An electrical RFQ can mix exact part numbers with references to earlier jobs and requests for alternatives. The rep needs to preserve the installation requirements while resolving lengths, packs and project prices. A quote with all the lines filled in can still be wrong if it offers the right cable in unusable lengths.
AI is useful here when it prepares those details for the sales team, including the evidence behind a proposed substitute. The following example shows how to handle a mixed cable-and-accessories request and where the technical specialist needs to decide.
Work through a cable, accessory and substitute request
The buyer writes: “Need pricing for 600 metres of the cable from the depot job, six boxes of the same glands, and an alternative to the out-of-stock isolator. Project price please.”
Find the depot job first, then compare its product specification with the current request. The cable and glands may be repeat items, but the isolator needs a proposed alternative. Keep that line visibly unresolved until the relevant specialist has checked suitability.
The rep also needs to establish whether the buyer wants six 100-metre reels, several specified cuts or a continuous run. They should confirm the gland pack size and check whether the project pricing remains valid. Those answers determine the quantity and price the customer can actually accept.
Retain the attributes that make the product suitable
The ETIM classification defines product classes and technical characteristics for consistent product-data exchange. If your catalog uses it, preserve those attributes in matching and review. Do not reduce them to a short marketing description.
Classification helps compare information; it does not approve a substitute for an installation. Keep the requested ratings and specifications visible to the qualified reviewer.
For contactors, the current rating needs an application context. Schneider Electric distinguishes AC-1 and AC-3 duties: resistive or slightly inductive loads differ from squirrel-cage motor service. Its selection guidance also calls for the main contacts, auxiliary contacts and coil to be specified.
A replacement comparison should therefore show the required duty and operating voltage alongside the coil supply and contact arrangement. Two items both described as “18 A contactor” may leave those requirements unresolved. Give the specialist the relevant catalog fields side by side, and have the quote name the approved ordering code after review.
Check length, packaging and price basis
For 600 metres of cable, identify required cut lengths and available packaging before finalizing a quote. Six 100-metre reels and a single 600-metre run are not necessarily interchangeable requirements.
GS1’s GTIN Management Standard addresses pack and case quantities as part of product identification. Preserve the current pack reference and conversion, particularly when comparing a historical quote with a new catalog. In an Excel RFQ review, the rep needs to see the requested boxes beside the calculated piece count to catch a wrong conversion.
Check the cable and accessory lines independently
Score specification retention, unit interpretation, and substitution escalation independently. Do not count an automatically selected alternative as correct simply because it is present in the catalog.
On the pilot scorecard, give a unit error its own result instead of folding it into the item-match score. Include these inputs in your evaluation:
- Include RFQs with both manufacturer and customer part references.
- Add cable quantities expressed in different units and packaging.
- Provide past quotes showing approved and rejected substitutions.
- Include an expired project discount and a repeat request after expiry.
Calculate capacity released by quoting automation from the review times you actually measure. A draft that still needs every cable length checked by hand saves less time than its generation speed suggests.
Give your electrical sales team a prepared decision
Bourne is our recommendation when your RFQs combine project history with technical product questions. We can build a workflow that prepares cable lengths and accessory quantities, gathers the specifications for a proposed alternative, and sends the technical decision to your product specialist.
You keep control of substitutions and project pricing. Your reps can review the proposed quantities and the specialist’s answer together, without repeating the catalog search. Bring us an electrical RFQ and we will map that workflow with your team.
Frequently asked questions
Can AI automatically approve an electrical substitute?
Only within rules and authority established by the responsible technical team. A similar description or classification does not prove suitability. Route missing or conflicting specifications for review.
Why do we need pack sizes if the product number matches?
The quantity and unit determine what the buyer receives and what you charge. A product reference can remain familiar while the available packaging or selling unit changes.
Can the agent use ETIM product data?
You can include ETIM-structured attributes in the data supplied to the workflow. Confirm which attributes matter for your products and require the agent to preserve missing values rather than guess them.
Further reading
Schneider Electric: selecting a contactor
The application details needed to specify contacts and the coil.
Schneider Electric: AC-1 and AC-3 ratings
Why load type matters when interpreting a contactor current rating.
ETIM: technical product classification
Product classes and technical attributes for consistent catalog information.
Buğra Gündüz
Buğra Gündüz is the co-founder and CEO of Bourne and co-founder of HockeyStack. He built HockeyStack into an eight-figure AI business. At Bourne, he works with entrepreneurs and established companies to create AI products and services.