WORKED EXAMPLE · SCANNED PDF TO EXCEL

50 pages of scanned invoices into a checked AP ledger

An accountant received a 50-page scanned PDF of invoices for a council meeting. They asked to turn it into an accounts payable ledger in Excel, one row per invoice, with every amount read from the scanned invoice itself.

read the scan, built the ledger with a total and a check against the cover memo, and the numbers matched to the cent. Then, in the same Excel file, it added a GL category for each invoice and a summary sheet that adds back to the total.

  • 50scanned pages read
  • 9invoices found and entered
  • $0.00difference from the memo
  • 1Excel file, edited again for request 2

Open the real files

These are the actual files from the run. Download them and open them in Excel.

Where the file comes from: City of Bunker Hill Village, Texas, City Council packet for 18 August 2026, agenda item XII, "Payment(s) Above $50,000". A public record.

01 · THE STARTING FILE

A typed memo, then 49 pages of scans

Page 1 is a typed memo that lists nine invoices, A to I, each over $50,000. Pages 2 to 50 are scans: water bills, engineering invoices with their approval memos and sub-contractor backup, wastewater bills with flow records, and a construction invoice.

The scanned pages are pictures with no text in them. read them with text recognition (OCR) first, after asking which language they were in. The PDF itself was not changed.

Image from the source documentPage 1: the typed cover memo listing invoices A to I
Page 1: the cover memo, nine invoices and their amounts.Open the original
Image from the source documentPage 2: a scanned City of Houston water bill
Page 2: the first invoice, a scanned City of Houston water bill.Open the original

02 · REQUEST 1

"Build an AP ledger, one row per invoice"

What the accountant typed

This PDF is Item XII ('Payment(s) Above $50,000') from the Bunker Hill Village council packet for 18 August 2026. Page 1 is the typed cover memo listing nine invoices, A to I. Pages 2-50 are scans of those invoices plus backup (TGC approval memos, sub-consultant invoices, status reports, water flow records).

Please build an AP ledger in Excel with one row per memo item A-I. Do not add rows for the sub-consultant invoices (United Engineers, TEI, Cypress Environmental) - they are backup inside the HR Green packages. Columns:
1. Memo item (A-I)
2. Vendor
3. Invoice no. (for the City of Houston bills, use the account number)
4. Invoice / bill date
5. Service period or description
6. Amount due - read from the scanned invoice itself, not the memo
7. PDF page of the invoice's first page

Add a total row, and a reconciliation line showing the memo total, the ledger total and the difference.

What did

  • Found the first page of each of the nine invoices in the scan, and noted its PDF page.
  • Read each amount from the invoice itself, not from the memo, as asked.
  • Left out the sub-contractor invoices tucked inside the engineering packages, as asked.
  • Made a new Excel file with one row per memo item, A to I.
  • Added a total that is a formula, and three check lines: memo total, ledger total, difference. Click a green cell below to see one.
AP Ledger Item XII 2026-08-18.xlsxnew file
F12=SUM(F3:F11)
ABCDEFG
1Bunker Hill Village - Council 18 Aug 2026 - Item XII Payments Above $50,000 - AP Ledger (one row per memo item A-I)
2Memo itemVendorInvoice no. (City of Houston = account no.)Invoice / bill dateService period or descriptionAmount due (USD, from scanned invoice)PDF page (invoice first page)
3ACity of Houston7099-3004-601206/19/2026May 2026 water purchase - treated water74323.35p.2
4BCity of Houston7099-3004-601207/22/2026June 2026 water purchase - treated water69767.5p.4
5CHR Green, Inc. (BHV Work Order #1)20250305/19/2026Professional services 04/01/2026-04/30/2026, Memorial/Gessner Phase II (Proj 2502530.01/.02)101219.8p.7
6DHR Green, Inc. (TIRZ Work Order #2)20371906/18/2026Professional services 05/01/2026-05/31/2026, Memorial/Gessner Phase II (Proj 2502530.03/.04)93264.32p.25
7EHR Green, Inc. (BHV Work Order #1)20489907/15/2026Professional services 06/01/2026-06/30/2026, Memorial/Gessner Phase II (Proj 2502530.01/.02)72728.61p.33
8FHR Green, Inc. (TIRZ Work Order #2)20490107/15/2026Professional services 06/01/2026-06/30/2026, Memorial/Gessner Phase II (Proj 2502530.03/.04)77070.36p.41
9GMemorial Villages Water Authority001-26-2706/01/2026 (due 07/10/2026)May 2026 wastewater treatment66669.83p.46
10HMemorial Villages Water Authority002-26-2707/01/2026 (due 08/10/2026)June 2026 wastewater treatment64160.86p.48
11IRed Oak Construction LLC105704/30/2026 (due 06/03/2026)BHV Water Plant #1-2 Chloramine Upgrades97231.03p.50
12TOTAL (ledger)716435.66
13
14Memo total (sum of memo items A-I)716435.66
15Ledger total (SUM formula cell reference)716435.66
16Difference (Ledger - Memo)0
Sheet1AP Ledger - Item XIInew
The ledger sheet as delivered. Green numbers are formulas.

