In this blog article, we answer the most frequently asked questions that logisticians have about IDP. We explain the benefits IDP can offer for your processes, which documents can be processed and how to find the right partner for implementation.
What type of documents are best suited to IDP?
The logistics industry processes a wide variety of different documents, all of which are ideally suited for automation through IDP. Here are some specific examples that arise in almost every logistics company:
Structured documents
- Invoices: They follow fixed formats in which certain information such as invoice number, date, amount and payment terms can always be found in the same places. Such documents can be easily processed automatically.
- Delivery bills: These documents contain information about the contents of shipments and are often standardized, making them ideal for automated data capture.
- Purchase orders: Incoming orders can be processed automatically and transferred to the ERP system to speed up processing.
Semi-structured documents
- Transfer orders: These often vary in layout, but with IDP, crucial information such as pick-up and delivery location, freight and transportation costs can be reliably read.
- Pallet exchange documents: Documents for the exchange of pallets are often completed by hand. However, IDP systems can recognize and process both machine-generated and handwritten entries.
Unstructured documents
- Bills of lading and sea freight shipments: These documents contain a mixture of structured and unstructured data. IDP can extract the relevant information, even if it appears in different places in the document.
- Credit notes: Often in a less fixed format than invoices, but can also be processed with IDP.
Highly complex documents
- Weighing bills: Documents used to determine the weight of freight are often handwritten entries, which IDP systems can reliably read using advanced OCR (Optical Character Recognition) technology.
Due to the variety of document-based processes in logistics, IDP can make a significant contribution to process automation and increased efficiency.
What is the expected Eeturn On Investment (ROI) when implementing IDP?
The return on investment (ROI) when implementing IDP in logistics is generally very high. However, the exact savings depend on the volume of documents to be processed and the degree of manual processes that can be replaced by IDP.
Important savings factors
- Reduced processing times: With IDP, documents such as invoices or transport orders can be processed in seconds, rather than minutes or hours.
- Fewer errors: Manual data entry is prone to errors, whereas IDP systems deliver consistent and error-free results.
- Personnel costs: By automating routine tasks such as matching delivery bills with orders, employees can focus on the really important tasks.
Example
The logistics company Hallog, for example, has reduced the document processing process from over 4 hours a day to less than a minute, resulting in significant savings. In addition to these savings, error costs are also reduced, which further increases the ROI.
Which manual processes are best automated with IDP?
IDP is ideal for automating recurring, manual processes in logistics where large volumes of documents are processed. Processes that are particularly suitable for automation include:
- Invoice processing: automatic capture, validation and archiving of invoices.
- Processing of transport orders: Capturing transportation details and automatically forwarding them to the TMS (Transport Management System).
- Pallet exchange documents: Automatic processing of information on pallet exchange processes, including handwritten notes.
- Waybills: Read out and process freight information and compare it with orders and invoices.
- Delivery bills: Automatic recording of shipment information and forwarding to the WMS (Warehouse Management System).
- Credit notes: Automated processing and posting of credit notes to the ERP system.
What are the costs of implementing IDP?
The cost of implementing IDP depends on various factors, such as the type of document and the volume of documents to be processed. At ExB, we offer a flexible pricing model that is tailored to your individual requirements. The more documents you process, the lower the price per document. For simple documents such as invoices, the costs are lower, while more complex documents such as handwritten pallet exchange slips or consignment notes can incur higher processing costs.
We offer flexible payment options – monthly, quarterly or annually – and are happy to customize our model to suit your needs. To receive a customized quote and learn more about our transparent pricing, simply contact us. We will discuss your individual requirements and prepare a suitable offer for you.
How does IDP work with unstructured documents?
Unstructured documents that do not have fixed data fields or clearly defined layouts can be easily processed with IDP thanks to modern AI technologies. IDP uses techniques such as machine learning (ML) and natural language processing (NLP) to recognize and extract important information in such documents.
Example
An unstructured waybill might appear chaotic at first glance, as the relevant information is scattered in different places in the document. IDP can automatically recognize and extract the freight details, sender and recipient information and delivery times without the need for manual checking.
Another example is emails, which often contain relevant information about deliveries or orders. IDP can analyze the text, filter out relevant data and transmit it to the relevant systems.
