M-Files Document Management for a Vehicle Diagnostics Company, Extended to HubSpot
Highlights
- A centralized M-Files DMS gave the customer one location for customer, equipment, and project files, replacing a scatter of manual tools.
- TEAM IM built a Hybrid Object Type (HOT) Connector to sync client information from the customer's HubSpot instance directly into M-Files — an out-of-scope need identified mid-project and delivered within the original budget.
- A custom PDF redaction tool, built on Aspose, was designed and approved within a week, letting the customer store sensitive documents in M-Files while keeping confidential information hidden.
- M-Files was configured for up to 25 document classes and object types, so multiple departments could work with metadata and views suited to their own needs.
Customer Background
Our customer has spent close to two decades building software and hardware for vehicle diagnostics. Their tire alignment and tread measurement tools help automotive service departments give drivers accurate readings on tire condition, turning routine service visits into informed sales conversations.
As the business grew, customer contracts, equipment records, and project files lived across a mix of manual tools and locations. The company wanted a single content management system to bring those records together — and a partner who could connect that system to the platforms they already relied on day to day.
Project Details
The Problem To Be Solved
The customer needed a central place to file and retrieve electronic customer, equipment, and project records, rather than the assortment of manual processes and tools they'd accumulated. Two specific gaps stood out: there was no consistent home for critical documents, and no clean way to store sensitive files without exposing confidential information to everyone who could see them. As the work got underway, a third need surfaced — pulling client data out of HubSpot, where much of it already lived, and into the new system.
Why Solving The Problem Was Important
Scattered records slow down the people who depend on them. A single source for contracts, equipment documentation, and project files meant staff could find what they needed without hunting across systems. The confidentiality piece mattered just as much: the customer needed to keep filing critical documents without putting private information in front of people who didn't need to see it. And because client records were maintained in HubSpot, keeping that data in sync — rather than re-keying it — was what made the DMS genuinely useful rather than another silo.
How TEAM IM Got Involved
TEAM IM and M-Files partnered to develop the relationship and initiate the engagement. The customer's contact already understood the case for a knowledge work automation platform, but with a lot of manual work and a variety of tools in play, the challenge was knowing where to start. TEAM IM joined a series of calls to map out the customer's processes and guide them toward a solution that fit how they actually worked.
The Method
TEAM IM configured the M-Files vault for up to 25 document classes and object types, with up to 10 unique property values across the vault, so each department could see metadata and views relevant to its own work.
PDF redaction. To solve the confidentiality problem, TEAM IM designed and developed a custom redaction tool using the Aspose library, letting the customer redact sensitive content within a document while still storing the full file in M-Files. The redaction effort was turned around and approved within a week of the initial design.
HubSpot integration. Partway through the project, the customer recognized they wanted client information from HubSpot available inside M-Files. Because the core implementation had gone smoothly, there was room in the budget to take it on. TEAM IM built a Hybrid Object Type Connector that pulls HubSpot objects — client contact information — into M-Files, syncing the two systems so records stay current in both. The connector was delivered inside the original project budget and scope.
The End Result
The customer is running M-Files across multiple departments, with the redaction tool and the HubSpot connector both in use. The connector is the piece worth underlining: it wasn't in the original plan, but it turned the DMS from a filing system into something wired into the customer's existing client data. With the core work done, both teams are now scoping a migration of the customer's accounting documents into M-Files — the next phase of a wider rollout.
The M-Files DMS Implementation project went as smooth as it possibly could have! Not only was working with the team a pleasure but the implementation was seamless. I’m thrilled to hear that the customer is utilizing their new system and the solution to meet their business needs!
Value Added
- Customer, equipment, and project files now sit in a single M-Files vault instead of scattered across separate tools.
- Up to 25 document classes and object types let each department see the metadata and fields that matter to its own work.
- The Hybrid Object Type (HOT) Connector keeps HubSpot client information synced into M-Files, so staff work from current records without manual re-entry.
- The PDF redaction tool prevents accidental exposure of confidential information while keeping documents filed in M-Files.
- The smooth core build freed budget for the connector and set up the accounting-document migration now underway.
Software and Cloud Services Involved
- M-Files Document Management System
- Hybrid Object Type Connector (HubSpot ↔ M-Files integration built by TEAM IM)
- Aspose PDF Redactor
- HubSpot (client data source)