# The quote delay tracker for a manufacturing inbox

Track pricing, other active work and waiting before changing the quote process.

Updated 2 November 2026 . 6 min read . Alexey Shurov

## The short answer

Split each quote into intervals of active pricing, other active work and waiting. Start at the first enquiry and finish when the quote is sent. Record a new row whenever the activity changes, with the time and a reason for any wait. This shows whether the next useful change concerns pricing, missing drawings, supplier replies or approval. Include unfinished quotes at the end of the week so the slowest work does not disappear from the picture.

## Where the time goes, in two minutes

In under three minutes you will know how to track one week of quotes, why the waiting matters more than the pricing, and what to ask before changing anything.

Every example in the video is made up to show the method.The words of the video

Do your quotes take days to go out? Before you look for software to price them faster, give me three minutes. I'll show you a one week tracker that shows where the time really goes.

First, what are we talking about? An enquiry arrives by email, often with a drawing. Someone works out the cost and the price. And the quote goes out, sometimes days later.

Here's what I've learned. When a quote is slow, people blame the pricing. But the time often goes on waiting, for a drawing, a supplier or a yes. So count the waiting, not just the work.

Here's a made up example. Customer A sends an enquiry on Monday morning, but the drawing has no dimensions. It waits until Tuesday for an answer. Then the pricing itself takes an hour.

So here's the tracker. Every quote gets a new row each time the activity changes. Pricing, other work, or waiting. And every wait gets a reason, like missing dimensions or waiting for approval.

Here's the made up week, for two quotes. The work itself, pricing and everything else, took under three hours. The rest was waiting, nearly two days of it. Software that prices faster would hardly touch that.

But a long wait doesn't prove that software will fix it. It might be a missing drawing, a supplier, or an approval rule. I'd ask the person who owns the wait first. Then change one thing, and measure the same week again.

One more thing I've learned to check. Quotes still open on Friday are often the slowest ones. If you leave them out, the worst waits disappear. So count them, and report them apart.

So that's the tracker. One week shows you where the time goes, which wait is biggest, and who can move it. Then you know what to change first, before you buy anything.

The tracker and a made up week to check against are free on shurco.ai. Copy it into a spreadsheet, and start on Monday.

### 1. Choose the week and the boundaries

Use one shared inbox and one kind of quote. Set a Friday cutoff and one time zone. Include every enquiry received during the week, even if it remains open. Track older open quotes separately from their original arrival. Record sent, declined or withdrawn as the end event. Do not count a declined enquiry as a completed quote.

### 2. Start a row when the activity changes

Use Pricing for cost and selling price calculations. Use Other active for reading drawings, checking details and preparing the reply. Use Waiting whenever nobody is progressing the quote. Enter a specific reason, such as missing dimensions or awaiting approval. Replace Owner with the role that can move the item forward. A new interval begins when the previous one ends.

### 3. Count time without counting it twice

Subtract Started from Ended and record elapsed minutes. Keep overnight time in waiting for this calendar view. If you also need working hours, calculate them separately using agreed opening times. The example uses full dates and a full stop in each time. In Excel, enter recognised date and time values before calculating durations.

Use one activity at a time per quote. Parallel work by two estimators needs a separate effort record. These intervals measure how long the quote spends in each state, not the total minutes worked by everyone involved.

### 4. Close the week and check the sums

End an open interval at the cutoff and write Still open. Resume it in a new row next week. Check for gaps and overlaps. Interval minutes must equal the time from arrival to sending or cutoff. Group waiting by reason. Compare completed quotes separately from the age of open ones.

## The blank tracker

Copy these columns and add one row whenever a quote changes activity.

| Quote reference | Started | Ended | Activity | Delay reason | Owner | Minutes | End event |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

[Download this sheet as a file for Excel](data:text/csv;charset=utf-8,%EF%BB%BFQuote%20reference%2CStarted%2CEnded%2CActivity%2CDelay%20reason%2COwner%2CMinutes%2CEnd%20event%0D%0A%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%0D%0A%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%0D%0A%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%0D%0A%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%2C%0D%0A)