How secure is the handling of sensitive data when using IDP?
The security of sensitive data is of central importance when processing with IDP, especially in the logistics industry, where personal data, payment information or confidential business data is often processed.
Data security at ExB
Our solutions are “Made in Germany” and stand for quality and security at the highest level. We offer you various options for secure data processing that meet the highest security standards:
ISO-certified cloud solution: ExB operates an ISO27001-certified cloud in Germany that meets the highest security and data protection standards.
On-premises solution: Alternatively, our solutions can also be installed directly on your premises so that all sensitive data remains within your own network.
Handling sensitive data
Separation of data: ExB offers special security mechanisms to separate health, personal and transaction data to ensure the highest level of data security.
Anonymization and pseudonymization: Sensitive data can be anonymized or pseudonymized on request to increase data protection.
Data lifecycle: Once a project has been completed, the data is securely deleted in accordance with common standards. During the entire process, only authorized persons have access to the data.
Certifications
ExB is certified as an AWS partner and to ISO27001. These certifications underline our strong commitment to security, data protection and compliance. So you can rest assured that your data is in safe hands with us.
How do I find the right IDP partner?
A trustworthy IDP partner should not only have in-depth technological know-how, but also understand your industry-specific challenges. Here are some criteria to help you choose a partner:
- Industry experience: does the provider have experience in the logistics industry? Do they understand the specific requirements and challenges?
- Technology: Does the provider use modern AI and machine learning technologies to ensure high automation accuracy?
Security certifications: Does the provider have certifications that demonstrate its expertise in data security and privacy? - Flexibility: Does the provider offer both pre-trained models and customized solutions to meet your individual needs?
endless possibilities.
ExB is an Intelligent Document Processing platform that transforms unstructured data from any type of document into structured results. Our AI-based software can not only extract all relevant information from your documents, but also understand them. This allows you to automate your processes and save both time & money, while improving your customer experience and employee satisfaction. Win-win.
How long does it take to implement an IDP solution?
The duration of the implementation depends on the complexity of the solution and the specific requirements of your company. A typical implementation process is divided into the following phases:
- Needs analysis: This is where we determine which documents and processes are to be automated. This phase usually takes 1-2 weeks.
- Pilot phase: In a small test environment, the IDP solution is applied to a limited number of documents to test its effectiveness. This usually takes 4-6 weeks.
- Full implementation: After the successful pilot phase, the solution is implemented for all relevant documents and systems, which can take 3-6 months.
What are the advantages of pre-trained IDP models compared to customized solutions?
Pre-trained models
- Fast implementation: pre-trained models are ready to use immediately and offer a quick solution for standardized documents such as invoices, delivery bills or credit notes.
- Lower costs: As no additional training data or model adjustments are required, pre-trained models are more cost-effective.
Customized solutions
- Greater accuracy: customized solutions are ideal when you are dealing with complex or atypical documents that need to meet specific requirements.
- Flexibility: Such solutions can be tailored to your individual processes and documents, further increasing their efficiency and accuracy.
How can IDP be integrated into existing WMS, TMS or ERP systems?
One of the great strengths of IDP is its easy integration into existing systems such as WMS (Warehouse Management System), TMS (Transport Management System) and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning). ExB offers standardized interfaces (APIs) to enable connection to these systems:
- WMS: delivery bills and pallet exchange documents can be processed automatically and integrated directly into your WMS.
- TMS: Transport orders and waybills can be automatically transferred to your TMS to enable faster processing.
- ERP: Invoices, credit notes and orders can be automatically read and entered into the ERP system, which speeds up reconciliation and processing enormously.
This seamless integration significantly increases efficiency in document processing and minimizes human error.
Conclusion
IDP offers enormous potential for the logistics industry to increase efficiency and automate manual processes. With ExB as your partner, you benefit not only from technological expertise, but also from maximum data security and flexible solutions that are tailored precisely to your requirements. In order to better understand your processes and optimize them in a targeted manner, we propose a joint workshop. We carry out a thorough needs analysis. If you decide to work with us, we will cover the costs of this workshop. We will then work out a detailed project plan together, including clearly defined milestones for implementation.
