RFQs that reach the estimator ready to price
Requests for quotes sit in a shared inbox with drawings attached and no owner. Here is how each one gets sorted, summarised and handed to an estimator the same day.
The problem
Requests for quotes arrive by email with drawings, specs and questions buried in long threads. Some wait days before anyone opens them. The estimators spend the first hour of every request working out what is actually being asked.
What was really causing it
There is no front door for a request. It is one email among hundreds, with no owner, no deadline and no summary. The work of reading it properly is repeated by whoever picks it up.
There is no front door for a request.
What we built
A board of open requests. Each new request is sorted, given an owner, and summarised: material, quantities, tolerances, deadline and anything missing. The estimator opens a request already knowing what it is.
- Captured Every request in the inbox becomes a card on the board, with its drawings attached.
- Summarised The key facts are pulled out and anything missing is listed as a question for the customer.
- Assigned The request goes to the right estimator by your own rules: horizontal or vertical work, material, customer.
- Priced The estimator prices it in your usual tools. The board tracks it until the quote is sent.
What stays as it is
Your estimating method, your CAD files, your ERP and your ISO 9001 quality system. The board sits in front of them and does not replace them.
Where AI fits, and where it does not
AI reads the request and the drawings' text to summarise and to spot what is missing. The estimator prices. Rules decide who gets which request. Drawings under export control stay out of any outside service.
What it is worth
What comes next
Quote follow-ups, win and loss reasons, and a customer portal where requests arrive already structured.
Questions people ask
- Does it price the job?
No. The estimator prices in your usual tools. The board makes sure every request reaches an estimator, summarised, with what is missing listed.
- What about drawings under export control?
They stay out of any outside service. Controlled requests are flagged and handled on your own systems or by a person.
- Does it read CAD files?
It reads the email, PDFs and drawing text. CAD models stay in your CAD system.
Canonical URL: https://ugibo.com/case-studies/rfqs-ready-to-price