Cover Story: Faster, Cheaper, Better
Serafini Studios creates red-hot custom software for local hot-rod shop
It all started with a friendly visit to clean a spyware-infested PC at the shop. After noticing the time clock system in use by the technicians at Doug Jenkins Custom Hot Rods (http://www.dougjenkinscustomhotrods.com/), we immediately determined that custom software could make a fundamental improvement to the business. After a brief discussion with the owner, senior developer Gardiner Allen was able to propose a project that could potentially save over $70,000 per year, allow the hiring and management of 10 new employees and deliver more accurate and timely accounting.
Located at 4151 Forest Park Ave in St. Louis, Missouri, Doug Jenkins Custom Hot Rods is a local restoration and hot-rod shop with a national reputation for high-class quality at affordable rates. A booming promotion car business, combined with an ever-expanding roster of clients has led the shop to recently begin build out on a second shop 2 blocks away.
Managing Time, Money and Customer Expectations
One of the main issues for the shop is managing employees, projects and customers effectively. A technician typically might work on multiple cars during the day, with different hourly rates. It is very difficult to keep track of the exact state of each project and the time put in by each employee and to let customers know the status of their car.
The time card system currently in place is designed for use in the construction industry. It gets the job done, but it doesn't talk to the accounting system, which is designed for use by repair shops, not restoration and hot-rod shops. The result of this combination is that it takes many hours each week to tabulate and reconcile hourly billing information and project updates. With the expanding business, owner Doug Jenkins has been considering hiring another administrator to help keep track of all the paperwork.
Doug Jenkins in his custom hot-rod shop
"The current system we have has hundreds of features that we never use. I need 30 specific functions that it doesn't offer. The new software will give me exactly what I need," says Jenkins.
One Week to Functioning Prototype
After reviewing the shop workflow using the existing systems, an initial working prototype was developed and demonstrated within a week of the initial meeting. The total amount of time estimated to finish the application and deploy for production use is 6 weeks.
How can a custom-written estimating, tracking, billing and invoicing system be delivered in a 6-week timeframe? It takes cutting edge web development experience and the ability to understand the unique needs of a business. Custom software is a one-off, designed to rise to the specific challenges of a single business. Serafini Studios pulled out all the stops to build a web-based application that not only delivers the critical functionality needed by the shop, but also does so with a style fitting a custom hot-rod shop. This application, called Shop Boss, is designed to be a digital foreman, keeping track of all the important details of a job in the easiest way possible. This will allow technicians to spend more time working on cars and less time filling out forms or following complicated procedures.
Picture-based time card system is easier for employees to use
Open Source Technologies
The application is built using a number of tried and true Open Source technologies. The web server used is Apache, chosen for it's excellent flexibility, stability and maturity. The database used is MySQL, a lightning-fast relational database. PHP is used for the scripting language, and Smarty templates are employed to allow maximum customization of the interface. These Open Source technologies were selected not only because they are free to develop with, but also because they are the best tools for rapidly developing and deploying web-based applications.
Innovative Features
Shop Boss is designed to be as quick and simple to use as possible. The interface, designed by the award-winning team at Serafini Studios, is function oriented to the tasks most often needed. What currently takes over 10 clicks to accomplish will now only take 2 or 3.
A touch-screen terminal will allow technicians to simply touch their picture to sign in or out. Each employee will have a personal job list, updated in real-time, that reflects the projects they need to be working on as the day progresses. "This new system will allow me to tell my customers in 30 seconds the exact state of their project," states Jenkins. "This is especially important for the corporate customers that we do promotion car work for when deadlines approach."
The new system will make weekly accounting much easier. Instead of paying an additional person to laboriously go through different systems to reconcile each account, Shop Boss will automatically tabulate total hours worked, billing rates, and who did the work as the work is completed. "I currently have to guess where I'm making more or less money," says Jenkins. "With my current system, it is painstaking to total up hours for an individual project." Time is money in a hot-rod shop, and Shop Boss is designed to minimize the amount of time to do the necessary job of bookkeeping. In addition, Jenkins will have real-time access to his tracking statistics, which will allow him to know definitively where he's making the most profit, and where he needs to improve productivity.
Going Wireless
In order to connect his two shops together, Jenkins will be deploying a wireless solution that will keep his system current. Using 802.11g transmitters, both shops will have access to the same system. In the future, PDAs may be used to allow each technician to update the system wherever they are on the shop floor.
By simplifying the time-keeping and billing process used by the employees at the shop, Jenkins feels that he will be able to hire as many as 10 additional technicians. Previously this would have required hiring additional administrative staff to help keep track of all the additional paperwork.
Return on Investment
Jenkins estimates that the software being developed by Serafini Studios will pay for itself within 2 months of deployment in saved labor costs alone. This will help Jenkins continue expanding his business, maintain a low administrative overhead and focus on what he does best - making awesome custom cars at affordable prices.
Serafini Studios is a rapidly expanding Internet services firm that has been building custom web-based applications since 1996 and can be found on the web at http://www.serafinistudios.com . Call (314) 477-4529 for more information
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