Nijkerk, 1 June 2012

Overtoom invoices electronically via Digipoort

Overtoom, supplier of office, warehouse and workplace articles, sent its first electronic invoices using Digipoort, the electronic post office of the Dutch government this week. The invoices arrived safely at the Uitvoeringsinstituut Werknemersverzekeringen (UWV). Certipost, experienced service provider for e-invoicing, set up the link between Overtoom and Digipoort.

The Dutch government stimulates electronic invoicing. The central government's objective is to receive and process 80% of all incoming invoices electronically by 2014. It can save the central government up to EUR 21 million a year. If all companies were to switch to e-invoicing, the estimated cost savings amount to EUR 600 million. To stimulate electronic invoicing, the government created the Digipoort portal site. Like Menno van Drunen, e-invoice project manager at Logius (the digital government department), indicated on 22 May in Amsterdam during the Certipost event “Electronic invoicing, how to get started?”, connecting to Digipoort is quite complex, and requires know-how and expertise. Menno van Drunen: “By working with intermediaries such as Certipost, we can simplify access to Digipoort for companies.” Overtoom successfully made this step.

Connecting to Digipoort via e-invoicing provider Certipost is quicker and easier. Companies can choose to establish the technical link to Digipoort themselves. But for companies who do their electronic invoicing using the Certipost platform, the connection is very simple. The platform works like a sorting centre and translation service: the invoices of a company are converted to UBL 2.0-format, quickly and error-free, and delivered to Digipoort. CertiONE, the Certipost platform for e-invoicing is easy to integrate with all common accounting and ERP systems, as well as with customised software. Companies such as Overtoom, KPN and Adecco have decided to work in this way.

Jaap van Willigenburg, credit control team leader at Overtoom: “Our entire outbound invoicing now runs over the Certipost platform. We send our invoices in one central format which is then correctly translated for the recipient into the format of the delivery channel of choice, in this case Digipoort.”

Gert Roeckx, CEO of Certipost: “The advantages of e-invoicing are clear to see. A lower error margin, increased security, savings on paper, shipment and archiving and of course the speed of the message traffic, allowing invoices to be processed much quicker. Despite all this, companies are reluctant to make the step from paper to electronic. They are afraid it will involve a lot of extra work. Thanks to CertiONE and the link with Digipoort, companies are able to switch to electronic invoicing without any problems and within a short time frame.”

About Overtoom International Nederland BV

For more than 60 years Overtoom has been a fast supplier of office,warehouse and workplace goods. Overtoom is the largest B2B direct mail order company in the Benelux and provides more than 50,000 solutions via generic and specialised catalogues, a webshop and e-procurement systems. The office and distribution centre are centrally located in Den Dolder. Overtoom doesn’t limit itself to the Netherlands, rather, it is part of a European group, Manutan International. Manutan International has 25 subsidiaries in 20 countries and more than 1,600 employees.

About Certipost

Certipost is an experienced specialist in secure electronic document exchange between companies, governments and private persons all over Europe. The company was founded in 2002 and is established in Belgium with representation in the Netherlands. Many companies in various sectors, such as Philips, Etos, Overtoom, Q8, Samsung, Heineken, CSM and BCC, have been working with Certipost for electronic invoicing (e-Invoicing) and electronic document exchange in the supply chain (e-Supply) for years. Certipost has also worked on a number of Dutch digital projects such as Digipoort (document exchange between government and companies), Bouwend Nederland (between construction companies) and Vecozo (between healthcare insurers and healthcare providers). More information on www.certipost.nl

Contact for journalists:
Katrien Busschaert, Head of Marketing Certipost
T +32 (0)53 60 11 34
M +32 (0)474 98 46 75
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I www.certipost.nl