If you're running AP for a manufacturer, you've probably felt this squeeze already. Invoice volumes keep climbing, but AP headcount rarely keeps pace. Manual data entry eats up valuable time, approval delays can mean missed discounts or late payments, and limited visibility makes it harder to manage your liabilities and cash flow.
For manufacturers using Infor CloudSuite Industrial (CSI): the opportunity to improve the AP process is built in. CloudSuite Industrial already connects purchasing, receiving, inventory, financials, and manufacturing data, so AP automation can build on that foundation to create a more connected procure-to-pay process for your business.
AP automation is more than scanning invoices. When integrated with CloudSuite Industrial, supplier invoices can be captured digitally, converted into structured information, and connected to the purchasing transactions already in the ERP.
Infor's Document Capture application can convert high volumes of unstructured documents into structured information using machine learning and analytics. For supplier invoices, the process can automatically store the invoice in Infor Document Management and send invoice information to CSI.
CSI can then automatically create a voucher associated with the original purchase order. The invoice quantities must already have been received in CSI, creating an important control between receiving and accounts payable. Users can also access the related supplier invoice or voucher from applicable CSI records.
That connection is what makes AP automation particularly valuable for manufacturers.
Consider a typical manufacturing purchase:
Purchase order → Receipt → Supplier invoice → Voucher → Payment
Without integration, AP may have to manually compare documents, enter invoice information, research discrepancies, and move information between systems.
With CloudSuite Industrial, purchasing and receiving information already exists in the ERP. AP automation can use that information to reduce duplicate entry and improve invoice processing.
Here's what that means for you:
CloudSuite Industrial also provides core financial capabilities, including Accounts Payable and General Ledger, while its broader Procure to Pay process connects purchasing activity to financial operations.
We've seen the value of AP automation grow even further once invoice information connects to your manufacturing costs.
CloudSuite Industrial is designed to manage manufacturing processes including engineer-to-order, make-to-order/configure-to-order, make-to-stock, repetitive manufacturing, and service management. That means purchasing transactions can be part of a much larger operational picture.
For example, supplier costs can affect inventory, jobs, production planning, and ultimately product profitability. Automating the administrative work around those transactions helps finance maintain cleaner, more timely information without creating another disconnected AP system.
CloudSuite Industrial also includes analytics capabilities through Power BI and Birst. The Finance analytics domain includes analysis of A/P, A/R, ledger, and bank account data, providing another opportunity to monitor AP performance and identify trends.
The ROI should be measured using your actual AP process.
Start with these metrics:
For example, suppose a manufacturer processes 10,000 invoices annually and automation saves 15 minutes of AP labor per invoice. That's 2,500 hours of capacity recovered each year. At an assumed fully loaded labor cost of $30 per hour, that represents $75,000 in annual labor capacity, not counting early-payment discounts, fewer errors, reduced paper handling, or the ability to process additional invoice volume without adding staff.
The numbers will vary by organization, which is why measuring the current process is so important.
At Visual South, we've found the real value of AP automation inside CloudSuite Industrial isn't simply eliminating data entry. It's connecting supplier invoices to the purchasing, receiving, and financial information already running your manufacturing business.
Want to understand what that could mean for your organization? Set up a free consultation here.