A network quotation framework for customised parts through rough requests

ABSTRACT

Quick quotations for customised parts are one of the effective ways for enterprises to win the market opportunities and also play important roles in production plan. Current researches have made great advancements in this field, while most of them place emphases on the technologies for a higher accuracy as for certain category of parts. In this paper, a framework for part quotations is proposed for customised parts through rough requests, in which several published algorithms are directly implanted. First, the input parts are automatically categorised according to their shapes. Next, corresponding algorithms are invoked to estimate their prices respectively, which is transparent to users. Finally, the quoting results are presented in a uniform output. Most processes including the geometric operations can be directly handled on the website, which provides the users a convenient platform. To further improve the evaluated accuracy, relevance feedback is adopted to optimise the embedded calculating mechanisms with the gradual accumulation of cases and manual corrections. For better flexibility and extendibility, the built-in algorithms are deployed in the plug-and-play manner with the uniform data input–output interface. Later experiments validate this conception and the online system performs well especially for rod parts, box parts and mould sets, which will bring a novel way to the manufacturing enterprises in their order processing.

KEYWORDS:

• Quotation
• customised part
• remote order
• cost estimation
• manufacturing factors

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Science and Technology Major Project China: [Grant Number 2017ZX04016001] and Siemens: [Grant Number SA2910086/002].