Manufacturing: order entry moved to web after weekly lock errors
Sales and shipping both opened the same back-end every Monday. Lock errors stopped order entry for hours. A one-form web pilot proved the path; four modules followed without a big-bang cutover.
Anonymized scenario · Representative of projects we deliver weekly
Example
Before and after: Monday order entry
Before
8:00 AM: sales opens Order #4421 on \\fileserver\ops.accdb. 8:05 AM: warehouse opens the same back-end for shipping labels. Access shows "Could not lock file." Shipping waits until sales closes Access.
After
8:00 AM: sales enters Order #4421 in Chrome; warehouse sees live status on a tablet. SQL row locks replace file locks. No shared .accdb on the LAN for daily entry.
- Lock-error tickets
- Near zero after web order entry
- Pilot duration
- 5 weeks (one form)
- Users on pilot
- 12 concurrent
Forms migrated first: order header/lines, inventory adjustment, shipping status, four operational reports. VBA credit checks became server rules with the same thresholds.
Challenge
Problem
The operations team ran order entry, shipping labels, and inventory lookups from a split Access database on a Windows file share. When sales and warehouse staff opened the back-end at the same time, users saw "Could not lock file" errors. IT had tried Compact and Repair and shorter session timeouts, but the issue returned every week.
Solution
Approach
We inventoried forms and VBA behind order entry first. A free pilot converted that workflow to a browser app backed by SQL Server. Floor staff tested on tablets without Access installed. After sign-off, we migrated inventory adjustments, shipping status, and four operational reports in three fixed-price phases.
Outcomes
Results
- Lock-error tickets dropped to near zero after order entry went live on the web
- 12 users on the pilot path with no Access runtime on warehouse tablets
- Nightly SQL backups replaced manual .accdb copies on the share
- Remaining Access reports scheduled for phase four with a written scope already approved