Quotation & Invoicing Software
Quotation to GST Invoice, One Linked Chain
The gap between 'quoted' and 'paid' is where margins leak: unversioned quotes, untracked changes, deposits in one file and invoices in another. We build the whole commercial chain as one system, quote, approval, deposit, delivery, GST invoice, credit note, statement.
Custom enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, built for Singapore SMEs. From $3.5k onwards.
Where Singapore SMEs feel stuck
Most off-the-shelf ERP software is built for someone else's workflow. We design around yours.
Quotes are rebuilt from old ones
Copy-paste quoting spreads yesterday's prices and errors into tomorrow's commitments.
Revisions overwrite history
When the client says 'but you quoted X', there is no version trail to answer with.
Deposits and finals drift apart
What was quoted, what changed, what was deposited and what is still owed live in different documents.
Month-end statements are handmade
Finance rebuilds each client's position from fragments every month.
What we build into your ERP
Pick the modules that match how your team actually works. Everything connects to a single source of truth.
Quotation Builder
Line-item libraries, pricing rules and margins, client-ready PDFs, versioned revisions.
Online Acceptance
Clients accept on a link, acceptance is timestamped and the job is born from the accepted version.
Deposits & Progressive Billing
Milestone billing plans with reminders, part-payments and running balances.
GST Invoicing
IRAS-aligned GST invoices, credit notes and receipts, numbered and audit-ready.
Statements & Aging
Client statements and receivables aging generated, not assembled.
Xero Sync
Invoices and payments sync to Xero or your accounting tool, so the books agree without re-keying.
How we deliver
Map the current flow
We sit with the people doing the work today and document how it really happens, including the workarounds.
Build and ship
A working first version in weeks, wired to your real data, refined with the team using it.
Extend and connect
The module grows into neighbouring workflows or plugs into the rest of your ERP. You own everything we build.
Quoting in Word and Excel Versus a Quote System
Documents assembled by hand
- Last quote copied and edited, carrying old rates
- Margin discovered after the job is won
- Version confusion between revisions two and three
- Discounts agreed verbally with no record
- Accepted quote retyped into a job and an invoice
- Follow-up depends on somebody remembering
- Only the author fully understands the file
- Reporting on win rate is impossible
- Every quote takes the same 45 minutes
- Templates drift apart across the team
A quotation system
- Priced from a maintained line item library
- Cost and margin visible per line before sending
- Numbered revisions with changes visible
- Approval thresholds enforced by role
- Accepted quote becomes the job and the invoice
- Follow-up scheduled automatically at send
- Any team member can produce a correct quote
- Win rate and lost reasons reported
- Assembly measured in minutes, not an hour
- One template, centrally maintained
Quoting Calculators
Margin, markup and what a late-paying customer actually costs you, on your own numbers.
Margin and markup are not the same number and confusing them is how businesses quietly underprice. A 50% markup on a S$60 cost gives a S$90 price, which is only a 33.3% margin.
Markup is applied to cost; margin is measured against the selling price. To hit a target margin, divide the cost by (1 − margin), not by (1 + margin).
Whatever your contract or terms state
Singapore has no statutory late-payment interest rate for ordinary commercial debts, so you can only charge interest your contract or stated terms provide for. Put the rate on your quotation and your invoice, before the debt goes bad.
Every figure stays in your browser: nothing is submitted. See all free tools
What Slow Quoting Costs
Illustrative arithmetic for a Singapore SME issuing 40 quotes a month. Substitute your own figures.
The time per quote
At 45 minutes to assemble a quote from old files, 40 a month is 30 hours: most of a working week, every month.
- 40 quotes x 45 minutes = 30 hours
- 360 hours a year on assembly
- Usually your most senior person
The cost of that time
At a loaded S$40 an hour, 30 hours a month is S$1,200, or about S$14,400 a year rebuilding documents that mostly repeat.
- 30 x S$40 = S$1,200 a month
- Roughly S$14,400 a year
- Grows with volume
The margin leak
Copy-and-paste carries last year's rates forward. A 2% slip on S$1,000,000 quoted is S$20,000 of margin.
