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Custom internal tools development

Custom internal tools to replace spreadsheets and manual workflows

FRAI designs, builds, and operates internal software for SMEs that need reliable data, controlled permissions, structured approvals, and connected day-to-day work across their CRM, ERP, and existing systems.

Check whether custom software fits

Starting conditions

Clear conditions before work begins.

01

First phase from €6,000 plus VAT

02

First usable version from one month

03

Managed operations from €450 per month

Scope, price, and date are fixed after a two-hour definition meeting.

01 — Documented result

28% more closed sales with the entire pipeline under control

Confidential client · internal operational tool · 6 active users

The name is withheld to protect the confidentiality of the client’s internal processes.

01

Starting point

Information had grown across large spreadsheets, OneDrive, WooCommerce orders, WhatsApp quote requests, and email communication. Free-text statuses made it difficult to maintain a consistent view of active customers, expiries, and pending work.

02

System delivered

FRAI migrated approximately 9,000 records and structured the complete lifecycle, from quote and order through documents, follow-up, and expiry. The team can now see the complete pipeline, who performed each action, how long it took, and the economic result of the work.

Anonymised real workflow
01

Inputs and data

  • Spreadsheets and 9,000 records
  • WooCommerce orders
  • WhatsApp quote requests
  • OneDrive documents
02

Internal tool

  • Customer lifecycle
  • Structured statuses
  • Documents and history
  • Expiries
03

Operations

  • 6 users · 3 permissions
  • Active-customer visibility
  • Email communication
  • FRAI responsible in production
+28%closed sales reported by the client
9,000records migrated and structured
4 monthsin managed production

The client attributes a 28% increase in closed sales during adoption to the new pipeline visibility and control. The owner and sales director validated the operational result: opportunities no longer disappear inside the pipeline. We do not publish a time-saving percentage because no comparable baseline was recorded.

First usable version in approximately 3 months · approximately €6,000 plus VAT, including analysis, design, development, migration, website integration, deployment, and training.

02 — Keep, buy, integrate, or build

Choose before building.

Use the smallest solution that controls the process.

01

Keep spreadsheets

Best fitThe process is simple, stable, low-risk, and owned by one person.

Watch forDo not build without a real need.

02

Buy SaaS

Best fitAn existing product covers about 80% without creating parallel sheets.

Watch forCheck export, permissions, and integrations.

03

Integrate and automate

Best fitThe tools are useful, but data and handoffs remain fragmented.

Watch forMonitor failures, duplicates, and retries.

04

Build an internal tool

Best fitThe process is critical, multi-user, and needs its own rules or integrations.

Watch forBegin with one complete useful flow.

03 — Project fit

It pays off when the process already has repetition, cost, and an owner

Company size matters less than operational load and the ability to make decisions about the process.

Usually a good fit when

  1. 01

    The process generates revenue or controls business-critical data.

  2. 02

    Information is dispersed and the company already pays for several disconnected tools.

  3. 03

    The process needs states, permissions, traceability, or integrations that are currently managed by hand.

  4. 04

    A named owner can validate decisions and adoption.

Usually not a fit when

  1. 01

    The task is occasional, low-risk, and handled by one person.

  2. 02

    Existing SaaS covers the need without parallel sheets or expensive workarounds.

  3. 03

    The process changes constantly or no one can decide how it should work.

  4. 04

    There is no budget to build and operate the system after launch.

It makes sense when bringing a revenue-generating or data-critical process under control outweighs the cost of continuing with disconnected tools. First phases start at approximately €6,000 plus VAT and managed operations at €450 per month plus VAT. The recommendation may still be to keep, buy, or integrate.

04 — Decision tool

Find out what your process needs

Answer six questions for an immediate, practical recommendation.

Initial assessment · 2 minutes

How it works: choose an answer to continue. We do not store your data.

Variations01 / 06
Does the process always follow the same steps?

Choose the option that best describes your situation.

05 — Possible scope

Build the missing piece that brings order to the process

The whole ecosystem rarely needs replacing. An internal tool can work as a back office, portal, extension, or operational layer between existing systems.

01

Back office, requests, and approvals

02

Customer or supplier portals

03

Quotes, orders, and tracking

04

Operational dashboards and reporting

05

Documents, inventory, and traceability

06

CRM, ERP, permissions, and useful AI

06 — What the client receives

An understandable system, not a black box

The deliverable includes decisions, controls, and operating conditions. The interface is only one part.

01

Process and first phase

Current map, target flow, and one complete outcome that users can validate.

02

Data, permissions, and integrations

Data model, migration, access, connections, and error handling.

03

Production-tested system

Role-based interface, normal cases, exceptions, and controlled rollout.

04

Documentation, operations, and exit

Repository, access, deployment, backups, export, and transition conditions.

07 — Investment and timeline

What it costs and when it can become usable

You do not need a technical specification. FRAI defines the first useful flow, price, and timeline before work begins.

01 — Define

2-hour meeting · no separate charge

We review the process, data, users, integrations, and first-release scope as part of the commercial process.

