Purchase Order Creation
The Problem: A steel balls manufacturing company manually creates and manages the purchase orders which was time-consuming, prone to errors, and often led to delays in procurement. The Procurement department at the company faced challenges in efficiently managing the purchase order creation process. The manual process involved gathering information from various sources, filling out forms, and communicating with suppliers, which resulted in inefficiencies, errors, and difficulties in tracking the status of orders.
The Solution: The company decided to implement Robotic Process Automation (RPA) solution to streamline and expedite the purchase order creation process.
The RPA solution aimed to automate the repetitive tasks associated with creating and managing purchase orders, resulting in improved accuracy and faster order processing. The RPA bot was programmed to extract relevant information from requisition forms, emails, and PDF files. The bot automated the process of filling out purchase order templates with the extracted information. The bots sent automated emails to suppliers with the purchase order details and tracking information. The bots routed purchase orders to the appropriate managers for approval, following predefined approval matrix. The bots were integrated with the company's ERP system to update purchase order records and inventory levels. Extensive testing was conducted to ensure the bot's accuracy, handling of exceptions, and integration with various systems. The bots were deployed on the company's RPA platform and scheduled to run on specific triggers, such as new requisitions or inventory levels reaching thresholds.
The Outcome:Total 15+ bots were deployed to complete the Purchase Order Creation process within a period of 9 months. The company realized below benefits after the successful RPA implantation:
- Efficiency: The automated purchase order creation process reduced the time required for creating and processing orders by 60%, leading to faster procurement cycles.
- Accuracy: The RPA bot minimized errors caused by manual data entry by 95%, resulting in accurate purchase order details and improved order accuracy.
- Order Tracking: The automation enabled real-time tracking of purchase orders, allowing stakeholders to monitor the status of orders at any point in time.
- Supplier Relations: Automated communication with suppliers improved transparency and communication, enhancing relationships with suppliers.
- Resource Allocation: Procurement staff were able to focus on strategic tasks, negotiation, and supplier relationship management instead of spending time on administrative tasks.
- Manual Efforts Saved: Total manual efforts were reduced by 95% per month.
- Cost Reduction: The reduction in manual efforts led to cost savings associated with expense reimbursement approval tasks. Total dollars saved were ~100K per year