A solo flooring installer was running estimates, jobs, and invoices out of an Access database on a single laptop, retyping quotes by hand and unable to see anything from a job site. Access Evolved rebuilt it as a phone-first Power Apps solution on SharePoint and Power Automate in four weeks. The owner now saves about 500 hours and $33,800 a year, and recovered the investment in about three to four months.
Representative engagement: this case study combines typical scope, timelines, and outcomes from Access Evolved projects. Organization details are illustrative, and results will vary by system and organization.
A one-person flooring installation business replaced a laptop-only Access database with a mobile Power Apps solution built on SharePoint. Today the owner builds quotes on site, tracks jobs from a phone, and sends invoices and follow-ups automatically.
At a glance
- Organization: Owner-operated residential flooring installer, 1 person plus occasional subcontract help
- Legacy system: Microsoft Access database on one laptop, with quotes and invoices retyped into Word
- New platform: Power Apps (canvas, mobile), SharePoint lists, Power Automate, Microsoft 365 Business
- Timeline: 4 weeks from diagnostic to go-live, plus 2 weeks of post-launch support
- Result: ~500 hours/year saved, ~$33,800/year net savings, payback in about 3–4 months
The Business and Its Access Database
The owner had built the Access database with a relative’s help about ten years earlier. It held customers, estimates, jobs, material prices, and invoices, and it did what he needed at a desk in the evening.
It handled:
- Customer records and job addresses
- Estimates based on square footage, material, and labor rates
- Job tracking from scheduled to complete
- Material price lists and supplier notes
- Invoices and payment status
Everything lived on one laptop. Quotes were exported and retyped into a Word template, and notes taken at the job site went on paper or in text messages and were entered later.
Why They Needed to Modernize
The trigger was a laptop that nearly died, taking ten years of customer and pricing history with it. The owner had also hit the limits of working only from a desk:
- Evening paperwork. Quotes, invoices, and job notes were done after a full day on his knees installing floors.
- Slow quotes. Customers often waited a day or two for a written quote, and some hired whoever responded first.
- No access from the job site. He could not check a price, a past job, or a customer’s address without going home.
- Forgotten follow-ups. Unanswered quotes and unpaid invoices depended on his memory.
- No backup. One failing laptop meant losing the business records.
He did not want a complicated system or a large monthly bill. He wanted to quote on site, get paid faster, and stop doing paperwork at night.
Our Approach: Four Phases Over 4 Weeks
Because this was a one-person business, we kept the scope tight and the cost low, and used licensing the owner already had through Microsoft 365.
- Diagnostic and cleanup (week 1). We backed up and documented the Access database, then spent a morning on a job site to see how he actually quotes and tracks work. We cleaned about 400 customer and 900 job records.
- Data design (week 1). We moved the data into SharePoint lists for customers, jobs, estimates, material prices, and invoices. SharePoint kept the cost low and the data inside the Microsoft 365 account he already owned.
- App build (weeks 2–3). We built a phone-first canvas app for on-site estimating. He picks the customer, enters room measurements, chooses materials, and the app calculates square footage, waste, labor, and total. It produces a clean PDF quote that can be sent by email or text from the driveway.
- Automation, training, and go-live (week 4), then two weeks of support. Power Automate sends the quote, reminds him of open quotes after three and seven days, and sends invoice reminders on a schedule. We held a two-hour training session on the real phone he uses and left a one-page quick guide.
Results: Time and Money Saved
The owner now saves about 500 hours a year and has his evenings back.
| Area | Before | After | Hours saved per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Estimates and quotes | ~5 hrs/week at a desk | ~1.5 hrs/week, mostly on site | ~182 |
| Invoicing and payment follow-up | ~3 hrs/week | ~0.5 hrs/week | ~130 |
| Job notes and material tracking | ~3 hrs/week re-entered from paper | ~0.5 hrs/week, entered once on a phone | ~130 |
| Quote and appointment follow-ups | ~1 hr/week, often forgotten | Automatic reminders | ~52 |
| Total | ~494 |
Annual financial impact
- Owner time recovered (494 hrs at $45/hr): ~$22,000
- Additional jobs won through same-day quotes and automatic follow-ups: ~$9,000 in added margin
- Late-paid and forgotten invoices and extras recovered: ~$4,000
- Less added Microsoft 365 and Power Automate licensing: –$1,200
- Net savings: ~$33,800 per year
With a project investment of about $9,500, the owner recovered the cost in roughly three to four months.
Beyond the numbers, ten years of business history is now backed up and searchable, and he can answer a customer’s question on the spot.
What Made It Work
- Keep it small. The solution does a handful of things well instead of trying to be a full business suite.
- Build for the phone. Quoting on site was the single biggest win, so the app was designed around it.
- Use what he already owns. Building on his Microsoft 365 account kept monthly costs low.
- Automate the nagging. Reminders handled the follow-ups he could never keep up with.
Is your small business still running on an Access database on one computer? Book a free diagnostic and we’ll show you a right-sized path for your business.