Manufacturing setup programme

From enquiry to invoice in one system.

Sales, calculation and production come together in Zoho, quotes in minutes, order status visible to everyone, delivery and invoicing straight from the order.

  • Calculation and quote in minutes instead of hours
  • Order status from sales to production at a glance
  • Delivery and invoicing with no break, straight from the order
Book a discovery call Open the Workflow Planner Response time: same day
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Transformations

What we changed for real businesses.

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Case study·USA

Manufacturing

A US industrial manufacturer standardised its full sales process, from first inquiry to signed contract, inside a single Zoho stack.

Pain
  • Quotes were hand-formatted in Word, hours per proposal
  • Estimators spent days hunting for comparable past projects across folders
  • Sales talked to the wrong contacts; decision-makers stayed out of reach
  • No unified process, every opportunity took its own path through the funnel
Gain
  • PDF quotes generated from CRM in one click, hours become minutes
  • Material-list approval Blueprint cuts downstream errors significantly
  • Hunter/Apollo enrichment focuses outreach on the right decision-makers
  • CRM ↔ Books bidirectional sync, both systems always reflect the same truth
Project Duration Ongoing since 2026
Built with
Zoho CRMHunter / ApolloLinkedInZoho FormsZoho FlowZoho Marketing Automation
Case study·Germany

Multi-Vendor Sales

A German distribution business with multiple vendors and field sales needed a unified sales platform.

Pain
  • Vendor catalogues and prices scattered across spreadsheets
  • Field reps planned routes manually and lost time on the road
  • Quotes and invoices retyped by hand into systems
  • Direct sales and distributor business blended in reporting
Gain
  • One CRM for all vendors with dynamic filtering
  • Geo-optimised routes, more customer visits per day
  • Document data lands in the right fields automatically
  • Revenue dashboard by customer and vendor highlights profit sources
Project Duration ~1 month
Built with
Zoho CRMAircallMapslyZoho FlowZoho Marketing AutomationZoho Sites
The problem

Bought a CRM, and still calculating in Excel?

At make-to-order manufacturers the process usually breaks between sales and the shop floor. The workload isn't the problem, it's that everything runs by hand and across too many channels.

  • Calculation eats time

    Every quote calculation is done by hand across Excel sheets, slow, error-prone and impossible for anyone else to follow.

  • Order status unclear

    Where's the order? Sales asks the shop floor, the shop floor hunts for the spec. No one sees the status at a glance.

  • Delivery and invoicing disconnected

    Delivery note, invoice and order sit in different tools. Following up turns into manual work and invoices go out late.

The solution

One system for the entire manufacturing process

From enquiry to invoice, every order follows the same flow. Sales and the shop floor work off the same status, and nothing gets lost between office and production.

A production manager with a tablet reviewing an order on a clean modern shop floor

From enquiry to quote with templates

Calculation templates with your material prices and labour rates. Turn an enquiry into a clean, costed quote in minutes instead of hours.

Calculation templateQuote generatorPDF in 1 click
A worker in safety glasses operating a CNC machine with precision parts

Order status from sales to production

An order pipeline with production status. Sales and the shop floor see the same state, with no chasing and no spreadsheet chaos.

Order kanbanProduction statusSales ↔ shop floor
Two workers inspecting a finished part at a quality station

Every spec on the right order

Drawings, specifications and approvals file themselves per order. No digging through inboxes, no re-typing, no lost document.

Auto foldersSpecificationsWorkDrive
Zoho · configured for manufacturing

Your Zoho apps, tailored to the manufacturing process.

No off-the-shelf CRM. We configure every app around your workflow: from enquiry through production to delivery.

Zoho CRM Search… + Add
Calculation2
CNC
Milled parts Müller Maschinenbau
€ 32.400
SB
Welded frame Brückner Fördertechnik
€ 18.900
Quote1
CNC
Housing Hartmann Anlagenbau
€ 27.600
Won1
SB
Steel assembly Sondermann Metallbau
€ 54.800
Zoho CRM

CRM · Order Pipeline

Every enquiry as a deal: milled parts or welded assemblies, quote value, stage and next step.

  • Pipeline by order stage
  • Milled parts & welded split
  • Quotes in minutes
Zoho Inventory Search… + New
Production orderMaterialDelivery dateValueStatus
FA-2025-118Stainless 1.430112.06.2025€ 32.400 In production
FA-2025-121Aluminium AW-606018.06.2025€ 18.900 Material ordered
FA-2025-124Mild steel S235JR09.06.2025€ 11.250 Ready
FA-2025-127Stainless 1.440424.06.2025€ 27.600 Awaiting material
Zoho Inventory

Production orders & material

Production orders with material, delivery date and status, purchasing and the shop floor connected.

