Success Story
SAP E-Invoice

Case study

Goals achieved through the MailCenter digitalization platform – Invoice Verification

1. Early fulfilment of the obligations under the E-Invoicing Act
2. Responding to customer requests for better processability
3. Reduction of manual effort in invoicing
4. Minimize the time required to send invoices
5. Simplify processes on the sender and receiver side

PDF-Download Success Story | Hekatron Fire Protection

company

Hekatron Fire Protection

• The headquarters are located in Sulzburg
• Industry: Fire protection
• URL: www.hekatron.de

Project Objectives

1. Early fulfilment of the obligations under the E-Invoicing Act
2. Responding to customer requests for better processability
3. Reduction of manual effort in invoicing
4. Minimize the time required to send invoices
5. Simplify processes on the sender and receiver side

Choosing MailCenter

1. Complete SAP integration of the solution
2. Higher functionality than in the SAP standard
3. Everything from a single source from one provider

Solutions and Services

1. Digitization platform MailCenter
2. E-invoicing module
3. Solution partner: munich enterprise software GmbH
4. www.munich-enterprise.com

Implementation Highlights

1. Simple customizing through SAPximity of the solution
2. Fast troubleshooting with munich enterprise software

Main benefits for the company

1. Customer-friendly design of invoice e-mails
2. High degree of automation when sending invoices
3. Fully integrated calculation dispatch in SAP
4. E-invoicing module runs in the background of the MailCenter

Environment

1. SAP S4/HANA 23 FPS2

Case study in detail

“With the use of the MailCenter E-Invoicing, we are fulfilling a wish of many customers who want a format that can be processed automatically and want invoice data read directly into their systems.”

Marco Müller, IT Project Manager at Hekatron

The e-invoicing obligation in B2B has been in place since the beginning of 2025; with it, companies are faced with the challenge of adapting their processes and converting incoming and outgoing invoices to electronic formats (ZUGFeRD, XRechnung). Although sending invoices is not yet mandatory, Hekatron Brandschutz, based in South Baden, has positioned itself technically in this regard in good time: by using the MailCenter platform with the additional e-invoice module from munich enterprise software. The MailCenter e-invoicing module has been in reliable use since the beginning of January 2023.

Hekatron had previously only sent its outgoing invoices as PDF by e-mail, but not yet in ZUGFeRD format. In 2019, the company introduced SAP and came to the conclusion: The ERP software does not have the necessary functionalities as standard to send PDF invoices efficiently and automatically, even with individual texts and attachments. At the same time, the decision was therefore made to use the mail center from munich enterprise software for this purpose. “This solution offers us significantly more convenience and flexibility,” says Marco Müller, IT Project Manager Sales at Hekatron. “We can send invoices both by mass job and individually, in the latter case enriching e-mail texts and attaching other documents.”

E-invoicing obligation and customer requests

The MailCenter was implemented in parallel with the SAP introduction in 2019. In view of the imminent e-invoicing obligation, a function was needed three years later that could also be used to generate “real” e-invoices – i.e. PDFs in ZUGFeRD or XRechnung format – and send them from SAP.

However, the new legal situation was not the only reason for the expansion. “We are also fulfilling a wish
many customers who want a format that can be processed automatically,” explains Marco Müller. “They want to read the data directly into their systems. This is only possible to a limited extent with normal PDF files, as the data always has to be typed manually from there.”

Proven solution, reliable partner

The fact that the MailCenter had already been in use since 2019 and also has a module for e-invoices spoke in favor of munich enterprise software. “Neither in the SAP standard nor in comparable solutions did we find any functionality that came close to the MailCenter. We also liked the idea of not having to take another provider on board,” says Marco Müller.

Hekatron Brandschutz obtains its products from its manufacturing sister company (Hekatron Manufacturing) and sells them to end customers. This means that around 40,000 invoices leave the company every year. There is no four-eyes principle in invoicing, but every outgoing invoice is based on a customer order; the invoice is thus already checked when the order is accepted and the order is created.

The MailCenter offers significantly more convenience and flexibility than the SAP standard when sending invoices.”

Marco Müller, IT Project Manager at Hekatron

E-invoicing module in the background

Around 20 employees from the internal sales department and the accounts receivable department are responsible for sending invoices from the MailCenter. “However, we have now automated many processes here by running shipping jobs overnight. This saves users a lot of manual work. The e-invoicing module works in the background and generates the invoice data, which is then integrated into the PDF file,” explains Marco Müller. At the customers’ premises, the e-invoices now go through the receipt process in a fully automated manner. Each of them now receives an electronic invoice, even if they cannot process it yet. That doesn’t matter, because designed as a hybrid format, ZUGFeRD invoices can still be read out manually.

After a start-up phase, IT manager Müller draws an all-round positive conclusion. “The manufacturer munich enterprise always had an open ear and reacted quickly to the problems. Individual wishes were also well catered for.”

While Hekatron has already automated the sending of invoices, the receipt of invoices is still in the processing phase. This means that incoming PDF invoices are still processed manually. A preliminary project has already been started to automate incoming invoices in a similar way to outgoing invoices. Many companies prefer this, but Hekatron went the other way around. “First the customer, then us,” is Marco Müller’s simple explanation.

About Hekatron

Since its foundation in 1963, Hekatron has continued to develop. Today, there are three independent companies – Hekatron Brandschutz, Hekatron Manufacturing and Hekatron Service Center – which are jointly part of the family-run Securitas Group Switzerland, based in Sulzburg in southern Baden. As leading specialists in the development, production and sale of systems for plant fire protection, they are united by their shared history.