ShopFlow OS for sign shops
Carved HDU, sandblasted redwood, dimensional foam letters, channel letter cabinets, lighted monuments. The production system built by people who've actually wired up an LED face at 6pm on a Friday.
Built for the realities of sign making
Generic project tools were built for marketing teams. Sign shops run on substrates, cure times, permits, and installs. ShopFlow OS speaks your language.
HDU vs cedar vs aluminum scheduling
Carved HDU sits on the CNC for 4 hours, then primer, then two-tone paint, then a 24-hour cure. Cedar gets sanded, stained, and sealed on a totally different schedule. Aluminum monument faces wait on the powder coater across town. Generic project tools have no idea — ShopFlow OS does.
Large-format dimensional letters
A 36-inch foam letter set is six pieces, three colors, and two coats of hardcoat. Each face goes through routing, sanding, basecoat, color, clear, and install hardware. We track every letter as its own production item under one project.
Sandblasted etching and stencil burn
Sandblasted redwood signs need rubber resist cut on the plotter, weeded by hand, blasted in a booth, then re-finished. The phases are nothing like a vinyl banner — and your software shouldn't pretend they are.
Permits, surveys, and install crews
Monument and pylon signs need a site survey, structural drawings, a permit submittal, and a two-person install with a mini-excavator. ShopFlow OS keeps the permit number, survey photos, and install schedule attached to the project so nothing gets re-asked.
Estimate-to-deposit with Square
Sign clients want a written quote, then a 50% deposit invoice, then a balance invoice on install day. ShopFlow OS generates the quote PDF, sends it through the client portal, and pushes the deposit invoice straight to Square.
Photos from the field for every install
Your installer takes 20 photos on a phone — before, during, after, with a tape measure for scale. ShopFlow OS uploads them right from the truck and attaches them to the project for warranty, marketing, and Google reviews.
The features sign shops actually use daily
Production kanban built around sign phases
Quote → Deposit → Design → Approval → CNC → Paint → Cure → Install. Drag a card across the board and the client gets the right portal update automatically.
Design queue with proof versioning
Every revision is stamped with the designer, time, and client comment. No more 'which file is the final?' at 9pm the night before CNC.
Client portal that looks like your brand
Your sign client sees their proof, approves it with one tap, and gets install-day photos. They never email asking for a status update again.
Square invoicing without the markup
Generate the deposit and balance invoices in two clicks. They sync straight to your existing Square account — no extra payment processor, no 30% middleman markup.
How a typical sign order flows through ShopFlow OS
- 1. Inquiry comes in
A client fills out your inquiry form (or you create the lead manually after a phone call). Photos, address, and budget hit the leads pipeline.
- 2. Quote built and sent
You build the line items — HDU panel, primer, two-tone paint, install crew, permit fee — and the quote PDF goes out through the client portal.
- 3. Deposit invoiced via Square
Client clicks 'Accept Quote', the 50% deposit invoice generates automatically and pushes to Square. They pay with a card; the project moves to Design.
- 4. Designer drops the proof
Your designer uploads V1 to the design queue. Client sees it in the portal, requests a font change, designer drops V2. All revisions tracked.
- 5. Approved, into production
Once the client taps Approve, the card moves to CNC. Production staff sees it in the kanban, prints the cut sheet, and starts routing.
- 6. Paint, cure, install
Each phase advances when the work is done. Cure timer counts down. Installer schedules a date through the calendar, gets a route + photo upload form on their phone.
- 7. Balance invoiced, photos shared
On install day, balance invoice goes to the client's phone. Installer uploads 20 install photos to the project. Client sees them in the portal and posts the Google review you've been waiting for.
Sign shop FAQ
Can ShopFlow OS handle both small vinyl jobs and full monument signs?
Yes. The same project pipeline scales from a $180 yard sign to a $48,000 lighted monument. Production phases are configurable per shop, so you can keep simple jobs simple and structured jobs structured.
Do you integrate with my CNC or Flexi software?
We don't replace SAi, Flexi, or your CNC's CAM software — we sit on top of them. Cut files attach to the project as PDFs or DXFs, and the design queue links out to whatever production file lives on your shop server or Dropbox.
What about installer time tracking on the road?
Installers clock in from their phone when they arrive at the job site. Time, location, and install photos all attach to the project so payroll and warranty docs are one click away.
Can clients pay the balance from their phone on install day?
Yes. The portal balance invoice opens on a phone, accepts a card via Square, and emails a receipt the moment payment clears. No more chasing checks for a week after install.
Be first on the shop floor.
ShopFlow OS opens up to a limited group of founding shops first. Join the waitlist to lock in early access and founding-shop pricing before we open the doors.