#Japan #Iwaki #Infomart #BtoB Platform #Iwaki City

Transforming Invoicing in Iwaki City with Digital Solutions

Iwaki City, located in Fukushima Prefecture, has taken significant strides towards digitizing its invoicing processes in an effort to enhance municipal efficiency and service delivery. The local government has recently decided to implement the 'BtoB Platform Invoice' service by Infomart, a move set to revolutionize how invoices are handled across the city.

Background for Adoption

In its push for digital transformation (DX), Iwaki City identified the need to improve its accounting operations, particularly given the burden of processing over 100,000 paper-based invoices each year. Handling such a high volume of paper invoices has led to issues like incomplete entries and transcription errors, which often result in delayed payments requiring time-consuming rectification processes.

Additionally, the annual financial cost of managing these paper documents has ballooned to approximately ¥1 million, alongside significant time and labor spent on document retrieval and organization. Moreover, the necessity for physical storage of these documents introduces further logistical challenges.

In light of these issues, Iwaki City committed to the BtoB Platform Invoice, set to be operational by January 2025. Insights from a pre-implementation survey indicated that around 50% of local businesses were amenable to adopting electronic invoicing. Initial pilot testing demonstrated a notable decrease in invoice processing time, from approximately 18 minutes to just 10 minutes per invoice. With the anticipated shift to digital formats, it's estimated that the city could save around 13,000 hours of work each year.

Key Reasons Behind the Choice

The decision to adopt the BtoB Platform Invoice was informed by its significant market share and proven track record within Japan, which assured the city that local businesses would have no trouble transitioning to the platform. Furthermore, the compatibility of the digital invoicing system with existing municipal financial systems promised to bolster efficiency and reduce operational redundancies.

Positive Outcomes So Far

Currently, Iwaki City collaborates with around 150 local businesses to utilize the BtoB Platform Invoice. Thanks to its integration with financial systems, the risks of losing invoices or overlooking processing have significantly diminished. This has also led to less chance of errors when transcribing data and improved document searchability. The switch to digital has resulted in reduced storage costs, and data retention fosters clearer communication, eliminating misunderstandings that often arose from traditional paper and phone methods.

Additionally, the burden of costs related to physical submissions, such as mail and transportation, has been greatly alleviated.

Future Plans

Looking ahead, Iwaki City is planning to further digitize its operations by adopting the BtoB platform for processing invoices for consumables used in schools by 2025. This shift is expected to involve about 16,000 electronic transactions annually, further easing the workload for both educational institutions and local suppliers. The city remains committed to encouraging greater adoption of electronic invoicing among businesses, underlining its dedication to driving digital transformation across its operations.

For more detailed narratives and case studies, you can refer to Infomart’s official case study link here and check out their platform for local governments at this link.

About Infomart

Founded in 1998, Infomart has specialized in efficiency enhancement solutions for business transactions, focusing on invoicing and order processes via cloud services. The BtoB platform has gained considerable traction, with over 1.2 million companies utilizing it, managing a total transaction volume exceeding ¥62 trillion annually.

The company is listed on the Tokyo Prime Market under the stock code 2492. For more about Infomart, visit their official website here.