With more than 100 employees, Ellgass - Plastiline SA offers a wide range of Swiss-made and customised marking products, durable signage, guidance systems and traffic solutions. For more than 180 years, the family-owned company makes a strong and visible impact on Swiss road infrastructure, shaping the very streets we drive and walk on every day. From road markings to traffic signage, each year, their experts mark over 1’000’000 metres of road lines, complete around 2’000 projects and process 200’000 kilograms of marking material.

Ellgass - Plastiline is growing fast while maintaining its familiar, people-first culture and delivering innovative, high-quality services and products. “To keep up with our growth, we needed a robust digital backbone. Our goal was to support our employees in their daily work, improve collaboration and structure our internal processes to build a solid foundation for the future”, explains Philippe Decosterd, CEO of Ellgass - Plastiline.

Clear vision for the software and the digitalisation partner
“We first implemented Odoo 11 in 2020, replacing a local ERP system that could no longer handle our needs for more flexibility and integrated, scalable processes”, says Philippe Decosterd.

Ellgass - Plastiline had a clear list of criteria the new business ERP had to fulfil: a multi-company approach, integrated modules spanning accounting, manufacturing, purchasing, stock, CRM and HR as well as the agility to evolve with the company’s changing structure.

To unlock the latest features and further optimise their operations, Ellgass - Plastiline decided to migrate to Odoo 17. It was crucial to find the right Odoo partner for this journey.

“We hesitated at first because braintec didn’t have a local presence in French-speaking Switzerland”, Philippe Decosterd recalls. “But after meeting the project leaders and experiencing their digitalisation expertise and ability to align technology perfectly with our needs, we knew braintec is the best partner for us. Their company size and in-house developers also gave us great confidence. Meanwhile, braintec has further expanded and opened an office in Lausanne with a dedicated team of French-speaking professionals here in Western Switzerland,” he says with a smile.

Successful migration to Odoo 17
The upgrade from Odoo 11 to Odoo 17 involved – beside migrating data and workflows – also consolidating customisations and implementing a leaner and more scalable architecture.

• An extensive cleanup was undertaken on product master data, especially for non-stocked items, to improve data accuracy and reliability.
• All workflows and modules have been meticulously documented and structured in GitHub, ensuring transparency and ease of maintenance.

"The braintec team supported us through every step of the migration process, from planning and testing to go-live and the hypercare phase after go-live," states Philippe Decosterd.

Optimised business processes thanks to a multi-company approach
The result after the migration is a multi-company Odoo instance that supports 15 partner companies, multiple warehouses, a full manufacturing setup and a tailored commission system for sales agents and other partners. Accounting contains multiple journals for each company, giving the CFO a full overview of every entity’s finances.

Centralised order management for more efficiency

Ellgass - Plastiline centrally manages all activities of its subsidiaries, partner companies and warehouses. This leads to complex sales and purchasing processes, such as internal transactions between the various companies, as a typical aspect of a decentralised corporate structure.

For example some signs are produced on a “make-to-order” basis. The requests are processed centrally, while each subsidiary manages its own sales and production orders. With Odoo, all companies operate unified under the Ellgass - Plastiline umbrella as the main entity, staying flexible and organised.

“Before, creating a custom signal could trigger 20 emails and countless phone calls. Today, everything from client information to technical specifications is centralised in Odoo”, the CEO reflects.

Streamlined inventory and manufacturing operations

Ellgass - Plastiline oversees more than a dozen warehouses. Each warehouse follows clearly defined routes to handle both internal and external suppliers.

To keep inventory levels at the right level, Ellgass - Plastiline uses the reorder rules that Odoo provides as standard. As soon as an item runs low, Odoo automatically triggers the appropriate order, so operations keep running smoothly without delays.

The manufacturing process is simple and precise. First, all parts required for production are listed in bills of materials (BOMs) in Odoo. Then, production orders are created based on these BOMs and employees complete the orders, manufacturing the products correctly and on time.

Commission management made easy

The custom commission feature of braintec helps to manage sales commissions efficiently. "In the sales order line, our team can precisely define and track which agents receive commissions. The dashboard gives us a clear overview at any time of who is handling which orders and how much commission accumulates over the course of the year," explains Philippe Decosterd.

Precise time management with SwissTiming by braintec
Employee management is now straightforward and effective, covering standard processes like time-off requests and vacation tracking. Also, tasks, approvals and responsibilities are clearly assigned and visible.

SwissTiming by braintec extends this standard Odoo features with 

• the automatic calculation of overtime and extra hours.
• the tracking of special hours such as Sunday and night shifts including validation by supervisors.
• the automatic adjustment of break times. 

For Ellgass, braintec developed additional functionality, such as:

• Saturday work is tracked separately in the timesheet report.
• Conversion of overtime into compensatory days off, based on flexible factors.

Leading digital change and strategic growth

Despite the improvements, change wasn’t always easy, since many employees were new to digital systems. Thanks to clear process documentation and thorough training, the transition has been successful and rewarding. "Our employees now see what is possible with Odoo and recognise the opportunities of digitalisation. It is also a cultural change and a very positive one”, Philippe Decosterd shares.

The next step will be the introduction of the Swissdec Premium Solution by braintec. The comprehensive solution extends the standard Odoo Swissdec payroll features with essential functions for efficient and compliant payroll management in Switzerland.

Additionally, Ellgass - Plastiline is continuously testing new Odoo modules. “Whenever I have time, I try new Odoo apps. With the test platform of braintec, I can safely explore and experiment. I really like the flexibility and endless possibilities of Odoo.”

braintec, a trusted partner for the road ahead

What stands out most in the collaboration with braintec? "Our project manager is incredible. Always fast, always thinking with us, proactive and absolutely reliable. As a sparring partner with extensive know-how in digital transformation, braintec supports us in rethinking our processes and moving forward. That is what true partnership looks like,” concludes Philippe Decosterd.

With braintec as Partner and Odoo as ERP System, Ellgass - Plastiline continues to set the standard and shape the future of road signage through innovation and strong market leadership.