Short answer: For an equipment repair and after-sales service company, phase one of ERP covers work orders, parts inventory, warranty contracts and equipment history: about 16–20 weeks and NT$600K–1M. The goal is that technicians know which parts to bring before leaving, and warranty and repair history are found by serial number in 10 seconds.
Company background and pain points
Bottom line: the problem isn't too few technicians; it's information scattered across LINE, Excel and paper.
Picture a 35-person company that sells and repairs commercial coffee machines and ice makers (a scenario based on common project requirements, not a specific client), with 8 technicians, about 2,000 machines under warranty or service contracts and 1,200 part types. Customer service takes repair calls and posts them in a LINE group; paper work orders are keyed in weekly; inventory exists only in a warehouse spreadsheet, and nobody tracks parts in vans. Roughly 15% of repairs need a second trip each month, and warranty dates live in contract binders, so billable repairs are often done free by mistake.
Requirements: which modules
Bottom line: phase one builds only the four modules that help technicians fix it the first time; billing and purchasing come in phase two.
| Module | Owner | Phase |
|---|---|---|
| Work orders (intake, dispatch, sign-off) | Customer service, technicians | Phase 1 |
| Parts inventory (warehouse + van stock) | Warehouse, technicians | Phase 1 |
| Warranty and service contracts (expiry alerts, scheduled maintenance) | Sales, customer service | Phase 1 |
| Equipment history (serial, location, repairs) | Everyone | Phase 1 |
| Billing, receivables and e-invoices | Accounting | Phase 2 |
| Parts purchasing and supplier lead times | Purchasing | Phase 2 |
Why custom (or hybrid)
Bottom line: packaged ERP handles inventory and accounting well but is weakest where technicians work, so a hybrid fits: custom work orders and inventory, existing accounting software kept.
- Packaged ERP: mature accounting and inventory, but work orders, technician apps and van stock usually need add-ons, and flows are hard to adapt.
- Open-source ERP: feature-rich, but localization, e-invoicing and LINE integration are on you, and upkeep needs engineers.
- Custom: designed around serial → contract → work order → parts, with an offline technician app that takes photos and signatures.
To be honest: if you mostly sell equipment and repair fewer than 5 units a day, packaged ERP plus an off-the-shelf dispatch app is the better deal.
Architecture and integrations
Bottom line: one Laravel back end, one Flutter technician app and one LINE repair entry point, all linked by equipment serial number.
- Laravel back end: dispatch, inventory, contracts and reports.
- Flutter technician app: daily jobs, scan a machine's QR to load history, record parts used, photos and customer signature, offline in basements.
- LINE repair intake: using the LINE Messaging API, customers enter a serial to report issues and get dispatch and completion notices.
- Phase 2: issue Taiwan e-invoices via a value-added provider and export journal files for accounting software.
Process and timeline
Bottom line: 16–20 weeks in five stages, with two technicians piloting from week 15.
- Weeks 1–3, requirements and data audit: standardize serials, part numbers and contracts. Deliverables: requirements doc, field list.
- Weeks 4–6, design: clickable prototypes of admin and technician app.
- Weeks 7–14, development: four modules, demos every 2 weeks.
- Weeks 15–17, pilot: two technicians and customer service run in parallel; 2,000 machines imported.
- Weeks 18–20, full launch: all 8 technicians switch, training done, paper retired.
Cost breakdown
Bottom line: ScriptWalker (a Taiwanese Laravel/Flutter custom development studio) starts custom development at NT$80,000; this phase one is about NT$600K–1M.
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Back-end four modules | NT$350K–550K |
| Flutter technician app (iOS/Android, offline) | NT$180K–300K |
| LINE repair integration | NT$50K–100K |
| Data import and training | NT$20K–50K |
| Hosting and backups | NT$1,500–4,000/month |
| Maintenance | From NT$2,000/month |
Hidden costs: technician phones or tablets, QR labels for machines, LINE Official Account fees beyond the free message quota, and the annual fee for a phase-two e-invoice provider.
Post-launch targets
Bottom line: within 90 days, second trips should fall noticeably.
- Day 30: 100% of work orders in the system; equipment history found within 10 seconds.
- Day 60: weekly van stock variance under 3%; warranty alerts 30 days before expiry.
- Day 90: second-visit rate targeted from about 15% to under 8%, with far fewer warranty misjudgments.
Pitfalls and fixes
Bottom line: of five pitfalls, data coding and technician habits are hardest.
- Inconsistent serial formats → standardize and label with QR in weeks 1–3, not mid-build.
- Technicians find the app tedious → keep completion to 5 steps and involve them in prototype tests.
- Van stock never deducted → work orders can't be submitted without selecting parts used.
- Contracts only on paper → import those expiring soonest first instead of 2,000 at once.
- Wanting accounting in phase one → export journal files first; full accounting in phase two.
FAQ
Does a repair service company need ERP?
Yes, once you handle 5+ repairs a day and hundreds of parts. Below that, a dispatch app and Excel can work for a while.
Does the technician app work offline?
Yes. It stores data on the phone and syncs later, which matters in basements and plant rooms.
Can we keep our accounting software?
Yes. Phase one exports journal files to your current software; full accounting can wait for phase two.
Can customers be notified before warranties expire?
Yes. The system alerts sales 30 days ahead and can notify customers via LINE to renew.
Next step
Do you sell and repair equipment too? Send us your current work order form and parts list, and ScriptWalker will assess phase-one scope and timeline for free.
- Email: [email protected]
- Phone: 0916-224-047
- LINE: @ufv9089p