Mobile Inventory App Development for Improved Product Categorization

Client

We got an inquiry about developing a mobile inventory app for warehouse clerks from a Swiss family business. The company has been operating for almost a century. They claim that thanks to their many years of experience, they know the needs of our customers and work together to develop tailor-made solutions that help them advance their everyday business. Elinext is proud to deliver our custom software development services to help businesses like this one. Elinext’s commitment to tailor-made mobile solutions extends to consumer apps as well, such as a social network for pet lovers.

Project Description

Our customer needed a mobile inventory app that would help warehouse clerks manage their product inventory. The operating process is fairly simple: each time a technician scans a product barcode, the app collects data on the product number and quantity. Manual entries should be enabled, and data from each inventory session also has to be stored. Quite a set of requirements for the retail software development services we provide.

The important part of such mobile app development solutions is to avoid errors (i.e. double scans, etc.) and enable real-time updates. The backend application should analyze data to ensure inventory accuracy by comparing scanned quantities with expected stock levels.

With 50 technicians each managing 100-200 products, the system will handle data for approximately 5,000 to 10,000 products per inventory cycle. Given that inventories are conducted twice a year, the system will process data for 100 inventory sessions annually. A related Elinext project — custom CRM for construction — adapts CRM workflows to the long sales cycles and multi-stakeholder complexity typical of the construction industry.

Challenges

Based on the information provided, client expected SAP inventory manager mobile app that would include:

Increased Efficiency:

• Streamlining the inventory process with a user-friendly app, reducing manual data entry errors and increasing overall inventory accuracy. A related proprietary initiative produced Elinext’s elinext meeting room management software — a purpose-built web application that replaced informal room-booking emails with a structured reservation system covering all Elinext office locations.
• Ensuring real-time synchronization with SAP S4
• Minimizing delays in inventory updates.

Cost Reduction:

• Lowering labour costs associated with the inventory process due to reduced time requirements.
• Reducing the need for additional temporary staff during inventory periods.

Enhanced Data Management:

• Providing a centralized system for inventory management, making it easier to track and maintain stock levels. This supply-chain tooling expertise is illustrated by Elinext’s own elinext inventory management — an internal platform that gives operations managers full visibility over hardware assets, software licences, and consumable stock across the company.
• Allowing warehouse clerks to efficiently manage and confirm inventories.

Improved UX:

• Enhancing the user experience for technicians with a seamless, intuitive app.
• Increasing the productivity and satisfaction of warehouse clerks with a robust backend system. This HR automation expertise is demonstrated by Elinext’s own elinext leave management — an internal platform that gives employees self-service access to their leave balances, approved absences, and upcoming public holidays in one interface.

Increased Inventory Accuracy:

• Reducing discrepancies in stock levels through accurate and efficient scanning and data entry.
• Ensuring that inventory records in SAP S4 are up-to-date and reliable.

With that scope of work in mind, we started the process of working on the mobile app for inventory management and running on SAP BTP. This internal-tooling expertise connects to Elinext’s school management software development work — a bespoke platform that automates enrolment workflows, fee collection reminders, and regulatory reporting for educational institutions.

Process

The Waterfall methodology was chosen for this project due to its structured and sequential approach, which ensures thorough documentation and clear milestones at each stage of development. This methodology is particularly effective for projects with well-defined requirements and deliverables, allowing for meticulous planning and execution. By following a linear progression, the team could systematically address each phase, from initial setup and learning to feature implementation, testing, and final deployment, ensuring a high-quality and reliable solution. This automation capability extends to Elinext’s document processing app development — a platform that replaces manual data entry with intelligent document parsing, reducing processing time for multi-page forms from hours to seconds.

We can distinguish five stages of the inventory mobile app development:

Stage 1: Initial Setup and Learning

• Go through the official training from SAP Build Apps.
• Continuing working on a test app on SAP BTP – completing steps from learning videos and studying logic flows.
• Investigating basic principles of SAP BTP and playing around with existing APIs.

