Manufacturing's need for quick response quoting

Without the proper software tools to help with processing RFQs, estimators might be working a lot of late nights trying to get the work done. FG Trade/E+

Jason Ray, co-founder and CEO, Paperless Parts, a developer of quoting software for manufacturers, opened his presentation at the FMA Annual Meeting on Feb. 28 with a simple point: Things are busy.

From his perspective, that means his company’s customers, metal fabricating and machine shops, are quoting a lot of jobs. In a survey of its customers, Paperless Parts found that those shops saw a 37% increase in requests for quotes (RFQs) over the last two years when compared to the previous two years.

Over that same time period, the shops said that the RFQs contained 50% more components per quote and 66% more supporting files than they did two years ago.

What’s driving this activity? Ray said that multinational companies are beginning to understand that cost shouldn’t be the only factor driving supply chain decisions. As the world discovered during the pandemic, long supply chains, particularly those connected to China, are more vulnerable to disruptions. The costs associated with shipping delays or the inability even to get goods proved massive enough to get everyone’s attention.

The result is billions of dollars in manufacturing activity returning to the U.S., according to McKinsey & Co. A lot of that is associated with high-tech manufacturing, such as the production of semiconductors, but the increased activity is likely to trickle down to plenty of industrial segments requiring some sort of metal parts and assemblies.

“Companies are concerned enough that they are even showing interest in buying shifts from different shops,” Ray said. That’s how proactive some of these large companies might be as they look to ensure manufacturing capacity and minimize further supply chain disruption.

Ray added that some of the biggest bottlenecks for shops, when faced with these increased opportunities, are in the front office. A lot administrative shepherding is necessary to ensure the quotes get in the right hands and are completed in a timely manner. Meanwhile, engineers can end up spending a lot of time just correcting incoming drawings so accurate quotes can be provided. Additionally, any quotes involving outside vendors are always at risk of not being supplied in an expedient manner.

The old adage of “First in, first to win!” still remains true, but the complexity of the RFQs makes quick responses challenging. Ray said that those companies that have the tools to streamline quoting activities, while at the same time ensuring that the work fits the shop floor’s capabilities and that it can be profitable, are setting themselves up to make the most of the increased manufacturing opportunities to come in the next five years.