GlossaryKind of term: Cost and economicsQuote turnaround time
What is quote turnaround time?
Quote turnaround time runs from a request coming in to the quote going out, including waiting for missing data and for prices from subcontractors.
Quote turnaround time is how long the customer waits for your price: from the moment the request arrives to the moment the quote goes out. It can be measured in working days or hours, as a mean or a median; the median is less sensitive to a single request that sat for weeks. Decide when the clock starts: first receipt, or the moment the request is complete. Both are useful, but they measure different things.
What does quote turnaround time depend on?
It covers more than the calculation itself. The request has to be complete, the drawing reviewed, the route chosen, the material priced and outsourced operations such as anodising or hardening priced by the subcontractor. That last step lies outside your shop and often sets the date. The queue at the cost engineer, the complexity and number of parts per request, and questions the customer has to answer first all play a part too.
How does quote turnaround time work in practice?
A late quote can lose an order even at a sharp price, because a buyer sometimes decides once enough prices are in. Time pressure can also lead to rough assumptions that only show in post-calculation. Waiting for one missing subcontract price holds up the whole quote; sometimes a quote with a stated qualification for that part is a way out. Tracking turnaround alongside hit rate gives a per-customer indication of whether speed matters.
What is quote turnaround time often confused with?
Quote turnaround time is not lead time: lead time starts at the order, quote turnaround comes before it. Nor is it estimating time: the hours spent calculating are only part of the time to the quote.
How do you see quote turnaround time in Blake?
In Blake model and drawing are paired per part by file name, and drawing values such as material, tolerance and roughness are ready as proposals to confirm or correct. If the price of an outsourced operation is missing, that line stays open and does not count as zero. More on requests.
Frequently asked questions
How quickly should you send a quote?
Within the deadline the customer names, and preferably sooner: a buyer who asks for several prices sometimes decides once enough are in. Track your turnaround alongside your hit rate for a per-customer indication of whether speed or price tips the balance.
Why does a quote take long when the estimate itself is quick?
Because most of the time often goes into waiting: for missing data from the customer, for a price from the anodiser or heat treater, or for a cost engineer with other requests on the desk. Calculating is often the smallest part.