JF//OPS — SITE: KENT, UK REACH: UK / USA TRADE: 24 YRS UNITS: 06 LIVE: 02 Scheme

/// Operator profile · Kent, UK · Working UK & USA

John Ford

The name in automotive for over 24 years.

Two generations of it — I started at fourteen working for my dad, also John Ford, and opened JF Automotive in 2011. Then I built the software the trade actually needed. Three workshops in Kent, two SaaS products live in production, and a studio shipping custom builds on both sides of the Atlantic.

[ Open channel ] [ View units ]
John Ford CAM 01 LIVE John Ford · Operator · Kent

CH.01 — Live display

Schematic Auto-cycling · click to take over
0100200300400 1k2k3k4k5k6k7k ENGINE SPEED — RPM BHP / LB-FT PEAK POWER PEAK TORQUE POWER TORQUE
SRC / BUILD 01020304050607080910111213 PIPELINE commit tests pass build deploy INTEGRATIONS Supabase Stripe Xero DVLA Google Cal AI
WORKSHOP AUTOMATION — RULES ENGINE TRIGGERS ENQUIRY INMOT DUE STOCK LOWJOB CLOSED RAMPDESK RULES ENGINE IF / THEN · NO RE-KEYING ACTIONS QUOTE SENTREMINDER SENT PO RAISEDINVOICE → XEROPAYMENT TAKEN RUNNING CONTINUOUSLY Reg lookup Reminder queue Stock check Booking sync Payout split
DISPATCH — LIVE SWEEP BASE KENT ENG-01 · DA ENG-02 · TN ENG-03 · CT ENG-04 · ME SEQUENCE 1. postcode in2. zone matched 3. engineer routed4. calendar synced 5. paid + split
BAY ELEVATIONS · LIVE STATE RAMP 1 SERVICE + MOT PREP RAMP 2 DIAGNOSTICS TOE · CAMBER · CASTER ALIGNMENT RIG FOUR-WHEEL GEOMETRY DETAILING BAY PAINT CORRECTION OCCUPANCY — 08:00 TO 18:00 R1R2ALIGNDETAIL 081012141618 MECHANICAL DETAILING
MOBILE NETWORK — ORIGIN KENT KENT NETWORK COVERAGE KENTGREATER LONDONSURREY EAST SUSSEXESSEXHAMPSHIRE OXFORDSHIREBRISTOL SOUTH WALESDEVONWEST MIDLANDS LEICESTERSHIREGTR MANCHESTER WEST YORKSHIRETYNE & WEARGLASGOW Mobile remapping at your home or work. Workshop tuning at JF Automotive, Kent. FIGURES BY REG BEFORE BOOKING · 14-DAY GUARANTEE

CH.02 — Units

HOVER TO PREVIEW · 06 TOTAL
U-01The Software Engine Product studio — custom software, automation and AI Studio thesoftwareengine.com ↗
U-02RampDesk Garage management, enquiry to invoice ● Live rampdesk.co.uk ↗
U-03NearOps Field-team booking and dispatch, postcode to payout ● Live near-ops.com ↗
U-04JF Automotive Tuning and service centre, Kent Est. 2011 jfautomotive.co.uk ↗
U-05Workshop 2 Service, repair, alignment and detailing Active workshop2.uk ↗
U-06Remaps UK Mobile remapping network Active remapsuk.com ↗

Two generations of the same name

I started in this trade at fourteen, working Saturdays and school holidays for my dad — also John Ford. Spanners first, then diagnostics, then mapping. By the time I left to go out on my own I'd spent thirteen years learning it from someone who'd already spent a career at it.

JF Automotive opened in 2011. One unit, my name over the door, and the same standard my dad worked to: if you can't measure it on the rollers, don't claim it.

Fifty thousand vehicles later that's grown into a service centre, a mobile arm covering the country, and — because no software on the market fitted how a garage actually runs — two products the rest of the trade now uses too.

Started
At fourteen, on my dad's ramps
Founded
JF Automotive, 2011
Measured
Dyno-verified, never laptop estimates
Built
RampDesk and NearOps, live in production
Working
United Kingdom and United States

What I build for other people

Custom web appsBooking & dispatchCRM & portalsBusiness automationAI integrationSites that quote and book

CH.03 — How a build runs

04 STAGES
01

Sit in it

I learn how the job actually moves through your business — who touches what, where it gets re-keyed, what's on paper. Usually an afternoon on site.

02

Map the rules

Every trigger and every action, written down before a line of code. You sign off the logic, not a wireframe.

03

Build it working

Short cycles, real data, live preview from week one. You use it while it's being built rather than at the end.

04

Hand over the keys

Your data, your accounts, your logins. Documented, and I'm on the end of the phone when something needs changing.

CH.04 — Straight answers

05
Do you only work with garages?+
No — but it's where I'm strongest, because I've run them. Beyond automotive I build for field-service and trade businesses: anything where jobs get booked, someone travels to them, and money needs collecting at the end. Locksmiths, installers, appliance repair, mobile mechanics.
Do you build from scratch or use RampDesk?+
Whichever is honest. If RampDesk already does what you need, I'll sell you that and save us both the money. If your business works differently enough that it doesn't fit, I'll build for you properly rather than bend you into someone else's software.
Who owns the code?+
You do. Your repository, your hosting accounts, your database, your Stripe. I've been on the wrong end of a supplier holding the keys and I won't do it to anyone else.
Do you work with businesses in the US?+
Yes. Most of it happens over calls and a shared preview link regardless of where you are, and the overlap with UK afternoons covers US mornings comfortably.
What does something like this cost?+
It depends entirely on how much of the business you want it to carry, so I won't put a fake number here. Tell me what's slowing you down and I'll give you a real range on the first call — including telling you if it isn't worth building.

Start a project

Tell me what's slowing the business down. I'll tell you straight whether I'm the right person for it — and if I'm not, who is.

No account managers, no discovery fee. You'll be talking to the person who does the work.

Opens your mail app with the details filled in
hello@johnford.io Kent, UK · Working UK & USA · johnford.io