SmartProcurementwith AI Agents:Automating theRFQ LifecycleA R N A S O F T E C H . C O M
A mid-sized component manufacturer was overwhelmed by the manual, slow,and error-prone process of handling daily RFQs (Request for Quotations) fromglobal clients. Their team juggled emails, spreadsheets, and fragmented systems—leading to quote delays, supplier blind spots, and missed savings.To eliminate this friction, we implemented an AI-powered RFQ automationsystem using n8n, Google Gemini, Airtable, and Google Sheets. The solution notonly captures RFQs from email, but also auto-extracts product data, identifiessuppliers (historical + AI-recommended), drafts emails, consolidates quotes,and delivers the best-value quotation—end to end, within an hour.The result?A self-evolving system that slashes manual effort, boosts supplier diversity, anddelivers smarter, faster procurement decisions.Business ata GlanceComplexitiesMANUAL RFQ EXTRACTION FROM EMAILSEven with a semi-digital setup, the client faced deep-rooted inefficiencies across theRFQ lifecycle:Procurement teams had to open every incoming RFQ email, extract line itemsmanually, and transpose them into spreadsheets. The error rate was high—and turnaround was slow.DISJOINTED SUPPLIER RECORDSSupplier data was scattered. “History Orders” lived in Airtable, but newsuppliers were tracked separately. Merging them manually meant lost timeand missed vendor opportunities.
ApproachA Gmail trigger scans for emails containing RFQ indicators (“PR#”, “Request forQuotation”).Google Gemini parses unstructured email content (PDFs or text) intostructured JSON:Material NumberQuantityDescriptionn8n flows store this in Airtable and initiate downstream processing.Smart RFQ Intake with AI StructuringWe built a modular, AI-enhanced RFQ automation pipeline using no-code tools and human-inthe-loop flexibility—maximizing accuracy while retaining team control.NO REAL VISIBILITY INTO PRICING TRENDSTeams lacked easy access to historical price data. Spotting anomalies ornegotiating better rates was near impossible—everything had to be crossreferenced across tools.TEDIOUS FOLLOW-UPS AND SCATTERED EMAIL CHAINSProcurement managers spent hours drafting repetitive RFQ emails,monitoring replies, and tracking quote statuses manually—hurting responsetimes and audit trail quality.Historical Search: Queries Airtable’s “History Orders” by Material Number toretrieve vetted past suppliers.AI Suggestions: Gemini accesses a Google Sheet of global suppliers and ranksadditional candidates using attributes like Material Group and Brand.Both lists merge into a review interface in Airtable, ready for human approvalbefore proceeding.Dual-Track Supplier Identification
Once approved, n8n generates a single Gmail draft to all selected suppliers using astandardized RFQ template, ensuring consistency and traceability.Streamlined Communication AutomationA second Gmail watcher listens for replies. Gemini parses incoming emails intostructured quote components. These are logged in Airtable against the original RFQ.Automated Quotation Capture & StructuringEach night, a scheduled n8n flow:Reviews open RFQsCompares supplier prices vs. historical dataIdentifies the best-value supplierLogs cost deltas and trendsCost Comparison & Final Quotation SynthesisOnce final prices are computed:n8n drafts a polished client-facing email summarizing the top offersUpdates “History Orders” with new material entriesMarks the RFQ as “Closed”Final Quote Drafting & RFQ ClosureCapture Customer RFQ Request-
Send RFQ Draft Email to Approved SuppliersCapture RFQ Quotations by SuppliersProcess Previous RFQ Orders to Calculate Final CostSend Final Quotation Draft Email to Client-
RFQ Email for SupplierRFQ Quotation for ClientRFQ Airtable
LAYER TOOLS/PLATFORMSAI Engine Google GeminiWorkflow Automation n8nCommunication Layer Gmail APIData Layer Airtable, Google SheetsHosting n8n Cloud (secured with encrypted credentials)Technology StackImpact70% Reduction in RFQ Turnaround TimeFrom 4 hours to under 1 hour—cutting waiting time and acceleratingdecisions.Drop in Clarification EmailsAI-parsed RFQs and structured supplier replies eliminated follow-ups andguesswork.>50%Growth in Supplier PoolAI-enriched sourcing expanded vendor reach, enhancing competition andpricing leverage.+30%Cost Savings Per RFQReal-time benchmarking enabled smarter negotiations and material-levelcost optimizations.7%Manual Entry ErrorsEvery quote and product spec is now parsed, stored, and processed withmachine accuracy.Zero
We areARNA SOFTECHArna Softech delivers end-to-end softwaresolutions, including cloud engineering, dataservices, automation, and digitaltransformation. We help businesses scale,optimize, and innovate with our cutting-edgetechnology.CONTACT [email protected], IndiaTransformation SummaryBy turning a fragmented, email-heavy RFQ process into a real-time, AI-supervisedflow, we helped our client unlock speed, savings, and strategic clarity. RFQprocessing now takes minutes—not hours—and procurement no longer runs onguesswork.This case shows how even non-tech teams can leverage smart automation, AI agents,and modular workflows to gain a competitive edge—one quote at a time.Improved Team Efficiency & ProcurementIntelligenceStrategic Focus Restored: Teams shifted from copy-paste tasks tonegotiation and vendor management.Live Cost Insights: Airtable dashboards reveal pricing fluctuations andsupplier performance.Database That Learns: New materials are auto-added—keeping historycurrent without effort.Scalable Foundation for ProcurementInnovationAI Supplier Scoring (Planned): ML to auto-rank vendors by quality anddelivery record.Chat-Based RFQ Access: Slack or Google Chat to “Ask RFQ status” or “Showme cheapest vendor.”ERP Sync: Future flows will directly push POs to ERP and pull live stock forsmarter ordering.