Show HN: Self-hosted CRM for manufacturing (Django and Htmx)

Django 6.1 + Tailwind CSS 4 + Alpine.js + HTMX + AI Assistant

A lightweight CRM/ERP platform designed for engineering and manufacturing teams. It brings projects, tasks, materials, technical drawings, documents, and internal knowledge together in one unified workspace. Ideal for small manufacturing shops, CNC workshops, engineering bureaus, and teams that need structure without heavy corporate systems.

Key Features:

Project and task management

Material and BOM tracking

Support for engineering files (DXF, STEP, STL)

Centralized document storage

Built‑in knowledge library

AI assistant for automation and team support

Fast HTMX‑based interface without a heavy frontend

Purpose: To give small industrial companies a simple, fast, and local ERP‑level tool that can be deployed without complex infrastructure.

Every project gets its own dedicated space. As soon as a project is created, you can start adding everything related to it:

• Photos
• Drawings and technical documents
• Notes
• Any other supporting files

Once the project is saved to a chosen location, the system automatically generates a numbered project folder. All documents belonging to that project are neatly organized inside, each type kept in its own subfolder — no manual sorting required.

When a project is finished, it can be archived and moved out of the active workspace, keeping the working area clean while preserving a complete, organized record for future reference.

Beyond individual projects, the CRM also serves as a knowledge base for general documentation the business collects over time:

• Documents
• Videos
• Articles

Articles can be saved directly from the internet via a link, making it easy to build a personal reference library without manual copy-pasting. As with projects, all saved materials are automatically organized into clearly structured folders.

One place for everything— no more hunting across folders, drives, and inboxes** Automatic organization**— numbered project folders and categorized subfolders are created without manual effort** Clean lifecycle management**— active projects stay easy to find; finished projects can be archived without losing structure** Built-in knowledge base**— a growing library of reference material, saved and organized alongside project work

A project management, contractor and task tracking system featuring 14 custom apps, an AI assistant with a command mode, and a modular HTMX-driven UI.

python -m venv venv
venv\Scripts\activate
pip install -r requirements.txt
npm install
npm run build
python manage.py migrate
python manage.py seed_ai_providers   # seed AI provider list
python manage.py collectstatic
python manage.py createsuperuser
python manage.py runserver

Or run install.bat for one-click setup (creates venv, installs Python + Node dependencies, builds Tailwind, runs migrations, seeds AI providers, collects static files, and creates a superuser). Default credentials: admin

/ admin

.

Run update.bat

after pulling new code to refresh dependencies and rebuild the frontend. Start the server anytime with runserver.bat

.

CHAT— free conversation with any configured AI model** COMMANDS**— natural-language CRM operations via regex-based intent detection

Ollama (local), Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Mistral, Groq, DeepSeek, OpenRouter, OpenCode — configurable via Settings panel. API keys encrypted with AES-GCM.

Create project 001, Office Building on 2026-06-15
Add task Call client on 2026-06-10
Find contact Ivan
Add material Bolt 50 to project Test
Upload file drawing.pdf to project Test
Show all drawings of project Test
Create note Meeting for project Test
Open bbc.com
Download file from https://example.com/image.png
Create file hello.py with content print("Hello, World!")
Search for latest Python 3.14 features
Find pdf on site https://example.com

• Install Ollama - Pull a model: ollama pull llama3.2

• Start Ollama (port 11434)

• Select model in CRM chat interface

Browser agent (SSRF protection), web search (DuckDuckGo), file management (50 MB/file, 1 GB quota), 10-second undo, audit logging, two-step confirmation for write operations.

CRM/
  config/            Settings, URLs, WSGI, ASGI
  core/              Dashboard, base models, activity log, search, AI config
  accounts/          Authentication
  companies/         Company directory
  contacts/          Contact directory
  projects/          Full project lifecycle + ZIP export/import
  materials/         Bill of Materials
  tasks/             Task management
  notes/             Universal notes
  documents/         File upload/preview
  library/           Knowledge base (articles saved as .md on disk, categories, tags, files)
  parts/             Drawings & 3D models
  assistant/         AI chat, LLM, browser agent, command handlers
  calendar_app/      Calendar view
  generator/         Module scaffolding
  templates/         Base layout, includes (sidebar, topbar, chat, pagination)
  static/            Tailwind CSS source (src/) and dist/
  media/             User-uploaded files
  ai_files/          AI-downloaded files

All business models extend TimeStampedModel

(created_at

, updated_at

, created_by

, is_active

).

Slide-over forms— CRUD via HTMX without page navigation** Soft delete**—is_active

flag on all business entitiesGlobal search— single page across all entity types** Activity logging**— all CRUD tracked via GenericForeignKey** Project export/import**— ZIP archives with JSON manifest** Dark mode**— localStorage-persisted, user-toggleable** Collapsible sidebar**— expandable/collapsible navigation** Settings panel**— configurable storage paths, naming, AI providers** AI undo**— 10-second undo window for write operations** Versioning**—0.7.{git_commit_count}

viacore/version.py

Security— path traversal, SSRF, and open redirect protection

npm run dev       # Watch Tailwind
npm run build     # Production build
python manage.py collectstatic
python manage.py runserver
python manage.py test core accounts assistant

Covers unit tests, navigation, and security (path traversal, SSRF, open redirects).

Projects store files in organized directories:

{number}_{name}_Project/
  documents/
  drawings/
  models/

Subfolder naming is configurable via AppSetting

. Storage backend uses custom ProjectFileSystemStorage

.

Articles are auto-saved as Markdown (.md

) files on disk for portability:

{library_root}/
  {slug}_{YYYY-MM-DD}/
    {slug}_{YYYY-MM-DD}.md    # Full article content in Markdown
    images/                    # Downloaded/copied article images
    attachments/               # Uploaded file attachments

• Content is stored both in the database (HTML) and as .md

on disk - Storage root is configurable via AppSetting

(falls back toMEDIA_ROOT/library/

) - Article folders are created on create/edit/import and recursively deleted on delete

• Images are served via a dedicated /library/{slug}/image/{path}

view with path traversal protection

License: MIT