Quoting Agent · Metal fabrication

Quoting Agent

Read the print, price the steel, route the job, quote, and reply just like your estimator.

Works using screen+ mouse+ keyboard

No new system.No integrations.

quoted while they're still deciding ↗

Drawing/CAD · HE-4471-BDemonstration data
  • MaterialA36 · 3/16"
  • Flat blank14.25" × 9.5"
  • Bends2 × 90°
  • Weight7.2 lb each
JobBOSS² · Quote 23-0418Hartwell Equipment
  • HE-4471-B rev C bracket · qty 5038.40
  • HE-4471-B rev C bracket · qty 10029.75
  • HE-4471-B rev C bracket · qty 25024.10
  • First article inspection report175.00
TotalQty 100: $3,150.00
✉Sent to J. OkaforQuote 23-0418.pdf

Can you supply mill certs with the parts?

Yes. Mill test reports for the A36 plate ship with every lot. It's on the quote under notes, at no charge.

  1. 01RFQ
  2. 02Drawing
  3. 03Material & routing
  4. 04Quote
  5. 05Answers
The biggest win

Instant quotes. Win more deals.

The first good quote usually wins the job. Your agent sends it while the customer is still deciding.

Todaythe usual way
  • Request sits in the inbox
  • Quote goes out 3–5 days
  • Deal lost. The buyer already placed the PO with a faster shop.
VS
With your agent✦ Instant
  • Picked up the moment it lands
  • Drawn, priced, approved, sent same day
  • First in the inbox. Deal won.

Quoting for metal fabrication is messy

  • RFQs that sit. Answered late, or never
  • One estimator. Every quote waits on one desk
  • Steel moves. Plate price from last month
  • Missed details. Tolerance, finish, cert required

An agent that handles the messy parts your way.

  • 01Prints, not formsPDF, STEP, DXF, sketches
  • 02Steel by the poundPriced today, not last month
  • 03Routing hoursYour machines, your rates
  • 04Quantity breaksSetup spread right
  • 05RevisionsRev C is not rev B
Today

Every quote, by hand. Agents should!

  1. ManualAgent Open the RFQ
  2. ManualAgent Read the print
  3. ManualAgent Redraw in CAD
  4. ManualAgent Material & weight
  5. ManualAgent Call for steel
  6. ManualAgent Cut & bend time
  7. ManualAgent Weld & finish
  8. ManualAgent Outside process
  9. ManualAgent Qty breaks
  10. ManualAgent Key the quote
  11. ManualAgent Answer the buyer

How many hours can you get back?

The whole job

Hand the whole quote to an agent

1 agent
  1. Reads the RFQ
  2. Draws it in CAD
  3. Prices the steel
  4. Routes the job
  5. Estimator approves
  6. Sends the quote
  7. Answers the buyer
  8. Follows up

Agent does itYou decide

Step one: the drawing

Any drawing in. CAD out.

Hand sketch, PDF print, photo or fax. The agent redraws it in your CAD before it quotes.

What buyers send

  • PDF print
  • Hand sketch
  • Phone photo
  • Marked-up old drawing
  • Fax or scan
  • STEP / DXF
SOLIDWORKS · HE-4471-B rev C · bracket
  • MaterialA36 · 3/16"
  • Flat blank14.25" × 9.5"
  • Bends2 × 90°
  • Weight7.2 lb each

Any format in. CAD out. Buyers send whatever they have. The agent turns it into a SOLIDWORKS model with a flat pattern and weight, then quotes from that. How sketch-to-CAD works →

How it works

Five steps. One quote.

One job, start to finish: Hartwell Equipment, mounting bracket, 3 quantities.

  1. 01

    It draws it in CAD

    PDF print, photo or hand sketch, modeled in SOLIDWORKS with flat pattern and weight.

    Drawing/CAD · HE-4471-B
    • MaterialA36 · 3/16"
    • Flat blank14.25" × 9.5"
    • Bends2 × 90°
    • Weight7.2 lb each

    HE-4471-B rev C · bracket

  2. 02

    It prices the steel

    Weight from the drawing. Price from your service center, today.

    Service center portal · rates
    ItemFromPrice
    A36 plate 3/16, 60×120Service center$0.62 / lb
    Laser, 3/16 mild steelShop rate$165 / hr
    Press brake, 2 hitsShop rate$95 / hr
    Powder coat, blackQuote is 41 days oldOutside vendor$4.80 / pc
  3. 03

    It routes the job

    Laser, brake, weld, powder coat. Your rates, your hours.

    JobBOSS² · Quote 23-0418
    Quote 23-0418Hartwell EquipmentDraft
    DescriptionQtyUnitAmount
    HE-4471-B rev C bracket · qty 5050ea38.40
    HE-4471-B rev C bracket · qty 100100ea29.75
    HE-4471-B rev C bracket · qty 250250ea24.10
    First article inspection report1lot175.00
    Lead time 3 weeks ARO · valid 30 daysQty 100: $3,150.00
  4. 04

    It sends the quote

    Quantity breaks, lead time and terms, in your shop system's PDF.

    Outlook · New message

    ToJ. Okafor

    SubjectQuote 23-0418 for RFQ 88-214

    Hi James, our quote for the HE-4471-B bracket at 50, 100 and 250 is attached. First article in 3 weeks after PO. Steel pricing is held for 30 days.

    Quote 23-0418.pdf

    Send
  5. 05

    It answers the buyer

    Material certs, lead time, revisions. From the quote and the print.

    Email · Hartwell Equipment

    Can you supply mill certs with the parts?

    Yes. Mill test reports for the A36 plate ship with every lot. It's on the quote under notes, at no charge.

