Modernizing Order Fulfillment & Inventory Tracking”
Overview
What began as an integration layer between an aging internal tool and a growing custom portal quickly grew into a full overhaul of the company’s paper-heavy logistics pipeline. The objective: eliminate inefficiencies, digitize communication, and give stakeholders access to reliable data without needing to print and pass paperwork between desks.
While the sales team was accustomed to using an internal tool to track customer orders, the rest of the process—allocation, invoicing, checking, logistics—was still largely handled on paper. Sheets were printed, scribbled on, passed between departments, and sometimes misplaced. Filtering inventory was entirely manual, with team members working off physical copies of daily stock.
To replace this, we developed a new platform from the ground up. Built on a modern Rust backend with Axum, a PostgreSQL database, and a React/MUI frontend, the new application transformed order tracking and fulfillment into a streamlined, web-based experience.
Phase 1: Legacy Integration & Inventory Sync
- Gained read-only access to the legacy internal tool’s database
- Used structured queries to populate a growing portal with up-to-date sales order data
- This laid the foundation for replacing printed inventory references
Phase 2: Digital Inventory & Allocation Tools
- Real-time inventory syncing replaced the need to print daily inventory sheets
- Grouped inventory could now be curated and labeled differently depending on how it was marketed
- Label groups allowed logistics to present the same stock in multiple configurations without duplication
- Allocation team now filtered and selected items directly from the live interface
- Removed guesswork and bottlenecks from cross-referencing
Phase 3: Workflow Overhaul
The previous workflow required every department to handle a printed “blue sheet” representing an order. It passed through logistics, credit, allocation, invoicing, checking, and warehouse prep. Each stage relied on physically marking, stamping, or rewriting order details.
The new system removed the need for paper entirely. Orders progressed digitally through defined workflow states:
- Pending Allocation
- Sales Review
- Invoicing
- Checking
- Completed / Rejected
User roles determined what stage each person interacted with, and automatic notifications ensured nothing was delayed.
Phase 4: Purchasing Forecasts & Presale Tools
- Purchasing team could now enter estimated inbound inventory
- Sales could pre-allocate against forecasted shipments before arrival
- Improved forward-planning and reduced missed sales opportunities
Results & Impact
- Eliminated all paper-based order tracking
- Reduced order fulfillment time from hours to minutes per department
- Unified inventory, purchasing, and logistics into a single workflow
- Significantly reduced errors due to lost paperwork or manual cross-referencing
- Introduced audit trails, filterable inventory, and a much clearer chain of responsibility
The project also set the stage for long-term scalability. Multi-tenant architecture was included from the beginning to support a sister company, and deployment is fully containerized with Docker and managed via NGINX and Portainer on a single Linode server.
What started as an internal replacement for a printed inventory sheet became a company-wide tool for coordination, fulfillment, and decision-making.
This system turned a paper trail into a digital pipeline—streamlining operations across sales, logistics, allocation, invoicing, and purchasing.