Replacing Excel with custom software: when is it time?
When do you replace Excel with a custom application? The warning signs, the real cost of spreadsheet errors and a step-by-step plan for SMEs.
Rupelstreek, province of Antwerpen
Niel is a few minutes from our office in Boom. We build web apps, internal systems and dashboards for the producers, contractors and SMEs working here along the water and on Krekelenberg.
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The waterside industrial estate in Niel is taken up almost entirely by two companies: Betonfabriek Coeck and Wienerberger, on the site of the former Desimpel brickworks. Materials, in other words, exactly what this region has always made. Beside it lies the Krekelenberg SME zone between Boom and Niel, with plenty of smaller businesses.
Companies that make or process materials have a software problem all of their own. Stock, batches, delivery notes, inspections and complaints often live in separate systems that know nothing about each other. When a customer calls about a delivery from two months ago, the hunt begins. We build the layer that ties it together.
Source: Departement Omgeving, Streekverhaal Rupelstreek
For producers and processors we build systems that follow the whole line: from order through production and delivery to aftercare. Everything hangs off one file, documents included, so you can show what happened when within the minute.
For the smaller companies on Krekelenberg we more often build something compact. A planning tool, a quote generator, a customer portal. One thing that works well usually returns more than a big package that gets half used.
We start by watching. Half a day walking along on the shop floor teaches us more than a specification. After that you get a scope with a fixed price and a date within 24 hours.
During the build we put a new version on a test link every week. You test, we adjust. You always know where you stand, and the risk of getting something three months later that misses the point disappears.
Our office in Boom is a few minutes by car from Niel. We also have an office in Puurs-Sint-Amands. Coming to the shop floor is the habit here.
Yes. For producers and processors we build systems around stock, batches, delivery notes and inspections, tied to one file per order. That way you can always show afterwards exactly what was delivered.
Usually yes. We connect to what you already use through its API or through file exchange, so nobody has to enter the same thing twice. During the first conversation we look at which integrations are realistic.
A well-defined tool or MVP starts around €8,000, a full platform lands between €25,000 and €75,000. Your location does not change the price. After a first conversation you get a fixed price within 24 hours.
When do you replace Excel with a custom application? The warning signs, the real cost of spreadsheet errors and a step-by-step plan for SMEs.
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Within 24 hours you have a concrete scope and a price indication, no strings attached and no sales pitch.
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