## A made up working week

**Made up example.** Every row here is made up to show the method, using Customer A and a Friday 17.00 cutoff.

| Quote reference | Started | Ended | Activity | Delay reason | Owner | Minutes | End event |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customer A quote 01 | 2026-10-05 09.00 | 2026-10-05 09.15 | Other active | None | Estimator | 15 | Drawing question sent |
| Customer A quote 01 | 2026-10-05 09.15 | 2026-10-06 10.00 | Waiting | Missing dimensions | Customer contact | 1485 | Drawing received |
| Customer A quote 01 | 2026-10-06 10.00 | 2026-10-06 11.00 | Pricing | None | Estimator | 60 | Price ready |
| Customer A quote 01 | 2026-10-06 11.00 | 2026-10-06 11.15 | Other active | None | Estimator | 15 | Quote sent |
| Customer A quote 02 | 2026-10-08 14.00 | 2026-10-08 14.20 | Other active | None | Estimator | 20 | Supplier enquiry sent |
| Customer A quote 02 | 2026-10-08 14.20 | 2026-10-09 09.00 | Waiting | Supplier material cost | Buyer | 1120 | Supplier reply received |
| Customer A quote 02 | 2026-10-09 09.00 | 2026-10-09 09.40 | Pricing | None | Estimator | 40 | Approval requested |
| Customer A quote 02 | 2026-10-09 09.40 | 2026-10-09 12.00 | Waiting | Price approval | Commercial manager | 140 | Approval received |
| Customer A quote 02 | 2026-10-09 12.00 | 2026-10-09 12.10 | Other active | None | Estimator | 10 | Quote sent |
| Customer A quote 03 | 2026-10-09 15.00 | 2026-10-09 17.00 | Waiting | Not yet reviewed | Inbox owner | 120 | Still open |

[Download this sheet as a file for Excel](data:text/csv;charset=utf-8,%EF%BB%BFQuote%20reference%2CStarted%2CEnded%2CActivity%2CDelay%20reason%2COwner%2CMinutes%2CEnd%20event%0D%0ACustomer%20A%20quote%2001%2C2026-10-05%2009.00%2C2026-10-05%2009.15%2COther%20active%2CNone%2CEstimator%2C15%2CDrawing%20question%20sent%0D%0ACustomer%20A%20quote%2001%2C2026-10-05%2009.15%2C2026-10-06%2010.00%2CWaiting%2CMissing%20dimensions%2CCustomer%20contact%2C1485%2CDrawing%20received%0D%0ACustomer%20A%20quote%2001%2C2026-10-06%2010.00%2C2026-10-06%2011.00%2CPricing%2CNone%2CEstimator%2C60%2CPrice%20ready%0D%0ACustomer%20A%20quote%2001%2C2026-10-06%2011.00%2C2026-10-06%2011.15%2COther%20active%2CNone%2CEstimator%2C15%2CQuote%20sent%0D%0ACustomer%20A%20quote%2002%2C2026-10-08%2014.00%2C2026-10-08%2014.20%2COther%20active%2CNone%2CEstimator%2C20%2CSupplier%20enquiry%20sent%0D%0ACustomer%20A%20quote%2002%2C2026-10-08%2014.20%2C2026-10-09%2009.00%2CWaiting%2CSupplier%20material%20cost%2CBuyer%2C1120%2CSupplier%20reply%20received%0D%0ACustomer%20A%20quote%2002%2C2026-10-09%2009.00%2C2026-10-09%2009.40%2CPricing%2CNone%2CEstimator%2C40%2CApproval%20requested%0D%0ACustomer%20A%20quote%2002%2C2026-10-09%2009.40%2C2026-10-09%2012.00%2CWaiting%2CPrice%20approval%2CCommercial%20manager%2C140%2CApproval%20received%0D%0ACustomer%20A%20quote%2002%2C2026-10-09%2012.00%2C2026-10-09%2012.10%2COther%20active%2CNone%2CEstimator%2C10%2CQuote%20sent%0D%0ACustomer%20A%20quote%2003%2C2026-10-09%2015.00%2C2026-10-09%2017.00%2CWaiting%2CNot%20yet%20reviewed%2CInbox%20owner%2C120%2CStill%20open%0D%0A)

## What can change the answer

A revised drawing can restart pricing. Keep the original arrival time and label the new interval as revision work. An urgent repeat part and a new assembly need separate comparisons. Missing timestamps stay unknown until checked against the mailbox. Do not turn an unrecorded afternoon into an assumed wait.

## When this is the wrong tool

This sheet cannot assess whether a price is commercially sound or a drawing is complete. It is also too simple for several engineering teams working together on a long tender. Use a project schedule for that work. People still check technical requirements, decide margins and approve unusual terms.

