UNIFYING THREE COMMERCIAL SYSTEMS FOR A HARDWARE MANUFACTURER
Built for a hardware manufacturer
A hardware manufacturer ran sales, agreements and inventory in three disconnected SaaS tools. A modular platform now unifies them into one role-based workspace, with decoupled services and adapters that let the floor keep running during a phased cutover.
By Yashwant Daniel · Solvstrat
Key
Facts
- Sector
- Hardware manufacturing
- Built
- Unified commercial and operations workspace
- Stack
- Next.js · Node.js · PostgreSQL · Pipedrive/PandaDoc/Katana APIs
- Constraint
- Phased rollout; no disruption to production
- Outcome
- One pipeline-to-fulfilment view across three systems
Challenges
Deals lived in Pipedrive, agreements in PandaDoc and inventory in Katana. Quotes sat idle waiting for manual handoffs, sales could not see stock or lead times, and leadership had no single view from pipeline to fulfilment.
Disconnected tools
Three systems held overlapping customer, order and product data with no shared workflow.
Manual handoffs
Quotes, agreements and order updates moved between teams by copy-paste and email.
No operational view
Pipeline value, shop-floor throughput and component lead times were never visible together.
Constraints
No big-bang migration; production must keep running.
Existing tools remain the system of record until each domain is cut over.
Role-specific interfaces for sales, inventory and floor technicians.
Bi-directional sync without duplicate or lost records.
Incremental deployment of individual capabilities.
Reference
Architecture
Domain services
Pipeline, agreements and inventory are modeled as separate services with clear boundaries, so each can be built, deployed and cut over independently.
Node.js · Domain services
Integration adapters
Bi-directional adapters connect Pipedrive, PandaDoc and Katana, translating records into the unified model while the source tools remain authoritative.
Pipedrive API · PandaDoc API · Katana API
Unified workspace
A role-based interface presents the same underlying data differently for account managers, inventory staff and floor technicians.
Next.js · Role-based views
Operational telemetry
A dashboard combines commercial and shop-floor signals so lead-time risk is visible before it becomes a delivery problem.
Dashboards · Event sync
Data
Flow
- 1
A deal is created or updated in the pipeline service.
- 2
The agreement service generates and tracks the quote or contract.
- 3
Converted orders are checked against inventory availability.
- 4
Adapters sync approved records with Pipedrive, PandaDoc and Katana.
- 5
Floor and inventory updates flow back into the unified workspace.
- 6
Telemetry combines pipeline, throughput and lead-time signals.
Delivery
Pipeline
Deal and quote workflow in the unified workspace.
Agreements
Quote-to-contract flow and document generation.
Inventory adapters
Bi-directional sync with Katana and stock visibility.
Cutover
Incremental retirement of manual handoffs and legacy screens.
Hard
Problems
Running old and new in parallel
Problem: A direct cutover would have stopped quoting and production during migration.
Resolution: Adapters keep the legacy tools live while each domain moves over, so the business never switches off.
Bi-directional sync
Problem: Two systems editing the same record creates duplicates and conflicts.
Resolution: Each domain has a single owner, and adapters sync only the fields they own in each direction.
Role-specific UX
Problem: Sales, inventory and floor staff need very different interfaces over the same data.
Resolution: The workspace renders role-specific views on a shared model rather than forcing one screen on everyone.
Results
One commercial view
Pipeline, agreements, orders and inventory are visible together instead of across three tabs.
Fewer handoffs
Quote-to-order steps that were manual now move through a single workflow.
Non-disruptive cutover
The manufacturing floor continued operating while capabilities moved over incrementally.
Technology
Used
Next.js
Node.js
PostgreSQL
Pipedrive API
PandaDoc API
Katana API
Lessons
Unify the model, not the screens — different roles need different views.
A phased cutover is a data-ownership decision before it is a deployment decision.
Adapters are temporary by design; plan their retirement from day one.
CLIENT SUCCESS STORIES
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FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Each domain is built as a separate service with bi-directional adapters, so pipeline, agreements and inventory can move over one at a time while the existing tools remain the system of record.
Each domain has a single owner, and adapters sync only the fields that domain owns. That prevents two systems from fighting over the same record.
Yes. The workspace renders role-specific views over one shared data model, so sales, inventory and floor technicians each see the interface that fits their work.
Unification reduces duplicate tooling and manual coordination. The commercial benefit is fewer disconnected subscriptions and less revenue lost to idle quotes and handoffs.
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