Long story short - I have been trying to get a fairly simple database made for a small manufacturing operation. We need normal stuff like inventory control, contact management, invoicing etc.. There are some "custom" features to to with quality control processes, export documentation and web ordering interface.
In the past two years I have hired a developer who was not professional and unable to bring the project to a conclusion and another developer who seems capable when I can get ahold of him but has had some personal crises which have limited his ability to get work done promptly. He is a terrible communicator and leaves me wondering what is happening for weeks at a time. The database is looks almost done but the most recent version he sent me has so many bugs it is almost unuseable. He presented it as a finished product we could debug and add to as needed but it is really not at that point. I have been waiting for months for this so it is really disappointing that so little QC has been done.
Recently I have been in contact with the owner of the company who I hired to build a new website and who has been very nice to deal with. He informed me that most of what I am after could easily be found in an off the shelf solution which makes sense as our business is a fairly run of the mill operation. He has recommended "Spire" and given me a price of $6000. I have already spent over 15 grand on my custom filemaker "solution", spent countless hours harassing the developer(s) trying to get things done and discussing what needs doing. I have also spent a lot of time putting data into the database. If I jump ship now all this will be lost. None the less I am tempted, I am not sure when the database will be finished and useable and what kind of support I would get if I had a major time sensitive issue with it.
Should I use Spire? Should I hire yet another FM developer? Should I give this guy a chance to get his life in order?
Any advice would be appreciated.
