What is our primary use case?
By implementing UiPath Document Understanding, we wanted to extract data from the documents, specifically native PDF documents.
In terms of integration, we have integrated it with SAP.
How has it helped my organization?
We are processing 100 to 150 invoices of 20 to 30 pages, totaling around 1k pages in a month, and the document format is PDF. Our organization's documents are completely processed automatically if there is no change in the template, but if there is a slight change in the invoice template, then they aren't processed automatically.
Validation does not take much time because we have developed an application that allows us to validate by modifying the data in the database while viewing the PDF image and extracted text. Human validation is required for at least 2 out of 10 invoices. The human validation process may take approximately 10 minutes per document, but it depends on the number of pages.
Before automating our process with UiPath Document Understanding, the average processing time was in hours, but now, after validation, it takes just 5-6 minutes.
UiPath Document Understanding has helped reduce human errors to some extent. The extraction of data should be accurate to avoid manual validation.
UiPath Document Understanding has helped to free up staff's time for other projects, but the cost is high. In India, costs are increasing, and we are looking for cost-effective solutions. We are trying Agentic AI solutions to reduce costs, as every year the license cost of UiPath Document Understanding increases.
Regarding time savings, 1-2 hours are reduced to 5-6 minutes.
What is most valuable?
Pre-trained models are valuable, and they work well. UiPath Document Understanding has pre-defined sets of trained models. We are using those and training our invoice templates, so we are using the pre-trained templates, and we are able to extract data based on our needs.
What needs improvement?
We have to do manual validation for some of the things due to the OCR engine not being so accurate. For example, S is read as 5, 5 as S, 2 as Z, and Z as 2. In the case of currency, if one dot is missing, it gives a completely incorrect number.
These discrepancies should be fixed because if the OCR itself doesn't work properly, then AI doesn't help with that. When AI is used for training models, the AI Center works precisely, but if the data itself is wrong, we can't do anything. If the extraction of data is proper, it definitely helps. However, 20% errors could be reduced if the OCR engine were better. In future updates, I would like to see better handling of issues such as when a dot is missing in currency, for example, with dollars, it should handle that automatically.
It's very expensive. If the volume increases, we can't afford to use Document Understanding. We are thinking of moving to another solution because we are expecting 80,000 to 100,000 invoices.
For how long have I used the solution?
My overall experience with UiPath Document Understanding is for more than 3 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
UiPath Document Understanding is scalable. We are not planning to increase the usage of UiPath Document Understanding. We are trying to find alternative solutions as the volume is expected to increase, requiring more bots, which would increase costs.
How are customer service and support?
In the initial days, we interacted with them, but we now find solutions ourselves. At the time, there was a delay in response. Our system is healthcare-related and needs to function 24/7, so we don't have the bandwidth to rely on the technical team's response times.
How would you rate customer service and support?
How was the initial setup?
The initial deployment was straightforward and took a few hours.
I was personally involved in the deployment process of the automation. Our implementation strategy involved deploying it in two environments: staging and production. We process invoices in the staging environment first, then confirm them before pushing to production. We use GitHub for code management. We create branches and push the updated code without impacting others.
What about the implementation team?
For deployment, we didn't use any third-party integrators or consultants. We used GitHub and Jenkins schedulers, avoiding additional costs due to licensing expenses of those tools. For the process, a couple of resources are needed, specifically 16 developers are involved.
What was our ROI?
It definitely saves time. However, there are alternative solutions at lower costs.
We can use a simpler solution. We can use a Python script that converts PDF to text with 100% accuracy. There are other solutions that are free. We are planning to migrate to those.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
It is expensive. The license cost for UiPath Studio has risen to around 3.5 lakhs last year, and I am uncertain how much the increase will be this year. They have also increased the bot prices.
There are no additional costs; there is no extra cost aside from the standard licensing fee.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Before choosing UiPath Document Understanding, we evaluated other options like Automation Anywhere. We chose UiPath instead of Automation Anywhere because it is an on-prem solution suitable for governmental projects, like defense organizations.
What other advice do I have?
My overall rating for UiPath Document Understanding is a four out of ten. It's good in technical aspects, but it's not cost-effective.