  • Material per order
  • Delivery dates in view
  • Status into production
WorkDrive · Sign Search… + Upload
Orders›FA-2025-118›Documents
Manufacturing drawing.pdf 03.06 approved
Material certificate 3.1.pdf 05.06 checked
Inspection report.pdf 06.06 awaiting signature
Acceptance report.docx — Draft
WorkDrive · Sign

Drawings & inspection reports

Drawings, material certificates and inspection reports right on the order, including e-signature.

  • All filed on the order
  • E-signature for sign-offs
  • Versions & access
Zoho Projects Search… + Add
Engineering & drawing Mon–Tue
Cutting & production Wed–Thu
Quality inspection Fri
Dispatch & delivery Mon
Zoho Projects

Production planning

From engineering to dispatch: every task scheduled and assigned.

  • Scheduled production steps
  • Engineering to dispatch
  • Progress live
Program & workflow

How we roll out Zoho One in your business

We think our way into your workflow and see ourselves as a long-term development partner. Here are the four phases.

  1. AnalysisWe review your workflow from enquiry through calculation and production to the invoice and find your biggest time sinks.
  2. ConceptWe design your processes in Zoho One and plan the Zoho architecture (business process mapping).
  3. ImplementationSetup, configuration, the automations and migration of your customer, item and order data.
  4. SupportTraining for sales and the shop floor, fine-tuning and ongoing support, so the system becomes a fixed part of your everyday work.
AI in practice

Where AI genuinely takes work off the quote and order process.

Not a gimmick, concrete spots where we have built AI into real Zoho setups, so quotes go out faster and no specification slips through.

  • Typing datasheets by hand
    Spec OCR

    Datasheets and drawings read themselves

    Dimensions, materials and quantities are extracted via OCR from enquiry PDFs, datasheets and drawings and pulled into the calculation, no re-typing before the quote.

  • Writing every quote from scratch
    Quote drafting

    Quote text prepared in seconds

    For recurring enquiries the AI suggests ready quote and reply drafts in your tone. Your sales team just checks the calculation and confirms.

  • Digging through old orders by hand
    Similar orders

    Comparable projects found instantly

    The AI searches past orders and surfaces the projects most similar to a new enquiry, so you calculate based on what you have already manufactured.

Contact

Ready to run quote and order in one system?

Let's find out in a free Zoho system review where your workflow holds the most potential. Non-binding, concrete and tailored to your business. As an authorised Zoho partner we support you from setup to running operations.

● Free system review · no obligation

Open the Workflow Planner

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Frequently asked

What you'll want to know before the call.

Can we calculate recurring enquiries based on past orders?

Yes. The system surfaces the past orders most similar to a new enquiry, so your sales team builds on projects you have already manufactured instead of rebuilding every calculation from scratch in Excel.

Do sales and the workshop see the same order status?

Yes. The order and its production status sit in one shared pipeline. Sales no longer has to ask the workshop, and the workshop finds the specification and sign-off right on the order rather than in an inbox.

How long does rolling out Zoho One take?

Depending on scope, typically a few weeks to a few months. After our first meeting we give you a rough estimate, and after the requirements meeting a realistic estimate for your specific business.

What does Zoho One cost?

Zoho One costs €37 per employee per month on an annual plan, or €45 per employee with monthly billing. That includes all 50+ Zoho apps. We show you which option fits your business in the consultation, including a comparison with your current tools if you like.

Do we have to re-enter our existing data?

No. We migrate existing customer, item and order data into Zoho One as part of the implementation, provided it can be exported from your current system.

Can Zoho One connect to our existing tools?

In most cases yes. Google and Microsoft connect easily for email, calendar and drive, as do many other common applications. Beyond that, almost any system can be integrated individually via the Zoho API.

Does Zoho One suit smaller businesses and mobile teams?

Yes. Zoho One works for small workshops as well as growing manufacturers. Your staff access orders, tasks and documents on the go via the app, even straight from the shop floor.

Where is our data stored?

On request in Zoho's EU data centres, GDPR-compliant. Your data stays within the European legal space, an important point for businesses with sensitive customer and project data.

How much time does the project cost us day-to-day?

As little as possible. Your team is only involved at a few clearly agreed points, such as analysing the workflow, providing information and training, so your day-to-day work keeps running.