Creating an RFQ

A Request for Quotation (RFQ) lets you ask one or more suppliers for pricing on materials, outside operations, or purchased items. Suppliers respond through a dedicated portal -- no account required on their end.

Prerequisites

Before creating an RFQ, make sure you have:

  • At least one supplier set up in Settings > Suppliers, with a contact email address
  • Items to request pricing on -- either from purchase requirements (linked to a job) or entered manually

Starting an RFQ

There are two ways to create an RFQ:

From the Requirements Page

This is the most common approach. Go to Purchasing > Requirements, select the items you need pricing on, and click Create RFQ from the batch actions bar.

  1. Go to Purchasing > Requirements.
  2. Check the boxes next to the items you want to include.
  3. Click Create RFQ in the action bar that appears at the bottom.

Forge groups your selected requirements into RFQ line items automatically, carrying over descriptions, quantities, and units of measure from the original quote parts.

From the RFQ List

You can also start a blank RFQ from the RFQ list page.

  1. Go to Purchasing > RFQs.
  2. Click the New RFQ button in the top right.

Filling Out the RFQ

The Create RFQ modal walks you through the setup:

Title and Due Date

  • Title -- a short description for your reference (e.g., "Steel for Job #1042" or "Bearings Q2 order").
  • Due date -- the deadline for suppliers to respond. This date is shown to suppliers in the email and on their response portal.

Line Items

Each line item represents something you're asking suppliers to quote. If you started from the requirements page, these are pre-filled. You can:

  • Adjust quantities for each line
  • Review the description and specifications
  • Attach files (drawings, specs, 3D models) to individual lines by clicking the paperclip icon

If you started from a blank RFQ, you can add lines manually after creating the draft.

Suppliers

Select which suppliers should receive this RFQ. Use the search field to find suppliers by name.

  • You can invite multiple suppliers to get competitive bids.
  • Each supplier needs at least one contact with an email address in their supplier record.

Notes

Add any general notes or instructions that apply to the entire RFQ. These appear on the RFQ document.

Click Create RFQ to save it as a draft.

Adding Lines After Creation

Once the RFQ is created, you can add more line items from the RFQ detail page:

  1. Open the RFQ from the RFQ list.
  2. In the Requested Items section, click Add Line.
  3. Enter a description, quantity, and unit of measure.

Attaching Files

You can attach files at two levels:

  • Per line item -- click the paperclip icon on any line to attach drawings or specifications for that specific item.
  • RFQ level -- attach general documents that apply to the whole request.

Suppliers see these attachments when they open the response portal.

Sending the RFQ

Once your RFQ is ready, send it to your suppliers:

  1. Open the RFQ detail page.
  2. In the Suppliers section, expand a supplier's row.
  3. If the supplier has multiple contacts, select which contact should receive the email.
  4. Click Send to Supplier.
  5. A confirmation modal appears where you can customize the email message. The default message includes your company name and the due date.
  6. Click Send to deliver the email.

The supplier receives an email with a link to the response portal. They can enter pricing, lead times, and notes for each line item -- or upload their own quote document.

You can send the RFQ to each supplier independently. This is useful when you want to stagger sends or customize the message for different suppliers.

Entering a Response Manually

If a supplier sends you a quote by phone, fax, or email outside of Forge, you can record their response manually:

  1. In the Suppliers section, click Enter Response next to the supplier.
  2. Fill in the unit price, lead time, and any notes for each line item.
  3. Add payment terms, delivery terms, and a validity date if provided.
  4. Click Save Response.

This keeps all supplier pricing in one place for comparison, regardless of how the quote was received.

Downloading the RFQ as PDF

To get a PDF version of the RFQ (for printing or sending manually):

  1. In the Suppliers section, click Download PDF next to any supplier.
  2. The PDF preview opens in a new tab. From there you can download or print it.

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← Purchasing OverviewComparing RFQ Responses→