We checked it against the scans: all nine amounts, invoice numbers and page numbers are right, and the ledger total of $716,435.66 equals the memo total.

03 · REQUEST 2

"Now add GL categories and a summary"

What the accountant typed

In the same workbook, extend the ledger:
1. Add a 'GL category' column using these categories: Water purchase; Wastewater treatment; Engineering - Memorial/Gessner Ph II - BHV Work Order #1; Engineering - Memorial/Gessner Ph II - TIRZ Work Order #2; Capital - water plant.
2. Add a 'Handwritten notes' column: transcribe any handwriting on that item's pages (e.g. marks on the TGC approval memo or the invoice itself). Write 'none' if there is no handwriting, and 'illegible' if you can't read it - please don't guess. Typed 'Approved by' stamps don't count.
3. Add a 'Summary' sheet with SUMIF totals by GL category, and a check that the category totals add back to the ledger total.

Don't change the turn-1 rows or amounts.

What did

  • Opened the ledger it had just made and edited that same Excel file.
  • Added a "GL category" column, using only the five categories the accountant gave.
  • Added a new "Summary" sheet: one SUMIF formula per category, a total, and a check that comes to 0.
  • Did not change any row or amount from request 1. We checked every cell.
AP Ledger Item XII 2026-08-18.xlsxafter
H3Water purchase
ABCDEFGH
1Bunker Hill Village - Council 18 Aug 2026 - Item XII Payments Above $50,000 - AP Ledger (one row per memo item A-I)
2Memo itemVendorInvoice no. (City of Houston = account no.)Invoice / bill dateService period or descriptionAmount due (USD, from scanned invoice)PDF page (invoice first page)GL category
3ACity of Houston7099-3004-601206/19/2026May 2026 water purchase - treated water74323.35p.2Water purchase
4BCity of Houston7099-3004-601207/22/2026June 2026 water purchase - treated water69767.5p.4Water purchase
5CHR Green, Inc. (BHV Work Order #1)20250305/19/2026Professional services 04/01/2026-04/30/2026, Memorial/Gessner Phase II (Proj 2502530.01/.02)101219.8p.7Engineering - Memorial/Gessner Ph II - BHV Work Order #1
6DHR Green, Inc. (TIRZ Work Order #2)20371906/18/2026Professional services 05/01/2026-05/31/2026, Memorial/Gessner Phase II (Proj 2502530.03/.04)93264.32p.25Engineering - Memorial/Gessner Ph II - TIRZ Work Order #2
7EHR Green, Inc. (BHV Work Order #1)20489907/15/2026Professional services 06/01/2026-06/30/2026, Memorial/Gessner Phase II (Proj 2502530.01/.02)72728.61p.33Engineering - Memorial/Gessner Ph II - BHV Work Order #1
8FHR Green, Inc. (TIRZ Work Order #2)20490107/15/2026Professional services 06/01/2026-06/30/2026, Memorial/Gessner Phase II (Proj 2502530.03/.04)77070.36p.41Engineering - Memorial/Gessner Ph II - TIRZ Work Order #2
9GMemorial Villages Water Authority001-26-2706/01/2026 (due 07/10/2026)May 2026 wastewater treatment66669.83p.46Wastewater treatment
10HMemorial Villages Water Authority002-26-2707/01/2026 (due 08/10/2026)June 2026 wastewater treatment64160.86p.48Wastewater treatment
11IRed Oak Construction LLC105704/30/2026 (due 06/03/2026)BHV Water Plant #1-2 Chloramine Upgrades97231.03p.50Capital - water plant
12TOTAL (ledger)716435.66
13
14Memo total (sum of memo items A-I)716435.66
15Ledger total (SUM formula cell reference)716435.66
16Difference (Ledger - Memo)0
Sheet1AP Ledger - Item XIISummarynew
The same ledger sheet, with the new GL category column in green.
AP Ledger Item XII 2026-08-18.xlsxafter
B3=SUMIF('AP Ledger - Item XII'!H3:H11,A3,'AP Ledger - Item XII'!F3:F11)
AB
1Summary by GL category (SUMIF from AP Ledger - Item XII)
2GL categoryTotal (USD)
3Water purchase144090.85
4Wastewater treatment130830.69
5Engineering - Memorial/Gessner Ph II - BHV Work Order #1173948.41
6Engineering - Memorial/Gessner Ph II - TIRZ Work Order #2170334.68
7Capital - water plant97231.03
8Total of categories716435.66
9Ledger total (AP Ledger - Item XII!F12)716435.66
10Check (categories - ledger; must be 0)0
Sheet1AP Ledger - Item XIISummarynew
The new "Summary" sheet in the same file. Each total is a SUMIF over the ledger; the last line checks that they add back to it.

From a pile of scans to numbers you can check

Most AI tools summarise a scan in a chat reply. reads every page, puts the figures into a real spreadsheet with formulas, says which page each one came from, and keeps working in that same file when you ask for more.

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