Doinel Atanasiu

TL;DR I build custom AI systems that read customer orders arriving by email, WhatsApp or other channels, as PDF, Excel or photos, and bring them into the company's management software: through its API when it has one, as an import file when it doesn't. The company chooses whether orders go in automatically or after a person checks them. In a real case, a metalworking manufacturer in central Italy, the time per attachment fell from 3-4 minutes to about one, by the administrator's estimate.

A custom AI system that brings your customers' orders into your management software, without retyping

It reads the orders you receive, in any format, and fills them in the way your management software expects. You decide whether they go in on their own or after you check them.

For companies that receive orders from many customers, each in their own format.

Tell me how your orders arrive

The problem

Every customer sends orders their own way: a PDF attached to an email, an Excel sheet, a photo of a form, a WhatsApp message. Layouts, codes and units of measure all change. Someone in the office opens each order, types it into the management software and leaves whatever they were doing half-finished.

Many companies have already tried ChatGPT. You upload the file, get an Excel sheet, fix it and import it. But the AI picks the columns and the format on its own every time, so the checking and fixing stay with you. Meanwhile nobody knows for sure which orders have arrived, which are already in the software and which have fallen behind.

Do the maths: 20 orders a day at 4 minutes each adds up to more than 6 hours a week spent retyping.

How it works

  1. Your customer sends the order as they do today: by email, WhatsApp or another channel.
  2. The system recognises messages that aren't orders and sets them aside without using AI, so they cost nothing.
  3. The AI reads the order, whether it's a PDF, an Excel file or a photo, and fills it in your management software's format, converting units of measure with your company's own table.
  4. If your management software has an API, the order goes straight in. If it doesn't, you get the file ready to import.
  5. You get a notification for every order, and every message carries a status (waiting, entered, not an order) that shows where it stands.

It fits the software you already use

Your management software or ERP stays the same, and so do your inbox, WhatsApp and the licences you already pay for. How to connect the system to your software is something I check during the process analysis.

If your software has an API, the system writes to it directly. If it doesn't, the system prepares the file in the format your software already imports, and the import stays a few-second step. Either way, you and your team keep using your own programs.

How much control you keep

You decide how much to leave to the system:

  • Automatic entry. When your management software allows it, orders go in on their own and you get a notification.
  • A check before import. The system prepares the order and a person reviews it before it enters the software. I recommend it at the start and wherever a mistake is costly.

If you like, start with the check and switch to automatic entry later.

Either way, spending stays under control. Before analysing a document the system estimates what the AI will cost, and if it goes over the threshold you set, it waits for your approval. Every message stays on record with its status, so you can always see why an order stopped.

Who it's for

It's built for companies that receive orders from many customers, for example:

  • metalworking and components;
  • wholesale distribution;
  • food and drink;
  • building materials;
  • textiles and clothing;
  • packaging;
  • chemicals;
  • spare parts.

How you work matters more than your sector. This service fits if:

  • you receive orders from many customers, each in their own format;
  • orders arrive as attachments or messages, and someone retypes them by hand;
  • you receive orders every day, on a regular basis;
  • whoever enters the orders has other work to do too.

The published case is a metalworking manufacturer that receives PDF orders by email. For other sectors, channels and formats, the first step is looking together at how your orders arrive today.

What you gain

  • Less time per order. With the check, whoever used to retype now reviews. With automatic entry, the order is already in the software.
  • Fewer typing errors. Codes and quantities reach the software without being retyped by hand, with units converted by your own table.
  • You know where every order stands. Each message's status tells you what went in, what's waiting and what stopped.
  • You change the rules yourself. Senders to ignore, words that identify an order, the spending threshold and the units table: you edit them without calling me.
  • Your customers carry on as before. They send orders the way they always have, in their own format.

A real case, in brief

A metalworking manufacturer in central Italy has used the system since 1 April 2026 for the PDF orders it receives by email. Its management software, Danea Easyfatt, has no API, so the administrator checks each file and imports it. In the first six months:

  • the time per attachment fell from 3-4 minutes to about one, by the administrator's estimate;
  • the system processed 219 orders and 300 attachments, and set aside 504 emails that weren't orders without using AI;
  • no order needed correcting before import, according to the administrator;
  • AI usage came to about $10, roughly $0.03 per attachment.

If you're weighing whether it pays off, I've written up when order entry automation is worth it, and what it costs. If you're curious about the technical side, here's how I built the system.

How we start and what it costs

  1. First call. You tell me how your orders arrive. It's free.
  2. Process analysis. We gather sample orders from your customers and agree the format, units of measure and rules.
  3. Fixed-price quote. You know the cost up front.
  4. Development and testing. I test the system on your real orders before it goes live.
  5. Training and launch. I show you how to check orders and how to change the rules.

The build cost depends on how many customers and formats you have, which channels orders arrive through and how your management software works. AI usage comes on top, and it stays low, with a limit you set.

Accounts and infrastructure are in your company's name, so the system stays yours even if you change supplier one day.

Working with me from abroad

I'm based in Italy and work remotely by default. Calls, process analysis, testing and training all run online, and I travel on-site when a project needs it. I pick EU-based services whenever one exists, and everything runs on accounts in your company's name, so your data stays under your control.

Tell me how your orders arrive

Write to me with the channels your orders arrive through, their formats, how many you get a month, which management software you use and how much time it takes today. I'll reply with a first assessment. If it makes sense, we'll set up a free call, and you decide only after seeing the quote.

Interested in a system like this?
Reach out on LinkedIn, or send me an email - I read both.
Message me on LinkedInEmail me at doinel@atanasiu.me
FAQ
Common questions and answers
Can AI read orders in different formats?
Yes. Each customer can keep sending orders the way they prefer, as PDF, Excel or photos, with their own layout and units. The AI reads them and fills in the single format the management software imports, converting units with a table the company controls.
Which channels can orders come from?
The ones the company already uses: email, WhatsApp or other channels it receives orders through. During the process analysis we check where they come from and how to connect them.
Does it need an API from my management software?
No. When the management software has an API, orders go straight in. When it doesn't, the system prepares the file the software already imports, and a person does the last step.
Does it work with my management software?
It works through an API or an import file, which covers most management software and ERPs. How to connect it to yours is something I check during the process analysis.
My ERP already has an order module. Do I still need this?
The order module handles an order once it's in the software: deliveries, stock, invoicing. The system works one step earlier, reading the order from the email or WhatsApp message and entering it without retyping. The two work together.
Does the AI enter orders on its own?
That depends on how you prefer to work. When the management software allows it, the AI can enter orders automatically, or prepare them and leave a person to check them before they go in. At the start I recommend the check.
What happens if the AI misreads an order?
With a check before import, the person reviewing it fixes it before it enters the software. Either way every order stays on record, with a notification and a status, so a mistake can be found and fixed.
Do I need to replace my software or buy new programs?
No. The system adapts to the management software, channels and licences the company already uses.
How is this different from an order automation platform?
A platform asks you to adapt to its formats and is usually paid for by subscription. A custom system adapts to your management software and your customers' formats, has a fixed price and is in your company's name.
What does it cost?
The build has a fixed price, set after the process analysis, because it depends on customers, formats, channels and the management software. Running costs are low: in a real case AI usage came to about $10 over six months for 300 attachments.
How long does it take to build?
It depends mostly on how many customers and formats there are and how orderly the process already is. I give you a precise estimate after the process analysis, together with the quote.
Can you work with a company outside Italy?
Yes. The work runs remotely by default, from the process analysis to training, with on-site visits when a project needs them. EU-based services are the first choice, and everything runs on accounts in the client company's name.