Tican Chilled are part of The Tönnies Group which is a German family business in the meat industry, operating internationally.
Tönnies core business is meat processing of pork and beef. With a revenue of over €6 billion, the company is one of the largest meat groups in Europe. Tican Chilled is a specialist meat wholesaler serving around 1,000 trade customers per month across the UK.
Tican Chilled have a firm reputation for traceability, quality, and a strictly trade-only model supplying to high street butchers, farm shops, pubs, restaurants, and hospitality providers.
As is typical in a traditionally paper-heavy and technology-averse industry, Tican’s processes were slow, reliant on physical paperwork, and geographically restrictive.
Customer applications, invoices, goods-in documents, and compliance paperwork were all handled manually, causing significant delays. Year-end audits, customer onboarding, and internal workflows were particularly time-consuming. Tican Chilled needed a digital solution to connect their multiple sites and streamline document access across the business.
Their Finance Manager explains:
“Prior to DocTech’s involvement, our finance processes were very traditional and paper-based. The pandemic really highlighted how limiting that was — invoices were being manually indexed from a shared folder. This was massively time consuming and we looked for a solution which would be scalable, efficient, and professional.”
In 2021, Tican Chilled began working with DocTech to overhaul their document management processes. Following several process mapping sessions internally and then with their DocTech account manager, it became clear that DocuWare Cloud could provide the digitisation they needed.
Initially implemented for Goods Inwards, the DocuWare solution quickly expanded in scope to support a wide range of key business processes for Tican Chilled. Purchase Orders are now created in Dynamics AX, sent to suppliers, and automatically stored in DocuWare. Goods In procedures involve booking deliveries by phone, performing physical checks, and matching them with HACCP forms and delivery notes—all stored digitally and made far easier and quicker with DocuWare in place.
The business processes involved with the 1,000 weekly invoices have been significantly streamlined. The invoices are seamlessly processed, verified against POs, and securely archived.
Digital forms are being rolled out across multiple departmental processes at Tican Chilled. A key process that has been modernised by DocuWare digital forms is the customer application process. The customer application forms are now fully digitised and accessible publicly by their customers. They can access them via links sent to them or via the company website. Tican Chilled have incorporated the forms to enhance their ability to perform automated credit checks and delivery routing, which has improved both speed and professionalism.
Additionally, essential Customs Declaration Service (CDS) documents required since Brexit are now centrally stored and easily accessible in their DocuWare system. These certificates are clipped alongside the various documents relating to a transaction e.g. the PO, the invoice and the delivery note.
Integration with Microsoft 365 and Dynamics AX ensures seamless document flow and acessibility across platforms. DocuWare Smart Connect integration buttons and Intellix data capture tool play a key role in efficient indexing and quick retrieval of documents.
The team at Tican Chilled are already planning the next stage of their digital journey with DocuWare, including automating customer credit uplift requests via online forms and exploring supplier data forms to support compliance with modern slavery and environmental standards.
The transition from paper-based systems to DocuWare has brought tangible benefits:
Increased Efficiency: Document handling is faster, more accurate, and no longer location-dependent.
Improved Customer Experience: Digitised application forms and automated updates offer a professional and streamlined onboarding process.
Operational Scalability: Staff are now freed up to focus on higher-value work like planning and health & safety.
Audit Readiness: Year-end processes are significantly easier, with auditors able to access documents on request.
Using DocuWare has made our lives so much easier, both internally and for our customers. It makes us look professional and allows us to move much faster. DocTech give us UK-Based Support: Fast response times, helpful team, and a personal service.
info@doctech.co.uk
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