01Quotes
The quote lives in three places
The price is in a spreadsheet, the drawing is in an email thread, and the routing is in the ERP. Quoting a repeat part means opening all three and hoping nothing changed.
PREPARED FOR ·
01 / PRIVATE AISMALL MANUFACTURERS · AI CONSULTING · CHARLOTTE, NC
What private AI could do for your shop.
An emailed order becomes a draft work order for your approval. Inspection sheets and drawings become searchable. Supplier changes reach the job they affect. It runs in your own servers or your own cloud account, so customer drawings stay with you.
Your files and systems feed one private assistant. Every answer shows where it came from.
02 / WHAT SLOWS YOU DOWN5 COMMON PAINS
What slows you down.
The work is rarely the problem. The hunting, retyping, and chasing around it is.
02Revisions
The traveler says rev A, the drawing says rev B
A revision change arrives by email. The traveler on the floor was printed last week. The mismatch is found at inspection, or by the customer.
03Suppliers
Supplier changes arrive by email and stay there
A date slips, a material substitution is proposed, a lead time doubles. The person who read the email knows. The job that it affects does not.
04Quality
Inspection sheets are scanned, then never searched
Final-check sheets and photos sit in a scans folder named by date. When a customer asks what happened on the last run, someone goes digging.
05Privacy
Customer drawings can't go into a public tool
Drawings and specs often come under an NDA. Any AI that reads them has to run in an environment you control, under terms that exclude training on your data.
03 / AT YOUR SHOP4 USE CASES · SELECT ONE
What it looks like at your shop.
A day in the life. Pick a use case and watch the question or report come together, with sources you can check.
USE CASE 1 / 4
An emailed order becomes a draft work order
The purchase order is read, matched to the quote and the last run, and a work order is drafted in your ERP. It waits for your approval. Anything that doesn't match is flagged.
Connected sources
- ERP / MRP
- Drawings
- Inspection scans
Trigger
A purchase order from Dunmore Supply just arrived by email. Set up the job and tell me what needs a decision.
Nothing is released without a person approving it. A small job shop with made-up records.
TASK DONESAMPLE DATA
Job packet drafted: Dunmore PO 4471
- Order read: 40 steel brackets, drawing rev B, due Nov 14. Quantity and part number match quote Q-2207.[1][3]
- Work order WO-2231 drafted in the ERP with the routing from the last bracket run. Not released until you approve it.[3][4]
- Needs a decision: the PO references rev B. The last run shipped rev A. The rev B drawing is attached for you.[2][5]
Sources 5
[1]Email: PO 4471 from Dunmore Supply, Oct 14
[2]Drawings: Bracket_B-114_revB.pdf
[3]ERP: quote Q-2207, bracket B-114
[4]ERP: routing from WO-2188, last bracket run
[5]Inspection scans: WO-2188 final check
USE CASE 2 / 4
What happened on the last run, with the sheet to prove it
Ask about a part and get the inspection history, the drawing revision in force at the time, and the customer thread, each with its source.
Connected sources
- Inspection scans
- Quality logs
- Drawings
Question
What did QC flag on the last bracket run for Dunmore, and which drawing revision did we ship?
Scanned sheets are read with OCR, so a handwritten check sheet becomes searchable text.
ANSWERSAMPLE DATA
Quality check: bracket run WO-2188
- Flagged: two of 40 parts failed the hole-position check on Oct 9. Both were reworked and passed the same day.[1][2]
- Revision shipped: rev A. The drawing changed to rev B on Oct 2, after the traveler was printed.[3]
- Customer thread: Dunmore's buyer asked for a short corrective-action note by Friday. A draft is ready for you to edit.[4]
Sources 4
[1]Inspection scans: WO-2188 final check, Oct 9 (OCR)
[2]Quality logs: nonconformance NC-0318
[3]Drawings: Bracket_B-114 revision history
[4]Email: Re: WO-2188 brackets, Oct 10
USE CASE 3 / 4
Supplier emails reach the job they affect
Every supplier email is read as it arrives. A date slip or a substitution is matched to the open jobs that depend on it, and the planner sees it the same morning.
