WebisoftAI Integration & Workflow Automation
Discovery, quick wins, and a phased roadmap for demand forecasting, data automation, and manual-workflow reduction
Prepared by Phil Therien, Partner & CRO, Montréal, QC
Why AI, why now
Context & Objective
Following our June conversation, this proposal sets out a pragmatic path to bring AI and automation into Primco's operations without disrupting day-to-day work. We're entering an already-active discussion: AI automation has been a recurring theme in recent leadership meetings, and as a hands-on owner focused on the bottom line, Cameron has been candid about where the gaps are.
The goal is straightforward: replace guesswork with data and remove repetitive, low-judgement work, so the team's time shifts toward margin and growth. Every recommendation below is modular and self-contained, built on top of the existing IBM AS/400 rather than replacing it.
Discovery
$2,500
USD fixed fee
Pilot range
$8K–$18K
per automation track
Priority tracks
5
opportunity modules
Approach
Human-in-the-loop
approval-first AI
Guiding principles
Human-in-the-loop
AI augments people first. Every tool starts as insight and a draft for human approval, not an autonomous decision-maker. Confidence is earned before we hand it more rope.
Start small, contain risk
We build in small, modular layers on top of the existing IBM AS/400 rather than replacing or deeply re-wiring it. Each layer carries its own guardrails so a fault in one never cascades into the others.
$2,500 USD fixed fee
Phase 0: Discovery
Everything begins with a fixed-fee discovery engagement. Because your ERP is a legacy IBM AS/400 platform, the single biggest determinant of success is data quality and accessibility: what can be exported, what interfaces exist, and how clean the historical record is. Discovery removes that uncertainty before either side commits to build work.
Audit current workflows across forecasting, invoicing, order entry, and SKU management, and map every manual touchpoint.
Assess the AS/400's data exports and integration surface (interfaces, file feeds) to confirm what each automation candidate can realistically access.
Score each opportunity on impact, effort, data-readiness, and risk, then prioritise the quick wins.
Deliver a written roadmap with recommended sequencing, fixed-fee project pricing, and indicative ongoing-support costs for internal budgeting.
The $2,500 discovery fee is fully credited toward the first build project if you proceed. It is designed to give Cameron, the controller, and the director of operations a concrete, costed plan to review internally, not a commitment to a large program.
5 automation modules
Opportunity Tracks
Discovery will confirm final scope and sequencing, but two areas stand out as the clearest, highest-ROI starting points, and they're the same two Primco flagged as biggest pain points. Each track is a self-contained module that can be delivered independently, and prices are indicative pilot ranges pending discovery.
Demand forecasting & inventory planning
Priority trackThe challenge
Forecasting today is essentially guesswork with no real system behind it. That's a serious exposure given that roughly 80% of product now comes from Europe and Asia, where Chinese New Year shutdowns and shipping delays make lead times long and unpredictable. Both over- and under-stocking eat directly into margin, and inventory turns are a number Primco watches closely.
What we'd build
A forecasting layer that analyses historical sales, seasonality, and known supply constraints to predict demand and recommend reorder timing and quantities that account for long overseas lead times, surfaced to planners for approval rather than executed blindly.
Quick win
Build a forecast on top-moving SKUs or a single category, back-test it against last year's actuals, and pressure-test it against the overseas lead-time windows that hurt most.
Indicative pilot price
$12,000 – $15,000 USD
On a book Primco's size, recovering even a fraction of one inventory turn on overseas stock covers this pilot many times over.
Data management & manual touchpoints
Priority trackThe challenge
The team is buried in spreadsheet-heavy, repetitive work: costing-to-sell pages, entering new items into the system, populating product images against item numbers, and various warehouse processes. It's slow, and it's exactly where delays and small errors creep in.
What we'd build
A set of small automation layers that take on the highest-volume manual tasks with guardrails and human approval: auto-generating item and SKU variants, matching and populating product images to item numbers, and assembling costing-to-sell pages from source data.
Quick win
Pick the single highest-volume task in discovery, likely SKU/item creation or image population, and automate one full product family end-to-end to prove the pattern and the guardrails.
