Certyneo and Make: Automate signature in engineering

Why automate electronic signature in engineering with Make?

The engineering sector generates a considerable volume of contractual documents: works management contracts, amendments, reception minutes, sub-contracting agreements, conformity certificates and study reports. According to a McKinsey study (2024), engineering teams dedicate on average 27% of their working time to repetitive administrative tasks, of which collecting and tracking signatures ranks among the most time-consuming.

Connecting Certyneo to an automation platform such as Make (formerly Integromat) makes it possible to transform these manual processes into intelligent workflows, where each signature is triggered, tracked and archived without human intervention. This guide explains to you, step by step, how to set up this integration in a B2B engineering context, in compliance with eIDAS regulatory requirements.

We will successively address the integration architecture, step-by-step configuration in Make, available triggers and actions, then best practices specific to the engineering sector.

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Understanding the Make + Certyneo architecture for engineering

Make (Integromat): a no-code orchestration platform

Make is a visual integration and automation platform that allows you to create scenarios linking hundreds of applications via drag-and-drop modules. Unlike Zapier, Make offers advanced conditional logic, iterators, aggregators and routers, making it a particularly suitable tool for complex engineering workflows (multi-party, multi-step, documents with multiple signatories).

Make positions itself between your business tools (ERP, CRM, project management tools such as Autodesk Construction Cloud, Procore, or Microsoft Project) and Certyneo, orchestrating data flows and signature triggers.

The Certyneo API: the integration entry point

Certyneo exposes a complete RESTful API allowing you to perform all operations available from the graphical interface: creating signature requests, adding signatories, defining signature fields, sending notifications, retrieving status and downloading signed documents. The API uses OAuth 2.0 authentication and JSON format, which guarantees native compatibility with Make via the HTTP module or, ideally, via a dedicated Certyneo connector.

The Certyneo API respects the interoperability standards defined by the ETSI EN 319 132 standard for XAdES signature and ETSI EN 319 122 for CAdES, ensuring that each signature produced is legally enforceable throughout the European Union.

Typical topology of an engineering workflow

In a design office or engineering company, a typical workflow looks like this:

1. Trigger: a new sub-contracting agreement is created in the ERP (e.g. SAP, Sage, or a construction project management tool).
2. Extraction: Make retrieves the contract metadata (parties, amount, site references).
3. Document generation: the AI contract generator from Certyneo produces the structured PDF document.
4. Creating the signature request: Make calls the Certyneo API to create the request and add signatories in the defined order.
5. Sequential or parallel signature: Certyneo sends the signature links to the parties concerned.
6. Notification and archiving: upon receipt of each signature, Make triggers a Slack/Teams notification and archives the signed document in your document management system (SharePoint, Google Drive, Egnyte, etc.).

This architecture eliminates manual email exchanges and guarantees complete traceability, essential during engineering project audits.

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Step-by-step configuration of the integration in Make

Step 1 — Create the scenario and configure the Certyneo connection

In your Make space, create a new scenario. If the native Certyneo connector is available in the Make marketplace, select it directly; otherwise, use the HTTP > Make a request or HTTP > Make an OAuth 2.0 request module.

To configure the connection:

• Base URL: `https://api.certyneo.com/v1`
• Authentication method: OAuth 2.0 (Client Credentials) or Bearer Token API key, depending on your Certyneo account configuration
• API key: available in your Certyneo dashboard, Settings > Integrations > API section

Keep your API key in Make's connection manager (and not hard-coded in the scenario) to comply with security best practices.

Step 2 — Define the trigger suitable for the engineering sector

The choice of trigger is decisive. In engineering, the most common triggers are:

| Trigger | Make Module | Use case | |---|---|---| | New file in a SharePoint folder | SharePoint > Watch Files | Contract deposited by the sales team | | New row in a Google Sheets spreadsheet | Google Sheets > Watch Rows | Tracking of agreements to be signed | | Incoming webhook from the ERP | Webhooks > Custom Webhook | Purchase order validated in SAP | | New Jira/Asana ticket | Jira > Watch Issues | Project deliverable requiring customer validation |

For complex engineering workflows (e.g. signing a works management contract requiring co-signature by a technical director and a legal director), the incoming Webhook trigger from the ERP offers the greatest flexibility.

