When a company’s craft is all about precision, imagination, and custom design, the tools behind the scenes must match that same standard. Dion Custom Metal, a metal fabricator based in Coquitlam, British Columbia, turned to Odoo to bring order, speed, and accuracy to its fast-growing business. With Odoo, they’ve reduced critical workflows from days to seconds, eliminated endless spreadsheets, and empowered their 13-person team to focus on what matters most: delivering high-quality custom metal work.
Dion Custom Metal is a custom metal fabricator specializing in stainless steel, aluminum, and mild steel. The company has carved out a reputation in the construction industry for its artistic flair and imaginative approach, delivering unique architectural pieces that often double as works of art. Known as a go-to partner for major construction project managers and general contractors in British Columbia, Dion has established itself as a trusted name for small to medium scale projects.
But the company didn’t start in construction. In fact, its origins trace back to bicycles. Dion first made its mark as a custom bike manufacturer, building high-performance road and triathlon bikes for Olympians. This niche led them into partnerships with Easton Aluminum, where they tested innovative aluminum products. From there, the company expanded into prototyping for wheelchair manufacturers and mountain bike maker Knolly, before shifting into broader custom fabrication. By 2006, Dion’s focus turned almost exclusively to the construction industry, where it continues to thrive today.
"We’ve built a solid reputation with large builders in the area. We’re kind of a go-to for a lot of big-name construction project managers and GCs."
Before Odoo: Too Many Systems, Too Much Time
Before adopting Odoo, Dion Custom Metal struggled with scattered systems and manual workflows. Critical information was spread across spreadsheets, accounting applications, emails, photos, and even text messages. QuickBooks handled accounting, but everything else, from job specs to deadlines, was fragmented.
This disorganization caused constant pain points: miscommunications, missed or unknown deadlines, incorrect job specifications, and a lack of visibility into the financial pipeline. Moving work from one step to the next often took far too long, leaving room for human error and inefficiencies.
The team evaluated multiple ERP and CRM systems, speaking with companies that were already using their shortlisted options. Having had prior experience with cloud-based platforms, Denis and his team trialed several before narrowing it down to three. Ultimately, Odoo stood out for its customizability and ability to adapt to Dion’s specific use cases.
"It really boiled down to Odoo being able to do that above and beyond the others.”
Why Odoo Made the Difference
Dion Custom Metal began its Odoo journey last January, starting with a single sales representative. By March, they were already deep into system configuration. With support from an Odoo consultant, they accelerated their implementation, tailored the system to their needs, and reached production-ready status by late May.
Today, their operations revolve around Project, with workflows beginning in CRM and integrating seamlessly across Sales, Purchase, Manufacturing, and Shop Floor. They also use Employees, Documents, and Dashboards, creating a unified environment where all business processes connect.
So, how has Odoo transformed their operations?
From Days to Seconds with CRM: Previously, creating and tracking opportunities was a painful, manual process. A single job required logging emails in spreadsheets, creating folders in shared drives, sending multiple follow-ups, and duplicating data across four systems. It could take anywhere from 15 minutes to three days. Now, with Odoo CRM, the same task takes about 30 seconds. Everyone is immediately on the same page, with no lost time or information.
Efficiency Gains That Defy Measurement: The shift has reduced not just time but also errors. Denis describes the improvement as “almost immeasurable.” By removing redundant data entry, the team can spend time on meaningful tasks rather than typing numbers into isolated spreadsheets. He estimates an efficiency improvement of around 90%.
Collaboration Made Easy: Features like Chatter, attachments, and the progress bar across records have streamlined communication. Instead of endless email threads, team members can comment directly on projects, share documents, and visualize progress in real time. Kanban boards in CRM and Project are now the team’s go-to for tracking tasks, providing clarity and accountability at every step.
Fewer Mistakes, Better Quality: With all job details, notes, and communications centralized in Odoo, accuracy has improved. This not only saves time but also reduces costly rework and QA issues.
A Foundation for Growth: Odoo has positioned Dion Custom Metal to expand. The company can now better track finances, projects, and communication, ensuring scalability as demand grows.
"The only number that really comes to mind is infinity. The improvement is humongous, it’s reducing time, but most importantly, reducing the opportunity for human error.”
What is next for Dion Custom Metal?
For Denis and his team, the Odoo journey has only begun. While the system is already delivering significant gains, their eyes are set on achieving the projected ROI they modeled during the selection process. This includes realizing savings per job, further improving communication accuracy, and ensuring all job details are accessible and understood by the entire team.
The company is also pursuing revenue growth targets over the next two to two-and-a-half years. By enhancing efficiency, they aim not only to strengthen their custom manufacturing capabilities but also to create bandwidth for more standard, repeatable manufacturing requests. This dual approach, balancing custom and standard work, will allow them to scale without compromising their craftsmanship.
Dion Custom Metal’s story proves how integrated systems like Odoo can transform small-to-medium-sized manufacturers, eliminating inefficiencies and empowering growth. Whether in construction, prototyping, or other industries, businesses struggling with scattered systems and redundant workflows can benefit from Odoo’s customizable, all-in-one approach. If your team is ready to replace spreadsheets, unify processes, and unlock measurable efficiency gains, Odoo is ready to help.
