Order entry automation · Small manufacturers & fabricators — Purchase orders become draft orders without retyping every line
Order entry automation for manufacturers reads customer purchase orders from email, PDFs, buyer portals and photos. It matches each line to your part numbers, revisions and quoted prices, flags anything that doesn't match, and creates a draft order for a person to approve before it reaches production.
PO from a property manager
PDF · due in 3 weeks| Item | Size | Qty | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parking sign, aluminum | 12 x 18 in | 24 | Matched |
| Parking sign, aluminum | 13 x 19 in | 6 | No stock blank |
| Window graphic, vinyl | 36 x 24 in | 4 | Matched |
Matched to the customer's price list. One sign size has no stock blank and is flagged.
Approve and send to artWhy it matters
Why small manufacturers & fabricators add this
Small manufacturers get orders in every format: PDF POs from big buyers, emails from regulars and photos of handwritten lists. Someone retypes each one into the ERP or spreadsheet, and a wrong revision or quantity is often caught only on the shop floor.
Reading the order is the slow, error-prone part. Software can do the reading and matching, and leave the judgment calls, like an old revision or a rushed ship date, to the person who knows the customer.
Example · illustrative
A sign and print shop with orders in every format
By 9 am a sign shop has orders by email, a photo of a handwritten sheet and a PDF PO from a property manager. The PO asks for 30 aluminum parking signs and 4 vinyl window graphics, with sizes and a due date. Each line is matched to the shop's products and the customer's price list. One sign size doesn't match any stock blank and is flagged. The production manager approves the order, the customer gets a confirmation, and the job goes to the art queue.
How it works
Step by step
- Starts whenA PO arrives by email, buyer portal, web form or photo
- 1Step 1Read the orderCustomer, PO number, part numbers, revisions, quantities, sizes and requested ship date are pulled from the message or attachment.
- 2Step 2Match to your recordsThe customer is matched to their account, and each line to the part master and the quote or price list.
- 3Step 3Flag problemsUnknown parts, old revisions, price mismatches and ship dates inside the standard lead time are marked for review.
- A person decidesApprove the orderThe production manager or office checks the draft against the PO, then approves it or contacts the buyer.
- 5Step 5Confirm and releaseThe order is saved, the buyer gets an acknowledgment, and the job is released to the floor.
By hand today
- Orders arrive by email, portal, photo and phone, each in its own format.
- Office staff retype each line into the ERP or shop system.
- A wrong revision or size is found after material is cut.
- Buyers wait for an order acknowledgment until someone gets to it.
With the automation
- Draft orders are ready for review soon after the PO arrives.
- Lines are matched to your part numbers, revisions and quoted prices.
- Prices that differ from the quote are flagged before the job is released.
- Buyers get an order acknowledgment once it's approved.
What it handles
What it does alone, and what it hands over
Reads
Customer, PO number, part numbers, revisions, quantities, sizes and requested ship dates, from the email or attachment.
Matches
Each line to your part master and the customer's quote or price list.
Flags
Unknown parts, old revisions, price mismatches and ship dates inside your lead time.
Creates
A draft order in your ERP, accounting or production system, ready to approve.
What stays with people
- The office or production manager approves every order before release.
- Sales decides on price exceptions and rush dates.
- The customer is contacted by a person when something doesn't match.
Systems it connects to
- JobBOSS²
- E2 Shop System
- ProShop ERP
- ShopVOX
- Fulcrum
- Microsoft 365
Cost
Typical cost for small manufacturers & fabricators
Typical ranges as of October 2026. Not a quote.
Ready-made tool, set up by us
An existing platform on your own account, configured for your business.
- Setup, one timepaid to Lorryn
- $1,000–$2,000
- Tool subscriptionpaid to the provider
- $25–$100 / month
Fits when your process matches what the platform already does.
Custom build
Built around how you work, with no platform subscription. You own it.
- Build, one timebasic version to full version
- $2,000–$9,000
- Running costshosting and usage, on your accounts
- ~$10–$40 / month
Fits when your systems, rules or exceptions don't match a ready tool.
Optional Automation Care: $125 · $250 · $375 / month
1, 2 or 3 hours of support a month, with monitoring and alerts included. Without it, you run it yourself after handover.
Typically works with JobBOSS², E2 Shop System, ProShop ERP, ShopVOX.
Booking into or writing to your field-service, practice or shop software adds up to $500 to the ready-made tool (often a built-in feature) and $500–$1,500 to a custom build.
Your price depends on volume, the systems involved and how many exceptions need a person. Our team confirms a fixed price before any work starts.
FAQ
Questions owners ask
ERPs and accounting tools like QuickBooks, NetSuite, Fishbowl, JobBOSS or a production spreadsheet, wherever they accept new orders.
Yes, in most cases. Anything the system is unsure about is flagged for a person to check.
It's flagged as unknown, and a person decides whether to add it or ask the customer.
No. EDI needs both sides to set it up. This reads the POs customers already send, so nothing changes for them.
Usually a few weeks, depending on how many order formats you get and the system the orders go into.
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