Step 3 — Create the signature request via the Certyneo API

Once the trigger is configured, add an HTTP module pointing to the Certyneo signature request creation endpoint:

``` POST https://api.certyneo.com/v1/signature-requests ```

The JSON request body includes:

```json { "name": "Sub-contracting agreement - Project {{1.project_name}}", "signers": [ { "email": "{{1.signer_email}}", "name": "{{1.signer_name}}", "order": 1 } ], "document_url": "{{2.file_url}}", "signature_level": "advanced", "expiry_date": "{{formatDate(addDays(now; 15); 'YYYY-MM-DD')}}" } ```

Note the use of the `advanced` signature level (advanced electronic signature, AES), in compliance with eIDAS requirements for engineering contracts of significant value. For internal documents with low risk, the `simple` level is sufficient.

Step 4 — Manage notifications and post-signature archiving

After creating the request, add a second branch to your Make scenario, triggered by a Certyneo Webhook signalling the completion of the signature. Certyneo automatically sends a POST to the webhook URL you will have defined in the request settings.

Upon receipt of this webhook, your scenario can:

• Download the signed and timestamped PDF via `GET /signature-requests/{id}/signed-document`
• Archive it in your document management system (SharePoint, Egnyte, Google Drive)
• Update the status of the contract in your ERP or CRM
• Send an automatic notification to the project team via Slack, Teams or email
• Trigger billing or the opening of a new project in your management tool

This chain of actions guarantees end-to-end traceability of the document lifecycle, a fundamental requirement in audited projects (ISO 9001 certification, public procurement, Seveso classified projects).

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Best practices specific to the engineering sector

Managing multi-party signatures and sequential workflows

Engineering often involves documents requiring multiple signatories in a specific order: first the project manager, then the technical director, finally the legal representative of the client company. Certyneo natively handles sequential signature via the `order` parameter in the list of signers.

In Make, you can dynamically build the signer array by using an Array Aggregator that collects signer data from your ERP or a reference table, before injecting it into the Certyneo API request. This approach allows you to manage contracts with 5 to 10 signers without modifying the scenario.

Associating signatures with site folders

In engineering, each signed document must be associated with a specific project folder. Use Certyneo's custom metadata to store the case number, project phase and market code. This metadata will be returned in the completion webhook and can be used by Make to archive the document in the correct folder of your document management system.

This practice aligns with the requirements of the NF EN ISO 19650 standard (information management in BIM) and facilitates documentary audits at the end of the project.

Monitoring workflow quality and errors

Make offers a detailed execution log for each scenario. In a professional context, configure email or Slack alerts on scenarios with errors, and use Make's Error Handler module to manage cases of Certyneo API failure (rate limiting, oversized document, signer not found).

If you wish to compare Certyneo's capabilities with other market solutions before embarking on integration, consult our comparison of electronic signature solutions to identify the solution best suited to your engineering context.

Finally, to maximise the return on investment of your automated workflow, our electronic signature ROI calculator allows you to precisely estimate the time savings and cost reductions achievable based on the volume of documents processed by your design office.

Legal framework applicable to electronic signature in engineering

Legal foundations of electronic signature

In French law, the legal value of electronic signature rests on article 1366 of the Civil Code, which provides that "writing in electronic form is admissible in evidence on the same basis as writing on paper support", and on article 1367, which clarifies that "the signature necessary for the perfection of a legal act identifies its author and manifests their consent".

At European level, the eIDAS Regulation No. 910/2014 (Electronic Identification, Authentication and Trust Services), supplemented by eIDAS 2.0 (Regulation EU 2024/1183), defines three levels of electronic signature:

• SES (Simple Electronic Signature): suitable for internal documents with low risk.
• AES (Advanced Electronic Signature): recommended for standard engineering contracts, sub-contracting agreements and purchase orders. It guarantees reliable identification of the signatory and document integrity.
• QES (Qualified Electronic Signature): required for authentic acts and certain large-scale public procurement.

Obligations specific to the engineering sector

In the context of public procurement, Decree No. 2016-360 relating to public procurement requires full dematerialisation above certain thresholds. Commitment deeds and sub-contracting agreements must be signed with an AES or QES compliant with eIDAS, produced by a qualified trust service provider (QTSP) listed on the European Trusted List.