- Old rates copied silently
- Cost increases not reflected
- Nobody checks margin before sending
The follow-up that never happens
Quotes sent and never chased are the cheapest lost revenue there is, because the work to win them is already done.
- No reminder after the first send
- Nobody owns the chase
- Lost to silence, not to price
What a system removes
Assembly and recall. Templates plus a line item library mean a quote is configured, not written, with margin checked before it leaves.
- Priced from a maintained library
- Margin shown per line
- Follow-up scheduled at send
The payback shape
Against a first module from about S$3,500, halving assembly time is roughly S$7,000 a year before any margin recovered.
- First module from about S$3,500
- Half of S$14,400 reclaimed
- Margin protection on top
What Separates a Quote System From a Template
Templates speed up typing. A quotation system changes what happens after the quote is sent.
A maintained line item library
Rates live in one place and update everywhere, so last year's price cannot reach this year's quote.
- One library, many quotes
- Rate changes propagate
- Descriptions stay consistent
Margin visible before sending
Cost and margin per line while the quote is built, not after the job is won.
- Cost against price per line
- Blended margin on the total
- Warning below a floor you set
Versions that make sense
Revision three is obviously current, and what changed is visible.
- Numbered revisions, not filenames
- Change shown against the previous
- Superseded versions retained
Approval before it leaves
Discounts past a threshold route for sign-off instead of being agreed verbally.
- Threshold rules by role
- Audit trail on approvals
- No surprise discounts at invoicing
Acceptance that flows onward
An accepted quote becomes the job and then the invoice without anyone retyping lines.
- Quote becomes job or project
- Invoice from the same lines
- Nothing rekeyed
Follow-up built in
The system reminds the owner so the chase happens regardless of memory.
- Reminders scheduled at send
- Pipeline status visible
- Won and lost reasons captured
Quoting by Industry
The engine is the same; what has to be right differs by trade.
Interior design and renovation
Scope priced by room or phase, with the design fee separated from build cost.
- Priced by room or by phase
- Design fee separated
- Sign-off captured per revision
Construction and contractors
Priced from a reusable BOQ library so the won quote becomes the project budget.
- BOQ library reused across tenders
- Won quote becomes the budget
- Variations tracked against original
Corporate gifts
Unit pricing by quantity break with customisation costed per line.
- Quantity breaks applied automatically
- Customisation priced per line
- Supplier lead time shown
Professional services
Rate cards by role and seniority, with scope and exclusions stated explicitly.
- Rates by role and seniority
- Exclusions stated, not implied
- Retainer or project pricing
Equipment and distribution
Configurations priced from a parts library with margin checked before sending.
- Configured from a parts library
- Margin checked pre-send
- Lead times per line
Custom software
Scope broken into modules with assumptions listed so change is visible later.
- Modules priced individually
- Assumptions listed explicitly
- Fixed quote after discovery
From Accepted Quote to Paid Invoice
The half of quoting that most tools ignore, and where the time is actually lost.
Acceptance recorded, not assumed
A dated acceptance, whether by signature or by reply, is what turns a quote into a commitment you can act on.
- Acceptance captured with a date
- E-signature where the client expects it
- No ambiguity about which version was agreed
The quote becomes the job
Accepted lines become the work order or project budget without anyone retyping them.
- Same lines, no rekeying
- Budget set from the agreed price
- Scope visible to whoever delivers
Variations against the original
Changes after acceptance are recorded against the agreed baseline, so the final invoice is defensible.
- Variation priced and dated
- Client approval captured
- Baseline updated, history retained
Invoice raised from the same lines
Progress or final invoicing draws on the agreed lines, with GST applied correctly per item.
- Invoice from the agreed lines
- GST correct per line
- Partial billing where the contract allows
Payment status visible
Whoever quoted can see whether it was paid, without asking finance.
- Status on the same record
- Overdue surfaced automatically
- Chasing drafted from the invoice
Win and loss recorded
Reasons captured at close are what make next quarter's pricing better than this quarter's guess.
