Orcha × Empact

Our Understanding

Empact operates 12 legal entities, each with its own chart of accounts and cost-centre structure (KOST1). All accounting flows through DATEV (DUO + REWE). Combined volume: ~1,000 invoices/month, with occasional spikes when new projects go live.

Accounts Payable

• Invoices arrive via email and portals, manually booked in DATEV
• Four invoice types with distinct booking logic: electricity, EV charging, heating, and services
• Same supplier (e.g. Vattenfall) may appear as different creditors depending on contract number
• Approval in DUO: Operations vs. Construction (pre-approved plans, 1 approver), split by account or creditor, max 2 approvers
• Recently introduced approval groups – self-organised, tracked in Asana
• DUO sends only one reminder (day after creation), no follow-up – a known pain point

Accounts Receivable

• Invoices generated in Solarrise, ChargeCloud, Moco, QueueBilling, Power tool – none connected to DATEV
• All AR bookings are 100% manual – the single biggest pain point
• Email BCC to accounting does not work in practice (people forget)
• Source document alongside each booking is a must-have
• Energy prepayments: installments → prepayment account, annual consumption invoice → reversal + revenue account, new installment plan – multiple entries per debitor
• Two distinct annual settlement invoice template formats; only the overview page needs extraction

Master Data & Controlling

• Multiple systems generate creditor/debitor numbers, all flow to DATEV for dunning
• SFTP in use across all 12 entities; DATEV Desktop API also in use
• Energy controlling data hub on Azure (AP) + Solarrise metering data (AR)
• Planful being implemented for energy controlling; PowerBI database being set up
• Grid operators pay up to 6 months late – need to simulate revenues for management accounts

What Orcha Brings

• AI-powered invoice processing – AP and AR invoices are ingested via email or API, automatically read, extracted, and prepared for booking. The source document is always attached alongside the booking entry in DATEV.
• DATEV DUO & REWE integration – Booking proposals and documents are pushed to DUO for approval (using Belegfreigabe Komfort on the AR side). The transfer from DUO to REWE is handled natively by DATEV, preserving the existing workflow.
• Smart approval workflows – Approval can run in DATEV DUO or optionally through Orcha. The system supports Operations vs. Construction logic, account- and creditor-based routing, limit-based escalation, and approval groups. Automated follow-up reminders close the current gap where only a single DUO notification is sent.
• Prepayment & reconciliation automation – Handles installment plans, annual consumption invoices, and the full reversal-and-rebooking cycle across prepayment and revenue accounts. Works with both annual settlement invoice template formats and can operate alongside or replace DATEV’s recurring-booking feature.
• Master-data sync – Automated synchronisation of creditor and debitor master data between DATEV and Orcha via DATEV Desktop API and SFTP, covering all 12 entities for both REWE and DUO.
• API-first ingestion for AR – Direct API connections where available (Power tool, Solarrise TBC), with email forwarding as a reliable fallback – replacing the unreliable BCC approach and ensuring every source document reaches accounting automatically.