How do you replace an Access database with a web app?
By Andrija Drabić · Published · Updated
You replace an Access database by importing its data into one cloud database and building a web app your whole team logs into, instead of keeping a copy of the file on every PC. That is what a steel-assembly contractor did: three years of data from an Access file is now a job-costing app with 23 modules.
Where Access got stuck
The company ran job costing in a Microsoft Access file installed on each PC. Contracts, hours, invoices and wages lived in separate tables, no two copies agreed, and the owner could not see whether a contract was actually making money.
Signs you've outgrown Access or Excel
- The same file exists in several copies, and nobody knows which one is right.
- You type the same job's data into more than one place.
- A simple question, like whether a contract makes money, takes days to answer.
- Reports are put together by hand before every meeting.
What replaced Access
One cloud app that imported the old Access data and took over its work: a contract register with plan vs. actual, work hours, incoming and outgoing invoices, wages, cost plans and a cash-flow projection.
Each user sees what their role allows: the app has three user roles, enforced on the server. Notifications flag deadlines, and CSV and PDF reports replaced the old printouts. The app is hosted in the EU.
What changed
One master database instead of a copy on every PC. Margin per contract, hourly value and a forward cash-flow view are now one click away.
What the switch looks like
The move follows the same steps as every project we run:
- A free 30-minute call and a day of consulting at your company, then a written scope and a fixed price.
- Interface prototypes you approve before any code is written.
- Short build cycles, with working software every cycle.
- Your existing data imported, so nobody starts from zero.
- Launch, documentation and 30 days of free fixes.