Southern Champion Tray: AP Automation Success Story

Key Takeaways

• Manual AP processes cost time, money, and efficiency, and introduce compliance risks.
• Southern Champion Tray reduced invoice processing time from 13 days to 6.
• Integration with JD Edwards EnterpriseOne was seamless — no custom code required.
• IntelliChief’s touchless automation eliminates bottlenecks and improves visibility.
• SCT now plans to scale IntelliChief across other departments and workflows.
• The case study offers insights for finance, operations, and IT decision-makers.
• Automation improved strategic decision-making and risk mitigation for leadership.
• Learn how SCT’s success can be replicated in your enterprise AP function.

The Cost of Doing Nothing: Why Manual AP Is Riskier Than You Think

Enterprise companies often overestimate the stability of their manual AP processes. The truth is, these legacy workflows come with real financial and operational risks that compound over time. In the case of Southern Champion Tray, the cost of inaction was significant: missed early pay discounts, recurring late fees, delayed month-end closes, and limited visibility into liabilities. These are not just inefficiencies — they’re hidden liabilities.

Manual invoice processing is especially prone to human error. Typos in vendor numbers, duplicate entries, lost approvals, and mismatched POs all result in payment delays or compliance gaps. And as volumes scale, so do mistakes.

What’s more, the average cost to process a single invoice manually can range from $12 to $20 according to industry benchmarks. For companies processing tens of thousands of invoices annually, that inefficiency translates into six- or seven-figure losses in operational overhead.

Southern Champion Tray recognized this risk and addressed it proactively. Rather than waiting for a failed audit or vendor escalation to force change, they invested in automation to reduce risk, increase control, and recover lost value.

In today’s market, not automating your AP function is no longer a neutral choice — it’s a strategic disadvantage. This AP automation case study makes the case for urgent action.

Why You Should Download This AP Automation Case Study

Discover Proven Strategies – Learn how Southern Champion Tray, a third-generation, family-owned business, tackled their AP challenges head-on. From reducing a 13-day invoice processing time to just 6 days, read how their journey to AP automation offers valuable insights for any organization.

Real Results, Real Impact – See how IntelliChief’s automation solutions not only streamlined SCT’s AP operations but also significantly cut down on manual labor, reduced errors, and provided full visibility into their AP workflow—all while integrating seamlessly with their existing JD Edwards ERP system.

Future-Ready Solutions – Get inspired by Southern Champion Tray’s forward-thinking approach and discover how they plan to expand automation across other departments, setting the stage for even greater efficiency, growth and savings.

Actionable Takeaways – With a step-by-step guide to implementing AP automation, this AP automation case study is more than just a success story—it’s a roadmap to your own potential improvements in AP.

The Challenge: Complex AP Processes in a JD Edwards Environment

Southern Champion Tray is a leading manufacturer with a robust product portfolio, a high transaction volume, and a commitment to operational excellence. But like many mid-sized enterprises using JD Edwards EnterpriseOne, SCT was burdened with the inefficiencies that come from managing AP processes manually:

• High invoice volumes processed via email or paper
• Manual data entry into JD Edwards and spreadsheet trackers
• Delays in invoice approvals across departments
• Missed early payment discounts due to cycle lag
• Increased exposure to compliance risks and audit pressures
• Time-consuming audit trail generation

This AP tray workflow was costly and unsustainable. In short, SCT’s Accounts Payable function had become a cost centre and a bottleneck — slowing down strategic financial operations. And because JD Edwards lacked native AP automation functionality, SCT needed a solution that would enhance their ERP investment — not replace or complicate it.

Why Southern Champion Tray Chose IntelliChief

Southern Champion Tray evaluated multiple options, but IntelliChief emerged as the ideal fit for three key reasons:

1. ERP-native integration with JD Edwards EnterpriseOne
2. Proven experience in manufacturing and distribution
3. Scalable automation platform that could grow with their digital transformation roadmap

Each reason aligned directly with SCT’s immediate needs and long-term goals. The decision was grounded in both business logic and IT feasibility — a recurring theme throughout this AP automation case study.

Inside the Transformation: What Changed and How

Before automation, processing a single invoice could take Southern Champion Tray’s AP team days. With IntelliChief:

• Invoices are captured electronically via Intelligent Capture
• Data is automatically extracted and matched against JDE purchase orders
• Touchless automation moves invoices through approval workflows
• Exceptions are automatically routed, freeing AP from manual oversight
• Posted invoices flow back into JD Edwards in real time

This new AP tray approach saved SCT hours per transaction, eliminated redundancy, and created real-time visibility into cash flow.