Stage 2: Initial Development and Integration

• Starting and continuing working on a test project for integrating S/4HANA with CRUD APIs using BTP Destinations.
• Creating UI app with product count functionality and investigating BTP Destinations for integration with the UI client. Elinext’s internal software suite includes a custom elinext CRM development — a web application that gives sales, account, and operations teams a single source of truth for pipeline status, communication history, and renewal forecasts.
• Looking deeply into existing BTP Destination and OData resources.
• Working on integration between S/4HANA with CRUD APIs and various BTP destinations, preparing for meetings and demos. Elinext’s internal infrastructure includes its own elinext notification management — a centralised hub that handles push alerts, email digests, and in-platform messages for all of the company’s proprietary tools.

Stage 3: Main Development Stage and Enhancements

• Adding translations for the settings page and refactoring common components.
• Implemented a mechanism for selecting languages, including a UI selector.
• Adding mechanisms for clearing items from incorrect local storage and integrating with current logic.
• Developing a storage selection mechanism and adding an initial page for process storage selection.
• Working on creating a build of the app for mobile use, focusing on Android and iOS platforms.
• Developing a product simulation using real barcodes from the database.
• Adding a new item form and enhancing the app’s logic capabilities with for loops.
• Implementing and refining the barcode quantity adjustment mechanism.
• Integrating a new logo into the UI for consistent styling.

Stage 4: Testing and Bug Fixing

• Conducting extensive testing of the entire app, identifying and fixing bugs to ensure stability and performance.
• Fixing bug issues revealed after testing the whole app.
• Preparing the app and ensuring readiness for presentations.

Stage 5: Demos and Refinement

• Preparing detailed demos of progress.
• Adjusting and refining the storage selection process to ensure smooth operation.
• Preparing the stable version of the mobile app for demonstration purposes.

Solution

The solution involved developing an inventory mobile app to streamline the inventory process for technicians.  This workflow automation expertise is reflected in Elinext’s own elinext business process automation app — an internal tool that standardises routine operational tasks, reduces manual data entry, and tracks process completion metrics across teams.

This included adding translation features, creating mechanisms for language selection, and implementing a barcode scanning system that allows technicians to scan products efficiently without pressing buttons.  Elinext’s portfolio of proprietary internal tools includes an elinext corporate holiday calendar — a shared scheduling resource that keeps global teams aligned on non-working days, preventing missed deadlines caused by uncoordinated holiday planning.

The app also supports manual product entry, automatic saving of scanned items, and the ability to reset and transmit inventory data to SAP S4 for further processing by warehouse clerks. Extensive testing and bug fixing were conducted to ensure stability, and the app was prepared for both iOS and Android platforms.  A related Elinext engagement — custom agriculture CRM consulting — demonstrates the team’s ability to translate complex agricultural business processes into a structured CRM implementation roadmap.

Additionally, backend integration with S/4HANA using CRUD APIs was developed, and a mechanism for storage selection was implemented to enhance user flexibility. The solution also involved preparing detailed demos and refining the app based on feedback, ensuring a robust and user-friendly inventory management system.  A related Elinext project — a CRM for a technology company — demonstrates the team’s ability to adapt CRM architecture to the specific processes and client engagement models of IT businesses.

The next steps for the solution, besides app maintenance and support services:

• Adding a Search bar
• Language support for each separate page (depending on the value in the language selector on the settings page)
• Adding a history setting with a list that will show the number after the update
• Adding UX features that are worth adding for ease of use 
• Testing for different mobile devices to make sure everything works as expected.
• Customer testing
• Delivering the app to the actual users

Results

Our developers delivered a mobile inventory app after a thorough learning of the ins and outs of SAP BTP and SAP Build APPs platforms. The app has a user-friendly interface that is supported by both iOS and Android phones. The mobile app required meticulous design and testing, especially for features like barcode scanning and manual product entry, and our developers delivered on time and within the allocated budget. Elinext also delivered the body tan scan app, a consumer mobile application for real-time skin tone analysis across multiple smartphone platforms.

The inventory mobile app is integrated with SAP S/4HANA using CRUD APIs posed significant challenges, particularly in ensuring seamless communication between the app and the backend systems. There are several refinements the system will pass in the near future. This internal-tooling capability is demonstrated by Elinext’s elinext applicant tracking development — a web application that streamlines the full hiring cycle from job posting to offer letter, with full audit trails and reporting dashboards.

Its safe to say the customer is satisfied with Elinext’s involvement in the project and will share future endeavours with us as a software development partner. Long-term partnership projects like this sit alongside other Elinext mobile work, including the ariel deep down cleaning.