Knowing where a shipment is
without calling the driver
We rebuilt a factory's ERP from a lost cloud account into a self-hosted system handling over twelve thousand records, with production and stock accounting a manager could actually trust. A vertical SaaS platform for logistics applies the same discipline to shipment tracking, warehouse stock and dispatch visibility, so a manager stops calling a driver to find out where a shipment actually is.
What it is and who needs it
A vertical SaaS platform for logistics fits an operation moving physical goods, manufacturing, distribution, delivery, where tracking where a shipment or a stock unit actually is currently depends on a phone call or a spreadsheet nobody fully trusts. It fits a team that has outgrown spreadsheet-based stock accounting but is not ready for, or has been burned by, an expensive generalist ERP that does not fit how their specific operation runs. We have taken over exactly this kind of recovery before, migrating twelve thousand records from a lost cloud account into a system a manufacturer runs daily.
What is inside
Order and shipment tracking visible to staff and, where it matters, to customers, replacing a status that only lives in a dispatcher’s head or a messaging app thread. Warehouse stock accounting tied to actual recorded movements in and out, not a manual count that drifts from reality a little more every week. Dispatch and route assignment with status updates coming from the field rather than a manager calling each driver to ask. Alerts the moment a shipment is running past its expected window, so a problem surfaces before a customer calls to complain about it first.
How we build it
We start with the actual stock and dispatch workflow as it runs today, since the gap between how a system is supposed to work and how a warehouse floor actually works is exactly where a platform earns or loses trust. Stock accounting is built around real movement events, each recorded at the point it happens, rather than reconciled from a periodic manual count. We integrate with delivery providers and fleet systems you already use rather than asking an operation to switch tools mid-stream, and self-host where that matters for data control or compliance.
What to watch
The costliest failure in a logistics platform is a stock record that drifts from physical reality because a movement event was never recorded at the point it happened, so we build data entry into the actual workflow, at the warehouse floor or the dispatch point, rather than as an end-of-day reconciliation task someone inevitably skips when busy. Integration fragility with delivery providers is the second risk, since a provider’s API changing without much warning has disrupted logistics operations we have seen before; we build each integration to fail loudly and alert your team rather than silently stop updating tracking status. The third trap is building dispatch logic around one vehicle or route type and breaking the moment the operation adds a different kind of delivery, a bulk shipment alongside the existing small-package routes, for instance; we design the dispatch model to accommodate the operation’s realistic near-term growth, not just its current fleet composition.
Timeline and price
| Option | Price | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| MVP | from $9,500 | Single warehouse, basic order tracking, manual dispatch |
| Production | from $16,000 | Multi-warehouse stock accounting, automated dispatch and alerts, delivery provider integration |
| Full control (handover-ready) | from $27,200 | Everything in Production plus fleet or route optimisation tooling, architecture documentation, and 90 days of support |
Running cost after launch depends on hosting and, where relevant, model usage, typically $20 to $150 a month for a project at this scale.
What you own at the end
You own the platform and every stock, order and shipment record, hosted under your own infrastructure, self-hosted if your operation needs that level of control. We document the data model clearly enough that your own team can audit stock movements or dispatch history without needing us to explain it after the fact. This is the same handover standard on every product we build: no proprietary platform only we can operate, no API key or hosting account left in our name after launch, and a written document covering the architecture and the decisions behind it. A future engineer, yours or ours on a continuing basis, should be able to extend the system without having to guess why it was built the way it was.
Related
See the development service page for our full build process. This pairs with ERP-lite for small manufacturers, B2B wholesale platform. For the engineering detail, see Inventory and warehouse management, Order management system. For a real build, see Factory ERP recovery, self-hosted, Digital goods marketplace automation.
Want this built for your business? Get in touch and we will scope it with a fixed price.
FAQ
How much does a vertical SaaS for logistics cost?
From $9,500 for order tracking, warehouse stock accounting and basic dispatch, 8 to 13 weeks. A platform integrating with fleet tracking hardware or multiple warehouses runs $15,000 to $22,000.
Can it integrate with delivery providers we already use?
Yes, for any provider with an API; we have integrated with Shippop and Nova Poshta on past projects and build connectors to whatever your operation already relies on rather than asking you to switch.
Does it replace our existing ERP?
Not necessarily; it can run as the tracking and dispatch layer in front of an existing ERP, or stand alone for an operation without one yet. We have also rebuilt a factory ERP entirely where the original system was unrecoverable.
What is the stack?
PostgreSQL for the core data, PostgREST or FastAPI for the API layer, a JavaScript or Next.js interface for staff, with integrations built per delivery provider or fleet system.
Who owns the platform and the tracking data?
You. The database, every shipment and stock record, and all delivery provider integrations run under your own accounts and infrastructure, self-hosted if that matters for your operation.