One system for a blinds and shutters factory, from home visit to install.
A Brisbane manufacturer of plantation shutters and blinds was typing every job into an old quoting program, MYOB and spreadsheets. We built one system that carries a job from the rep’s first visit through the factory floor to the installer’s sign-off. It does the work of a CRM, a quoting tool, a factory production system, an installer app and a wholesale portal, in one system.
- 25,300past openings used to rebuild the cut rules
- 95.6%of 4,956 recent openings gave the same blade count
- 5staff roles, plus a wholesale portal
- 43tables in one database
Before the build.
The same job was typed in three times: once into an old quoting program, again into MYOB, and again into spreadsheets. Reps booked appointments in a shared Excel diary on SharePoint.
The cut-sheet maths that turns a window opening into blades and frames lived inside the old program, so the rules had to be worked out from its data.
What we built.
Book and quote on site
Reps work from a tablet diary and quote in the customer’s home. A booking turns into a quote in one click. 86 diary bookings came across from the old spreadsheet.
One record, start to finish
A job is entered once. It becomes the order, the factory work order and the invoice.
A check before cutting
The system compares what was quoted, what the customer signed and what is about to be made. A changed colour or size can’t slip through to the saw.
Factory floor tablets
Staff sign in with a PIN, scan barcodes and record each panel’s stage. A live board flags jobs that have stalled.
Installer sign-off
Installers work from run sheets and collect the customer’s signature on site.
Wholesale portal
Retailers log in, quote and order at wholesale prices, and print quotes under their own name and logo. Their orders go straight into production.
What changed.
- Cut rules rebuilt from the data. We worked the rules out from about 25,300 past openings in the old program, then tested them against 4,956 recent single-section openings.
- 95.6% the same blade count, and every one within one blade. Most of the rest look like manual edits made in the old program.
- Most of the range in one system. Shutters in timber, poly, hybrid and aluminium, barn doors, rollers, honeycomb, venetians, verticals, zipscreens and curtains.
- Backed up every hour. Each backup is test-restored as it runs. The AI that explains the pre-cut check never sees customer names, addresses or phone numbers.
Where it stands.
The system is in acceptance testing with the manufacturer’s team before it takes over from the old program. It’s about 62,000 lines of code, written for this one factory.
Got systems that should be talking to each other?
Request a free 20-minute call. Zac will email you within one business day to arrange a time.
Request a free 20-minute call