Overview:
FreightFox, a fast-growing logistics technology startup founded in 2020, is redefining industrial freight management in India. Headquartered in Pune with a branch in Bengaluru, FreightFox’s mission is to simplify and digitize freight operations for manufacturers and transporters alike.
Through its suite of products Freight Procure, Freight Manage, Freight IQ, and Freight Sustainability the company empowers businesses to modernize procurement, optimize routes, enhance visibility, and promote sustainable logistics.
To further strengthen its ecosystem, FreightFox aimed to build a vendor portal that could integrate seamlessly with SAP while providing an easy, self-service interface for suppliers. That’s where Indictrans Technologies stepped in, strengthening the power and flexibility of ERPNext to design and implement a scalable, cost-efficient solution.
Challenges
Before the ERPNext integration, FreightFox faced several operational roadblocks:
- High SAP complexity for vendors:
Extending SAP access to every vendor was expensive and impractical. The team needed a lightweight, integrated alternative.
- Manual onboarding and invoicing: Vendor registration, compliance checks, and invoice submissions were mostly manual, causing delays, data errors, and poor visibility.
- Invoice validation & compliance gaps:
Finance teams struggled with reconciling invoices against POs and GRNs, leading to mismatches and delayed payments.
- Fragmented communication:
Procurement, finance, and logistics teams worked in silos with duplicate efforts due to lack of system integration.
- Scalability issues:
As FreightFox scaled, manual operations couldn’t keep up with its growth path.
Solution: ERPNext-Powered Vendor Portal
To overcome these challenges, Indictrans Technologies developed a custom ERPNext-based Vendor Portal, tightly integrated with FreightFox’s SAP system.
The solution focused on enabling vendor self-service, process automation, and financial validation through ERPNext’s open-source flexibility.
Key Project Goals
- Vendor self-registration and onboarding
- 3-way invoice validation (PO, GRN, Invoice)
- Automated invoice posting to SAP via APIs
- Real-time vendor status tracking
- Reduction in manual efforts and data mismatches
- Improved vendor satisfaction through faster payments
Execution Approach
Indictrans followed its proven Agile Monthly Deliverable Model to ensure transparency, flexibility, and steady progress.
Phase 1: Requirement Gathering & Planning
Collaborative sessions with FreightFox’s teams helped outline vendor workflows, SAP data flow, and compliance requirements. The Vendor Portal became the core deliverable for the initial phase.
Phase 2: Development & Customization
- Built a Vendor Portal within ERPNext for secure login and self-service access.
- Automated onboarding workflows with compliance validation and approvals.
- Integrated OCR for automatic invoice detail extraction.
- Developed custom APIs for seamless 2-way SAP data sync.
- Implemented 3-way matching to ensure invoice integrity before posting.
Phase 3: Testing & Deployment
Frequent Conference Room Pilots (CRPs) allowed real-time client feedback and iterative refinement. After multiple test cycles, the solution went live with vendors onboarded and trained.
Phase 4: Post-Go-Live Support
Indictrans continues to provide ongoing support for SAP error handling, UI enhancements, and new feature rollouts.
Key Customisations
- Vendor Onboarding Workflow – registration, compliance, approval automation
- Invoice Submission & Validation – 3-way matching before SAP posting
- SAP API Integration – automated data flow and error-handling middleware
- OCR Integration – reduced manual entry for invoices.
- Background Jobs & Caching – optimized GRN polling for speed and performance
Technical Challenges & Resolutions
- SAP API Handling:
Custom middleware scripts were developed in ERPNext to format data and handle SAP posting errors.
- Complex 3-Way Matching:
Custom logic was embedded within ERPNext to cross-verify PO, GRN, and invoice data seamlessly.
- Performance Optimization:
Implemented background jobs and caching to ensure fast validation and posting without system lags.
Business Impact
The ERPNext Vendor Portal integrated with SAP delivered measurable results within the first quarter of go-live driving both efficiency and vendor satisfaction across FreightFox’s operations.
- 80% Faster Vendor Onboarding
Automated registration and compliance reduced onboarding time from 5 days to less than 1 day.
- 65% Reduction in Invoice Processing Time
Invoice validation and posting that previously took hours per transaction now happen within minutes.
- Zero Manual Data Duplication
Real-time SAP integration eliminated manual entry errors and redundant tasks between finance and procurement teams.
- 40% Lower Operational Costs
FreightFox avoided the high costs of expanding SAP licensing and infrastructure by implementing ERPNext as a lightweight, integrated layer.
- 99% Invoice Accuracy
Smart validations and OCR integration significantly reduced mismatches between PO, GRN, and Invoice data.
- Improved Vendor Experience
Over 150 vendors now access the portal seamlessly tracking invoices, compliance, and payment status in real-time.
- Enhanced Transparency & Control
Finance teams now have complete visibility into vendor data, invoice stages, and SAP postings enabling data-driven decision-making.
Conclusion
The FreightFox Vendor Portal project stands as a prime example of how ERPNext’s open-source agility and Indictrans implementation expertise can bridge the gap between complex enterprise systems and practical business needs.
By integrating ERPNext with SAP, FreightFox not only streamlined its vendor management but also transformed manual, fragmented workflows into a unified digital ecosystem. The result faster approvals, accurate financial data, and happier vendors.
This collaboration showcases Indictrans’s strength in delivering cost-effective, scalable, and integration-ready ERPNext solutions that empower growing enterprises to stay efficient, transparent, and future-ready.
For FreightFox, this wasn’t just about building a portal it was about laying the foundation for a smarter, more connected logistics ecosystem, where technology drives trust, visibility, and long-term growth.
Ready to Transform Your Operations?
Whether you’re looking to simplify vendor management, automate financial workflows, or integrate ERPNext with enterprise systems like SAP New Indictrans Technologies can help you get there.
Let’s build your next ERP success story together.
Talk to Our ERPNext Experts Today!
