Sole Design Cabinetry cuts lead times by 75% and doubles output with Insight

Introduction

Sole Design Cabinetry is a growing, family-run cabinet manufacturer based in the southeastern US. With custom craftsmanship at its core, the business has expanded from a local operation to serving customers across multiple states. To keep up with surging demand, Sole Design turned to Insight by Cyncly to streamline production and reduce lead times.

Company overview

Founded by Bob Cowan and managed together with his three sons, Sole Design Cabinetry has deep roots in custom woodworking. What began as a modest local cabinet shop now has expanded into a regional manufacturer with multiple facilities and a skilled workforce. The company produces handcrafted kitchen cabinetry and ships across a wide region in the southeastern United States.

Steady growth in the early 2000s motivated the business to diversify its offerings and expand beyond its small-town roots. That momentum has only grown, with major expansion in both facilities and workforce in the past decade.

Jayce Cowan, who joined the business in 2015 and now serves as Lead Engineer, has seen the company evolve rapidly and knew that their systems needed to evolve with it.

The Challenge

Legacy software couldn’t scale with the business

Sole Design was using outdated systems built for smaller operations. As the company grew, so did the inefficiencies: teams were entering the same data into multiple platforms, from accounting to order and engineering systems. This duplication led to unnecessary overtime and increased the risk of costly errors.

Engineering processes lacked system support

Designing for Sole’s unique manufacturing methods often meant overriding defaults or resorting to paper-based workflows. Without integration across tools, engineers spent more time fixing issues than focusing on innovation.

Rapid growth demanded immediate action

The team first discovered Insight by Cyncly at the International Woodworking Fair in Atlanta and began researching solutions. But it wasn’t until the pandemic-driven surge in orders, stretching lead times from five to 26 weeks, that Sole knew they had to modernize to keep up.

“Sometimes we were doing the same task three or four times just to get an order into production. That created a lot of opportunities for mistakes.”

“There’s still so much more we can do with Insight. We’re growing smarter, not just bigger.”

Jayce Cowan, Lead Engineer, Sole Design Cabinetry

The Results

Lead times cut by 75%

Since going live, Sole Design has reduced lead times from 12–16 weeks down to just 4 weeks, dramatically improving customer satisfaction and delivery performance.

Order entry time slashed by 80%

With streamlined processes in Insight, the team now completes order entry in just 2–3 business days instead of 1–2 weeks, freeing up time and reducing bottlenecks.

Increased output without adding headcount

Cabinet production has nearly doubled, even with the same team size. By eliminating errors and manual entry, Sole Design has boosted throughput and enabled sustainable growth.

Ongoing improvements, growing potential

The team continues to unlock more value from Insight, with implementation still underway. For Sole Design, this is just the beginning of what’s possible.

“There’s still so much more we can do with Insight. We’re growing smarter, not just bigger.”