## What to do with the result

In the made up week, the two sent quotes total 2,905 elapsed minutes. That includes 100 minutes of pricing, 60 of other active work and 2,745 of waiting. The open quote adds 120 minutes of waiting, reported separately. These are sums across quotes, not hours worked by an estimator.

Choose one repeated delay reason to investigate with its owner. Missing details may call for a clearer enquiry form. Approval waits need an agreed decision route. Consider automating repetitive reading or copying only after recording where that work occurs. Keep pricing judgements and unclear requests with a person.[

Client result . Manufacturing

1 to 3 days → under 3 hours

About 90 percent faster, per quote

Priced against the live ERP catalogue, client-confirmed.

Read how the system works](https://shurco.ai/solutions/ai-quoting-for-manufacturers/)

## Common questions

### Should waiting include nights and weekends?

Include them when measuring the calendar time a customer experiences. Add a separate working hours view if needed. Keep the two labels clear and use the same opening times for every quote. Never compare calendar hours with working hours as though they were the same.

### What if an estimator works on several quotes at once?

Record active time only against the quote being worked on during that interval. A quote waiting while another is priced stays in Waiting. If people work on one quote together, keep their effort separately so elapsed time is counted only once.

### Can we reconstruct the tracker from old emails?

Emails can establish arrival, questions, replies and sending times. They rarely show the start and end of pricing work. Mark those intervals unknown unless another record supports them. Use a fresh week of brief activity notes to fill that gap.

### Does a long wait prove automation will help?

No. A wait may reflect a missing drawing, a supplier decision or an approval rule. The tracker shows where to ask questions. Confirm the cause with the owner before proposing a change, and measure the same intervals again afterwards.

## Useful next[Free toolWhat to automate first, a scoring toolPick a task your team repeats every week and answer five quick questions. You get a plain answer on whether it is worth automating, what helps and what to watch. Score up to four tasks and it tells you where to start, and you can keep the result as a private plan page.](https://shurco.ai/tools/what-to-automate-first/)[PlaybookHow to build a business case for AI automationA finance director does not approve AI. They approve a measured task, an honest cost and a way to tell whether it worked. Here is the one page that gets a yes, and the numbers to put on it.](https://shurco.ai/guides/business-case-for-ai-automation/)

## More guides[GuideAI agent pricing in 2026, what vendors actually chargeVendors now charge for agents by the conversation, the outcome, the action or the credit. Here are the published prices, what each unit really means, and how to compare them on your own workload.](https://shurco.ai/guides/ai-agent-pricing/)[ServiceA monthly test for your customer facing AI assistantOnce a month, I ask your website or phone assistant ordinary customer questions. You get what it got wrong, its exact words and what to change. The first test is free.](https://shurco.ai/guides/ai-assistant-monthly-test/)[PlaybookHow to automate daily site reports across many sitesThe report takes days because the data lives in many places and someone has to chase it. Here is how to gather it in parallel, catch the numbers that disagree and produce a report a manager can check.](https://shurco.ai/guides/automate-daily-site-reports/)[PlaybookHow to automate quoting for a manufacturer or distributorSlow quotes lose work. There are three quite different kinds of quoting automation, and most buying mistakes come from picking the wrong kind. Here is how to tell which one your quotes need.](https://shurco.ai/guides/automate-quoting-for-manufacturers/)[PlaybookHow to automate sales order entry in Business CentralCustomers email orders as PDFs, spreadsheets and free text, and someone keys each line into Business Central. Here are the three ways to take that work away, with what Microsoft's own agent does and where it stops.](https://shurco.ai/guides/automate-sales-order-entry-business-central/)[PlaybookHow to automate timesheet processing for payrollTimesheets arrive as spreadsheets, PDFs, photos and scans, and payroll has a deadline that does not move. This is the order to automate it in, and the checks that stop a wrong payslip.](https://shurco.ai/guides/automate-timesheet-processing-for-payroll/)

## Check your own quotes in two minutes

Five questions about how the work reaches you and how it is checked. You get a plain answer on whether it is worth automating, with no sign up. [Start with question one.](https://shurco.ai/tools/what-to-automate-first/?k=quotes) Or [tell me about the work](https://shurco.ai/#contact) and I will reply myself.

Web version https://shurco.ai/guides/quote-delay-tracker-for-a-manufacturing-inbox/