What is sales order automation for lumber dealers?

Sales order automation uses AI to eliminate the manual work of keying orders and quotes into your ERP. For an LBM dealer, that means reading a customer's request, whatever mix of board feet, piece counts, random lengths, or building material line items it contains, matching each line to your catalog and live pricing, and building the order or quote automatically. Reps review the completed draft, make any adjustments, and submit it with a click instead of looking up and keying each item by hand.

Why does speed matter more for lumber pricing than other categories?

Because prices can change daily, a quote that takes hours to build can already be wrong by the time it's sent, and a quote that sits in a queue for a day or two can erase the margin on the whole order. Faster order entry keeps the price you quote in line with the market you're actually buying and selling in.

Can Canals handle mixed lumber and building materials orders?

Yes. Canals is built to read board feet, piece counts, and random-length tallies alongside configured building products like windows and doors on the same order, so CSRs aren't running two disconnected workflows for the same job.

How long does implementation take?

For the most common ERPs and accounting systems, technical implementation can be completed in just a few days, requiring only a few hours of IT time to grant access before data syncs automatically. If Canals does not yet integrate with a given ERP or accounting system, implementation is typically completed in 30 days or less.

Yes. Canals maintains enterprise-grade security independently verified through annual SOC 2 Type II audits, along with third-party penetration testing and regular automated security checks. All data is encrypted at rest using AES-256 and in transit using TLS 1.3.

How much does Canals cost?

Canals uses a tiered, usage-based pricing model, with cost depending on estimated usage and products purchased. A pricing proposal is typically provided after sharing details on business needs.

AI Order Entry Purpose-Built for Construction Suppliers

Canals reads your customers' orders–board feet, pieces, random length, mixed lumber-and-BMC lists–and drafts them in your ERP with live pricing from your system. No templates, no keying in products, just faster, fresher quotes.

See how fast and accurate order entry automation can be

Meet Customers Where They Prefer to Do Business

Reduce your margin risk with faster quoting, no matter how the request comes in

01

Email

As soon as a message hits a rep's inbox, Canals identifies it as an order or quote request and drafts it automatically–pulling today's pricing fresh from your catalog, not yesterday's

02

Phone

Answer customer calls and process voicemails in Canals to have them transcribed in real time and turned into an ERP-ready order before the market moves again

03

Counter & Yard

Record live conversations at the counter or in the field to build a quote–no notepad, no re-keying later

Turbocharge Your Team with AI-Powered Workflows

Let AI do the tedious work so your people can do the valuable work

Streamline Quotes and Orders

Canals takes customer asks and turns them into quotes or orders, ready for your reps to approve and pass into your ERP in minutes.

Any format: handwritten note, takeoff, PDF, email, spreadsheet, voicemail, and more
Every rep: inside sales, counter sales, outside sales
Proven ROI: higher hit rates, fewer returns, happier customers

As your team uses it, it automatically gets smarter about your customers, your products, and your business. No templates or customer-specific setup required.

Process Invoices Automatically

Canals examines invoices for validity according to your records and business rules, handling both trade (PO) and expense invoices. Invoices meeting your requirements are automatically processed into payables in your ERP, along with a copy of the invoice.
‍
No templates or customer-specific setup required.

Vendor

PO Number

Invoice total

Track POs & Receipts with Next-Level Accuracy

Canals reads vendor PO acknowledgments, shipping notices, and packing slips and compares them to your POs. Discrepancies are flagged as early as possible for human intervention. Any changes to ship dates can be automatically updated in your ERP, ensuring up-to-date data for you and your customers.

Convert Large Product Lists

Canals converts large lists of products from one set of part numbers to another, across different manufacturers or simply different formats. If your business acquires another and you need to map their products to yours, or if you’re trying to win new business with a competitive pricing list, get it done in record time.

Real Customer Results

90%

TIME SAVINGS

Turn around quotes and orders in minutes

2.8X

HIT RATE

Speed, accuracy, and customer service for the win

59%

Fewer RETURNS

Grow customer trust and your bottom line too

Streamline Every Order and RFQ

Canals reads what a customer actually sent–a cut list, a handwritten note, a spreadsheet–and matches every item to your product catalog, whether it's priced by the board foot, by the piece, or by a mixed tally. Reps review the pre-built order, submit to your ERP with a click, and the customer has an answer while the price is still good.