- Won and lost reasons captured
- Win rate by type and by owner
- Pricing informed by evidence
Budgeting the Project Properly
Illustrative arithmetic so you can build a board paper rather than react to a quote. Substitute your own figures throughout.
Phase one, the proving module
Budget S$3,500 to S$12,000 for one workflow solved end to end, live in 4 to 8 weeks on a fixed quote.
- S$3,500 entry, fixed after review
- 4 to 8 weeks to live
- One workflow, fully solved
Phase two, the department
Once phase one is in daily use, a departmental build covering 3 to 4 linked workflows typically runs S$25,000 to S$60,000.
- 3 to 4 linked workflows
- S$25,000 to S$60,000 typical
- Scoped from evidence
Phase three, the operation
A full operation is a six-figure programme across 12 to 18 months, phased so each stage proves itself.
- 12 to 18 months, phased
- Each phase funds the next
- No big-bang go-live
Internal time to reserve
Budget 8 to 15 hours of your team's time per module for interviews, testing and training.
- 8 to 15 hours per module
- Across 6 to 8 weeks
- Mostly the person doing the work
Running cost after go-live
Hosting commonly runs S$50 to S$300 a month at cost on your own account, plus optional care by scale.
- S$600 to S$3,600 a year
- Billed at cost
- Care quoted by scale
The comparison to run
A 20-seat licence at S$120 a month is S$28,800 a year, or S$144,000 over five years before implementation.
- 20 x S$120 x 12 = S$28,800
- S$144,000 over 5 years
- Compare 5-year totals
Grant treatment
EDG can support up to 50% of qualifying costs for eligible local SMEs on reimbursement, applied for before the project starts. PSG does not cover custom work.
- Up to 50% of qualifying cost
- Reimbursement basis
- Apply before starting
- Confirm with Enterprise Singapore
Common Questions About Quoting Systems
The questions that come up in almost every first conversation.
Will it work with our existing templates
Yes. Your quote layout is rebuilt as a template so what the client receives looks like what they already recognise.
- Your layout, your branding
- Client sees no change
- PDF and e-signature supported
Can different people quote different things
Yes, with rate visibility and approval thresholds set by role so a junior can quote safely.
- Rates by role
- Approval thresholds enforced
- Audit trail on every quote
What about quotes we send in a hurry
Templates make the fast quote the correct quote, which is the point: speed should not cost accuracy.
- Configured, not written
- Correct rates by default
- Margin checked before sending
Does it handle revisions properly
Yes: numbered revisions with changes visible, and superseded versions retained rather than overwritten.
- Numbered revisions
- Changes visible against previous
- History retained
Can we see win rates
Yes, by type, by owner and by value, with lost reasons captured at close so pricing improves on evidence.
- Win rate by type and owner
- Lost reasons captured
- Pricing informed by data
How long to build
A focused quoting module is commonly live in 4 to 8 weeks on a fixed quote after the workflow review.
- 4 to 8 weeks typical
- Fixed quote after review
- From about S$3,500
Implementation, Week by Week
Illustrative sequencing for a first module. Dates slip, but the order rarely should.
Week 1: watch the work
We sit with the people doing the job and follow one real case end to end, recording every handoff.
- 2 to 3 hours of observation
- The doer, not the manager
- One real case, start to finish
- Handoffs written down
Week 2: agree scope and fix the quote
Scope comes from what we watched, and the quote is fixed with assumptions written down.
- Scope from observation
- Fixed quote issued
- Assumptions listed
- Out-of-scope named
Weeks 3 to 5: build and show weekly
Working screens with your own data every week rather than a demo at the end.
- Weekly working build
- Your data, not samples
- Feedback folded in weekly
- No big reveal
Week 6: parallel run
New system and old process both run one full cycle, outputs compared rather than trusted.
- One cycle in parallel
- Outputs compared
- Rollback available
- Confidence earned
Week 7: train by role
Short sessions per role on live records, with a follow-up after the first real week.
