How CFM Equipment Distributors Simplified P21 Data Access with Supabase
About the Company
Founded in 1984, CFM Equipment Distributors serves HVAC contractors, dealers, and industry professionals with products, training, support, and industry expertise. The company offers a wide range of HVAC solutions, including residential and commercial equipment, ductless systems, indoor air quality products, controls, parts, and accessories. Its focus is on building strong partnerships and providing reliable service to help customers grow.
Integration Challenges
CFM Equipment Distributors had invested a significant sum towards its Epicor P21 cloud implementation, but the team was still facing issues with accessing and using its data.
One of the biggest problems was P21’s API. Regular queries for sales reports, Power BI dashboards, and other business data would quickly run into API rate limits. API access was also tied to a static IP, while CFM’s IP address changed frequently. This meant the team had to request access again whenever the IP changed.
Because of these limitations, CFM was relying on daily CSV exports just to get data out of P21. This made it difficult to work with current data, build dashboards, or develop new applications. The same API issues were also getting in the way of its B2B ecommerce plans. The new ordering portal needed to work with P21 data, but the existing API made that difficult to build reliably.
There was also a manual process around payments. Sales reps had to move between P21 and CardPointe to process a payment, get the authorization number, and then return to P21 to enter it. CFM needed a more reliable way to access its P21 data and connect it with the systems and applications the business wanted to use.
The Solution
DCKAP built the following integration pipelines, all moving data from P21 to Supabase in batches:
- Customer contacts and ship-to sync
- Product sync
- Inventory sync
- Orders and quotes sync
- Invoices sync
- Customer-specific pricing sync
The data was synced every five minutes, keeping Supabase close to the latest P21 data. Webhooks could also be used where real-time updates were needed, such as pricing triggers for the ecommerce portal.
DCKAP also handled the P21 API limitations using pacing mechanisms and custom logic to manage API calls and avoid rate limits. With stable IP addresses on the DCKAP side, CFM no longer had to manage changing IP access on its own.
With the data available in Supabase, CFM could build its B2B ordering portal without making every request directly to P21. The same setup also gave the team a foundation for future dashboards, reports, and applications.
CFM also had full admin access to its DCKAP Integrator workflows, giving the team visibility into the integrations and the flexibility to make changes or add new workflows when needed.
The Impact
- Less manual work: Daily CSV exports were no longer needed to access business data.
- Better data access: CFM could run queries, build dashboards, and develop applications using Supabase without constantly hitting P21.
- More reliable integrations: API rate limits and changing IP access were no longer blocking regular data operations.
- B2B ecommerce moved forward: Product, inventory, pricing, and order data could be accessed through Supabase, giving CFM a workable foundation for its new ordering portal.
- A foundation for future projects: The setup could support new applications and integrations without putting the entire workload directly on P21.
Looking Ahead
For CFM Equipment Distributors, the right integration approach gave them a more reliable way to work with their P21 data while creating room for new digital initiatives. Instead of putting more pressure on the ERP, they now have a separate data layer that can support reporting, ecommerce, and future applications.
For distributors facing similar challenges with ERP data access, API limits, or disconnected systems, the right integration setup can help create a more scalable path forward. If you’re dealing with similar integration challenges, get in touch with DCKAP to explore how DCKAP Integrator can help.
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