Integrations · Catalogue file / SFTP
CSV ERP integration for quote automation: start with a catalogue file
A CSV ERP integration lets you start quote automation with ERP Agent the same week, with no ERP project to wait for. Export your catalogue as a CSV file and forward customer requests to your agent mailbox. The agent identifies the right products on every line, your team reviews the draft, and it goes into your ERP, CRM or other system as an import file or an SFTP order file.
How does a CSV ERP integration work?
ERP Agent integrates with Business Central, SAP, NetSuite, Visma, IFS, Sage and any other ERP or CRM. We set up the connection for your company during onboarding, and you can start with a catalogue file the same week. On the catalogue-file route, your product list comes in as a CSV export, and every reviewed draft goes back out as a file in the layout your ERP imports.
The agent's work is the same on every route. It reads the customer's request as written, identifies which of your products each line means and prepares a quote or sales order for your team to check. Pilots start the same way: on your own catalogue and your customers' real requests.
Why distributors start with a catalogue file
- Running the same week. There is no ERP project to wait for: export the catalogue, open the agent mailbox and your reps start forwarding requests.
- No ERP access to grant. The agent works from the file you give it and writes nothing to your ERP, so getting started needs no access rights or IT project.
- Works on top of your ERP. No replacement project: your ERP stays the system of record, and ERP Agent hands it reviewed drafts as files.
- Your team stays in control. A rep reviews every draft before it goes anywhere; nothing reaches a customer without approval.
What moves in each direction
| Direction | What | Format and route |
|---|---|---|
| In | Product catalogue | CSV export from your ERP: semicolon-, comma- or tab-separated, with your own column names. Uploaded in the app; a new export replaces the old one. |
| In | Customer requests | Email bodies and attachments: PDF (scanned too), Excel, CSV, Word, images and forwarded emails. Forwarded to the agent mailbox, pasted into the web app or sent by your own systems through the REST API. |
| In, optional | Past quotes or sales history | An export of past quote or sales lines, so the agent learns which products each customer buys. |
| Out | Reviewed draft | An Excel workbook or a file in your ERP's import layout, downloaded from the review screen or delivered over SFTP to the folder your ERP reads. |
How does the draft reach your ERP? Order files and SFTP
Many ERPs import quote or order lines from a file. ERP Agent writes the reviewed draft in the layout your ERP's import expects, configured for your company: delimiter, columns, headers, decimal separator and encoding, for example product code and quantity on each line.
Reps download the file from the review screen and import it. If your ERP picks up order files from a server folder, we build delivery to that folder over SFTP for your company, so approved drafts arrive without a download. ERP Agent already delivers XML and CSV files over SFTP on the supplier side, for example material certificate data.
How do you start quote automation without an ERP integration?
What to prepare is in the pilot checklist.
Export the catalogue
Product code and name, plus the columns reps use to tell items apart: size, material, grade, pressure class, product group. Columns are mapped on upload, and unmapped ones stay searchable. Past quotes or sales history, if you can export them, help the agent learn which products each customer buys.
Open the agent mailbox
Your company gets its own address, such as yourcompany@erp-agent.com, on Microsoft 365. Reps forward customer requests there or paste them into the web app.
Review, price and export
Reps check the lines and their match scores, set the prices and export the draft as a quote or order file for the ERP.
Connect the ERP when you are ready
Once we have set up the connection during onboarding, approved drafts are written straight to your ERP, CRM or other system, priced from the ERP. Reps keep the same mailbox and review screen.
Example: a fastener order, started from a catalogue file
A fastener distributor's rep forwards a customer's email to the agent mailbox; the catalogue came in as a CSV export.
Re: Order for Thursday delivery
- M10 x 40 hex set screws 8.8 BZP x 200
- M10 nyloc nuts x 200
- M10 washers x 400
- studding M12 x 1m x 10
| Request line | Proposed product | Qty | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| M10 x 40 hex set screws 8.8 BZP | Hex set screw M10 x 40, 8.8, zinc plated (HSS-M1040-8Z) | 200 | 96 |
| M10 nyloc nuts | Nylon insert lock nut M10, zinc plated (NYL-M10-Z) | 200 | 94 |
| M10 washers | Flat washer M10 (FW-M10-Z); alternative: form G | 400 | 76 marked |
| studding M12 x 1m | Threaded rod M12 x 1 m, zinc plated (TR-M12-1M-Z) | 10 | 93 |
Illustrative example with sample products, codes and scores. The washer line is marked for review because the request does not say which form, and the alternative is ready on the line. In a code;quantity import layout, the file starts HSS-M1040-8Z;200.
What reps see in the review
- A match score from 0 to 100 on every line; lines under 80 are marked. Open a line for the reasoning or an alternative product.
- Prices in the rep's hands. Reps set or adjust each line's price before export. Once your ERP is connected, customer pricing comes from the ERP's own price logic and stays editable.
- Quote chat. Add or remove rows and change quantities and prices; each proposed edit is approved or rejected line by line. The agent cannot send anything on its own.
- Send and learn. When the rep marks the draft sent, the agent learns from it: the next time a customer writes the same thing, it picks the same product.