    Answered from: Quote 23-0418, note 2

The full process

Metal fabrication: every step

What the agent does, where you decide, and the rules it checks.

you decide every green box

  1. RFQ email with drawings
  2. Read print, sketch or photo
  3. Drawing complete?
    No → ask the buyer
  4. Redraw in CAD: blank & weight
  5. Price material at service center
  6. Route: laser, brake, weld
  7. Outside process quote current?
    No → request new quote
  8. Build qty breaks
  9. Enter quote in shop system
  10. Margin above target?
    No → estimator decides
  11. Estimator approves
  12. Email quote PDF to buyer
  13. Answer buyer questions
  14. Revision or new rev?
    Yes → re-quote, re-approve
  15. Follow up in 3 days
  16. PO received. Convert to job

Agent does it You decide Rule check

Your process

Built around how you quote

Not a template. Your steps, your price book, your approvals.

  1. 01

    Explain it once

    Talk or type, like training a new hire. Hand over your SOP, price book and a few past quotes.

    When a request comes in, first check: drawing complete? If not, ask the buyer.

    Quoting SOP.pdf Price book 2026.xlsx 3 past quotes
    Describe your process…
  2. 02

    Watch it work

    It works a real job on your screen. You correct it the way you'd correct a person.

    Use the 2026 price book, not last year's.

    Got it. Switched to 2026 and re-priced 4 lines.

    Read requestDrawingPricing
  3. 03

    Save your process

    A written procedure and a flowchart. Every run follows the version you approved.

    1. Read print, sketch or photo
    2. Drawing complete?
    3. Redraw in CAD: blank & weight
    4. Price material at service center
    5. Route: laser, brake, weld
    6. Outside process quote current?
    v1 · approved
Fully yours

Change anything. Any time.

Any step, any rule, any approval. Say what changed. Approve the new version.

Metal fabrication processv3 → v4
  1. Price material at service center
  2. Check this customer's historyAdded
  3. Vendor quote over 30 days?Changed
  4. Email quote PDF to buyer
  5. Estimator approvesRepeat customers: skip
  6. Margin above target?

Add a step after “Price material at service center”: check this customer's history and flag anything unusual.

Step added

New rule: Vendor quote over 30 days → get a new one.

Rule changed

Repeat customers under the limit don't need my approval anymore.

Approval changed

Saved as version 4. You approved it. The next run follows it. The last runs keep the version they ran on.

Your controls

Your rules. Exactly.

Written once in plain English. Followed every time.

  • Vendor quote over 30 days? Get a new one
  • Tolerance under ±0.005? Estimator reviews
  • New customer? Estimator approves

Never, on any run

  • Quote from an old revision
  • Accept a tolerance it can't read
  • Promise a ship date
  • Change your shop rates

Approvals, where you want them

It stops and asks you.

What it built, what it checked, what looks off and what it suggests. Approve, edit, reject, or take the wheel.

from your desk or your phone ↘

Metal fabrication quotingRun #1042Paused at step 11 · Approve the quoteWaiting for you
Approval you asked for Medium risk Fab quote · step 11 · Approve the quote Waiting 0:42 1 of 2 in your queue

Approve quote 23-0418 for Hartwell?

You asked to approve every new-customer quote.

Agent suggests: Approve and sendOne item needs a look. Everything else checked out.

QUOTE 23-0418 · HE-4471-B rev C

MaterialA36 3/16 · $0.62/lb today

Laser + brake0.11 hr/pc · shop rates

Powder coat$4.80/pc · vendor quote 41 days old

Qty 50 / 100 / 250$38.40 / $29.75 / $24.10

Margin at qty 10027% · target 25%

Total at qty 100$3,150.00

Review notes

  • Weight checked against the flat blank
  • Powder coat price is older than your 30-day rule
  • Rev C matches the RFQ
Talk Take control Reject Edit Approve and send ↵
The difference

Your team, before and after

Your team today and with the agent
TodayWith your agent
RFQ response When there's time Same day
Your estimator Keys and calls Checks and wins
Steel price From memory Checked each quote
Quotes answered The easy ones Every one
Watch it work

One quote, start to finish

if you wish to see it in action!

RFQ to approved quote: a fabricated bracket

Conceptual walkthrough with sample data and a fictional company, not a recording of a customer's run. Screens of third-party software are recreated for illustration; product names belong to their owners.

Your numbers

How many hours can you get back?

Your volume, your times, your labor cost. Estimates, not results.

150staff hours per month returned to selling and building
$9,000labor capacity per month
$108,000labor capacity per year

RFQs × (minutes today − minutes with the agent) ÷ 60 × hourly cost

These are example assumptions, not results. Example for a 40-person fab shop: minutes cover reading the print, material, routing, entry and the email. Use your own numbers.

FAQ

Questions owners ask us

Can it read our customers' drawings?

It reads PDF prints the way an estimator does: title block, revision, material callout, dimensions, hole and bend notes, finish and general notes. It can open STEP and DXF files in your CAD to get the flat blank and weight. When something's unclear, it asks the buyer before it quotes.

Does it work in JobBOSS², E2 or ProShop?

It works the screens your estimator uses, with their login, so it isn't tied to one product. We have no partnership with those vendors; we confirm the exact steps on your version before a pilot.

How does it price material?

Weight from the drawing, price from your service center's portal or your latest price list, plus your drop and scrap allowance. If the price came from an old list, the line is flagged.

How are labor hours set?

From your routing rules: laser time by thickness and cut length, brake time by hits, weld time by inches, setup by operation. You write the rules once and they're applied the same way every quote.

Does it send quotes on its own?

Only if you say so. Most shops start with the estimator approving every quote, then let repeat parts at standard margin go straight out.

Instant quotes · Win more deals

Which RFQ should we quote first?

Bring one RFQ, its drawing and the quote you sent.

no new system. no integrations. ↗