Esker has announced a new version of its on Demand invoice processing solution that adds new functionality for the automation of vendor invoices.

This new version is capable of processing vendor invoices according to formats and specifics in over 20 countries: invoice layout, paper size, currencies, date formats, tax codes, accounting charts, etc.

Esker on Demand is capable of recognising and automating vendor invoice content in five languages (English, French, German, Italian and Spanish) as well as formats and data in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, the United Kingdom, the United States and other countries.

Vendor invoices are automatically matched with corresponding purchase orders and goods receipts, regardless of the customer’s ERP system(s).

“Touchless” mode enables completely automated processing of invoices, void of any manual intervention — from data extraction (vendor name, invoice number, date and amount) to automatic verification and upload into an ERP system.

A new Optical Character Recognition (OCR) engine delivers improved recognition: The new version of Nuance Capture SDK 16.4 is fully integrated, guaranteeing improved recognition quality for line items and enabling even more invoices to be processed in “touchless” mode.

An enhanced workflow engine allows complex workflow design, including the ability to add approvers during the approval process, to send invoices back to the previous step, to reset workflows, etc.

Improved default verification and validation workflow includes the ability to return an invoice to the vendor’s accounting department, to block payment, to put an invoice on hold or to request additional information.

During the invoice validation stage, Accounts Payable is alerted to any invoice that resembles one that has already been processed. The system compares values in different fields — vendor name, part number, date and total amount — to prevent double invoice entry and subsequent double payment.

“This new version of Esker on Demand is the result of 24 months of user feedback about our on-demand vendor invoice automation solution, as well as significant R&D investment to evolve our solution and enable us to offer new functionalities to our customers,” said Jean-Michel Bérard, CEO and President of the Board of Directors, Esker.

“With this new version we are able to respond to companies’ needs by offering the only document process automation solution on the market with international and multi-process capabilities including vendor invoices, purchase orders, customer invoices and document delivery.”

This new version of Esker on Demand features SAP standard interface integration and a multi-platform connector enabling implementation with any ERP system.

“This new version with a strong focus on AP automation brings the automation capabilities typically reserved to large companies (due to the significant CAPEX investment required) to the mid-sized Australian and New Zealand companies, as well as the local subsidiaries of multinationals,” said Christophe DuMonet, Managing Director, Esker ANZ.