Connected sources
- Supplier email
- ERP / MRP
- Work orders
- Calendar
Question
Which supplier emails this week change a delivery date or a material, and which open jobs do they affect?
The twelve other supplier emails changed nothing and are not listed. The assistant reads them so a person doesn't have to.
ANSWERSAMPLE DATA
Supplier changes this week: 2 of 14 emails
| Supplier email | Change | Jobs affected |
|---|---|---|
| Piedmont Steel, Tue [1] | 12 ga coil ships Nov 4, not Oct 28 | WO-2231, WO-2240 |
| Ridgeline Coatings, Thu [2] | Proposes a different powder color code | WO-2227 (needs customer OK) |
- Suggested next step: WO-2231 is due Nov 14 and its steel now lands Nov 4. The routing still fits if the first operation starts the day the coil arrives. The planner has a calendar note.[1][3][4]
Sources 4
[1]Email: Piedmont Steel, order confirmation update
[2]Email: Ridgeline Coatings, Re: PO 1187
[3]ERP: open work orders by material
[4]Calendar: planner, week of Nov 3
USE CASE 4 / 4
A quote drafted from the last three runs
Start a quote from what you already know: the routing you used, the material you bought, the lead time the supplier gave. Pricing stays yours.
Connected sources
- Quote sheet
- ERP / MRP
- Supplier email
- Drawings
Request
Draft a quote for 200 of part B-114 based on the last three runs.
A starting point in your own format. You set the price.
DRAFT · FOR YOUR REVIEWSAMPLE DATA
Draft quote: 200 × B-114 bracket
- Basis: the last three runs (40, 60 and 25 pieces) used the same four-operation routing and 12 ga steel per drawing rev B.[1][2]
- Material: Piedmont Steel quoted a three-week lead time on that coil in September. Worth confirming before you promise a date.[3]
- Open for you: price per piece and the delivery date. The draft keeps your quote-sheet layout and is not sent to anyone.[4]
Sources 4
[1]ERP: routings for WO-2188, WO-2140, WO-2097
[2]Drawings: Bracket_B-114_revB.pdf
[3]Email: Piedmont Steel, Sept lead-time note
[4]Quote sheet: quotes_2026.xlsx
04 / INPUTS WE HANDLEEVERY KIND OF INPUT
Every kind of input.
Not just documents. Scans and photos are read with OCR. Phone calls are transcribed. Texts are included when you choose.
01EmailCustomer POs, supplier threads, attachments.
02PDFs & drawingsDrawings, specs and certs by revision.
03Scans & photos (OCR)Inspection sheets and travelers become searchable.
04SpreadsheetsQuote sheets, schedules, cost roll-ups.
05ERP / MRPJobs, routings, inventory, purchase orders.
06Work orders & travelersWhat the floor was told, and when.
07Phone calls (transcribed)Customer and supplier calls as text.
08TextsSupplier and driver texts you choose to include.
09CalendarsShip dates, maintenance windows, audits.
10Quality logsNonconformances, rework, corrective actions.
11Supplier portalsConfirmations and certificates you download.
12Shop-floor notesSetup notes and the tips that live in one person's head.
05 / DATA CLEANUPDUPLICATES · NAMES · DATES
Duplicate records, cleaned up.
Years of drawings, travelers and quote files pile up under names no one agrees on. The assistant renames, dedupes and files them, and shows you every change first.
| Part | Document | Rev / date |
|---|---|---|
| b114 bracket | Bracket_B-114 rev b (2).pdf | 10/2 |
| B-114 | bracket_drawing_FINAL.pdf | Oct 2 |
| B114 Dunmore | traveler WO2188.pdf | 9/18/26 |
| dunmore brkt | scan_0932.jpg | ?? |
| Bracket B-114 | scan_0932 copy.jpg | 10-09-2026 |
| b-114 quote | quotes_2026 (autosaved).xlsx | Sept |
Messy rows: mixed formats, typos, duplicates, and blanks. Select After, or Replay, to watch it clean up.
