Constant manual re-entry
The same order was typed into three systems. Every re-entry cost time and introduced a chance for the three records to disagree.
Freight & logistics
Consolidating three disconnected systems into one custom ERP
A growing logistics operator was running orders, inventory, and invoicing across three systems that never spoke to each other. We designed and built a single custom ERP with an automated order-to-invoice workflow and real-time inventory sync.
Illustrative case study. This engagement is representative of the work we do and the way we do it — it is not a named client. Figures describe the class of outcome our engineering targets, not a specific measured result. Approved client case studies replace these before launch.
Project summary
Logistics ERP consolidation
A unified custom ERP that replaced three disconnected systems, automating the order-to-invoice workflow and syncing inventory in real time.
IndustryFreight & logistics
Project typeCustom ERP consolidation
TimelinePhased, multi-month delivery
TeamCross-functional delivery team
DeploymentCloud, containerized
Client background
An operator outgrowing its own systems
The client is a mid-sized freight and logistics operator coordinating inbound orders, warehouse inventory, and customer invoicing across a growing network of sites. Volume had roughly doubled over three years, but the systems supporting it had not kept pace.
Orders arrived in one platform, inventory was tracked in a second, and invoicing ran through a third. None of them shared a source of truth, so staff bridged the gaps by hand — re-keying the same order into each system and reconciling the differences later. The workarounds were holding operations together, but they were fragile and getting more expensive with every new customer.
The challenge
Three systems, one very manual seam
The cost was not in any single system — it was in the gaps between them, where people did the integration by hand.
Inventory that was always slightly wrong
Stock levels were reconciled on a lag, so sales quoted against numbers that were hours or days out of date, leading to oversells and expedited shipping.
Slow, error-prone invoicing
Invoices were assembled manually from order and delivery data, so billing ran late and disputes over incorrect charges were common.
No single view of an order
Answering 'where is this order and has it been billed' meant checking three systems, so customer service was slow and reactive.
Solution architecture
One system of record, integrated at the edges
Rather than force a rip-and-replace, we built a custom ERP as the single source of truth and connected it to the tools the business wanted to keep.
01
Operations workspace
A single web application where staff manage orders, inventory, and billing from one connected view — replacing the three separate logins.
02
Order-to-invoice workflow engine
A rules-driven workflow that moves an order from capture through fulfilment to invoicing automatically, pausing for a human only where a decision is genuinely needed.
03
Integration layer
Typed API connectors to the carrier and accounting platforms the client kept, so data flows in and out without manual re-entry.
04
Unified data model
A single relational model for orders, inventory, and customers, with real-time inventory updated by every movement rather than a nightly batch.
How we delivered
Delivered in phases, value in the first one
We sequenced the build so the most painful seam — order and inventory — was closed first, and the business saw working software early.
Discovery & process mapping
We mapped the real order-to-invoice flow across all three systems, including the undocumented manual steps, and agreed the target workflow with operations.
Data model & migration
We designed the unified data model and built a repeatable migration to consolidate historical orders, inventory, and customer records without downtime.
Workflow & integrations
We built the order-to-invoice engine and the connectors to the carrier and accounting platforms, with validation at every boundary.
Rollout & handover
We rolled out site by site alongside the old tools, trained the team, and only retired a legacy system once its replacement was proven in production.
Technology stack
A pragmatic, boring-where-it-counts stack
Every choice below optimised for reliability and the client's ability to run the system long after handover.
Frontend
- Next.js
- React
- TypeScript
Why: A single typed codebase for the operations workspace, server-rendered for fast, reliable page loads on warehouse hardware.
Backend & workflow
- Node.js
- REST APIs
- Queue-based jobs
Why: The order-to-invoice engine runs long tasks on a queue so a slow carrier API never blocks the operator's screen.
Data
- PostgreSQL
- Prisma
Why: A relational store for data that must stay consistent — orders, stock, and invoices — with typed access to prevent an entire class of bugs.
Integration
- Carrier APIs
- Accounting API
- Webhooks
Why: Typed connectors keep the systems the client wanted to keep, so the ERP integrates rather than replaces.
Cloud & delivery
- Containerized services
- Managed Postgres
- CI/CD
Why: Containerized deployment and automated pipelines make releases routine and rollbacks safe.
Observability
- Structured logging
- Metrics
- Alerting
Why: Every automated step is logged and monitored, so the team can see and trust what the workflow did.
Business results
One source of truth, and the operations to match
With a single system of record, the manual seam disappeared and the business could answer questions instantly.
Manual re-entry removed
Orders are captured once and flow through fulfilment to invoicing automatically, freeing staff from the re-keying that used to fill their day.
Inventory in real time
Stock reflects every movement as it happens, so sales quote against live numbers and oversells drop sharply.
Faster, cleaner billing
Invoices are assembled automatically from verified order and delivery data, so billing is quicker and disputes are rarer.
Answers in one place
Customer service sees the full state of any order — location and billing — in one view, turning a multi-system hunt into a single lookup.
Key metrics
The class of outcome we engineered for
These figures are illustrative of the results this kind of consolidation targets — not a specific measured client result.
78%Less manual data entry
4hOrder processing time
92%Fewer invoicing errors
Lessons learned
What the engagement taught us
The interesting lessons were as much about sequencing and trust as about code.
Close the worst seam first
Consolidating order and inventory before invoicing meant the team felt relief early, which built the trust needed for the rest of the rollout.
Integrate, don't evangelize
Keeping the client's accounting platform and connecting to it — rather than replacing it — removed the biggest source of rollout risk and resistance.
Migration is a feature, not a footnote
A repeatable, reversible data migration was as important to success as the application itself, and deserved the same engineering rigor.
In their words
They replaced weeks of manual reconciliation with a system that just runs. Our team finally spends its time on customers instead of re-typing orders into three screens.
Services behind this work
The services behind this work
This engagement was delivered through these core capabilities, adapted to a logistics operation.
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