Automated Billing
May 30, 2007
Are you effectively communicating with your suppliers? One Midwestern builder has found a way to achieve true data exchange with a key supplier, ensuring communication is actually a two-way street between the companies.
Granite Ridge Builders, www.graniteridgebuilders.com, Ft. Wayne, Ind., is leveraging a new custom import feature within its document management technology from CabinetNG, www.cabinetng.com, Madison, Ala., to facilitate more efficient transactions with supplier Home Lumber.
This enables the builder to automatically import billing data and document images from the supplier into its QuickBooks accounting system. This importing capability allows Granite Ridge to integrate billing between disparate accounting systems.
“The visual impact of being able to see invoices scanned into our Cabinet NG electronic document management system has been immensely effective in multiple ways,” says Aline Urschel, accountant, Granite Ridge Builders. “This procedure mimics our old paper-based processes, and the ability to retain images of invoices has significantly cut back on waste due to double paying and other clerical errors. What was taking an average of two minutes per invoice to enter now takes only seconds.”
Overall, document management technology has proven to be a valuable asset for the builder. Tony Reincke, president, Granite Ridge, notes that in tight economic conditions, the one thing within the company’s control at all times is overhead. Using such technology, says Reincke, is continually helping the company stay on course with this objective.
As builders focus on process efficiency via technology, evidence suggests the ability to electronically communicate with suppliers is one trend that will continually evolve. Investigating these capabilities within your document/content management technology could help uncover tremendous cost savings for both you and your suppliers.