Touchless Processing (STP) in Action: How SCT Went 90% Touchless

Straight-through processing (STP), or “touchless” automation, is the gold standard for AP efficiency — and Southern Champion Tray’s implementation proves it’s attainable even in a complex ERP environment like JD Edwards EnterpriseOne.

Before automation, nearly every invoice required human intervention. That meant scanning, coding, matching, escalating, and manually entering data into the AP tray. But with IntelliChief, SCT achieved over 90% touchless processing for standard invoices — even those with multi-line POs, multiple approvers, or exception-based rules.

Here’s how they did it:

• Intelligent Capture extracted invoice data instantly, validating it against PO data in JD Edwards.
• IntelliChief’s business rules engine routed invoices based on department, spend thresholds, or cost center.
• Approval escalations and workflows ran automatically — with zero AP team intervention unless an exception occurred.
• Clean invoices were posted back to JD Edwards with no manual keying.

This level of automation allowed Southern Champion Tray’s AP team to shift from processing to exception handling, focusing only on the 5–10% of invoices that truly needed human review.

Touchless AP doesn’t just cut costs — it accelerates cycle time, reduces late payments, and positions finance teams to act more strategically. SCT’s success is proof that true STP is possible — with the right platform and the right ERP integration strategy.

JD Edwards Integration: No Custom Code, No Disruption

IntelliChief integrates with JD Edwards without custom coding — something that set it apart for SCT’s IT and finance teams.

• Seamless, upgrade-safe integration with JD Edwards EnterpriseOne
• No middleware or scripting
• Native recognition of JDE fields and business rules
• Full audit visibility and error handling within existing workflows

This section of the AP automation case study is critical for IT decision-makers — IntelliChief proved its ability to elevate ERP performance, not compromise it.

Intelligent Capture: Purpose-Built for Modern AP Automation

While some vendors still rely on legacy data extraction tools, IntelliChief goes a step further. Our Intelligent Capture technology is built specifically for the demands of modern, ERP-integrated environments like JD Edwards.

Intelligent Capture combines advanced pattern recognition with AI-enabled learning to extract and process data with enterprise-grade precision. Unlike outdated methods that simply scan and read text, Intelligent Capture:

• Understands context across invoice types and formats
• Identifies multi-line or complex fields with higher accuracy
• Learns from exception handling to improve continuously
• Validates data against JD Edwards in real-time
• Reduces false positives and manual error correction

For Southern Champion Tray, this meant fewer corrections, faster throughput, and a scalable solution that grows smarter over time. No more tweaking templates for each vendor — Intelligent Capture adapts.

When you’re processing thousands of documents monthly, the difference between 85% and 98% accuracy is monumental. That’s why modern AP automation requires a solution built for today’s enterprise — and why Intelligent Capture made such a difference for SCT.

Risk Mitigation and Compliance: A CFO’s Perspective

For the CFO at Southern Champion Tray, the project was about more than efficiency. It was about reducing financial risk:

• Eliminated duplicate payments and overpayments
• Improved SOX compliance through automated controls
• Enabled complete audit trails with time-stamped workflows
• Reduced fraud exposure through enforced approvals and digital signatures

This is where IntelliChief moved from a process improvement tool to a strategic financial asset for SCT.

Process Analytics & Visibility: Driving Better Decisions with Real-Time AP Data

Prior to automation, Southern Champion Tray had minimal visibility into their invoice lifecycle. Finance leadership had to rely on email updates, ad hoc spreadsheets, or delayed reports to understand cash flow obligations. That reactive model made forecasting difficult and increased exposure to unplanned spend.

With IntelliChief’s real-time process analytics, SCT gained a clear window into its AP environment. Dashboards now show:

• Total invoice volume and status by vendor, business unit, or date
• Pending approvals based on the user or aging bracket
• Exceptions that are causing delays
• Percentage of STP vs. manually processed invoices
• Early pay discount capture rates

These insights help SCT’s finance team identify bottlenecks, renegotiate vendor terms based on actual cycle data, and improve working capital decisions.

Just as important, the IT team benefits from tracking system performance and identifying anomalies early — before they affect closing timelines or compliance.

Analytics isn’t just about seeing what’s happening — it’s about making faster, smarter decisions. For Southern Champion Tray, these capabilities elevated AP from an operational burden to a strategic function.

IT Stakeholder Perspective: What the Implementation Looked Like

From the IT team’s perspective at Southern Champion Tray, implementation success came down to structure and support:

• IntelliChief assigned a dedicated implementation team
• Project milestones were clear, with regular testing and reviews
• IntelliChief respected JD Edwards integrity — no custom code, no risks
• Go-live was smooth and fully documented
• End-user training ensured internal adoption

This was critical to achieving stakeholder buy-in across departments — a key factor in every successful AP automation case study.

