Relaycairn

AI operations for machine shops & job shops

RFQ quote automation for machine shops

Get RFQs quoted faster without hiring another estimator. We build the intake, quote-prep, follow-up and PO-handoff plumbing around your estimator, so drawings stop sitting in an inbox and won jobs stop getting re-keyed.

Request a scoping conversation Walk through one RFQ

Built for owner-operated shops at roughly $1M–$20M in revenue. Your estimator still sets every price.

Where an RFQ loses time, and sometimes the job

An illustrative path for one RFQ, from inbox to PO. Your shop will differ in the details, but most owners will recognise where the marked steps happen.

  1. RFQ lands

    It arrives in someone’s inbox

    A buyer emails drawings, a spec sheet and a one-line ask. Sometimes it’s a link, sometimes a zip, sometimes a web form with half the fields blank.

    Leak: nobody owns triage, so it waits for whoever opens it.

  2. Reading the package

    The estimator digs for the basics

    Material, quantity breaks, finish, tolerances, cert requirements, due date. The estimator pulls these out by hand from whatever format showed up.

    Leak: skilled estimating time spent on data entry instead of pricing.

  3. Missing information

    The back-and-forth email

    “Do you need certs? What’s the target date?” The question gets written when there’s a free minute, and the quote clock stops until the buyer answers.

    Leak: the buyer is already collecting other quotes.

  4. Building the number

    Pricing from memory and old spreadsheets

    “Didn’t we run something like this last year?” Comparable jobs, routing and material costs live in the ERP, in old quotes and in the estimator’s head.

    Leak: slow, and inconsistent from one estimator or one week to the next.

  5. Quote sent

    Then silence

    The quote goes out and the shop moves on to the next fire. Nobody is assigned to ask whether it was received, or whether the buyer needs a revision.

    Leak: follow-ups forgotten, warm quotes go cold.

  6. PO arrives

    The same data gets typed again

    The PO is re-keyed into the ERP or job-tracking system, again into the schedule for the job traveler, and again into an invoice later.

    Leak: duplicate entry, transcription errors, slow release to the floor.

Walkthrough: one RFQ, from email to estimator-ready record

Here is what the intake module does with a single incoming RFQ, step by step, including what it deliberately does not do.

Constructed example, not a real shop or job. The buyer, part and files below were written for this page. No shop has supplied an RFQ for it, and none is implied. It will be replaced only by a walkthrough a shop has agreed to in writing, or by a sanitised demo that is labelled as one.

  1. Step 1

    The RFQ arrives as it always does

    A short email with attachments. No form, no standard format, and a due date that is not really a date.

    System: receives
    Incoming emailexample only
    From: purchasing@example-buyer.test
Subject: RFQ - bracket, 50 / 250 / 500

Hi, please quote the attached bracket at
50, 250 and 500 pcs. Anodize per drawing.
We need these soon. Thanks.
    • bracket_revB.pdf
    • bracket_revB.step
    • spec_sheet.pdf

  2. Step 2

    Fields are pulled out, each with where it came from

    Only values that are actually stated get filled in, and each one points back to its source so the estimator can check it in seconds. Anything ambiguous is left blank or flagged rather than guessed.

    System: extracts
    Structured recordexample only
    Extracted fields and their sources (constructed example)
    FieldValueFound in
    Quantities50 / 250 / 500Email body
    Material6061-T6Drawing, general notes
    FinishAnodize, type IIDrawing, title block
    Tolerance±.005 generalDrawing, general notes
    Tight callout1 feature tighter than generalDrawing, view B
    Due dateNot stated ("soon")Email body
    Material certsNot statedNot found in any file

  3. Step 3

    Gaps become a drafted question, not a stalled thread

    The missing items are turned into a short reply, ready for review. By default it is held for a person; you decide whether routine requests like this may go out without review.

    System: drafts
    Draft replyheld for review, not sent
    Thanks for the RFQ on the bracket (rev B).
To quote accurately, could you confirm:
1. Are material certs required?
2. What is your target delivery date?

  4. Step 4

    The estimator opens a prepared record, then decides

    Drawings are filed against the record, the flagged tolerance is called out, and the question is queued. The estimator reviews, edits, and sets the price. That judgment stays with a person.

    Person: reviews and prices
    Record statusexample only
    Status:   Waiting on estimator review
Routed:   Estimator (by part family)
Open:     Certs? Due date? Tight callout, view B
Files:    3 attached to record
Price:    Not set. Estimator only.

What this step does not do

  • It does not set or send a price
  • It does not guess a value that the files do not state
  • It does not commit the shop to a delivery date or discount

What a real one will look like

In discovery we ask for a handful of your own anonymisable RFQs and walk through them in this same format, so you see your inputs rather than ours. No customer drawings are needed to start a conversation.

Request a scoping conversation

What a done-for-you engagement builds

Four modules that sit around your estimator and your existing systems. We build them for you, test them against your real RFQs, and document them. You don’t need to become an automation shop.

Module A

RFQ intake & triage

Every RFQ, whether it comes by email or web form, becomes one structured record instead of a loose thread.

  • Pulls customer, part, material, quantity breaks, finish and due date from the message and attachments where they’re stated
  • Files drawings and specs against the record
  • Flags what’s missing and drafts the request for that information
  • Routes the record to the right estimator

Human check: drafted customer messages are reviewed before anything is sent, unless you choose otherwise for routine requests.

