Insights & news
Field notes, cases and news.
Stories and patterns from our projects, client cases, market updates and announcements. Sharp observations from the shop floor, with the thought-leadership left at the door.
OCR for freight documents: template or document AI?
Classic OCR works well on fixed layouts, but CMR freight documents are notorious for their variation. When do you choose template OCR, and when do you need document AI?
Automating purchase orders: when does it pay off?
Automating purchase orders pays off as soon as the translation work between supplier data and your own ERP costs more than the system doing it for you. Read when the business case holds and when it does not.
Building materials invoice automation: what works
Traders and distributors in building materials process invoices from dozens of suppliers, each with their own format. Document-AI reads those invoices, matches them to purchase orders, and presents discrepancies to a human for review.
Cloud document processing: when is it the smartest choice?
For most SMBs in logistics, wholesale and construction, cloud document processing is the fastest and most scalable way to handle incoming documents. But there are exceptions worth weighing.
Purchase invoice processing: wat het kost als het handmatig gaat
Handmatige verwerking van inkoopfacturen is een van de meest arbeidsintensieve stappen in accounts payable. Document-AI neemt het lees- en tikwerk over, zodat mensen kunnen controleren in plaats van invoeren.
Automated work order processing in the installation industry
Work orders arrive as photos, paper or PDFs, with no fixed layout. Manual processing wastes hours and lets additional work slip through uninvoiced. What automation concretely solves and when it is not worth the effort.
Which tools automate supplier declarations?
There are four ways to automate supplier declarations, but not every approach works for every volume and every supplier mix. This is the honest overview.
Document processing: email versus structured upload
Email is the reality, structured upload is the ideal. What you choose depends on who is on the other side, not on what you would prefer internally.
Automated construction invoice processing: what works
Construction invoices arrive from dozens of subcontractors, in varying formats, with change orders and cost lines that appear nowhere on the purchase order. Automation is possible, but it requires preparation.
Tight labour market for administrative staff: what it means for document processing
The tight labour market for administrative staff is not a temporary problem. Companies that rely on manual data entry for incoming orders, invoices, and packing slips are building structural continuity risk into their operations.
Automating document flows in building materials wholesale
Building materials wholesalers handle high order volumes from dozens of suppliers, each sending their own PDF layout. Manual re-entry is the norm, and the pressure is mounting.
Automating return order processing: what works
Return orders are one of the harder document types to automate: free-text fields, inconsistent formats, and missing references make them stubborn. Here is when it pays off and when it does not.
Automating sales order processing: the real lesson is in the formats
Sales orders arrive as PDFs, emails, fax scans, and sometimes Excel files. Anyone who thinks automation becomes straightforward once the volume is there will quickly run into format variation. Here is what you learn in practice.
Cloud document AI versus on-premise document processing
For most SMEs, cloud wins on speed and management overhead. But on-premise has a real advantage when data localisation is a hard requirement. Read the trade-off.
Automating document workflows in the installation industry
In the installation industry, work orders, inspection reports and certificates move through paper, standalone apps and email, while the back office enters everything by hand. Find out when automation pays off and when it does not.
Packing lists for quality control: the real lesson is in the source
Packing lists arriving as PDFs, screenshots or Excel files and then manually entered into inspection software: it sounds like an edge case, but it is the daily reality in food and fresh produce trade. What do you learn when you start automating that?
Automating invoice processing: the real learning curve is in the matching
Reading invoice data is the easy part. The real learning curve comes in the next step: matching to the right order, delivery, or contract. Here is what you run into when you tackle it properly.
Processing handwritten work orders: 3 approaches compared
Handwritten work orders are the most persistent document problem in construction, engineering, and transport. Manual entry takes too much time, traditional OCR fails on handwriting, and document AI only works when you have sufficient volume and a reasonable baseline of legibility.
Automating supplier declarations: what works
Collecting, verifying, and linking supplier declarations costs export administrators structurally more time than expected. Here is where the process stalls and what automation realistically delivers.
Automating document flows in the chemical industry
In the chemical and process industry, the same employee types the same data three times into three systems. A recognizable pattern, a concrete cause, and an honest answer to when automation pays off.
Automating purchase order confirmations: what works
Incoming order confirmations from suppliers are harder to automate than invoices, but the manual effort they demand is substantial. Here is what works, and where you need to be honest with yourself.
Automating quote processing: what works
Manually processing incoming quote requests and quote confirmations costs hours every week. But automation does not always pay off. Here is what you need to know.
Automating Document Flows in Transport and Logistics
From trip order to freight invoice: document flows in transport and logistics involve many steps, varying formats, and a lot of manual data entry. Here is where the process gets stuck and when automation genuinely pays off.
Processing email PDFs versus customer portal order entry
Orders, invoices and packing lists arrive through three channels: email with PDF, a customer portal, or an API. For most companies, email and PDF will remain the reality for a long time. Here are the trade-offs and a decision tree.
Automating CMR waybills: what variation teaches you
Every CMR waybill contains the same fields, but no two forms look alike. What that means for anyone who wants to automate them.
Automating Document Processing vs. Outsourcing
Weighing document AI against outsourcing to an administrative firm? Both eliminate the manual work, but in fundamentally different ways, with different costs and risks.
RPA versus document AI for document processing
RPA works well for fixed, structured actions but breaks the moment document layout varies. Document AI is built for exactly that variation. Here are the real trade-offs.
