Modernize Excel Pricing System & Integrate with IdeaRoom for Online Building Pricing

** REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL *** Project Overview We manufacture pre-engineered steel building systems and currently use a sophisticated Excel pricing workbook that has been developed and refined over many years. Our vision is to create a simple online buying experience where customers can receive instant pricing on our standardized "Fast Lane" building packages while still allowing more complex projects to be submitted for Building Consultant review. We already utilize IdeaRoom as our online building configurator and would like to leverage as much of that investment as possible. Rather than replacing our current systems, our goal is to improve and simplify what we already have while positioning it for future growth. ________________________________________ Our Vision Our desired customer experience would look something like this: Fast Lane Buildings Customers configure a standard building within predefined guardrails (sizes, loads, options, colors, etc.). The system provides: • Instant pricing • Ability to proceed toward purchase (or place a deposit) • Immediate lead generation for our team Custom Buildings If a customer chooses options outside of those guardrails, the system would instead: • Submit the project for quotation • Route the opportunity to one of our Building Consultants • Allow the customer to continue using IdeaRoom without receiving incorrect pricing Ultimately, we want a scalable online sales platform that handles our simpler, standardized buildings while allowing our team to focus on higher-value custom projects. ________________________________________ About Our Current Pricing Our pricing currently exists in an advanced Excel workbook. The workbook works well, but it has grown over many years and contains numerous formulas, business rules, assumptions, and exceptions. We are not looking to replace Excel immediately. Instead, we want to: • simplify it, • organize it, • document it, • make it easier to maintain, • and make it integration-ready. One important objective is making future pricing updates manageable by someone with solid Excel knowledge, rather than relying primarily on the current workbook author. ________________________________________ Project Objectives We are looking for someone who can help us: • Review our existing Excel pricing workbook. • Understand and document the pricing logic. • Simplify formulas and overall workbook structure where practical. • Preserve current pricing accuracy. • Improve maintainability. • Recommend best practices for future updates. • Determine the most practical path for integrating our pricing model with our existing IdeaRoom configurator. • If IdeaRoom is not the best path, explain why and recommend an alternative. We are open to creative solutions and welcome recommendations from experienced professionals. ________________________________________ Preferred Outcome Our preferred outcome is to leverage our existing IdeaRoom investment rather than build an entirely separate platform. If our pricing model can be adapted to work with IdeaRoom, that would likely be our preferred direction. If not, we'd like to understand: • Why not? • What obstacles exist? • What would you recommend instead? ________________________________________ Deliverables Phase 1 – Pricing System Review • Review current Excel pricing workbook. • Understand pricing logic. • Identify unnecessary complexity. • Identify opportunities for simplification. ________________________________________ Phase 2 – Pricing System Modernization • Improve workbook organization. • Simplify formulas where appropriate. • Preserve pricing outputs. • Improve maintainability. • Document pricing rules and business logic. ________________________________________ Phase 3 – Integration Help us determine the best path toward integrating the improved pricing model into IdeaRoom. As part of your proposal, please tell us: • Have you worked with IdeaRoom? • Have you integrated pricing engines with configurators or CPQ platforms? • What approach would you recommend? • Is there a better architecture we should consider? ________________________________________ Experience We'd Love • Advanced Excel • Product configurators • CPQ (Configure • Price • Quote) • Manufacturing pricing systems • API integrations • eCommerce • Rule engines • IdeaRoom experience (preferred but not required) ________________________________________ Questions 1. Have you completed similar pricing modernization projects? 2. Have you worked with IdeaRoom or a similar configurator? 3. If not IdeaRoom, what comparable platforms have you worked with? 4. How would you approach simplifying a mature Excel pricing workbook while preserving pricing accuracy? 5. Based on this description, what would your recommended approach be? 6. What information would you need from us before determining whether IdeaRoom integration is practical? ________________________________________ Budget Open to Proposals We recognize there may be several ways to accomplish this project and are looking for the best overall value rather than simply the lowest cost. Our preference is to complete this work in logical phases while producing useful deliverables at each step. If the initial engagement is successful, we anticipate additional phases involving: • Expanded IdeaRoom integration • Online pricing enhancements • Online ordering capabilities • AI-assisted pricing tools • Additional automation projects Please include in your proposal: • Your recommended approach. • Estimated timeline. • Budget for the initial phase. • Similar projects you've completed. • Any recommendations that could reduce cost, improve maintainability, or accelerate implementation. We are looking for a long-term partner who enjoys solving challenging business problems and helping companies build scalable systems for future growth—not simply completing a programming task. "If your recommendation is that we should not integrate with IdeaRoom, we're perfectly open to hearing why. However, please explain the reasoning and what alternative architecture you believe would better accomplish our long-term vision."