Software for aluminium windows and doors: turning a complex system into fast, reliable quoting

Aluminium systems quickly move beyond the scope of a simple price list and a handful of formulas. A single item may involve the system and series, frame and sash profiles, mullions and transoms, thresholds, infills, glazing, glazing beads, gaskets, hardware, colour or another surface finish, additional profiles, accessories and commercial pricing rules. Some selections depend on dimensions, opening type, number of sashes, infill weight or a specific combination of profiles.

All of those inputs eventually have to produce one very concrete result: the price at which the company can sell that exact item.

This is why implementing an aluminium system requires more preparation. Data has to be structured, rules that experienced people may have applied from memory for years have to be formalised, and the technical structure of the product has to be connected with the company’s actual pricing logic.

Once that work is done properly, everyday quoting becomes significantly easier.

The salesperson selects the construction, dimensions, system, opening type, infill, finish, hardware and required options. Okvir.io applies the configured rules, calculates the price and prepares the data that continues through the quotation and production process.

The complexity remains embedded in the system.

In aluminium systems, every selection affects the next one

In a simple price list, a product may appear to be little more than a combination of construction type and dimensions. Aluminium systems involve a much deeper network of dependencies.

Start with the profiles.

The same overall dimensions may describe a fixed window, a single- or double-sash window, a balcony door, an entrance door or a sliding construction. Each configuration activates a different combination of frames, sashes, mullions, transoms, thresholds and other system components.

Adding a vertical or horizontal profile changes material consumption. A second sash introduces another sash profile, additional hardware and a different infill calculation. Changing the opening type can alter the entire hardware configuration.

Doors introduce thresholds, locks, keeps, hinges, cylinders, handles or pull handles and other components whose selection depends on the exact configuration.

Sliding systems follow another set of rules: the number of leaves, number of tracks, element arrangement, sash dimensions and hardware type all influence the final price.

Glazing and infills come next. Infill thickness may determine the correct glazing bead and gasket combination. Glass area depends on the actual geometry of each field. Infill weight can also affect hardware selection in particular systems.

Then there are colours and surface finishes. A standard finish, RAL colour, anodised finish, different internal and external colours or a specific coating may each require a different pricing treatment.

Finally, there is a large group of relatively inexpensive components: connectors, corner cleats, gaskets, screws, additional profiles and other small accessories. Individually, their value may seem minor. Across a large quotation, their combined cost becomes significant.

A professional aluminium calculation therefore needs each relevant component to exist somewhere as structured data or as a defined rule.

The profile price is only the beginning of the calculation

A manufacturer will usually know the purchase price of the aluminium profile. The challenge comes when that material catalogue has to produce the selling price of a specific window or door.

The price of a single item may depend on the length of the profiles used, the number of sashes, hardware type, glass area and specification, finish, additional profiles, thresholds, extensions, services and other components.

The company’s own pricing rules add another layer.

One material may use one type of price correction, while another follows a different method. A particular finish may carry a percentage surcharge. Hardware may be divided into dimensional ranges. One system may use a price matrix, while another may be calculated through formulas and individual components.

The commercial layer follows: discounts, margins, corrections, VAT, installation, transport and any other services sold together with the windows and doors.

A reliable aluminium calculation therefore has to understand both the product and the company’s own commercial model.

This is where Okvir.io creates the most value: the technical structure of the product is connected with the company’s pricing logic, producing the selling price of the exact configuration.

The most valuable aluminium know-how often sits with only a few people

In many companies, there is one person who simply “knows aluminium”.

They know which profile belongs to which system, what is required for a particular door configuration, when the hardware needs to change, which combinations are valid, which surcharges apply and where mistakes tend to occur.

Alongside that person, there may be an Excel spreadsheet, several supplier price lists, system catalogues in PDF format, a separate hardware price list and a collection of old quotations used as reference material.

This way of working can function for years. As sales volume grows, it becomes increasingly difficult to control.

A new salesperson needs a long time to learn the product range. Experienced salespeople still have to consult the technical team from time to time. Technologists interrupt their own work to check quotations. Unusual configurations require extra caution. An outdated price list or a single incorrect formula can create a problem that becomes visible much later in the process.

Digitalising an aluminium system starts by transferring this knowledge into rules that software can apply consistently.

That is a central part of the Okvir.io implementation process.

Aluminium system implementation requires careful preparation

With aluminium, investing more time at the beginning pays off.

The first step is to define the systems the company actually sells, the construction types, profiles and their roles, and the calculation logic for frames, sashes, mullions, transoms and other components. Hardware variants, glazing and infills, finishes, accessories and services are then added to the model.