API integration vs. document AI: which do you use when?
An API integration sounds like the clean solution, but most documents coming into your operation were never sent via an API. When do you choose which?
E-invoicing Germany 2027: what does this mean for you?
Germany is introducing mandatory e-invoicing in phases. For Dutch companies with German trading partners, more is changing than it might initially appear.
Automated packing slip processing: what works
Automatically reading and matching supplier packing slips with purchase orders: concretely what it delivers, where it breaks down, and when you are better off not starting.
Build or buy a document parser: the real costs
Building your own document parser seems cheaper than a subscription, but the maintenance burden and delays consistently catch teams off guard. This is the honest comparison.
Automating purchase invoice processing: what actually works
Many wholesalers still retype every purchase invoice manually. Automation solves that, but not in every situation. Read when it makes sense and what the real trade-offs are.
Automating job sheets in construction: the real lesson is in the change orders
Automating job sheets in construction is tempting, but it quickly runs into trouble with handwritten field notes and change orders. This is the lesson you want to know before you start.
Document AI versus OCR templates: which do you use and when?
Classic OCR with fixed templates works fine for stable, uniform documents. Once variation increases, templates no longer scale. Here you will find out which approach fits your situation.
Documentstromen food AGF automatiseren: zo werkt het
Keuringsrapporten, phytosanitaire certificaten en paklijsten met lotcodering: in food en AGF komen ze snel en in tientallen formats binnen. Hoe automatiseer je die stroom zonder in te leveren op controle?
Customs document digitalisation: what is changing?
The EU is replacing the declaration system with a data-driven model. Businesses that still manually retype documents or store them without structure will fall behind.
Exportdocumenten automatiseren: wat je leert van de variatie
Certificaten van oorsprong, EUR.1-formulieren en handelsfacturen komen in tientallen varianten binnen. Dat maakt template-gebaseerde OCR kwetsbaar en human-in-the-loop controle onmisbaar.
Manual data entry versus human-in-the-loop automation
Manual data entry works fine at low volumes, but it does not scale and introduces a structural risk of errors. Here you can read when each model is the better choice.
Comparing document AI software: standalone tool or module?
Standalone document AI tools or a module in your accounting package? Both have real advantages. This decision framework helps you choose based on document types, volume, and what you already have.
dottle: document AI that works on the shop floor
dottle reads incoming documents and converts them into structured data in your system. No retyping, no templates per supplier, no months of implementation.
EDI vs. document AI: which do you use when?
EDI works well for your largest customers. But the long tail of customers who will never adopt EDI remains. That is exactly where document AI does its work.
Automating invoice processing in transport
In transport, invoice processing is slow because freight documents, trip data, and invoice lines never align neatly. Here is how to address that.
Belgian e-invoicing mandate 2026: implications for the Netherlands
From 1 January 2026, Belgium requires all VAT-liable B2B invoices to be sent via Peppol. Dutch companies fall outside the law, but are already feeling the effects in their document flows.
Automating document flow: what works and what doesn't
Automating document flow rarely fails because of technology. It almost always fails because of an unclear process or unexpected exceptions. Here is what you need to know before you start.
ViDA and e-invoicing: what Europe expects from you
Europe is making e-invoicing mandatory step by step. Companies already sending invoices to Belgium, Spain or France are finding that customers only accept structured invoices via Peppol. What is coming, and what do you need to arrange now?
Peppol and e-invoicing: what does the Netherlands expect from you?
Belgium already requires it, Europe follows in 2030, and the Netherlands is moving in the same direction. What the Peppol obligation means for those who process invoices every day.
Automating order intake: the lesson lies in the preparation
Automating order intake seems like a matter of flipping a switch. It is not. The real work starts before the first order enters the system.
Automating inspection reports: what it delivers
Inspection reports arrive in dozens of formats and are then entered into the system by hand. That does not have to be the case. But automation is not always the right choice.
Truck levy from 1 July 2026: what is changing?
From 1 July 2026, the transport sector faces several changes at once: a truck levy, wage increases and new tachograph obligations. What does this mean in practice for those processing documents?
Work orders in manufacturing and engineering: where the process gets stuck
In the manufacturing and engineering sector, work orders arrive en masse as PDFs or photos in the mailbox, after which someone manually re-enters them into the ERP. This sector insight shows where that flow breaks down.
E-invoicing obligation in the Netherlands: what actually applies?
There is no e-invoicing obligation for B2B transactions in the Netherlands yet, but practice is already well ahead of the law. What you are already experiencing and when things will really change.
Automating packing lists: the real lesson is in the exceptions
Automating packing lists works fine until a supplier sends a document in an unexpected format. The lesson is not the technology itself, but how you design the exception process.
Automating CMR waybills: what it delivers
CMR waybills are still being manually retyped into TMS or ERP systems. That costs time, introduces errors, and slows down invoicing. Read when automation makes sense and when it does not.
Invoice processing in financial administration: where it gets stuck
Invoice processing is the most common time drain in finance and administration. Inconsistent layouts, missing references, and manual data entry keep teams away from the work that actually matters.
Order processing in wholesale: where it gets stuck
In wholesale, orders arrive by email, portal, fax, and EDI all at once. The result: someone re-enters everything into the ERP. This pattern is familiar, persistent, and more costly than it appears.