Start with a file, connect when you are ready
| Catalogue file / SFTP | Connected ERP | |
|---|---|---|
| Getting started | The same week, from a CSV export | Set up for your company during onboarding, whether you run Business Central, SAP, NetSuite or any other ERP or CRM |
| Products | Identified from your latest catalogue export | Identified from the ERP, with codes checked against it before sending |
| Customer pricing | Set by the rep in the review screen | From the ERP's own price logic, editable before sending |
| Approved draft | An import file, downloaded or delivered over SFTP | Written to your ERP, CRM or other system |
| Match scores, quote chat, learning | From day one | Unchanged |
Every route into your ERP
Every ERP, CRM, email and file route. We set up the ERP or CRM connection for your company during onboarding, and the catalogue file gets your team started the same week. See all integrations.
| System | Type | Reads | Writes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dynamics 365 Business Central | ERP integration | Items, customers, customer prices | Sales quotes and sales orders |
| SAP S/4HANA | ERP integration | Products, business partners, customer prices | Sales quotations and sales orders |
| SAP Business One | ERP integration | Items, business partners, price lists | Sales quotations and sales orders |
| NetSuite | ERP integration | Items, customers, customer prices | Estimates (quotes) and sales orders |
| Dynamics 365 Finance & Supply Chain | ERP integration | Released products, customers, trade agreement prices | Sales quotations and sales orders |
| Visma | ERP integration | Items, customers, customer prices | Quotes and sales orders |
| IFS | ERP integration | Sales parts, customers, customer prices | Sales quotations and customer orders |
| Monitor ERP | ERP integration | Parts, customers, customer prices | Quotes and customer orders |
| Infor M3 | ERP integration | Items, customers, customer prices | Quotations and customer orders |
| Exact | ERP integration | Items, customers, sales prices | Quotations and sales orders |
| AFAS Profit | ERP integration | Items, debtors, price agreements | Quotes and sales orders |
| Odoo | ERP integration | Products, customers, pricelists | Quotations and sales orders |
| Sage | ERP integration | Items, customers, customer prices | Sales quotes and sales orders |
| Jeeves | ERP integration | Items, customers, customer prices | Quotes and sales orders; confirmed values on purchase orders |
| Lemonsoft | ERP integration | Items, customers, customer prices | Quotes |
| Microsoft 365 / Outlook | Email integration | Customer requests in the agent mailbox; email history for training | Nothing is sent to customers without your team |
| Catalogue file / SFTP | File | Product catalogue from a file, from the first week | The reviewed quote or order as a file, ready to import into your system |
| Any other ERP or CRM | ERP or CRM integration | Products, customers and prices, through the connection we set up for your company during onboarding | Quotes and sales orders |
Results
- 4–7 min
- per line when a sales rep creates quotes and orders by hand, according to our case study
- 95%
- average automation across our customers
- Over 95%
- accuracy in quote-line automation at LVI-WaBeK
- Steel, HVAC, fasteners
- distributors live with ERP Agent
Frequently asked questions
Can we start quote automation without an ERP integration?
Yes, the same week. Upload the catalogue as a CSV file, open the agent mailbox and reps start forwarding customer requests. Drafts are reviewed in the web app and exported as a file for your ERP.
Does ERP Agent need access to our ERP when we start with a file?
No. It works from the catalogue file, the requests your team sends and any history you choose to share, and it writes nothing to the ERP. Before setup, we agree which data the agent needs. ERP Agent is GDPR-compliant, and models run with zero data retention; see security.
Does the catalogue file work with our ERP?
Yes. ERP Agent integrates with any ERP system, and the catalogue file is the fastest way in: export your product list as CSV, and every reviewed draft comes back as a file in the layout your ERP imports, so your team starts the same week.
Can the draft be delivered as an SFTP order file?
Yes. The export layout is configured for your company, and if your ERP picks up order files from a server folder, we build delivery to that folder over SFTP. ERP Agent already delivers XML and CSV files over SFTP for supplier documents.
How often should we re-upload the catalogue?
Whenever products or codes change. A new upload replaces the old one, and the agent always works from your latest file.
Can we move to a direct ERP connection later?
Yes. ERP Agent integrates with Business Central, SAP, NetSuite, Visma, Jeeves, Lemonsoft and any other ERP or CRM, and we set up the connection for your company during onboarding. Reps keep the same mailbox and review screen. Pricing is a setup fee and a monthly subscription, with an itemised quote before you start; see pricing.
Related
- ERP integrations for AI quote and order automation, on any ERP system
- AI quote and order automation for Business Central
- AI quote and sales order automation for SAP S/4HANA
- Microsoft 365 / Outlook integration: the agent mailbox for quotes and orders
- AI quote automation for distributors and wholesalers
- Order entry automation for distributors: customer POs to sales orders
Let’s look at your quote workflow
Start with a catalogue file
Book a 30-minute call: we go through your catalogue export together, and you can start the same week.
- Your requests and product catalogue
- Your pricing and review process
- A clear scope for the next step
Lauri Pelkonen
Founder & CEO
Book a 30-minute call Request a demo by emailOr use the address directly