Germany
Process digitisation, automation
A medium-sized mechanical engineering company was faced with the challenge of making time-consuming and error-prone routine administrative tasks more efficient. Two core processes in particular were causing a great deal of work: firstly, incoming delivery notes, which were in paper form, had to be manually renamed after scanning and filed in the correct directories. Secondly, it was necessary to regularly trigger exports from the SAP system manually and make the generated files available to the specialist departments. These processes tied up capacity, repeatedly led to delays and were not consistently reliable. The company was therefore looking for a solution that would digitise and largely automate both processes in order to reduce the workload on employees and improve quality.
The project was carried out in line with the Logondis process automation roadmap. It began with a comprehensive process potential analysis. This revealed that both processes had very high automation potential: the procedures could be clearly standardised, promised significant time savings and could be designed to be largely error-free with the aid of technical tools.
The next step was to map the processes in detail and identify the relevant data sources. For the delivery notes, this meant that the scanning process was defined as the trigger for the workflow, from which the files were automatically renamed and filed. For the SAP process, it was specified that exports would be started automatically by a system trigger and the generated files would be stored in a standardised directory. To ensure transparency, control mechanisms such as logs and error messages were added.
This was followed by a tool check. Since the customer was already working in a Microsoft 365 environment, Microsoft Power Automate was chosen. This solution allowed the workflows to be integrated into the existing IT landscape. After scanning, the PDF documents are automatically processed and correctly stored in SharePoint. At the same time, the responsible employee receives a notification in Microsoft Teams. The SAP export is also controlled by Power Automate and makes the export files available in real time without the need for manual intervention.
As part of the performance analysis, the processes were tested under real conditions. The main focus was on checking whether automatic naming works reliably even with special characters in file names, whether notifications in Teams are triggered correctly every time, and whether the export files from SAP are available in the required format. After minor adjustments, both workflows were able to run stably and error-free.
At the end of the project, employees were trained and introduced to the new processes. They received clear instructions on what data is required, how automation is triggered and where the results are available.
The results achieved were clear. Filing delivery notes, which used to take several minutes per document, now takes just a few seconds. Errors that previously occurred due to incorrect naming or filing no longer occur. At the same time, automatic Teams notifications ensure that employees are informed immediately as soon as new documents are available. SAP export is now also fully automated, so that the required data is available without delay and can be reliably processed further.
The project illustrates how the targeted use of automation tools can deliver significant efficiency gains. With relatively simple means, it was possible to completely digitise two complex routine processes. The company now benefits from significant time savings, consistently high data quality and reduced workload for its employees, who can now focus more on value-adding tasks.
NOW SIMPLE & NON-BINDING