- 30 to 60 minutes per role
- Their own records
- Follow-up after week one
- Written quick reference
Week 8: go live and measure
Switch over, then measure the pain you started with so module two is argued from evidence.
- Measure the original pain
- Compare to baseline
- Decide module two on evidence
- No expansion without adoption
Quoting: Glossary of Terms
Plain-English definitions of the terms that appear in every vendor conversation.
ERP
Enterprise resource planning: one system holding the records that several departments share, so a customer, job or stock item exists once rather than in five files.
- One record, many departments
- Replaces reconciliation with a shared source
- Scope is a choice, not all-or-nothing
Module
A functional area such as quoting, stock or payroll. A custom build means choosing three or four rather than buying twelve.
- Buy or build only what you use
- Modules share one data model
- Added when the last one is adopted
Master data
The reference records everything else points at: customers, suppliers, products, staff, cost codes.
- Cleaned once, maintained forever
- Duplicates here corrupt every report
- Owned by a named person
Transactional data
The events: quotes, orders, receipts, invoices, payments, timesheets. Volume grows daily; master data does not.
- Grows with trading volume
- Immutable once posted
- Corrections by reversal, not edit
Source of truth
The system everyone agrees to believe when two numbers disagree. Naming it is a management decision, not a technical one.
- Named explicitly, in writing
- Other systems reconcile to it
- Ambiguity here causes most disputes
Integration
A connection letting two systems exchange records automatically instead of by export and import.
- API or scheduled file exchange
- Direction matters: push, pull or both
- Failure handling is the hard part
API
An interface letting software talk to software. If a vendor has none, every future connection is manual.
- Ask before you buy
- REST is the common standard
- Rate limits and auth are the details
Audit trail
The record of who changed what and when. The difference between an explanation and an argument.
- Every change attributed
- Retained, not overwritten
- Required for most audits
Role-based access
Permissions granted by job function rather than by trust, so leavers are offboarded in one action.
- Permission by role, not person
- Sensitive screens hidden
- Revoked centrally
Cost code
The label that puts a cost against the job, department or project it belongs to.
- Applied at purchase, not month end
- Drives job profitability
- Kept short and stable
Committed cost
Money promised but not yet invoiced, usually at purchase order. The figure spreadsheets almost never capture.
- Visible at PO, not at invoice
- Early warning on overruns
- Distinct from actual cost
Reconciliation
Checking two records agree. Most of it exists because data was entered twice.
- Symptom of duplicate entry
- Removed by integration
- Never fully eliminated
Data migration
Moving existing records into the new system, usually the longest and least glamorous task.
- Cleaning is the larger half
- Archive rather than import everything
- Agree a cutoff date
Parallel run
Operating old and new together for one cycle so outputs can be compared before switching.
- One full cycle minimum
- Compare, do not assume
- Rollback stays available
Go-live
The point the new system becomes the record. Best done one module at a time.
- Never on a Friday
- One module, not twelve
- Support present for week one
User acceptance testing
The client testing that the system does what was agreed, using real scenarios rather than a script.
- Real cases, not happy paths
- Done by the people who will use it
- Sign-off before go-live
Change request
Work outside the agreed scope. Named and priced openly so it does not become an argument.
- Written, not verbal
- Priced before it is built
- Scope baseline retained
Technical debt
Shortcuts that make the next change slower. Sometimes worth taking deliberately, never worth taking silently.
- Recorded when taken
- Repaid before it compounds
- Invisible debt is the dangerous kind
Uptime
The share of time the system is available. Ask what it is measured against and who reports it.
- Measured, not promised
- Excludes planned maintenance
- Meaningless without monitoring
Backup and restore
Copies of your data, and the tested ability to bring them back. Only the second one matters.
- Automated and frequent
- Restore actually tested
- Recovery time measured
SSO
Single sign-on: one login across systems, so access is granted and revoked in one place.
- Central control of access
- Faster offboarding
- Fewer shared passwords
Two-factor authentication
A second proof of identity beyond the password. The cheapest security improvement available.
