Payment Gateway and Invoice Automation Solution

CLIENT

An established leader in the Australian metallurgical coal industry, GM3 is a joint venture between Golden Energy and Resources (GEAR) and M Resources, recently acquiring key Illawarra Metallurgical Coal assets from South32.

PROJECT

Implemented a Payment Gateway Solution and Invoice Automation. Payment Gateway enabled GM3 vendors to manually submit Service Entry Sheets (SES), track updates via message center and submit invoices manually (if required) while Vendor Invoice Automation enabled GM3 to automate vendor invoice postings in SAP using the Rio and Managed Automated Invoice solution.

RESULTS

Real time SES submission and status updates for Vendors. Automating invoice processing through the Rio-monitored email and MAI application resulted in an 80–85% reduction in daily invoice entry overhead compared to the previous manual process managed by the GM3 team.

PROJECT INFORMATION

As part of its separation from the South32 environment, GM3 transitioned its Procure-to-Pay (P2P) processes to SAP S/4HANA and SAP Ariba Business Network. With over 900 vendors and approximately 28,000 transactions managed outside of SAP Ariba, GM3 required a solution to support vendor collaboration for submitting Service Entry Sheets (SES) and invoices with the primary focus on automating vendor invoice posting into SAP.

To support this initiative, GM3 implemented a Payment Gateway for vendors and GM3 buyers — a centralized entry point that allowed non-Ariba vendors and employees to engage seamlessly with the Supply team. This solution eliminated confusion, improved process efficiency, and enabled scalable, standardized workflows for managing service-related transactions.

The solution introduced a consistent process for vendors to submit service claims and invoices, with automated routing of emailed invoices through a Rio-monitored mailbox directly into the Managed Automated Invoice (MAI) app for validation and posting to SAP. The Submit Invoice app was also made available as a manual entry option for vendors who, for various operational reasons, chose not to use the automation path. Vendors gained real-time visibility into SES and invoice statuses, increasing transparency and improving turnaround times.

The Challenge

As part of its separation from South32, GM3 was undergoing a major transformation of its Procure-to-Pay (P2P) processes, transitioning to SAP S/4HANA and SAP Ariba Business Network. However, with approximately 914 vendors and 28,000 transactions managed outside of SAP Ariba, GM3 required an alternate solution for vendors to submit Service Entry Sheets (SES) and invoices and collaborate on their approval status.

Internally, the GM3 team lacked the bandwidth to design and implement a custom solution from scratch — particularly within the tight timelines required during the transition. Given the volume of transactions and the operational complexity, building and validating a solution in-house would have introduced significant risk and delay.

GM3 chose to partner with ConvergentIS because of its proven, ready-to-deploy solution that addressed both SES submission and automated invoice posting to SAP. The solution fulfilled GM3’s key requirement of achieving 80–85% automation in vendor invoice processing, while providing the flexibility to support manual submissions when needed. This allowed GM3 to accelerate deployment and ensure business continuity during the critical transition period.

The Solution

To support GM3’s transition to SAP S/4HANA and streamline its invoice processing, ConvergentIS implemented a Payment Gateway solution combining the Managed Automated Invoice (MAI) application. The primary objective was to automate vendor invoice posting directly into SAP, while still allowing flexibility for vendors to manually submit SES and invoices when required.

Invoices received via a Rio-monitored email address were automatically routed into the MAI app, where they were validated and posted to SAP with minimal manual intervention. This automation drastically reduced the effort required from GM3’s Accounts Payable team while improving accuracy and consistency.

Service Entry Sheets (SES) remained a required step for all service purchase orders. The Submit Invoice app was made available to vendors who, due to internal constraints or preferences, needed to manually submit their invoices. ConvergentIS also enabled real-time tracking capabilities, allowing vendors to view the status of their SES and invoices. The combined solution ensured flexibility, scalability, and full integration with GM3’s SAP landscape.

The Results

The implementation of the ConvergentIS Payment Gateway solution brought immediate and measurable improvements to GM3’s invoice processing operations. By automating the flow of vendor invoices from email submission to SAP posting via the Managed Automated Invoice (MAI) app, GM3 achieved an estimated 80–85% reduction in daily invoice entry overhead.

The solution significantly reduced manual touchpoints, improved data accuracy, and accelerated invoice turnaround times. With fewer delays and processing errors, the Accounts Payable team was able to focus on exception handling rather than routine data entry.

Additionally, the Submit Invoice app provided operational flexibility, ensuring vendors with varied technical capabilities could still participate in the process without disruption. The introduction of real-time status tracking enhanced transparency and vendor satisfaction, reducing the volume of follow-up queries and support requests. Overall, the solution enabled GM3 to process high volumes of service-based transactions with greater efficiency and confidence during a critical transition period.

What's Next

Following the successful deployment of the Payment Gateway solution, GM3 is exploring additional enhancements to further streamline vendor collaboration. One of the key discussions underway is the development of a new application within the vendor dashboard that would allow vendors to view available purchase orders directly from the system.

Why ConvergentIS?

Our team comes from a variety of different operational backgrounds, meaning we understand how people work. We recognize SAP S/4HANA as an out-of-the-box solution that has successfully solved business problems across several industries. But we realize some work processes are still challenging to learn with so many capabilities available in SAP.

Leveraging the SAP design methodology, we have co-innovated with organizations to build solutions that match the way they work. Since many teams face the same problems, we packaged them and made them available as an out-of-the-box application. This means your business still receives many of the benefits of a tailored application without the cost of a custom solution.