The challenge
A dental lab producing crowns, bridges, and prosthetics for dental clinics was managing job orders through WhatsApp messages and paper job cards. Dispatch was tracked on a whiteboard. Client clinics had no visibility into job status and called frequently for updates.
The lab needed a system where jobs were tracked digitally from receipt to dispatch, technicians could update job status from the lab floor, and client clinics could check progress without calling. The solution had to work for staff who were not IT-savvy and needed to work on the lab floor.
What we built
The engagement delivered four interconnected components:
Odoo ERP (hosted on Odoo.sh)
The core platform managing the end-to-end job lifecycle:
- Sales module — job order intake from clinics, quote generation, payment tracking
- MRP module — work order scheduling across technician teams (wax-up, casting, porcelain, finishing)
- Inventory module — materials tracking (dental alloys, ceramics, components) with batch tracking for traceability
- Barcode module — each job tagged with a barcode from intake; scanned at each production stage
- Website module — client portal for clinic staff to log in and check job status
Technician mobile app (Flutter)
Built for lab-floor use on Android devices:
- Scan job barcode to pull up the current work order
- Mark stages complete, log notes, flag quality issues
- Works with gloves on — large touch targets, minimal text input
- Offline-capable with background sync when reconnected
Client-facing mobile app (Flutter)
Built for dental clinic staff:
- Log in to view all outstanding jobs from the lab
- See real-time status: Received → In Progress → Quality Check → Ready for Dispatch
- Receive push notifications when jobs are ready for collection
- Access past job history and download invoices
Public website (Angular)
A marketing website for the dental lab, integrated with the Odoo CRM for new client enquiries.
Delivery approach
The project ran across 22 weeks with an agile delivery structure — two-week sprints with demo sessions and feedback cycles. The Odoo ERP and barcode workflow went live first (week 12), allowing the lab to begin capturing real data while the mobile apps were completed.
Staff training was delivered in two sessions: a 3-hour operations training for lab managers, and 30-minute hands-on sessions for technicians focused only on the barcode scanning workflow.
Results
- 35% reduction in turnaround time — job scheduling optimisation and real-time stage tracking eliminated bottlenecks at handoff points
- Zero missed jobs — the previous system had 2–3 lost or delayed jobs per month due to paper-based tracking; this dropped to zero within the first month of operation
- 80% reduction in status-update calls — clients check the app instead of calling, freeing up the front desk
- Staff adoption — all technicians were scanning jobs consistently by day 3 of go-live, faster than projected
The dental lab has since expanded the Odoo setup to include an Accounting module and automated invoice sending.