- Enabled for all admin users
- App-based beats SMS
- Recovery codes stored safely
PDPA
Singapore's Personal Data Protection Act, governing how personal data is collected, used and kept.
- Applies to staff and customer data
- Consent and purpose matter
- Breach obligations exist
GST
Goods and services tax, applied per line with the correct category. Errors here are a filing problem.
- Category per product, not per invoice
- Tax invoice timing matters
- Credit notes must reverse cleanly
Peppol
The international network standard behind structured e-invoicing, used by InvoiceNow in Singapore.
- Documents routed, not emailed
- Validated before acceptance
- Each participant has an identifier
CPF
Central Provident Fund: statutory contributions varying by age band and residency status.
- Rates change; confirm with CPF Board
- PR rates step up over two years
- Computed by the payroll run
SDL
Skills Development Levy, payable on top of CPF and computed in the same run.
- Applies alongside CPF
- Part of the payroll computation
- Not an optional extra
EDG
Enterprise Development Grant: supports up to 50% of qualifying costs for eligible local SMEs, on reimbursement.
- Custom builds may qualify
- Apply before the project starts
- Confirm with Enterprise Singapore
PSG
Productivity Solutions Grant, which funds pre-approved packaged solutions rather than custom work.
- Packaged solutions only
- Custom builds do not qualify
- Check the approved list first
SaaS
Software as a service: rented software, priced per user per month, hosted by the vendor.
- Recurring, not one-off
- Cost scales with headcount
- Vendor owns the roadmap
On-premise
Software running on a server you own and maintain, with the costs and control that implies.
- Hardware refresh every 4 to 5 years
- You own patching and backups
- Full control of the data
Total cost of ownership
Licence plus implementation plus migration plus training plus upgrades, over five years rather than one.
- Five years, not monthly
- Include internal time
- The only fair comparison
Vendor lock-in
The cost of leaving. Measured by whether you can export your data and who owns the code.
- Ask about export before buying
- Code ownership in writing
- Proprietary formats are the trap
Scalability
Whether the system copes as volume grows, and what it costs when it does.
- Load versus headcount pricing
- Test at 3x current volume
- Ask what breaks first
Workflow
The sequence of steps and approvals a piece of work passes through, and who owns each.
- Mapped before it is built
- Handoffs are where cost hides
- Encoded once, applied always
Approval threshold
The value above which something needs a second person to agree. Enforced by the system rather than by habit.
- Set by role and by value
- Auditable
- Prevents surprise discounts
Dashboard
A live view of the numbers management asks for, computed from records rather than assembled monthly.
- Live, not monthly
- Same data the team uses
- Few numbers, chosen deliberately
Reporting period
The window a report covers. Agreeing it prevents two people producing different truths.
- Defined and consistent
- Cutoff time stated
- Comparable period on period
Prerendering
Serving fully-formed HTML so crawlers and AI assistants read the content without running JavaScript.
- Content visible without JS
- Faster first paint
- Essential for search visibility
Agentic automation
Software that acts on records rather than only reporting on them, with human approval on anything consequential.
- Acts, not just reports
- Approval gates on money and messages
- Only as good as the data
Quoting: The Numbers, Collected
Illustrative Singapore figures in one place. Substitute your own throughout.
Typical first module
S$3,500 to S$12,000, live in 4 to 8 weeks on a fixed quote after the workflow review.
- S$3,500 entry point
- 4 to 8 weeks to live
- Fixed after review
Typical departmental build
S$25,000 to S$60,000 covering 3 to 4 linked workflows once the first module is adopted.
- 3 to 4 workflows
- S$25,000 to S$60,000
- Scoped on evidence
Typical full programme
Six figures across 12 to 18 months, phased so each stage proves itself before the next.
- 12 to 18 months
- Phased, not big bang
- Each stage funds the next
Hosting
S$50 to S$300 a month for an SME system, billed at cost on your own account.
- S$600 to S$3,600 a year
- Billed at cost
- Scales on load, not headcount
Licence comparison
20 seats at S$120 a month is S$28,800 a year, or S$144,000 over five years before implementation.
