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The Workflow Builder is ION’s tool for building automation flows. A flow reacts to an ION event or a schedule, then runs a sequence of steps that can call external systems, transform data, and read or write ION through the GraphQL API. You assemble a flow visually from prebuilt components instead of writing an integration from scratch.

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What you can build

  • External connections move data between ION and another system, such as syncing an order to a supplier portal.
  • Timed automations run a flow on a schedule, such as checking stock levels every hour.
  • Event-triggered flows start when something happens in ION, such as a run being created or a purchase order changing state.

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When to use Workflow Builder versus ION Actions

The Workflow Builder and ION Actions both automate ION, but they solve different problems: Use Actions to allow, block, or warn on a change as it happens, such as preventing R&D parts from being kitted into a production run. Use the Workflow Builder to move data between systems or run automation on a schedule.

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The two components behind every flow

A flow combines two ION-specific components, each with its own connection:
  • ion-webhooks triggers the flow. It subscribes to ION events and exposes them as a trigger, creating the webhook receiver, managing the subscription, and cleaning it up when you remove the flow.
  • ion-api reads or writes ION data from inside the flow, through the same GraphQL API the rest of ION runs on.
A flow that only runs on a schedule doesn’t need ion-webhooks; a flow that only reacts to an ION event without reading or writing more data doesn’t need ion-api. Most flows use both: ion-webhooks to start the flow, ion-api to act on the data it carries. See Create a flow for how to configure each, and the ion-api actions reference for everything ion-api can do.

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Open Workflow Builder

Open Workflow Builder from the left navigation, under Developer Platform. The entry appears only when your organization has Workflow Builder enabled, and it’s enabled per organization rather than per role. The ReadEmbeddedWorkflowBuilder permission in role settings doesn’t control access to it. To have it turned on, contact support.firstresonance.io. Once you’re in, see Create a flow to build one, or Test a flow to run and monitor one you’ve built.