Maker of price-configuring software sees market growing

Internet-driven culture change leads buyers to want pricing control.

MINNEAPOLIS — FPX, a pioneering Minnesota soft ware company that survived three decades of industry change, is accelerating its product development with an infusion of capital from a new owner.

The company has long provided software that lets businesses configure, price and quote their products — a souped-up version of the experience consumers get when they go to a car website and build and price a model.

The market for such software is getting bigger. For many years, companies used such programs, known as configuration engines or CPQ systems, chiefly to arm their sales forces with a tool that could price out a deal.

These days, more buyers of sophisticated products — from industrial tools to military helicopters and big data systems — want the capability to price the goods themselves. They have been shaped by the experience of making, as consumers, those build-to-order choices for cars and other items like PCs.

“The internet has spoiled all of us,” said Chris Lords, head of product development. “No longer do we have to call a salesperson and try to figure out what we want and have them come back with a quote. We can educate ourselves. We can figure out everything we want.”

In addition, businesses are seeing a big change in their sales forces. As older workers retire, companies are losing people who knew shortcuts and hurdles in putting deals together.

“The people that were used to working in Excel spreadsheets are retiring,” Lords said. “It’s a new, younger generation coming in that has different expectations. Because that generation doesn’t understand all the configuration rules and all the complexities that the people who have been doing