- 20 x S$120 x 12 = S$28,800
- S$144,000 over 5 years
- Plus implementation
Implementation on a licence
Commonly 50% to 150% of first-year licence. Below 30% usually means scope is excluded.
- 50% to 150% typical
- Below 30% is a warning
- Migration often separate
Data migration
S$3,000 to S$15,000 depending on record count and how clean the data is.
- S$3,000 to S$15,000
- Cleaning is the larger half
- Archive rather than import all
Training
2 to 5 days is typical. Fewer than 2 usually makes adoption your problem.
- 2 to 5 days
- Per role, not per company
- Follow-up after week one
Your internal time
8 to 15 hours per module for interviews, testing and training. The line most plans omit.
- 8 to 15 hours per module
- Across 6 to 8 weeks
- Mostly the person doing the work
Admin hire comparison
A back-office hire in Singapore costs roughly S$3,000 to S$4,500 a month before CPF and overheads.
- S$36,000 to S$54,000 a year
- Plus CPF and overheads
- Plus recruitment and cover
Hours reclaimed
A workflow costing 20 hours a month is about 240 hours a year, or S$7,200 at a loaded S$30 an hour.
- 20 hours a month
- 240 hours a year
- About S$7,200
EDG support
Up to 50% of qualifying costs for eligible local SMEs, on reimbursement, applied for before starting.
- Up to 50%
- Reimbursement basis
- Apply before starting
- Confirm with Enterprise Singapore
Quoting: The Buyer's Checklist
Fifteen questions worth asking any vendor, including us.
Ask for the five-year total
Licence times sixty months plus implementation, migration and training. One number, comparable across vendors.
- 60 months, not one
- All one-off costs included
- Written, not verbal
Ask who owns the code
This single answer determines whether you can ever leave.
- Ownership in writing
- Repository access
- Another developer could take over
Ask about data export
A system you cannot export from is a system you cannot leave.
- Full export on demand
- Readable formats
- Scheduled exports you control
Ask what happens in week one
A vendor who starts with observation is scoping from your problem, not their product.
- Who they interview
- Whether they walk a real job
- What they hand back
Ask what they will refuse to build
A vendor who says yes to everything has not understood the problem.
- Where they recommend off-the-shelf
- What they push back on
- Out of scope on principle
Ask to see it running
Screenshots are not a system. Ask for a populated live environment.
- Live, not slides
- Populated, not empty states
- Someone using it
Ask about the second module
The first is a project; the second tests whether the architecture extends.
- Shared data model
- What clients added later
- How long it took
Ask for the support commitment in hours
Response time in hours, business days defined, escalation path named.
- Hours, not adjectives
- Business days defined
- Named escalation
Ask who maintains statutory logic
CPF, GST and e-invoicing rules change. Someone must own keeping them current.
- Named owner
- In the contract
- Update mechanism stated
Ask about the parallel run
One full cycle with both systems live is what turns confidence into evidence.
- One cycle minimum
- Outputs compared
- Rollback available
Ask what training is included
Two to five days by role, with a follow-up after real use begins.
- Days stated
- Per role
- Follow-up included
Ask how change requests are priced
Scope will change. How that is handled is worth agreeing before it happens.
- Priced openly
- Baseline retained
- Written approval
Ask for a reference you choose
Not the reference they offer. One you pick from their portfolio.
- You pick, not them
- Same size and sector
- Ask what went wrong
Ask what the system will not do
Every system has limits. A vendor who names them is a vendor who understands theirs.
- Named limits
- Workarounds explained
- No magic claims
Ask about hosting and who is billed
Hosting billed at cost to your account avoids a reseller margin you cannot see.
- Billed to you at cost
- Your account, your access
- No hidden margin
Quoting: Cost by Company Size
Illustrative Singapore arithmetic at four sizes.
Company of 5 to 10 staff
A first module lands at S$3,500 to S$8,000. Licence alternatives at 8 seats and S$120 a month are S$11,520 a year, so the build repays inside 12 months at this size.
