Singapore based freight giant Globelink has selected RPA Labs to automate document processing. With every shipment that needs to be processed, Globelink's customer service team was tasked to manually split, extract, and index data from the attached documents into their ERP system. Processing thousands of shipments every month manually was very time-consuming and error-prone, leading Globelink to search for a more efficient and scalable solution.

Adding a layer of automation to their document processes was seen as yet another way to enhance the overall customer experience.

Formed in 1988 to provide international freight forwarding services, CWT Globelink has become a leading Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier (NVOCC) operator in Asia. Its NVOCC business encompasses cargo consolidation and door to door/port to port sea freight forwarding services.

In addition to NVOCC shipment, CWT Globelink group also undertakes project cargo, value added activities including repacking, re-palletization, customs clearance, import/export documentation and door to door transportation. The group also delivers multi-modal transportation solutions incorporating airfreight, seafreight and land transportations.

"With our continued growth and expansive network of more than 100 offices in 32 countries, implementing automation for some of our biggest challenges became a focal point," said Daniel Tok, CEO of Globelink. "With hundreds of thousands of documents coming in and out of our system every year, we knew that's where we needed to focus our attention."

Data entry errors in supply chain and other areas cost businesses over $600 billion each year according to The Data Warehouse Institute. Eliminating even a fraction of manual work in everyday operations will see a direct ROI.

"Manual document processing sees a staggering error rate of five percent or higher," said Tejaswini Manjunath, Integration Manager at RPA Labs. "Automating these processes ensures a drastic reduction in errors, and these hidden savings add up."

Globelink implemented RPA Flow to automatically split, extract, and index documents into their system.

When a shipment is submitted, it typically arrives in the form of a PDF that contains a master bill of lading (MBL), house bill of lading (HBL), carrier invoices, and debit and credit notes. RPA Flow instantly splits the PDF into its corresponding document type, extracts the content, and updates the required fields into Globelink's ERP system.

The entire process is done without human intervention, removing the need for manual processing and increasing accuracy of the data input.

"We're excited to see how RPA Flow not only improves our business operations, but enhances our customer experience," said Tok. "In today's digital world, it's no longer an option to not have some level of automation in place."