Handles Mixed-Unit Orders in Any Format

Canals is built for how lumber actually gets ordered, no templates or part numbers required

Board feet, piece counts, and random-length tallies in the same order
Handwritten cut lists and yard notes
Takeoffs and other complex spec documents
Spreadsheets (Excel, CSV, etc.)
PDFs and emailed RFQs
Voice audio from calls and counter conversations
Combined lumber + building materials (windows, doors, and other configured products) on a single job

Eliminates Manual Data Entry and the Stale Pricing That Comes With It

Every minute a quote sits un-keyed is a minute it can go stale. Canals removes the lag between "customer asked" and "order in the ERP"

Best matches for species, grade, thickness, treatment, and length
Branch-based availability across your yards
Live pricing pulled directly from your ERP, not a cached or manually updated number
Non-stock sourcing for mill-direct or wholesaler items
Customer ship-to, required data, and delivery instructions

Delivers ROI in Days, Not Quarters

Get up and running in under a week, with pre-built integrations, and minimal IT lift and setup

Independently verified data security (SOC 2 Type II)
Personalized training and customer support
Time savings–and margin protection–from day one
No need for data cleanup–the more you use Canals, the more accurate it gets

Man receiving text message that says "Got everything right on time! Thanks for the super fast turnaround!"

What Is Canals?

Canals is the leading sales order entry platform for distributors. Over one hundred distributors rely on Canals to automate the critical but repetitive manual workflows of their sales, accounting, purchasing, and receiving teams.

Eliminate the tedious data entry holding back your people so they can focus on the strategic work and relationship-building that grows the business.

Trusted by Industry Leaders

The secret to our success is our customers’ success

George Vorwick

President, CEO

Canals is a force multiplier

Tasks that previously took hours of inside sales time now take minutes. We tried another solution and just couldn’t make it work. Canals’ AI application is the future of order entry. It's had a significantly positive impact on our business, and the more we use it the better it gets.

Jim Warshauer

President

On a scale of 1 to 10, our satisfaction with Canals is a 12

The integration was done in just a few days, and our sales team started seeing the impact immediately. Instant gratification. The speed and quality they've brought to addressing our specific needs are like nothing else I've experienced in distribution software.

Dominic Desmond

Chief Operations Officer

We couldn't be happier with Canals

The product and team have delivered on everything they've said, and it just keeps getting better. Whenever we've requested any kind of customization, they've listened carefully to our needs and implemented solutions in days. You guys make stuff happen.

Bring Your Own Orders to Test Live on a Call

See for yourself how Canals turns a mixed-unit lumber order or RFQ into an ERP-ready quote in minutes

Order Entry FAQs for Construction Suppliers

Have a question that’s not answered here? Please email us at sales@canals.ai and we’ll get back to you shortly.

Read Our
‍Success Stories

Plumbing, Mechanical

Atlantic Plumbing Supply Enables Sales Team to Win More Business with Canals

By automating sales order entry, Atlantic Plumbing's reps spend less time typing and more time selling—helping top performers add new customers and grow sales by over 50%

Elecrical, BPT

Kirby Risk Modernizes Quoting with Canals to Build a Future-Ready Sales Organization

By upgrading to Canals, Kirby Risk measurably improved efficiency, accuracy, and team productivity

PVF

Puget Sound Pipe & Supply Slashes Quote Times and Unlocks Bandwidth for More Business

By streamlining quoting with Canals, the distributor frees up reps to follow up faster, support more customers, and grow accounts

Electrical

Inside Regency Supply’s Shift to Faster, Smarter Quoting

By equipping reps with Canals, Regency Supply increased team productivity and gets back to customers sooner

Electrical, PVF, Automation

The Kendall Group Unlocks Operational Efficiency and Strengthens Partner Relationships

By switching from legacy software to Canals, The Kendall Group scaled automation across sales and accounting with minimal IT work.

Electrical, Industrial

Turtle Accelerates Quoting and Grows Their Top and Bottom Lines

Using Canals, Turtle nearly tripled their win rate, boosted sales productivity, and decreased customer response times

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AI Order Entry Purpose-Built for Construction Suppliers