- Build: S$3,500 to S$8,000 once
- Licence: 8 x S$120 x 12 = S$11,520 a year
- 5 years licence: S$57,600
- Break-even under 12 months
Company of 10 to 25 staff
A departmental build of S$25,000 to S$40,000 against 20 seats at S$120, which is S$28,800 a year and S$144,000 over five.
- Build: S$25,000 to S$40,000
- Licence: S$28,800 a year
- 5 years licence: S$144,000
- Break-even in 12 to 18 months
Company of 25 to 60 staff
A build of S$40,000 to S$90,000 against 45 seats at S$120, which is S$64,800 a year and S$324,000 over five.
- Build: S$40,000 to S$90,000
- Licence: S$64,800 a year
- 5 years licence: S$324,000
- The per-seat gap widens fastest here
Company above 60 staff
Six-figure programmes on both sides. The deciding factor stops being price and becomes whether your process is your advantage.
- Both routes six figures
- Process specificity decides
- Phase over 12 to 18 months
Adding 10 staff
On a licence at S$120 a seat that is S$14,400 more a year, every year. On a build it is S$0.
- Licence: +S$14,400 a year
- Build: +S$0
- Compounds over five years
Opening a second location
Licences multiply by seats again. A build extends at the cost of the work, not the headcount.
- Licence scales with people
- Build scales with scope
- Second site often needs little new code
The 5-year totals side by side
20 seats: roughly S$144,000 licence-only against S$25,000 to S$60,000 built, before implementation on the licence side.
- Licence S$144,000 over 5 years
- Build S$25,000 to S$60,000
- Plus S$20,000 to S$50,000 implementation on licence
What we would still recommend buying
Accounting. Xero and its peers are cheap, well maintained and statutory-current. We integrate rather than rebuild.
- Keep your accounting system
- Integrate, do not replace
- Book of record stays put
Hosting either way
S$50 to S$300 a month at cost. Not a differentiator, but it should be billed to your account rather than marked up.
- S$600 to S$3,600 a year
- At cost, your account
- No reseller margin
Grant impact on the comparison
EDG at up to 50% of qualifying costs changes the build side materially. It does not apply to packaged licences.
- Up to 50% of qualifying cost
- Reimbursement basis
- Custom builds may qualify
- Confirm with Enterprise Singapore
The number nobody quotes
Your own team's time: 8 to 15 hours per module either way. Include it or the comparison is not honest.
- 8 to 15 hours per module
- Applies to both routes
- Usually your best people
What changes the answer fastest
Headcount growth and how non-standard your process is. Everything else is second order.
- Growth rate first
- Process specificity second
- Everything else is noise
Quoting: More Questions We Are Asked
The second tier of questions.
Do we have to replace everything at once
No, and you should not. One module, adopted, beats four half-built. Everything else keeps running.
- One workflow first
- Existing tools stay
- Integrate rather than replace
What if we outgrow it
A build extends at the cost of the work. That is the argument for owning the code rather than renting seats.
- Extended, not replaced
- Your priority order
- No tier upgrade pricing
How do you handle our data
It stays in a database you own, in a region you choose, exportable in full at any time.
- Your database, your region
- Full export on demand
- Access documented and auditable
What if the project stalls
Fixed scope, fixed quote and weekly working builds mean a stall is visible in week three, not month six.
- Weekly working build
- Visible early
- Fixed scope baseline
Can our own developer take it over
Yes. Standard stack, documented handover, and the repository is yours.
- Standard technologies
- Handover documentation
- Repository ownership
What ongoing cost should we budget
Hosting at cost plus optional care quoted by scale. No per-seat component at all.
- Hosting S$600 to S$3,600 a year
- Care optional
- No per-seat fee
How do you price changes after go-live
Openly, against the written scope baseline, with approval before anything is built.
- Priced before built
- Baseline retained
- Written approval
What happens if we stop working with you
You keep the code, the data and the hosting accounts. That is the point of ownership.
