Upgrading Ketolan Metalli from Odoo 13 to Odoo 18 with OpenUpgrade and Cetmix Tower
OdooMigrationOCACetmix TowerOpenUpgradeCase study

Upgrading Ketolan Metalli from Odoo 13 to Odoo 18 with OpenUpgrade and Cetmix Tower

Cetmix·

Client Overview

  • Client: Ketolan Metalli Oy
  • Industry: Metal Manufacturing
  • Location: Finland

Ketolan Metalli Oy is a Finnish metal manufacturing company producing high-quality metal components and industrial products. Efficient production processes and reliable financial management are essential for maintaining operational performance and profitability.

Website: https://www.ketolanmetalli.fi/(opens in new tab)

The Challenge

Ketolan Metalli had been running Odoo 13 Community Edition for many years. While the system supported daily operations, several limitations started to affect long-term sustainability and development.

1. Running on an Outdated Odoo Version

Odoo evolves quickly, and older versions gradually miss out on improvements in performance, security, and usability.

Remaining on Odoo 13 limited access to newer capabilities introduced in later versions and increased the risk of future compatibility issues.

2. Proprietary Localization Modules

The existing system relied on proprietary localization and accounting modules. This created several long-term concerns:

  • increased upgrade complexity
  • limited transparency of the codebase
  • dependency on specific vendors

To ensure long-term sustainability, the goal was to transition toward community-maintained OCA(opens in new tab) modules.

3. Limited Financial Reporting

Management required clearer financial visibility and more flexible reporting tools.

The existing reporting setup did not provide the level of insight needed for financial planning and analysis.

4. Finnish e-Invoicing Requirements

Finland has widely adopted electronic invoicing standards, and the system required modern integration to ensure seamless invoice exchange with customers and partners.

The Solution

The migration project was led by Jussi Lehto from Cetmix Finland(opens in new tab), an experienced specialist in Odoo implementations and accounting systems.

The goal was not only to upgrade the system but also to modernize the architecture and improve long-term maintainability.

Migration from Odoo 13 to Odoo 18

The system was successfully migrated from Odoo 13 Community Edition to Odoo 18 Community Edition using the OCA OpenUpgrade framework(opens in new tab).

OpenUpgrade provides a structured migration path for upgrading Odoo databases between major versions while preserving business data and adapting database structures.

Automated Upgrade with Cetmix Tower Jets

A key part of the project was using Cetmix Tower Jets to automate the upgrade process itself.

Jets are reusable automation templates within Cetmix Tower that orchestrate complex operational workflows.

In this project, Jets were used to execute the entire upgrade process:

  • preparing the migration environment
  • launching OpenUpgrade containers
  • executing database migration steps
  • validating the upgraded system

This approach transformed a traditionally manual migration process into a repeatable and controlled DevOps workflow.

Using Jets provided several advantages:

  • Repeatable upgrades across environments
  • Transparent migration steps
  • Reduced operational risk
  • Reusable automation for future upgrades

This project demonstrates how Cetmix Tower can automate Odoo Community upgrades using OpenUpgrade, making ERP migrations significantly more reliable and predictable.

Transition to OCA Accounting Modules

Proprietary localization and accounting modules were replaced with OCA community modules, improving long-term sustainability and maintainability.

Benefits of this transition include:

  • open development model
  • community maintenance
  • easier upgrades in the future
  • reduced vendor dependency

This aligns the system with Odoo Community best practices.

Advanced Financial Reporting with MIS Builder

To improve financial visibility, MIS Builder(opens in new tab) was implemented for accounting reporting.

MIS Builder enables flexible financial reporting such as:

  • Profit and Loss statements
  • Balance Sheets
  • management dashboards
  • custom financial reports

This allows the management team to gain clear and customizable financial insights directly within Odoo.

Finnish e-Invoicing Integration

To modernize invoicing workflows, the Apix electronic invoicing connector from the Finnish Odoo Community Association ecosystem was implemented.

This integration enables Ketolan Metalli to send and receive electronic invoices directly from Odoo, fully aligned with Finnish and international e-invoicing standards.

The solution keeps the entire invoicing process inside Odoo, eliminating manual steps and improving efficiency.

In addition, invoice approval workflows were implemented using OCA’s tier validation framework. This allows invoices to follow structured approval processes before being sent or processed, improving financial control and transparency.

Osuuspankki Bank Integration

To further streamline financial operations, a custom integration with Osuuspankki (OP Bank) was developed.

This integration allows bank transactions to be automatically imported into Odoo, enabling faster and more accurate reconciliation of incoming and outgoing payments.

Payments can also be initiated directly from Odoo, allowing the finance team to manage the full payment workflow from a single system.

This significantly reduces manual work while improving accuracy and financial visibility.

The Results

After the migration, Ketolan Metalli now operates on a modern Odoo 18 platform built entirely on open-source components.

Key outcomes include:

  • Successful migration from Odoo 13 → Odoo 18
  • Automated upgrade process using Cetmix Tower Jets
  • Reliable database migration using OCA OpenUpgrade
  • Replacement of proprietary modules with OCA community modules
  • Advanced accounting reporting using MIS Builder
  • Integrated Finnish e-invoicing workflows
  • Automated bank transaction synchronization and payment management

The company now benefits from a future-proof ERP platform that is easier to maintain, extend, and upgrade in the future.

Client Feedback

"The collaboration has gone well and we've communicated very openly, which I really appreciate. I can definitely recommend Cetmix to others."

— Sami Ketola
Managing Director
Ketolan Metalli Oy

Long-Term Impact

Beyond the technical upgrade, the project established a modern and sustainable ERP foundation.

By combining OCA open-source modules, OpenUpgrade, and Cetmix Tower automation, the system can now evolve smoothly with future Odoo releases.

This approach significantly reduces the risk and complexity of future upgrades while maintaining full control over the infrastructure and software stack.

If your business is running an older Odoo version, upgrading can significantly improve stability, maintainability, and performance.

Talk to us about planning a safe and automated Odoo migration — engineered for long-term success.

Upgrading Ketolan Metalli from Odoo 13 to Odoo 18 with OpenUpgrade and Cetmix Tower | Cetmix Blog