To quote a CNC job, work from the drawing outward: confirm the material, tolerances, and callouts you can hold and inspect, estimate programming, setup, and cycle time for the quantity, add material, tooling, outside processing, and inspection, then read the buyer’s terms before the price goes out. Missed items become the shop’s cost.
What follows walks through each part of that process as a sequence you can turn into a written quoting checklist, from the first look at a drawing to the terms and insurance questions that decide whether an order is worth accepting.
Read the drawing before you price anything
Every number on a quote depends on what the drawing asks for. Confirm the drawing revision, the material specification, the finish, and the quantity, and look for notes that reach beyond geometry, such as heat treatment, plating, marking, or certification requirements. A note you miss at quoting is work you do for free later.
Tolerances and geometric callouts deserve the closest read. ASME describes its Y14.5 standard as the authoritative guideline for the design language of geometric dimensioning and tolerancing, establishing the symbols, rules, and definitions for stating and interpreting GD&T on engineering drawings and models. Each callout is something you must both hold and measure, so ask whether your machines can hold it and whether your inspection equipment can prove it before you commit to a price.
Break the job into operations and time
Estimate the job one operation at a time rather than as a single figure. List each setup, the machine it runs on, and what it produces, then estimate three kinds of time: programming, which happens once; setup, which happens once per lot on each machine; and cycle time, which repeats for every part. Quantity changes everything here, because a short run spreads programming and setup over few parts and a long run spreads them over many.
Add the time that is easy to forget. First-piece checks, in-process and final inspection, deburring, part handling between operations, and tool changes all consume hours. Once jobs run, compare the actual times with the estimate and adjust the method, since the record of past jobs gives every new quote a check against real results.
Material, tooling, and outside processing
Price material from a current source rather than from memory, and quote the stock size you will actually buy, including the allowance for sawing, facing, and workholding. If the buyer supplies material, state that in the quote and say who carries the cost of a part scrapped because of a material defect.
Special tooling, fixtures, and gauges belong in the quote when the job needs them, either as a separate line or spread over the lot. Outside processes such as heat treatment, plating, anodizing, or grinding by another vendor need their own quotes, their own lead times, and a line for shipping both ways. When a buyer requires certifications from those vendors, confirm the vendor can provide them before you promise them.
Turn hours into a price
Once the hours are estimated, apply a shop rate that covers what it costs to run each machine and the people at it, plus overhead and margin. Build that rate from your own books with your accountant rather than borrowing a figure from another shop, because floor space, equipment payments, labor, and insurance differ from one business to the next. You can also set separate rates for different machine classes, so an hour on a multi-axis machining center and an hour on a manual mill are each priced on their own costs.
Price by lot as well as by unit. Because programming and setup are fixed per lot, show the buyer how the unit price changes with quantity when that helps them decide, and state the price breaks clearly. List the lead time, how long the quote stays open, the drawing revision quoted, and every exclusion, so the order that comes back can be checked against what you actually priced.
First articles and inspection requirements
Some buyers require a first article before production. In federal contracting, FAR 9.302 states that first article testing and approval ensures the contractor can furnish a product that conforms to all contract requirements for acceptance, and FAR 9.301 defines approval as the contracting officer’s written notification accepting the test results. Commercial buyers set their own first article and inspection rules in their purchase terms.
Either way, a first article adds work that belongs in the quote: the extra inspection and documentation, possibly a separate setup, and waiting time before the rest of the lot can run. Read the inspection requirements for the lot as well, including sampling, measurement reports, and material certifications. If the buyer expects a quality system, our guide to quality certification for job shops explains what an audited system involves.
Read the terms the buyer sends back
A quote starts a conversation about terms, and the legal effect of that first document depends on the setting. For federal purchases, FAR 13.004 states that a quotation is not an offer and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract; an order issued in response to it is the Government’s offer, and a contract is established when the supplier accepts it. The Government may also withdraw, amend, or cancel that order by written notice at any time before acceptance occurs.
Commercial quotes and purchase orders turn on their own wording and on state law, so have an attorney look at your standard quote terms and at buyer terms you sign regularly. Watch for clauses on warranties, delivery penalties, inspection and rejection rights, and indemnification, since each shifts cost or risk onto the shop after the price is set.
Real-World Scenario: A job shop receives a drawing for a bracket in aluminum and prices it from the geometry. Reading the notes again before sending the quote, the estimator finds an anodizing callout, a first article requirement, and purchase terms asking for a certificate naming the buyer as additional insured. The estimator adds the outside finishing, the first article inspection and wait, and a note to confirm the certificate with the agent, and the revised quote goes out complete.
Insurance and export control in the request for quote
A purchase contract can set minimum liability limits, name the buyer as an additional insured, and demand a certificate before shipment, and those conditions may arrive with the request for quote or with the first purchase order. Compare them against your program before you quote; our article on what manufacturing customers require covers the common requests, and our guide to products and general liability for manufacturers explains the coverage behind them.
The part itself matters too. Aircraft parts can be excluded from general liability, so an aerospace request calls for a check with your agent before the price goes out. And under 22 CFR 122.1, a person who manufactures a defense article, even once, must register with the State Department; our ITAR registration guide explains what that means for a shop quoting defense work.
Keep improving the quoting process
Quoting improves with records. Keep each quote, the drawing revision it was based on, and the final job costs together, and review the gaps on jobs that ran long or lost money. A written checklist built from those reviews catches the notes, callouts, and terms that are easiest to miss.
Deciding not to quote is part of the process too. A job that needs a tolerance your inspection equipment cannot verify, a material you have never cut, or terms your insurance program does not meet can be declined politely, with a note on what you would need to quote it next time. Record those decisions alongside the quotes you send, because they show where new equipment, training, or coverage would open up work you are turning away.
Changes after the quote need the same care. When a buyer sends a new drawing revision, a different quantity, or a changed delivery date, treat it as a new request and re-check the estimate before confirming the order, rather than carrying the old price forward by habit.
For more on building the shop that does the quoting, read our guide to opening a machine shop, and our article on marketing a machine shop covers bringing in the requests to quote. Our machine shop insurance page explains the coverage we arrange for job shops, and you can send us a buyer’s requirements to check before you accept an order.