Prepare a structured RFQ (Request for Quote) payload: item descriptions, quantities, required delivery date, destination address, and any special terms; submit it to each target supplier via their RFQ API endpoint or a standard email-to-structured-data pipeline.
Collect quote responses; parse each quote for line-item pricing, validity expiry date, lead time, payment terms, and freight charges; store in a quote ledger keyed by supplier and quote number.
Compare quotes using a total-landed-cost calculation: unit price × quantity + freight + applicable taxes; rank by landed cost and flag quotes with unusually short validity windows.
Apply business rules: preferred supplier tie-breaking, minimum order quantities, payment term preferences (e.g., Net 30 preferred over prepay); surface the recommendation with reasoning.
On approval (human or automated per policy), issue a Purchase Order referencing the accepted quote number, supplier ID, agreed line items, and delivery terms; transmit via the supplier's PO submission endpoint or EDI channel.
Track quote expiry: if a quote expires before the PO is issued, re-request or negotiate an extension rather than submitting a PO against an expired quote.
Known gotchas
Quote validity windows can be very short (24–48 hours) for commodity markets; automate the comparison and routing steps to minimize elapsed time between quote receipt and PO issuance.
Suppliers may respond to RFQs with partial quotes (covering only some line items); handle partial responses by splitting the order or sourcing missing items separately.
Issuing a PO against a quote does not guarantee the supplier's acceptance; many suppliers confirm POs separately — wait for a PO acknowledgment before scheduling downstream work.
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claude mcp add --transport http waymark https://mcp.waymark.network/mcp