Protessera vs. ProShop ERP: which one fits your AS9100 job shop?

If you run a small precision or aerospace-defense shop and you're looking at ERP options, ProShop ERP is probably on your list. It's a mature, paperless ERP/QMS built by people who ran a CNC machine shop. Protessera is a newer manufacturing ERP built around the same kind of floor: travelers, controlled work instructions, NCR/MRB, and lot-to-serial traceability.

This page covers where each one fits, how the traveler and quality workflow compares, what setup and pricing look like, and when ProShop is the better choice. We describe ProShop only from its own public pages and link to them, so you can check our work.

Who each tool fits

ProShop ERP fits shops that want a proven, all-in paperless system with a long history in machine shops. ProShop says it was "originally built in-house to run a CNC machine shop" and is "purpose-built for job shops, machine shops, fabrication shops." It combines ERP, MES, and QMS in one browser-based system, and ProShop expects nearly every employee to have a login. Its QMS covers document control, training, NCRs, and audits, and ProShop also sells QMS consulting for ISO 9001, AS9100, and ISO 13485 certification. (get.proshoperp.com (opens in a new tab), ProShop QMS (opens in a new tab))

Protessera fits small precision and aerospace-defense shops that want one connected system they can try on their own first. It covers sales, engineering/BOM, purchasing and receiving, production, quality, and accounting in one data model. The quality records follow how AS9100 shops already work: NCR, MRB, CAPA, calibration, and audits. Protessera is an early public product. You can open a sandbox demo plant or start a self-serve trial without talking to sales first.

Side-by-side comparison

The traveler and quality workflow

The traveler and the quality loop are where these systems get judged. Here's how Protessera does it, step by step.

1. The job starts from controlled data. A production work order accepts only a certified BOM revision. If the revision is still draft or prototype, the system blocks it and points you to a prototype work order. Getting a BOM certified for production takes a completed prototype build and a released work instruction for that part. When the work order is created, it picks up the latest released work-instruction revision.

2. Operators sign steps with their own PIN. Each traveler step that needs sign-off takes a PIN, and the PIN must belong to the person signing. An account with no PIN can't sign. Test steps record the measured value and need an explicit Pass or Fail.

3. Failures open records. If a test step fails, the system opens an NCR against the work order. If a receipt fails inspection at the receiving dock, the system opens an NCR and an MRB case and moves the stock to a quarantine location, where it no longer counts as available.

4. MRB decides, and the floor follows. Rework and repair dispositions create rework work orders.

5. Genealogy builds itself. Each work order shows its material genealogy: every kitted lot, back to the PO and receipt it arrived on. Serialized assemblies get a per-unit as-built record.

See it in the demo. The demo plant comes with sample data. Open work order WO-00001 and sign the remaining traveler steps. Then go to Receiving, fail a waiting dock receipt, and watch it land in MRB with the stock quarantined.

How ProShop handles this: ProShop's QMS lives inside the ERP, with document control, training, NCRs, and audits, and it generates FAIRs and cert packages (ProShop QMS (opens in a new tab)). Its MES side stores setup sheets, tool lists, inspection plans, and drawings with the job (get.proshoperp.com (opens in a new tab)). If paperless depth across the whole shop is what matters most, ProShop has years of work behind it.

Setup and pricing

Protessera

• Pricing is published, with lower first-year launch pricing. The Shop plan (1–10 users) costs $10 a month for the first user plus $2 a month for each additional user for the first 12 months, so $28 a month at 10 users. After that it's $30 per user per month. Larger teams pay a flat annual price: Starter (up to 30 users) is $250 for the first year, then $3,600/yr. Growth (up to 100) is $500, then $8,400/yr. Business (up to 250) is $1,000, then $18,000/yr. Enterprise (251+ users, including self-hosting) is quoted. Every paid plan includes the full product; tiers differ by seat count, not by locked modules.
• Trial: a 60-day free trial with no card to start. It opens an empty company of your own. You're asked to pay on day 60, and until then nothing is billed.
• Demo: a sandbox demo plant with sample data. No card, and it's deleted when you leave.
• Setup: onboarding is self-serve. There's a setup wizard, paste-from-Excel import for parts, customers, suppliers, and people, and email invites for your team. How long a live cutover takes depends on your data and your shop, so we won't promise you a go-live date.

ProShop ERP

• Pricing is not published. ProShop says pricing is customized and based on users, with three seat types (shop users, office users, executive/admin users) and a choice of "standard vs Government." Request a proposal at proshoperp.com/pricing (opens in a new tab). (FAQ (opens in a new tab))
• Modules: ProShop sells the system as one connected suite, not module by module (FAQ (opens in a new tab)).
• Implementation: ProShop says "most shops are up and running in a few weeks," and its team works with you through the process. Support includes ProShop Academy, a customer portal, and in-app chat. (FAQ (opens in a new tab))

When ProShop is the better choice

We'd point you to ProShop if:

• You want a long track record. ProShop grew out of a working machine shop and is an established product. Protessera is early. If buying from an established vendor matters to your owners or your primes, that counts for a lot.
• You need on-premises today. ProShop offers both cloud and on-premises deployment (FAQ (opens in a new tab)). Protessera's standard service is hosted. Self-hosting is scoped case by case through Enterprise.
• You handle CUI or ITAR technical data and need a hosted answer now. Protessera's standard hosted service isn't the place for that data (see the FAQ below). ProShop markets ITAR workflows and a dedicated CMMC Level 2 path (proshoperp.com (opens in a new tab)). Check those claims against your own requirements.
• You want help getting certified. ProShop sells QMS consulting and a QMS Assurance Plan toward AS9100, ISO 9001, and ISO 13485 (ProShop QMS (opens in a new tab)). Protessera gives you the records, not a consulting service.
• You need SSO, barcode/RFID scanning on the floor, or Part 11-style e-signatures today. Those are on Protessera's roadmap, not shipping. If you need them on day one, pick a system that has them now, and confirm with ProShop which of these it covers.

Protessera is the better fit if you want published per-seat pricing, want to try the full product yourself before talking to sales, and want travelers, MRB, and genealogy in the same system as purchasing and accounting.

FAQ