Pricing rules come next.

These include material prices, tables or formulas, dimensional ranges, surcharges and reductions, finish rules, hardware price corrections, commercial discounts and other parameters that affect the final selling price.

The system then needs to be tested against real examples.

Typical products that the company already manufactures are useful reference points. Edge cases are equally valuable: very small or large dimensions, multiple sashes, specific hardware, unusual finishes, combinations of accessories and configurations where errors have traditionally been easy to make.

A thorough implementation requires the involvement of people who genuinely know the products.

Its value becomes visible later, in every quotation that follows.

After implementation, the salesperson works with the product while the system handles the rules

Once the systems and pricing logic are properly configured, the user no longer has to reconstruct the calculation from scratch.

They select what the customer actually wants.

For example: an aluminium window from a specific system, with a defined width and height, a particular division, one or more sashes, the required opening types, glazing, finish and hardware.

Those selections give Okvir.io the context required for the calculation.

The system applies the configured profile and construction rules, calculates hardware, glazing, finishes and additional components, and applies the commercial conditions relevant to that quotation.

The salesperson receives the price and can continue working with the customer.

This can significantly shorten the time required for a new salesperson to work independently. Experienced salespeople spend less time on manual calculations and checks. Technical staff can concentrate on cases that genuinely require their expertise.

This becomes especially important for companies with multiple salespeople, showrooms or distributor networks. Everyone can work with the same product model and the same pricing rules.

One configuration should follow the item throughout the entire process

A quotation represents one stage in the life of an order item.

Once the quotation is accepted, the information continues into job preparation and production. Maintaining the same configuration throughout that process provides consistency.

Okvir.io connects the sales item with its technical data, graphical representation, specification and the production information defined for that product type.

Production therefore receives clearer information about what has been sold: dimensions, construction, field and sash arrangement, profiles and other relevant components covered by the implementation.

This approach also helps when the customer makes changes during the sales process.

If the dimensions, glazing, finish or construction variant change, the item is recalculated using the new parameters. Once the configuration is finalised, the data used for subsequent work comes from that same item.

Sales and production are therefore working from the same source of information.

Accurate selling price is the central commercial result

Small deviations can quickly become significant in aluminium production.

Consider a few euros of missing accessories in one item. On a single window, the amount may seem negligible. Across a quotation containing dozens of items, it becomes meaningful.

The same applies to an incorrect finish surcharge, unsuitable hardware, a missing threshold, an incorrectly calculated mullion or transom, an omitted additional profile, or a discount applied to components that the company normally excludes from discounting.

Aluminium windows and doors often carry a relatively high value per item. A small percentage error on a large project can consume a substantial part of the expected margin.

For Okvir.io, the commercial target is therefore clear: the price shown on the quotation must reflect the actual configuration being sold and the commercial rules used by that company.

This is where the technical and commercial sides of the system come together.

Profiles, glazing and hardware have their technical roles. Within the calculation they also carry financial values. Finishes, accessories, services and commercial rules complete the calculation.

The customer sees one price.

Behind that price, the company has a structured and controllable calculation model.

PVC and aluminium can share the same sales process

Companies that sell both materials gain additional value from a unified workflow.

PVC and aluminium have different levels of technical depth and different calculation structures, while much of the sales process remains common to both.

The same customer may require PVC windows for one part of a building, aluminium doors for another and a sliding system for access to a terrace. The salesperson is still dealing with one customer, one quotation and one commercial process.

Okvir.io can therefore accommodate different product technologies within the same working environment.

Each system retains its own rules. Users retain one consistent way of working.

In practice, this is particularly valuable for window and door dealers, manufacturers with broad product ranges, and companies that sell multiple systems through partner or distributor networks.

Complexity is handled during implementation, while speed is gained in everyday work

Aluminium systems will always involve a substantial amount of technical detail. Modern systems offer an enormous number of possible combinations, and that flexibility naturally creates complexity.

Properly configured software turns that complexity into structured rules.

During the Okvir.io implementation process, the company’s actual products, calculation methods and commercial logic are defined and connected to the selling price.

Everyday work then becomes much more straightforward: the salesperson configures the item, the system applies the relevant rules, the price and quotation are generated, and the data continues into job preparation and production.

A well-executed implementation therefore creates long-term value.

The knowledge of experienced technologists and business owners is applied through the system. Sales teams can work faster. New employees can become productive sooner. Production receives more consistent information. Management gains greater control over the way selling prices are calculated.

Every new item ultimately has the same requirement:

the product that has been configured, quoted and prepared for manufacture must carry the correct selling price.