How Levison Enterprises Builds A Quote

Have you ever received a quote from a vendor and wondered what they were thinking when they wrote it? Sometimes they come back over-simplified and you know there are things missing that will come up and haunt you later. 

Or, they include mystery additions that don’t seem to add any value to your project. Then there’s always the quote that looks nothing like what you asked for and makes you wonder if the vendor listened to a word you said when you requested it.

We know that the quoting process is sometimes long and frustrating. But it’s also an important process and one that could use some clarity.

When we receive a quote at Levison Enterprises, there are specific steps we follow to provide the most accurate and fair quote we can produce. The following is a glimpse at the information we use and how we get to a quote for each project we quote. Though we do everything, even quoting, on a project by project basis, this is the outline of what your request for quote will go through before coming back for your approval.

First Things First

When we get started, we comb through important parts of the request to make sure we have everything we need to provide an accurate quote.

To get started on good footing, our first step is light engineering. We want to point out anything we notice that may cause questions or issues right away. Once any obvious issues are cleared up, we move on to risk evaluation.

At first blush, this may sound like we’re evaluating our risk. On the contrary, what we’re looking for is your risk. Risks to your project would include things like obsolete parts that need time to be replaced or sourced from reputable manufacturers.

Next, we will look at the drawings to see if they have specs. Whether they are in the drawing packing or are easily found elsewhere, we want to grab those right away so we can make sure we meet them.

Finally, we do a check for completeness. If there is a circuit board, do you have a Gerber package. If the drawings call for eight resistors and the bill of materials only lists three, we’ll get that corrected with you before we move on to the next phase.

Parts and Labor

Once the details in our information are complete, we assemble production and project managers to determine labor costs.

For some companies, this process is a quick hour of their time, applying a formula labor to your request.

For us at Levison, we look carefully at all your needs and evaluate labor costs based on your project. Every project is quoted based on it specifically because, in our way of doing things, quality and efficiency can’t be calculated by a simple formula. If we can do your project more efficiently than any formula could calculate, we want to give you that benefit.

BOM Download

At this stage, we also want to finalize any substitute parts that might be needed to save you headaches that would arise when you got to the build stage. Part of this process is tapping into our wide network of suppliers for trusted parts. We are deeply committed to vetting against counterfeit parts and materials, for the quality and safety of your end product. If substitutes are needed, we’ll work diligently with our trusted network of partners to find the right substitutes for your parts 

Communication

Throughout the entire quoting process, we will be reaching out to you to learn more about your project. We want to understand how it functions and what is its end goal. We don’t just want to quote any project, we want to quote your project so that we can build a better product for you.

We may need to discuss exceptions and suggestions to deliver that better final product and want to be sure you’re happy with any potential changes before you receive the quote back.

In some cases, communication with you may be limited throughout the quoting process so in that case, we make sure to build in time for discussion around suggestions and exceptions after the quote has been returned to you. 

At Levison Enterprises, our goal is for you to never experience drudgery in the quoting process. We want to thoroughly understand your goals and how the product has been designed to meet them. We want to share our experience and expertise through the quoting process so that your quote has no surprises. We want to design your quote with only your product in mind so that the estimates you receive accurately reflect your project’s specific needs, not some formula that always seems to give the manufacturer the bulk of the benefits.

As you are considering electronic contract manufacturers for your next project, contact Levison Enterprises. Our attention to the quality and efficiency of your product begins right from the quote.