Module B

Quote-prep assist

The estimator opens a record that’s already prepared, not a blank page.

  • Surfaces past comparable jobs and the quotes you issued on them
  • Brings in material and process data from your own sources
  • Assembles a draft quote in your format for the estimator to edit
  • Notes where assumptions were made so they can be checked

Human check: a person always signs off on price. The system prepares and suggests; it never sets or sends a price on its own.

Module C

Quote follow-up cadence

Open quotes get a consistent, polite nudge instead of depending on someone’s memory.

  • Tracks every open quote and its age
  • Drafts follow-up messages in your voice on a cadence you define
  • Stops when the customer replies, or when a PO or decline comes in
  • Gives you a short list of open quotes worth a phone call

Human check: you set the cadence and the wording rules. Any discount, revision or delivery commitment goes to a person.

Module D

Won-job handoff

When the PO arrives, the data moves forward instead of being typed again.

  • Matches the PO to the quote and creates the job record
  • Prepares the details a job traveler needs
  • Sends a schedule request to whoever runs the floor
  • Prepares an invoice draft for review

Human check: PO-to-quote mismatches are flagged for review, and nothing is released to the floor or invoiced without approval.

Not every shop needs all four. Scoping decides which module to start with, and we typically pilot the one workflow that costs you the most.

How an engagement runs

Four phases. Timing depends on your shop, your stack and how quickly we can get sample RFQs and access, so we agree it in scoping rather than promise a number here.

  1. Discovery

    A working conversation with you and your estimator about how RFQs actually move today, what tools are involved, and which step hurts most. We ask for a handful of real, anonymisable RFQs and past quotes.

  2. Workflow map

    We write down the current RFQ-to-PO path and the proposed one, including where a person approves. You review and correct it before anything is built.

  3. Build & pilot

    We build one workflow first and run it against your real RFQs with your estimator checking the output. We adjust based on what they catch.

  4. Handoff & documentation

    You get written documentation of what was built, how it connects and how to change or switch it off, plus a walkthrough for the people who will use it.

Investment

$5k–$25k

Engagements are scoped individually and typically fall in this range. You get a written scope and price before any work starts.

This is a range, not a package menu. We don’t publish tiers because the work depends on your shop, and we make no promise about revenue or savings outcomes.

What moves a scope up or down

  • How many of the four modules are in scope
  • The systems involved: ERP or job tracking, email, shared drives, scheduling, accounting
  • How consistent your RFQ inputs and past quote data are
  • Whether quoting involves multiple estimators or processes
  • How much documentation and team training you want at handoff

If a smaller first pilot makes more sense than a full build, we’ll say so in scoping.

Who it’s for, and who it’s not

A good fit

  • Owner-operated machine shops, fabrication shops and contract manufacturers at roughly $1M–$20M in revenue
  • RFQs arrive by email or web form, and quote turnaround is a known sore spot
  • You have one or more estimators who are the bottleneck, and you’d rather add leverage than headcount
  • You already keep some record of past jobs and quotes, even if it’s messy
  • The owner or GM can make a decision on a five-figure project

Probably not a fit

  • Shops under roughly $1M in revenue, where the investment is hard to justify
  • Anyone looking for a generic website chatbot
  • Teams wanting software to price jobs with no estimator approving
  • Shops expecting a guaranteed revenue or win-rate number
  • Shops with no quote history and no process at all to build on. A simpler first step may fit better.

Questions owners ask

What about the security of our drawings and customer data?

Drawings and customer files are often under NDA or ITAR/export considerations, so we treat access as something you grant deliberately. We don’t hold your credentials or access your systems unless we agree on it in writing first, and we scope access to what a given workflow needs.

If your work has export-control or contractual restrictions on where data can go, tell us in discovery. It may change what we build or how, or whether we can take the work on. We don’t claim security certifications.

What systems does it connect to?

It depends on your stack, and we confirm it in scoping. That includes your email setup, your ERP or job-tracking system, where drawings are stored, and your scheduling and invoicing tools. Some connect cleanly, some need a workaround, and a few may not be worth connecting. We’ll tell you which before you commit.

We have no ERP vendor partnerships, so our recommendation is about what fits your shop.

Do people stay in the loop on pricing and commitments?

Yes. The system prepares and drafts; people decide. Your estimator approves every price, and anything that commits the shop (discounts, delivery dates, revisions, accepting a PO) goes to a person. You can decide which routine messages, such as a request for a missing drawing, may go out without review.

Will this replace my estimator?

No. The aim is to take the data-gathering, chasing and re-keying off your estimator so they spend more of their time on judgment: process, risk and price.

Is the walkthrough above a real customer’s RFQ?

No. It is a constructed example written for this page, and it is labelled that way. No shop has supplied an RFQ for it. We would rather show you a clearly marked example than imply a customer relationship. If you want to see your own RFQs run through the same format, that is part of discovery.

What happens after the engagement ends?

You receive documentation of what was built and how it connects. Whether any ongoing support is useful is something to discuss in scoping, not something assumed.

Request a scoping conversation

Tell us a little about the shop and where quotes get stuck. We’ll read it and reply by email to say whether it looks like a fit and what the next step would be.

No obligation. A scoping conversation is a discussion of your workflow, not a sales script.

Prefer email? Write to julien@relaycairn.com.

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We’ll review it and reply to the email address you gave. If you don’t hear back, write to julien@relaycairn.com.

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