Label Tech accelerates digital transformation with AP automation
Established in 1992, Label Tech is Ireland’s largest independent label producer. Leveraging state-of-the-art digital printing, the company services customers across a wide range of industry sectors, including food and beverage, health and nutrition, retail, transport and logistics. Pioneers in sustainable printing, Label Tech offers carbon neutral, recycled and certified compostable labels.
80% reduction in invoice processing time
Elimination of physical storage requirements
Effortless reconciliation of supplier accounts
Streamlined audit and approvals processes
Our original process was similar to many businesses, I suspect. We would receive an invoice via email, and it would immediately be printed. We would then go and fetch the delivery note from Goods In and manually cross-check both items against the original purchase order before forwarding the invoice for approval.
The Challenge
Digitalization, process automation and sustainability feature prominently in Label Tech’s ethos. As part of a broader digital transformation initiative, the company was seeking to improve process efficiency, and reduce the risk of error, within the accounts payable department. Aideen Greene, Financial Controller for Label Tech sets the scene:
Although there was no single, compelling event that triggered the project, Label Tech had seen how partners had benefitted from process automation and were keen to explore the benefits themselves.
On the face of things, it’s not a particularly onerous task – assuming everything matches! It probably took around five minutes to process each invoice; but when you need to process 20-30 invoices in a day it begins to add up. On an average day we would be spending up to two hours on this manual task.
The Solution
SmartOffice AP is a powerful, cloud-based electronic accounts payable solution. Turning invoice management into a touchless experience, it significantly reduces the time and effort involved in processing supplier invoices.
Ease of integration
Label Tech uses Sage 50 for purchase ledger and an industry-specific solution (Label Traxx) for sales ledger. “Flexibility was key when it came to choosing an automation solution” explains Aideen. “Label Traxx is a solution specifically designed for the labelling industry, so we were looking for a solution that was easy to integrate”.
A feature rich solution
SmartOffice AP is loaded with features that help reduce the cost of invoice management by up to 80%. From essential document tracking and delivery confirmation to nominal ledger coding, one-click statement reconciliation and automatic three-way matching of invoices against PO and GRN. Add secure cloud storage and unique features like price watch and it’s easy to see why SmartOffice is proving so popular with customers.
SmartOffice was introduced to us by, our Sage Business Partner. We put a lot of stock in referrals as it’s important that our technology partners can walk the walk. A recommendation went a long way to helping us make a choice of vendor.
The Result
From the initial presentation to go-live and user acceptance took just 7 weeks. Agility is a key feature of SmartOffice. Although this was a firsttime integration with Label Traxx, the integration phase was completed within 3 weeks.
“The decision to implement SmartOffice was primarily about process efficiency” explains Aideen. “We’ve definitely achieved that, with the average invoice processing time coming down to around 30 seconds. But we have also realized several other benefits. Auditing and approvals have become much quicker. The process is streamlined, more secure and future proof. We don’t misplace invoices as everything is electronic and everything is timestamped, so we know who approved what and when. We’ve also been able to remove twelve boxes of old invoices from last year as everything is stored in the cloud.
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