The ETSI EN 319 132 standard defines the XAdES profiles used for advanced XML signature, whilst ETSI EN 319 122 covers CAdES profiles for the signature of binary documents. Certyneo complies with these standards, guaranteeing interoperability and cross-border recognition of signatures.

GDPR and protection of signatory data

The processing of personal data of signatories (name, email, biometric signature data) is subject to the GDPR Regulation No. 2016/679. As data controller, your engineering company must ensure that Certyneo acts as a data processor within the meaning of article 28 GDPR, with a properly executed DPA (Data Processing Agreement). Signature data must be retained for the applicable limitation period (5 years for commercial contracts under article L. 110-4 of the Commercial Code, 10 years for construction contracts due to ten-year warranty).

NIS2 Directive and security of automated workflows

Engineering companies operating in critical sectors (energy, transport, water) may be subject to the NIS2 Directive (2022/2555/EU), transposed into French law by the law of 14 April 2025. This directive imposes security requirements on information systems, including automation workflows connected to third-party service providers such as Make and Certyneo. It is advisable to document data flows, encrypt communications (TLS 1.3 minimum) and maintain a register of digital sub-processors.

Use cases: Make + Certyneo in engineering

Scenario 1 — Geotechnical design office managing 300 mission reports per year

A design office specialising in geotechnics, with around fifteen engineers, produces on average 300 mission reports and service contracts annually. Before the Make + Certyneo integration, each report required manual email sending, telephone follow-up after 5 days without reply, and manual archiving on the file server. The average time to collect signatures was 8 working days.

After deployment of the automated workflow — triggered by the deposit of the finalised report in SharePoint — the Make scenario automatically creates the Certyneo signature request, sends notification to the client, and automatically follows up on day 3 if the signature has not been received. The signed document is instantly archived in the corresponding case folder.

Result: reduction in signature time from 8 days to 1.8 days on average (−78%), estimated cost savings of 2.5 hours of administrative support per week, approximately €3,500 per year in administrative processing costs. These orders of magnitude are consistent with industry benchmarks published by Forrester Research on document automation (2024).

Scenario 2 — Industrial engineering company managing multi-party sub-contracting agreements

A mid-sized industrial engineering company (80 to 150 employees) manages projects requiring the signature of sub-contracting agreements involving 3 to 6 parties: client, delegated project manager, tier-1 and tier-2 sub-contractors. Each contract requires strict sequential signature for contractual and insurance reasons.

The Make + Certyneo workflow is triggered by the validation of the purchase order in the ERP. Make dynamically builds the ordered list of signers from the supplier database, creates the Certyneo signature request with sequential parameters, and notifies each party in turn. Upon completion, the signed contract is archived in Procore and the contract status is updated in the ERP.

Result: elimination of sequencing errors (a sub-contractor signing before the project manager) of 100% thanks to automatic management of signature order. Average time to finalise contracts reduced from 12 days to 4 days (−67%), which accelerates the effective start of site works.

Scenario 3 — Engineering consultancy managing scope amendment notices

An engineering consultancy firm assisting industrial clients in their product transformation projects frequently produces amendments (scope changes) during the mission, requiring rapid validation so as not to delay the project. These amendments were previously printed, signed in meeting or sent by post, generating delays incompatible with the pace of agile projects.

With Make + Certyneo, the creation of an amendment in the project management tool automatically triggers a signature request. The client receives a mobile-friendly signature link allowing them to sign from their smartphone in less than 2 minutes, even on site. The advanced signature level (AES) is applied, ensuring the legal value of the amendment.

Result: time to validate amendments reduced from 5 to 7 days to less than 24 hours in 85% of cases. Improved customer satisfaction and reduced risk of undocumented scope creep, a frequent source of disputes in engineering consultancy.

Conclusion

The integration of Certyneo with Make (Integromat) represents a major efficiency lever for engineering sector players. By automating the entire document lifecycle — from contract creation to archiving the signed document — you eliminate repetitive manual tasks, reduce signature times by 67 to 78% on average, and guarantee complete eIDAS compliance for every document produced.

The technical configuration, whilst requiring careful initial set-up, is accessible to teams with a no-code profile or a Make integrator. Benefits manifest themselves within the first weeks of use, with measurable ROI on administration costs and site start-up times.

Ready to transform your document workflows? Create your Certyneo account for free and connect your first Make scenario in less than an hour, or contact our team for personalised support tailored to your engineering context.