Building a workforce management platform for manufacturing — solo dev, 7 months in

Hey PH community — I'm Sam, solo founder building ShiftArmor.

The problem: Manufacturers still run workforce ops across 4-5 disconnected tools — paper schedules, Excel safety logs, separate time clocks, filing cabinets full of training records. When OSHA shows up for an audit, it's a fire drill.

What I built: One platform that handles scheduling, time & attendance, incident tracking, OSHA compliance (auto-generates 300/301/300A forms), training matrix, risk scoring, and leave management. Built for plants and warehouses, not restaurants or retail.

Stack: Next.js + TypeScript, PostgreSQL, deployed on AWS ECS. Built the whole thing solo — no co-founder, no funding.

Where I'm at honestly:

- Product is live and fully functional

- Running cold outbound campaigns to midwest manufacturers

- Getting decent open rates but almost no replies

- Zero paying customers so far

- Pricing at $499-$1,999/mo depending on plant size

What I'm figuring out:

- Is cold email the right channel for this buyer, or do plant managers not check email?

- Landing page: does it communicate value fast enough? → www.shiftarmor.net

- Am I trying to do too much in one product, or is the all-in-one angle the actual differentiator?

Would love to hear from anyone who's sold into industrial/manufacturing, or any solo founders who've cracked the "zero to first customer" problem in a traditional industry. What worked?