How a Global Vending-Based Inventory Platform Was Transformed into a Scalable SaaS

Our Client

The client is a leader in automated inventory control systems, with more than 20,000 active units in the aerospace, manufacturing, defense, and retail sectors. Their platform powers vending-based dispensing of critical parts, and tools and is widely trusted by major enterprises across sectors. However, their legacy system was built on outdated codebases that couldn’t keep up with modern customer expectations, was geographically dispersed, and was becoming increasingly difficult to update.

Business Need

Their inventory platform supported more than 900 manufacturing sites, all with custom workflows and vending hardware. But it was hard to scale. Updates were manual, the UI was outdated, and new features were slow to deliver.

The client needed to:

• Modernize without disrupting existing deployments
• Move to a SaaS model supporting multiple devices and languages.
• Improve sync and data reliability across cloud and edge
• Add dashboards, reporting and self-service controls
• Enhance security and facilitate SSO.
• Cut down engineering overhead and support time

Solution

Working closely with the client, Damco re-architected the system as a cloud-native SaaS platform, designed to scale, support real-time synchronization, and be compatible across all devices.

• Modernizing Architecture Designed a secure, cloud-native microservices-based architecture, enabling independent scaling, faster deployments, and modular upgrades using modern frameworks.
• UI/UX & Localization Delivered a cross-platform, cross-browser interface supporting tablet and desktop devices, localized for international deployments.
• Real-time Sync Vending-to-cloud sync enabled with offline fallback and automatic recovery. Microsoft Sync Framework was used to reliably synchronize data between vending machines and the cloud platform, ensuring consistency across connected and offline environments.
• SSO and Access Control Integrated LDAP-based login, roles, and tighter password policies.
• Reporting Dashboards Created interactive dashboards with configurable analytics widgets, role-based reports, and site-level insights across both physical and cloud environments.
• Parallel System Support Delivered upgrades and new modules without disrupting active deployments.
• Retrofitting & Backward Compatibility Extended new features to legacy systems to avoid forced migrations.

Business Impact

Migrating to the cloud native SaaS platform allowed the client to build a better foundation for scaling without interrupting live deployments. Day-to-day operations are easier to manage, and teams can now move faster with fewer support issues.

By improving real-time visibility, enforcing controlled dispensing, and optimizing replenishment workflows, the platform helped end customers reduce indirect supply consumption by up to 40% and lower inventory carrying costs by up to 45%.

Results delivered:

• 3× Faster rollout time for platform updates New features and improvements now reach the field faster.
• 40% decrease in support tickets Thanks to self-recovery and modular design, the number of synchronization and access issues decreased sharply.
• 30% quicker onboarding for new users The modern multilingual UI made it easier to train and deploy across regions.
• <2hr of downtime during transition of platforms The rollout was staged with zero disruption of active vending operations.
• Real-time sync across all connected devices Field teams are now working with the latest data, automatically synced to the cloud.
• Stronger compliance and access control LDAP SSO and tiered roles enabled more streamlined access without adding complexity.

Where Things Stand Now

The new platform is live and running alongside legacy systems where needed. Sync and reporting are stable. New features are rolling out faster, with less effort. The solution now serves as a scalable, microservices-driven SaaS foundation supporting analytics-led inventory optimization across global vending operations.