Case study: Bertrand Plumbing & Heating

XMA Solutions has established itself as a reference in Montreal and surrounding areas thanks to its product and service offerings dedicated to optimizing office processes.
 
Among our various solutions, we offer digital transformation services. In this case study, we'll take a closer look at Bertrand Plumbing & Heating, a family-run business renowned in the Ottawa region for the exceptional quality of its plumbing, electrical, heating, air-conditioning and ventilation services.

Before diving into the case study, it's important to define what accounts payable automation is, and to present the typical process of our solutions.

What is accounts payable automation?

Accounts payable automation is a technology that uses a digital system to reduce manual and repetitive tasks such as data entry and validation of invoices, purchase orders and receipts. With automation, you can receive invoices, manage validation and approvals, and eliminate data entry through a single platform.

The typical process of our solutions

Here's what the typical process looks like as soon as we receive your invoice.

Bertrand Plumbing & Heating

Founded in 2005, Bertrand Plumbing & Heating is a family-run business that stands out for the exceptional quality of its services in the Ottawa region. Specializing in plumbing, heating, ventilation, electricity, air conditioning and water treatment, the company has built a loyal clientele based on the values of integrity, punctuality and professionalism. Always attentive to its customers' needs, Bertrand Plumbing & Heating strives to provide fast, reliable solutions for all types of project.

In 2023, as part of its ongoing efforts to improve the efficiency of its operations, Bertrand Plumbing & Heating adopted an accounts payable automation solution, offered by XMA Solutions, to optimize invoice management and strengthen its financial processes.

Our interview

We had the opportunity to speak with Ginette Bertrand, Accounting Coordinator, about the implementation of this solution.
With a team of 42 employees, Ginette and a colleague are responsible for all accounting tasks, including payroll, accounts payable, accounts receivable and billing, while processing over 1000 invoices each month.

As is often the case with many accounting departments, the Bertrand Plumbing & Heating team believed that their processes were already optimized to the maximum.

Their manual methods, though effective, had become the norm and were never questioned. This process required the involvement of several people, including the warehouse manager, to manage goods reception, as well as the project managers.

Their challenges

Funny enough, Bertrand Plumbing & Heating wasn't actively looking for an automation solution for their accounts payable when our team contacted them. However, our proposal immediately piqued their curiosity. Terms such as “2-way matching”, “instant search”, “error elimination”, and “supplier credit tracking” sounded almost too good to be true.

Although everything was working well within their department, it was clear that some aspects could be greatly improved. Here are some of the main challenges they faced:

• An entirely manual, time-consuming process.
• Manual two-step reconciliation between invoices and receipts.
• In-person approvals for certain types of transactions.
• Account statements were often lengthy and complex to process in the event of an imbalance.
• Frequent delays in supplier credit recovery, resulting in a growing credit backlog.

Solution overview

The implementation of our solution at Bertrand Plumbing & Heating was completed in less than two months, including full training on the platform. Within two months of deployment, the team had fully mastered the use of the tool, facilitating a smooth transition to automated accounting processes.

Our solution offers a number of key functionalities that have transformed accounts payable management at Bertrand Plumbing & Heating:

• Thanks to artificial intelligence, data capture is automatic, reducing human error and speeding up the data entry process.
• Merging invoices and corresponding receipts is done without human intervention to simplify the process.
• Invoices and receipts are now automatically routed to the appropriate people, eliminating manual steps.
• Once processed, all invoices are securely archived on their digital platform, eliminating the need for paper archives, along with their supporting documents.
• The Bertrand Plumbing & Heating team now benefits from full remote access to data and functionality, enabling smoother collaboration, regardless of location.

Current results

Ginette Bertrand says: “We were considering hiring a part-time resource to help manage accounts payable, but thanks to your solution, I was able to reduce my schedule from 4 to 3 days a week instead.”

In fact, when analyzing the impact of the solution, Ginette found that their team was spending about an hour a day printing and matching delivery notes, a task now automated. What's more, data entry into their accounting software has been considerably simplified. Previously, manual entry of 50 accounts payable invoices took around 60 to 90 minutes, whereas with our solution, these 50 invoices are generated and imported in just 1 to 2 minutes. This total time saving, estimated at between 40 and 50 hours per month, has not only made it unnecessary to hire an additional resource, but has also enabled Ginette to reduce her workload from 4 days to 3 days per week.

Ginette also points out that she could theoretically retire, but as a member of a family business, she continues to enjoy her role and the collaboration with her family!

Automation has also considerably simplified the processing of monthly statements. The process is now error-free, and in the rare event of an error, it's very easy to trace and correct the imbalance. Today, Ginette processes her statements in one morning and sends them directly for approval and payment, all of which can be done remotely, saving additional time.

In addition to saving time, the Bertrand Plumbing & Heating team also benefits from optimized supplier credit management. Automatic reminders are sent until suppliers issue the credits due, a recurring problem in the past. Ginette explains: “Some of our suppliers were taking a very long time to return our credits. When you don't remind them, they hope you'll forget. That's no longer a concern today." These credits can sometimes represent significant amounts, amounting to a few thousand dollars a month, a substantial financial gain.

Finally, Bertrand Plumbing & Heating has also succeeded in drastically reducing its printing and paper costs. Everything is digitized and stored securely on a digital platform, eliminating the need to keep physical invoices in archive boxes in the warehouse.

Conclusion

When we asked Ginette if she would recommend our solution to other companies, she replied without hesitation: “Absolutely! In fact, I already do. But some people are reluctant to change.” This reaction is entirely understandable. As mentioned earlier, some processes are rarely questioned because they've always been done the same way. However, we're here to assure you that automating your accounting processes is not only possible, but can also free you from repetitive and time-consuming tasks.