AI Inside Sales Rep for foundries

Your foundry is built to pour metal.
Not chase RFQs.

Forgepoint reads the 3D model, identifies the alloy, applies your machining and freight logic, and gets a quote back in hours — so your estimators can focus on the jobs that actually need them.

Backed bya16z Speedrun
The challenge

Sound familiar?

1

Days — or weeks — to get a quote out the door

The first foundry to respond wins about half the time. Most shops are quoting in days. The bigger the job, the longer it sits. Your best opportunities go to whoever answered first.

2

Every RFQ is a half-day of manual lookups

Casting weight. Alloy. Machining. Tooling. Freight. Yield loss. Your estimator opens the 3D model, opens four spreadsheets, opens the vendor portal — and an afternoon is gone before a single number lands on the page.

3

No visibility for leadership

RFQs live in inboxes and spreadsheets. Nobody upstairs has a real view of what's quoted, what's pending, what's won, or what's leaking through the cracks.

4

One missed cost factor kills the margin

Forgot to add tooling amortization. Underpriced the freight on a 4,000 lb casting. Missed the secondary machining op. One miss on one quote can wipe out the margin on the whole job.

Example RFQ

See how Forgepoint handles a foundry RFQ

Mark Davis, Buyer

10:14 AM

RFQ — Pump housing casting (qty 50)

Need a quote on the attached pump housing.

- Qty: 50 / yr, A356-T6 aluminum
- ~18 lb finished, full machining
- Tooling cost called out separately
- Ship to Houston, TX
Forgepoint

AI Inside Sales Rep

10:21 AM

DRAWING ANALYSIS: GPS-HSG-2204

Material: A356-T6 aluminum (sand-cast)

Flat size: 14" x 9" x 6.5"

Operations:

  • Sand mold, T6 heat treat
  • CNC machining (4 surfaces)
  • PT inspection, freight
OPERATIONPER UNIT
Tooling (pattern + core box)$11,400 NRE
Casting (18 lb + yield)$58.40
Heat treat (T6)$7.20
Machining (4 surfaces)$42.80
Inspection + freight$10.60
Unit cost$119.00
Total (Qty 50 / yr)$5,950 + $11,400 tooling

Lead time: 10-12 wks first article, 4-6 wks production

Quote Sent

10:32 AM
Mark,

Quote for the pump housing (P/N: GPS-HSG-2204):

- Tooling (one-time): $11,400
- Unit price (qty 50): $119.00
- Lead time: 10-12 wks first article

Priced as sand-cast. Happy to run permanent-mold alternate.

- Heritage Foundry

3D model analyzed and quote delivered in 18 minutes.

How it works

Your AI Estimator, working 24/7

1

Reads the model + drawings

Pulls geometry, dimensions, tolerances, and surface callouts from 3D models (STEP, STP) and 2D drawings. Identifies alloy, finished weight, machining requirements, and inspection notes.

2

Applies your costing logic

Calculates casting cost using your alloy pricing, yield assumptions, and pour rate. Layers in machining, heat treat, inspection, tooling amortization, and freight — using your formulas, not generic benchmarks.

3

Routes for approval

Sends the draft quote to your team for review. Your estimators approve, adjust, or let Forgepoint send routine quotes directly to the customer once your thresholds are set.

Before Forgepoint
  • 5-10 days to turn around a quote
  • Half a day of estimator time per RFQ
  • RFQs tracked in inboxes and spreadsheets
  • Margin killed by one missed cost factor
  • Growth capped by quoting capacity
After Forgepoint
  • Same-day quotes, often within hours
  • Estimators focused on the complex, strategic jobs
  • Every quote logged in one searchable system
  • Every cost factor applied, every time
  • Quote 3-5× the volume without hiring

~50%

Of jobs go to the first foundry to quote

Speed isn't a tiebreaker. It's the qualifier.

4+ hours

Estimator time on a typical foundry RFQ

Most of it is lookups your senior people shouldn't be doing

30 days

From kickoff to your first AI-drafted quote

Most foundries are live in a month

Integrations

Connects to the systems you already run

Up and running in 30 days. No rip-and-replace.

  • Pulls your alloy pricing, yield, and machining rates
  • Applies tooling amortization and freight logic the way you do
  • Logs every quote, every revision, every win-loss reason
Synchro

Synchro

Odyssey

Odyssey

Epicor

Epicor

SAP

SAP

Netsuite

Netsuite

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Stop losing jobs to foundries that quote faster.

See how Forgepoint handles a foundry RFQ. 15 minutes. No commitment.

SOC 2 Type II Certified
30-day implementation
Works with your existing systems