Aligning Finance and IT: How IntelliChief Bridges Strategic Priorities

One of the most overlooked obstacles to automation in large enterprises is the disconnect between finance and IT. Finance leaders want speed, efficiency, and ROI. IT leaders want security, integration stability, and minimal disruption.

IntelliChief bridges that gap — and Southern Champion Tray’s success is a direct result of this alignment.

From the outset, IntelliChief involved both departments in requirement gathering, process mapping, and testing. The platform’s non-invasive ERP integration gave IT full confidence in system integrity, while finance appreciated the built-in compliance and audit tools.

The implementation team at IntelliChief translated technical requirements into business outcomes — explaining not just how things would work, but why they mattered to stakeholders on both sides.

As a result, SCT avoided the friction and delays that commonly derail enterprise automation efforts. The teams operated with shared objectives and mutual trust — and that made all the difference.

Automation is no longer just an IT initiative or a finance initiative — it’s an enterprise transformation. IntelliChief helped SCT get there together.

Scalability: Expanding Automation Beyond AP

With AP automation running smoothly, Southern Champion Tray is now expanding IntelliChief across:

• Sales Order Automation
• Accounts Receivable Automation
• HR Onboarding and Compliance
• Customer Service Documentation Management

This transition shows that SCT didn’t invest in a tool — they invested in a platform. And that platform is shaping the future of their back-office strategy.

Quantifiable Results & ROI Snapshot

Here’s what the transformation looked like in numbers:

Metric	Before IntelliChief	After IntelliChief
Avg. Invoice Processing Time	13 days	6 days
Manual Data Entry Volume	100%	<10%
AP Staff Time on Exception Mgmt	>60%	<20%
Missed Early Pay Discounts	Regular	Rare
Audit Prep Time	Weeks	Hours
Integration Overhead (IT)	High	Near-Zero

This AP automation case study shows not just time saved, but real cost avoided, and future opportunity unlocked.

Vendor Relationship Impact: Turning AP into a Strategic Asset

One of the most overlooked benefits of AP automation is the positive ripple effect it creates with vendor relationships.

For Southern Champion Tray, faster invoice processing and reduced payment errors led to stronger supplier trust, more favourable terms, and fewer disputes. With real-time status tracking, the AP team could respond to vendor inquiries instantly — no more digging through emails or file cabinets.

As a result, SCT transformed AP from a reactive back-office function into a strategic contributor to vendor satisfaction and procurement efficiency. This capability will only grow more valuable as they expand automation across procurement and supply chain operations.

Checklist: What to Look for in an AP Automation Partner

Choosing an AP automation provider isn’t about software features — it’s about strategic fit. Here’s what Southern Champion Tray looked for (and found) in IntelliChief:

✅ Native integration with JD Edwards EnterpriseOne

✅ No-code workflows and STP capabilities

✅ Proven experience in manufacturing environments

✅ Real-time analytics and reporting dashboards

✅ Scalable platform for additional functions (AR, SO, HR)

✅ Dedicated implementation team with ERP fluency

✅ Support for Intelligent Capture over basic OCR

✅ Audit trail, compliance controls, and role-based access

Use this checklist to assess your own priorities — and benchmark any AP tray solution you’re considering. As this AP automation case study shows, the right partner doesn’t just install software. They enable transformation.

Best Practices & Lessons Learned

Southern Champion Tray shared several key insights with us:

• Fix before you automate — streamline processes first
• Cross-functional alignment matters — involve AP, IT, and Finance early
• Train for transformation — successful rollouts rely on prepared users
• Think beyond AP — the same automation logic can transform AR, HR, SO, and more

Every AP tray team looking to improve should treat these insights as part of their roadmap.

Executive Buy-In: How SCT Secured Approval Across the Stakeholder Chain

Enterprise buying cycles aren’t simple — especially for process automation. Southern Champion Tray succeeded because they built a compelling case across multiple departments and personas:

• The CFO championed the financial impact: reduced costs, faster closes, improved controls.
• The Controller validated day-to-day impact on the AP team and compliance posture.
• The CIO confirmed that integration would not introduce risk or technical debt.
• Operations leadership supported the scalability into other departments.

IntelliChief supported SCT with persona-aligned value props, business case development, and detailed demos for each team. This methodical approach ensured that when the project reached the executive table, approval was unanimous.

Stakeholder alignment doesn’t happen by accident — it happens by design. This AP automation case study is proof that when finance, IT, and operations speak the same language, great things follow.

Start Your Own Success Journey!

Don’t let outdated, manually driven AP processes hold your company back. Download the full case study and find out how you can transform your AP operations, just like Southern Champion Tray did. This is more than an AP automation case study—it’s a blueprint for modernizing finance operations. Start your journey to efficiency in AP today!