06 / ACCESS AND ROLESWHO SEES WHAT
Who sees what.
Everyone gets an assistant that knows the context of their work, and only the files they could already open. People still make the calls.
01
Permission inheritance
Answers come only from files a person could already open in your ERP, drive and email. Customer NDAs carry over.
02
Delegated access
The owner can give a shop lead or an office person access to a job's files for a set time. You decide who, and for how long.
03
Role views
Owner, shop lead and office staff see different slices of the same index.
04
Audit log
A record of who asked what and which drawing or sheet was opened. Useful when a customer audits you.
Same question, different view
Show me everything on the Dunmore bracket job.
Can see
- Quote and pricing
- Drawings and travelers
- Inspection sheets
- Customer and supplier email
Not visible to this role
Nothing is hidden for this role.
Can see
- Drawings and travelers
- Inspection sheets
- Supplier delivery dates
Not visible to this role
- Quote and pricing
- Customer email
Can see
- Purchase order and invoice
- Quote
- Ship dates
Not visible to this role
- Setup notes
- Nonconformance detail
AUDIT LOGSAMPLE DATA
| Time | Who | What |
|---|---|---|
| 07:52 | M. Ortiz, shop lead | Asked: QC flags on WO-2188. 3 sources. |
| 08:10 | Office | Opened: PO 4471 (Dunmore) |
| 09:30 | Owner | Approved: WO-2231 release |
Every question and every opened document is recorded. You can review it or export it.
07 / WHERE IT RUNSYOUR CHOICE
Where it runs.
You choose. Either way, it runs inside an environment you own. Pick one to see the diagram.
Your shop · local server or NAS
- 01ConnectorsRead your email, files, and systems with your permissions.
- 02Private indexStored on a server or NAS at your shop.
- 03AssistantRuns on the same hardware. Writes cited answers.
- 04ModelA model on your own hardware, or an endpoint you approve under no-retention terms.
- 01Your ERP and drawings stay where they are. The index and assistant live on a server or NAS in your shop.
- 02Hardware you own. We help size it.
- 03You handle power and physical access. We can set up backups.
Your cloud · your own AWS account
- 01ConnectorsThe same connectors, running in your AWS account.
- 02Private indexFor example, Postgres with pgvector, or OpenSearch, in your account.
- 03AssistantRuns in your account. Writes cited answers.
- 04Model endpointFor example, AWS Bedrock in your account, under no-training, zero-retention terms.
- 01Your own cloud account, for example AWS. You hold the keys and the logs.
- 02Scales up for busy periods.
- 03You pay AWS directly. No markup from us.
Boundary
OutsideConsultantWe design, build and support the system. Access is scoped, granted by you, and logged. Your data is never stored on our systems. Temporary copies only if your plan allows.
Built to support
Systems are designed to support the confidentiality terms in your customer NDAs and your own quality procedures. Your team and your counsel decide what your contracts require. We do not give legal advice.
08 / HOW WE WORKFROM FIRST CALL TO GO-LIVE
How a project comes together.
From first call to a system your team uses every day. Four steps, and you can stop after any of them.
0130 minutes · free
Intro call
Free 30 minutes on your ERP, quoting, travelers and where orders get stuck.
02About 2 weeks
Discovery & Roadmap
We review those systems and how clean the records are. You get a written plan with phases, priorities and a timeline.
03Per the plan
Build
We build what the plan lays out, such as order intake or quality lookup, one phase at a time.
04Optional
Support
Optional ongoing support for new connectors, updates and help while you run the shop.
09 / NEXT STEP20-MINUTE WALKTHROUGH
Want this mapped to your shop?
Book a 20-minute walkthrough. We'll show these pieces on your kind of data and talk about where the time goes.
About FenixLore. A Charlotte, NC consultancy run by one consultant with hands-on experience leading enterprise AI search and assistant rollouts. You work with me directly.