OmniSource

Making the unmanageable, manageable

Background

OmniSource Corporation is one of North America's largest processors and distributors of scrap and secondary metals. They collect, process, resell, and trade a wide variety of ferrous and nonferrous scrap from more than 70 U.S. scrap collection and processing facilities. OmniSource has the capacity to process seven million tons of ferrous materials and more than a billion pounds of nonferrous metals each year. 

• Number of employees: more than 2,500
• Headquarters: Fort Wayne, IN

Challenge

OmniSource came to Imaging Office Systems searching for a solution to an Accounts Receivable process that had become cumbersome and almost unmanageable. At the time they had six employees handling AR tasks with their own process. Everything was on paper and required multiple copies. They had an additional challenge that is common in their industry, there were often discrepancies in payments received vs invoice amounts but they had no way to efficiently manage or track these discrepancies.

• The all-paper Accounts Receivable process was creating a storage problem
• Large volume made the copies, faxes and files overwhelming and difficult to track
• Discrepancies from invoice amounts needed to be managed, tracked and collected in a more timely fashion

Solution

Imaging Office Systems knew that an Enterprise Content Management (ECM) system needed to be installed and implemented to solve OmniSource’s challenges. Their first steps included writing a customized workflow that was integrated into OmniSource’s existing accounting processes. The IOS team also spent time learning the AR procedures up front so the new processes didn’t feel so different to the staff and would continue to work easily with their other accounting processes. 

Key features of the IOS solution:

• All invoices, payments and related files are captured electronically so all AR information goes into one central location – no copies, no paper, no passing from hand to hand.
• Digital records are tied together for easier tracking of the entire receivable.
• The system created a single-step data entry system to improve efficiencies.
• Payment discrepancies are now tracked and collected with no additional paperwork required. 

Implementation of the initial solution was so smooth and successful that OmniSource came back to IOS to have them write a new workflow for their payment process. Initially payments were received at the bank and OmniSource had to wait 24 hours for copies of the checks to be overnighted and then entered into the system. The new system handles all receivables electronically and payment processing happens in real-time.

The Bottom Line

• Number of open payment discrepancies dropped 80%
• Average age of partial payments decreased 59 days
• Now have more control over payment write-offs 
• Saved thousands of dollars a year in overnight shipping fees
• Payment processing happens in real-time
• Collections happen faster
• Able to monitor everything in the system – huge time savings