E-invoicing implementation at Giesecke+Devrient

Even for a hidden champion like Giesecke+Devrient, digitalisation is a key factor in ensuring future business success. The transition to paperless electronic invoicing (e-invoicing) marked another step towards automating internal billing processes and fits seamlessly into the company’s wider digitalisation initiatives.

International e-invoicing processes and country-specific requirements

Due to G+D’s global operations, e-invoicing processes have been implemented in several countries for both B2C and B2B transactions:

• Italy (FatturaPA)
• Germany (XRechnung & ZUGFeRD)
• Spain (FacturaE & SII)
• Saudi Arabia (ZATCA)

The requirements in the individual countries were primarily driven by two needs:

• Submission of legally required documents to the relevant national tax authorities
• Electronic invoicing for existing customers who already have the capability to receive electronic invoices

SAP eDocument Cockpit and automated document exchange

Existing proprietary third-party solutions were also replaced by the SAP eDocument Cockpit and SAP AIF (Application Interface Framework). SAP eDocument Cockpit enables companies to generate electronic documents, for example from subsequent documents relating to invoices. The solution also supports the automated exchange of documents between different systems and business partners, significantly reducing manual data entry and the associated risk of errors.

Depending on the recipient, electronic documents are transmitted in encrypted form via various distribution channels:

• PEPPOL (an infrastructure that enables the exchange of electronic business documents, such as invoices, between companies and public authorities across Europe)
• Email (ZUGFeRD)
• SAP CPI (Cloud Platform Integration)
• Web services / proxies / APIs

This provides a high degree of flexibility in accommodating different use cases and specific customer requirements for receiving invoices.

Implementation and customisation of the SAP standard solution

consenso acted as the implementation partner, configuring the standard SAP eDocument Cockpit solution and adapting it to Giesecke+Devrient’s various business processes. This ensured that the electronic documents generated, for example in XML format, contained all business-critical information and reached their recipients without errors.