02 — Build

From €6,000 · first version from one month

As a reference, an internal tool may range from €6,000 to €40,000 plus VAT. Controlled production normally takes one to three months.

Larger systems are divided into phases with their own scope, price, and date; there is no generic upper limit.
03 — Operate

From €450 per month plus VAT

Includes Kubernetes infrastructure, security updates, incident handling, and the agreed backup and recovery scope. Improvements and broad migrations are quoted separately. Third-party licences, APIs, or services are the client’s responsibility when required; they are not normally needed.

Payment model

  • Typical project: 25% at the start and 75% on delivery.
  • Larger project: 25% at the start, 25% during the project, and 50% on delivery.
Estimate assumptions+
  • The client supplies required access, data, decisions, and materials on time.
  • The schedule is reviewed when these inputs arrive late or incomplete.
  • Legacy or obsolete systems must provide a technically viable integration path; if they cannot be connected or modernised, scope and price are redefined before work continues.

08 — FRAI method

From the current process to the first useful system

The work begins by understanding the operation and ends when the system has clear technical ownership.

01

Map how work happens today

We follow a request, order, incident, or case and identify waiting, duplication, and manual decisions.

02

Define the first useful outcome

We choose keep, buy, integrate, or build and fix the data, permissions, exceptions, and scope.

03

Validate and launch

Users test real cases before more modules or automation are added.

04

Operate and improve

FRAI can remain responsible for releases, monitoring, incidents, and evolution.

09 — After launch

The tool is not left alone when people begin relying on it

FRAI can host, monitor, maintain, and improve the internal software. Incidents, backups, releases, integrations, and changes have a named owner.

01

Kubernetes hosting and infrastructure included

02

Security updates and incident handling

03

40 GB for backups: every 4 hours for one week and weekly for one month

04

Improvements, broad migrations, and third-party services quoted separately

10 — Ownership and exit

Control of the system is defined before work begins

The proposal explicitly identifies what belongs to the client, which access is provided, what documentation is delivered, and how data can be exported or another provider can take over.

View the Trust Center →
01

Business data remains the client’s property and is not used beyond the agreed operating purpose.

02

The proposal distinguishes project-specific code, reusable FRAI components, and third-party licences before work begins.

03

Repository, infrastructure, credentials, and account owners are documented in writing, with no critical dependence on personal accounts.

04

Export format, documentation, and provider-change conditions are defined in the proposal and contract.

11 — Frequently asked questions

Eight answers before building

Cost, timing, migration, ownership, hosting, integrations, and takeover.

How much does a custom internal tool cost?+

First phases start at approximately €6,000 plus VAT. As a reference, an internal tool may range from €6,000 to €40,000 depending on processes, users, data, integrations, and scope. Larger systems are divided and priced in phases.

How quickly can the first version become available?+

A first usable version can be available from one month after the project starts. Controlled production normally takes one to three months depending on scope, data, integrations, and validation speed.

What information does FRAI need to prepare an estimate?+

We need to understand the process, who uses it, the data and documents involved, which systems must connect, and what the first version must achieve. This is normally defined in a two-hour meeting. The client must then provide the access, samples, and decisions needed to confirm scope.

Can existing spreadsheet data be migrated?+

Yes. FRAI can review, clean, structure, and migrate existing data. Before committing scope, we check volume, duplicates, inconsistent fields, related documents, and the rules required to preserve dependable information.

Who owns the code and the data?+

Business data remains the client’s property. The proposal distinguishes project-specific code, reusable FRAI components, and third-party licences, and defines repository, infrastructure, credential, documentation, and export access in writing.

Where is the application hosted?+

FRAI can host it on managed Kubernetes infrastructure within the monthly operating scope. The proposal identifies infrastructure, accounts, access, backups, and responsibilities. Special infrastructure or third-party services are agreed separately when required.

Can FRAI take over a tool built by another provider?+

Yes, after an audit of the code, data, hosting, dependencies, integrations, access, documentation, backups, and deployment process. FRAI accepts responsibility only when the system can be maintained and operated safely.

What happens when an integration fails?+

The design should define detection, retries, duplicate prevention, alerts, and correction. A critical integration should never fail silently.

12 — Related context

An internal tool belongs to a wider system

These pages explain how FRAI builds, audits, and operates the rest of a company’s software.

01

Custom software development

How FRAI builds business systems and remains responsible after launch.

02

Custom CRM and connected workflows

Build an internal tool connected to sales, customer, operational, and reporting data.

03

Custom software audit

Review an existing tool before maintaining, modernising, or taking control of it.

04

Take over existing software

Move a tool built by another provider under controlled technical responsibility.

05

Custom software maintenance

Monitoring, backups, updates, incidents, documentation, and continuous improvement.

First step

Bring a process, not a feature list

Show us how work happens today, where time is lost, and what must keep running. FRAI will help determine whether to keep, integrate, buy, or build.

FRAI

Custom software built, operated, and improved with clear technical ownership.

Built and operated by FRAI

Software services

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  • Managed software operations
  • Managed custom CRM
  • Custom software audit
  • Software takeover
  • Legacy software modernization
  • Software hosting and maintenance

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