- Code and data yours
- Hosting on your accounts
- Another developer can continue
Do you work with our existing accountant
Yes, and we usually ask to. They know where the numbers have to land.
- Accountant involved early
- Statutory treatment confirmed
- Reports built to their format
How do we measure whether it worked
Against the hours you measured before we started. That is why we measure them in week one.
- Baseline measured first
- Same measure after
- Module two argued from it
Quoting by Industry in Singapore
Twelve sectors and what quoting has to get right in each.
Construction and contracting
BOQ-driven quoting, progress claims with retention, subcontractor certification and site capture. Retention at 5% on a S$1.2m contract is S$60,000 held, half typically released at completion.
- 5% retention on S$1.2m = S$60,000
- Claims roll forward from last certified
- Back-charges netted before payment
- Site capture on a tablet
Dental and medical clinics
Appointments, practitioner rosters, procedure libraries and recall cycles, with patient data handled carefully and kept out of anything it need not touch.
- Chair utilisation visible daily
- Recalls generated, not remembered
- Procedure pricing consistent
- PDPA obligations respected
Interior design and renovation
Quote by scope or by room, cost against budget per project, and a long supplier tail with lead times that drive the site programme.
- Design fee separated from build
- Supplier lead time against programme
- Client sign-off per stage
- Variations priced before work
Trading and distribution
Multi-location stock, tiered customer pricing and purchasing across currencies with landed cost including freight and duty.
- Landed cost, not supplier price
- Price tiers applied automatically
- Transfers between locations recorded
- Backorders visible to sales
F&B and catering
Recipe costing, event orders, delivery scheduling and counter sales, with ingredient batches tracked to expiry.
- Food cost per dish from purchases
- Events separated from counter sales
- Batch tracked to expiry
- Wastage attributed per outlet
Aesthetics, spa and wellness
Prepaid packages drawn down accurately, memberships renewed before lapse, and therapist commission computed from the same sale record.
- Packages drawn down correctly
- Cross-outlet redemption
- Commission from the sale record
- Membership renewal surfaced early
Insurance agencies
Client books, policy renewals, commission reconciliation against insurer statements and advisory records retained for compliance.
- Renewals surfaced weeks ahead
- Commission reconciled to statements
- Advisory records retrievable
- Client book by adviser
Specialty retail
POS tied to the same stock and customer records, with loyalty attached to the customer rather than the receipt.
- Stock truth across outlets
- Loyalty on the customer
- Outlet comparison on one screen
- Variants as real SKUs
Corporate gifting and fulfilment
Stock reserved against confirmed orders, customisation status per line, and supplier lead times against promised delivery dates.
- Reserved on confirmation
- Customisation status per line
- Lead time against promise date
- Sample stock separate
Professional and consulting services
Rate cards by role, time recorded against engagements, and billing that follows delivery rather than memory.
- Rates by role and seniority
- Time against engagement
- Billing follows delivery
- Utilisation visible
Logistics and 3PL
Job scheduling, proof of delivery capture, and billing that reflects what was actually moved.
- POD captured at the door
- Billing from actual movements
- Driver schedule against capacity
- Exceptions surfaced same day
Education and enrichment
Enrolment, class scheduling, attendance and fee collection cycles that repeat every term.
- Enrolment to invoice in one flow
- Attendance recorded, not reconstructed
- Term billing automated
- Capacity per class visible
Quoting: Risks Worth Naming
The ways a quoting rollout goes wrong, and the guard against each.
Templates drift again
Without one owner the library fragments back into personal copies within months.
- One named library owner
- Changes reviewed
- Personal copies retired
Margin floors ignored
A floor that can be overridden silently is not a floor.
- Override requires approval
- Logged and reviewed
- Threshold by role
Follow-up still manual
If reminders are not scheduled at send, the chase depends on memory again.
- Scheduled at send
- Owner assigned
- Escalation after N days
Trusted by teams across Singapore
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Frequently asked questions
What SME teams usually want to know before they commit to a custom ERP or workflow system.