CPQ & Product Configurator –
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

CPQ (Configure-Price-Quote) software helps companies correctly configure complex products, automatically calculate prices, and create error-free quotes. It combines product logic, pricing rules, and quotation documents in a continuous digital process.

CPQ is the logical extension of a configurator. The “C” stands for Configure and describes the correct combination of products, including variants and rules. CPQ adds Price (automatic pricing and discount logic) and Quote (quote creation at the touch of a button) to this – for a continuous process from configuration to quotation.

A CPQ solution is suitable for both medium-sized and large companies with a wide range of products, individual prices, and time-consuming quotation processes, e.g., in mechanical and plant engineering, medical technology, or the furniture industry.

Yes. CPQ is particularly suitable for complex and highly varied products with many rules and dependencies. Clear product logic is important. Variants are not created individually, but are generated automatically from rules and parameters.

About rules and dependencies that determine which options can be combined with each other. The key factor is the clear separation of product logic (rules, dependencies) and product data (texts, prices, features). This allows new products or changes to existing variants to be made via the data without having to adjust the underlying logic. 

Product data is either maintained directly in CPQ or synchronized from leading systems such as ERP, PIM, or CRM. Combeenation enables easy maintenance - no special technical knowledge required.

We support common CAD and 3D formats as a basis for creating web-optimized 3D models. Important factors include short loading times, a lean data model, and clear rules for linking models to product logic. Learn more about creating 3D models.

Combeenation's CPQ software supports complex pricing logic, customer-specific prices, surcharges, discounts, and special conditions. Unlike many other solutions, Combeenation allows these to be flexibly combined in a multi-level calculation.

Yes. CPQ can calculate prices step by step. For example, material costs are determined first, then manufacturing or additional costs are taken into account, and finally surcharges and margins are added to the final offer price.

Yes. CPQ can apply different prices for individual customers or customer groups.

Prices can be maintained directly in CPQ or transferred from other systems such as ERP. CPQ always uses the current prices.

CPQ automatically checks each configuration in real time for technical and logical validity, eliminating incorrect or unproducible quotes - a central basis for modern, digital offer management.

Role and rights management controls who in the system is allowed to view, edit, or approve offers.

Yes. All quote versions and changes are stored in CPQ and can be tracked per customer and quote.

Yes. All offers and versions are available on a customer-specific basis.

Quotation approvals are controlled in CPQ by fixed rules. Depending on the price, discount, or user role, the system automatically decides whether a quotation needs to be approved.

A CPQ system automatically generates quotation documents, bills of materials (BOM), and technical documentation from the configuration. This ensures that all content is consistent, up-to-date, and compliant with regulations. Combeenation's CPQ software generates fully formatted documents in your corporate design and supports common export formats such as PDF.

Yes. Combeenation offers filters, statistics, and detailed reporting functions for analyzing offer data.

Yes. Combeenation's CPQ software enables margin calculation and verification of whether defined margin targets are being met. Margin corridors can be set individually and also defined on a user-specific basis. A clear visual display shows whether an offer is within the specified margins. Approval processes can be controlled on this basis.

Yes. Each dealer is assigned specific roles and rights. This means that they only see the products, prices, discounts, and specifications that are relevant to them - an essential basis for efficient distribution management.

Yes. If desired, each retailer can work with their own interface and individual branding - based on a central configurator and database. Product logic, prices, and discount scales are defined once and maintained centrally, rather than being copied for each retailer.

All products, prices, discounts, and rules are defined centrally by the manufacturer. Retailers operate exclusively within these guidelines.

Products, prices, taxes, and currencies can be defined differently depending on the country. CPQ automatically applies the appropriate rules so that users only see the products and prices that are valid for their country.

With Combeenation's CPQ system, the effort involved is minimal. New countries are added by adding additional languages, prices, and rules. The existing product logic remains unchanged.

Yes. Internal sales, dealers, partners, or direct sales work with their own roles, logins, and - if necessary - customized interfaces. Each sales channel only sees the products, prices, and functions that are relevant to it. The underlying product and price database is maintained centrally and displayed specifically for different roles.

No, it is not currently possible to create your own roles. However, this feature is already planned for our roadmap.

CPQ is integrated into existing system landscapes via APIs or standard interfaces.

CPQ is typically integrated into systems that play a role before and after the quotation. These include ERP systems for prices, costs, and orders; CRM systems for customer and quotation data; PIM systems for structured product information; and e-commerce platforms for online configurations. In principle, CPQ can be connected to all systems that need to provide or process data.

If individual systems are changed, replaced, or supplemented, Combeenation's CPQ does not need to be rebuilt. The software is connected via interfaces and can be adapted to new or modified systems. Product logic, configurations, pricing rules, and quotation processes in the CPQ remain unchanged—only the connections are adapted.

The configurator can either be integrated into the existing website via iFrame or individually integrated via headless integration.

The Combeenation solution is a cloud solution on Microsoft Azure. This means that no local installations are necessary and updates are performed automatically.

The data is stored in European data centers in Amsterdam.

Yes. Data is backed up regularly so that it is protected even in the event of technical problems.

From initial contact to go-live, the collaboration follows a clearly structured process with defined project phases and designated contact persons – based on our proven CPQ project process.

Depending on the scope of the product, a project at Combeenation takes between 6 and 12 weeks.

Implementation with Combeenation is particularly fast because our platform offers an extremely flexible standard. This can be customized and expanded without having to start from scratch. This gives us a clear advantage in terms of time-to-market compared to many other solutions.

At Combeenation, the price consists of a monthly license fee and one-time implementation costs - a pricing model familiar from e-commerce, ERP systems, and similar solutions.

After going live, ongoing support is crucial. At Combeenation, customers have a direct personal contact person. Support is provided in a binding manner and without an impersonal ticket system.

A good CPQ system grows with the company. New products, markets, or sales channels can be added step by step without having to rebuild existing logic.

In addition, a modern CPQ solution is continuously being developed: new features and improvements are created in the background and are automatically available to customers.