Indicative pilot price
$8,000 – $15,000 USD
Freight invoice verification
Additional candidateThe challenge
Freight invoices must be checked by hand against weight tiers and rate tables, with line-item variation making the work tedious and error-prone.
What we'd build
OCR plus AI extraction that reads invoices at volume, recalculates expected charges against your rate logic, and flags anomalies for review. Clean invoices pass, and exceptions route to a person.
Quick win
Run the engine across a batch of historical invoices to demonstrate its catch rate on real discrepancies already seen.
Indicative pilot price
$8,000 – $15,000 USD
Email order intake & triage
Additional candidateThe challenge
Orders arrive in many different email formats because customers resist standardised forms, forcing slow manual re-keying into the system.
What we'd build
An email triage agent that extracts order details from varied formats, normalises them into a system-ready structure, and stages each order as a draft for human approval before anything is committed.
Quick win
Parse a representative sample of real customer order emails into structured drafts to show accuracy across the messiest formats.
Indicative pilot price
$10,000 – $18,000 USD
AI enablement workshop
Fast startThe challenge
The team uses tools like ChatGPT and Claude ad hoc, leaving productivity on the table in routine tasks such as marketing copy and email drafting.
What we'd build
A half-day, hands-on workshop teaching staff to write effective, reusable prompts tailored to their actual day-to-day tasks. It's the fastest, lowest-risk win in this proposal.
Quick win
Schedule immediately after discovery; no integration or data work required. Delivered remotely.
Indicative pilot price
$1,500 USD
half-day, fixed fee, remote
Prove value, then scale
Phased Roadmap
A deliberately incremental sequence: prove value cheaply, build internal confidence, then scale only what works.
Phase 0
Fixed feeDiscovery: workflow & data audit
Costed roadmap; fee credited toward Phase 1
$2,500
Phase 1
Per projectQuick wins: workshop + forecasting and/or a data-automation pilot
Live tools with human-in-the-loop; measurable time saved
$2,500 – $15,000
Phase 2
RoadmapScale: productionise proven pilots, deepen ERP integration
Hardened modules; reduced manual load across the team
Scoped from pilots
Ongoing
SupportSupport, monitoring, and iteration
Tuning, guardrail upkeep, and new automation candidates
Monthly retainer (TBD)
Ongoing costs depend on the modules deployed and the level of monitoring required; discovery will produce a concrete monthly figure for budgeting.
USD · indicative pilot pricing
Pricing Summary
All figures in USD. Pilot pricing is indicative and firms up after discovery confirms the AS/400 data situation, the single biggest variable in build effort. Discovery fixes final scope and price for each track.
| Item | Type | Indicative (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery (Phase 0)Credited | Fixed fee, credited toward next phase | $2,500 |
| Track 1: Demand forecasting & inventory | Proof-of-value; build scoped after | $12,000 – $15,000 |
| Track 2: Data management & manual touchpoints | Priority pilot, per module | $8,000 – $15,000 |
| Track 3: Freight invoice verification | Pilot | $8,000 – $15,000 |
| Track 4: Email order intake & triage | Pilot | $10,000 – $18,000 |
| Track 5: AI enablement workshop | Half-day, fixed fee, remote | $1,500 |
Light commercial structure
Engagement Model
We keep the commercial structure light so projects can start fast and scale only as trust is earned:
Discovery
The fixed-fee discovery engagement described above, with the fee credited to your first build project.
Letter of engagement
A short letter of engagement defining the agreed quick-win project(s), scope, and price. This lets us begin work quickly while the relationship is young.
Master service agreement
Once work scales beyond the initial pilots, a master service agreement governs the ongoing partnership and any future modules.
Next Steps
Three steps to turn this proposal into a committed plan.
Review internally
Cameron reviews this proposal with the controller and director of operations.
Confirm priorities
We hold a follow-up call to confirm priorities, answer questions, and lock the discovery start date.
Kick off discovery
On a signed letter of engagement, Webisoft kicks off discovery, typically within a few days of go-ahead.
Direct contact: phil@webisoft.com
Phil Therien · Partner & Chief Revenue Officer, Webisoft Technologie Inc.
Confidential — Primco · AI Integration & Workflow Automation