Frontier ERP Software for Make-to-Order Manufacturers

Frontier supports make-to-order, configure-to-order, engineer-to-order, and assemble-to-order manufacturing — the four primary modes of custom and semi-custom production. It also supports mixed-mode manufacturing, which is common in larger operations that run both build-to-order and build-to-stock production simultaneously. What Frontier is not designed for is purely repetitive, high-volume discrete manufacturing of standard products — the system’s strengths are in environments where products vary order to order and where configuration, quoting, and production planning need to work together tightly.

Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ) functionality is built into Frontier rather than integrated from a separate tool — which matters because there’s no synchronization lag between configuration, pricing, and the rest of the ERP. When a customer or dealer configures a product, pricing is calculated in real time based on the engineering rules and cost structures already in the system. The resulting quote ties directly to production scheduling, inventory, and financial management without manual handoffs. This is meaningfully different from bolting a standalone CPQ tool onto a separate ERP, which typically requires maintaining duplicate data and managing sync delays.

A parametric configurator stores engineering logic — the rules, formulas, and constraints that govern what can and can’t be built — and applies them dynamically to each order. This is distinct from a rules-based configurator, which presents fixed option lists. A parametric configurator can handle dimensional flexibility (any width between X and Y), conditional options (finish A is only available with material B when dimension exceeds Z), and calculated outputs like BOMs, routings, and pricing — all generated automatically from the configuration. For manufacturers of products like cabinets, windows, doors, and furniture where every order involves dimension-driven variation and hundreds of option combinations, a parametric configurator eliminates the manual checking and error-prone processes that simpler systems require.

Frontier includes built-in tools for dealer and distributor order entry — eQuote Dealer for dealer quoting and ordering, and eBusiness for web-based ordering through a branded online portal. Dealers can configure products, generate accurate quotes, and place orders directly into the manufacturer’s Frontier system without requiring manual re-entry by the manufacturer’s team. Pricing can be set to standard Frontier pricing or with dealer markup for second-tier customers. Orders placed through dealer tools are immediately visible in production scheduling, inventory, and fulfillment — there’s no batch sync or delay between dealer order entry and the manufacturer’s system.

Frontier implementations are managed by Friedman’s professional services team and are structured around the specific manufacturing environment of each customer. The process involves data migration, configuration of the product configurator to reflect the manufacturer’s engineering rules, integration setup with any existing systems, and role-based training across sales, production, warehouse, and finance teams. Because the configurator setup requires encoding the manufacturer’s actual product engineering logic, implementation is more involved than a standard ERP deployment — but this upfront investment is what makes the system accurate from day one rather than requiring ongoing manual overrides.

Yes. Frontier’s CADFlow module automates the generation of 3D models, drawings, and manufacturing data for each order configuration, working directly with the product configurator. CADFlow integrates with AutoDesk Inventor and can work with existing CAD models the manufacturer already maintains. For manufacturers in industries like cabinets, windows, and doors where customers and dealers use design layout tools, Frontier also supports integration with those tools — allowing designs to be uploaded and converted to quotes and orders without manual re-entry. This eliminates one of the most time-consuming handoffs in custom manufacturing.

Frontier’s multi-company architecture supports manufacturers operating across multiple plants, locations, or business entities. Inventory, production scheduling, and financial management can be managed across locations within the same system, with visibility into the full network. The Distribution Requirements Planning (DRP) module manages inter-plant demand and material flow in multi-plant environments — demand driven from one plant or distribution center to another is controlled within DRP, which runs first to create planned inter-plant demand before MRP processes the supplying plant’s requirements. Multi-currency and multi-entity financial processing are also included for manufacturers with international operations.