that was certain to inundate their employees.

After expanding their Enterprise Content Management (ECM) system, Worldwide ISCS enabled the freight payment services department to efficiently manage hundreds of invoices each day and to increase revenue by 30%.

The Situation

Worldwide ISCS (www.worldwideiscs.com) is a top 50 logistics provider that designs freight-transport systems and manages truck and multi-modal traffic for manufacturers and distributors. They use knowledge, information and technology to optimize loads, routes and schedules and efficiently match loads with capable and reliable carriers.

In 2007, employees in the carrier management department were overwhelmed with paper records. It was taking them 30 minutes to search for each insurance certificate, transportation agreement or operating authority record. To solve the problem and save them search time, Worldwide ISCS decided to manage documents electronically and implemented a Digitech Systems’ ECM system. They used PaperFlow to convert paper files to electronic records and now they store and manage documents using ImageSilo, the Software as a Service (SaaS) ECM technology. As a result, employees are saving an average of 400 hours each year in file search time and simplifying disaster recovery. If a disaster struck, it would take minutes rather than two or three months to recover their records.

In 2008, CEO Tim Annett, recognized a potential for business growth in freight payment services. Customers were frustrated with the number of detailed payment documents they needed to coordinate and they were eager to outsource the work.

Carl Waldenmaier, Executive VP of Technology Services, and Ryan Bendickson, System Administrator, knew that the first requirement for a successful payment services department would be an effective and highly efficient information management system. “We absolutely couldn’t provide payment services using paper records, because we would have needed multiple warehouses just to store all those documents. It simply wouldn’t be cost effective or productive,” said Bendickson. Worldwide ISCS needed a system that would allow them to manage thousands more payment records each week using just a handful of people. Most of all, they needed technology that could expedite invoice processing, match invoices with supporting documents, populate shared index values and efficiently enter invoices into their Worldnet Transportation Management System (TMS), which is used to manage transportation operations and identify the best and most cost-effective shipping methods.

The Solution

When Bendickson explained their challenges to Imagetek, their Digitech Systems reseller, he was surprised to find that their existing ECM system could achieve all their new goals. “ImageSilo was so easy to roll out the first time that we immediately knew this was our answer,” said Bendickson. The scalable ECM system was easily expanded to accommodate the new department and PaperVision Enterprise WorkFlow (WorkFlow) was added to accelerate invoice processing. Using the point-and-click graphical design tool, Bendickson set up WorkFlow for their unique business process. “As an add-on component WorkFlow was pretty straight forward to configure. Users don’t need an extensive programming background. I can handle changes myself, which helps with flexibility,” he said.

Recognized Benefits

Today, the freight payment services department has increased Worldwide’s revenue by 30%--thanks to the fact that employees have the technology they need to handle invoices and provide a valuable service to customers.

Using ImageSilo and WorkFlow, the freight payment team electronically routes invoices to the proper person, alerts users of pending work assignments and tracks progress step by step. With just a handful of people, they quickly handle hundreds of invoices each day and process all incoming payment documents by the end of the week. There is no backlog of work on Monday!

Here’s how the ECM system works. A team of scanning operators scan and index all invoices and supporting documents into ImageSilo. Meanwhile, PaperVision Enterprise WorkFlow is constantly monitoring ImageSilo for new invoices. Once it “recognizes” invoices, it automatically groups them by customer and by type and routes all like invoices to the correct person. The processors can open their queues, immediately see pending work and make decisions with all the supporting documents at their fingertips. If processors have a problem with an invoice or need special verification, they can route it into a queue built just for managers. The system also helps processors handle duplicate copies of invoices and bills of lading, so they never have to waste time processing identical documents twice. Once the WorkFlow process is complete invoices are entered into the TMS and ready for payment.

Across the company, every step in every process is measured and studied and WorkFlow is helping Bendickson identify inefficiencies, examine bottlenecks and reassign tasks on the fly. WorkFlow status reports show him where invoices are in the process. “If someone leaves for the afternoon, it’s easy to make sure the team doesn’t fall behind on the work,” he said.

With proper routing, timely processing and instant information retrieval, as many as 30 people across the company use ImageSilo to drive productivity and further streamline their business. “Without our ECM system, we wouldn’t be able to effectively manage payment documents and other information. This is a critical system in our smooth running supply chain,” said Bendickson.

About Imagetek

Imagetek is a full-service provider and national leader in ECM. Today, Imagetek markets to 17 states and customizes software solutions for companies of all sizes in the government, banking and healthcare industries. With more than 400 customers and approximately 100 ImageSilo clients, Imagetek manages nearly 10 million documents on ImageSilo.

To learn more, visit their website at www.imagetek-inc.com or call 1.800.422.1330.

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