Predictika · Aluminium product orders: billets, slabs and primary ingots

An AI sales agent's aluminium order, checked before it goes out

An AI sales agent takes a customer's order for aluminium billets, rolling slabs, foundry or primary ingots, or liquid metal: the alloy, the size or form, the purity the customer needs and the carbon or recycled content. Before the order goes out, the agent sends it to Predictika, which checks it against a declarative model of the tables in Alba's public product brochure and returns a verdict, every reason and the figures it computed.

Scope: Alba billets, rolling slabs, foundry and primary ingots, liquid metal and EternAl variants: alloys, sizes, forms, purity, carbon and recycled content. See everything this validator covers

This validator models orders for the products in the public Alba product brochure, using its tables, not just the scenarios shown below.

  • Billets — the 18 listed alloys, the seven diameters from 152 to 305 mm, and lengths from 500 to 8,500 mm.
  • Rolling slabs — the 19 listed alloys, the six thicknesses (400 to 620 mm) with the widths offered at each, and lengths of 4,500 to 10,000 mm (4,700 to 5,000 mm at 460 mm thick); AA5083 and AA5182 only in the fixed-mould sizes.
  • Foundry alloys, primary ingots and liquid metal — the five foundry alloys and the T-ingot, 10 kg, 22.5 kg and Properzi forms; the six primary grades from the brochure's purity table, with the silicon, iron, copper, other-element and aluminium limits each grade guarantees; the 750 kg sow; and the 5, 11 and 13.5 tonne crucibles.
  • EternAl variants — the recycled-content variants (50, 30, 20 and 15 percent) and the carbon tiers AC0 to AC4; a carbon limit the brochure gives only for AC0 and AC4 goes to a person for approval for the tiers in between.
  • Stated figures — the unit weight and minimum aluminium content the agent states are compared with the brochure on every call.

Any order for these products that touches these rules is in scope — not only the scenarios pictured here. Not covered: prices (Alba prices are linked to the metal market and contracts and are not public, so this validator produces no price build-up or line-item quote), alloy chemistry other than the primary-grade table, tempers, packaging, shipping terms, and anything outside the brochure.

The AI sales agentBuilds the aluminium order from the conversation and says it is ready.
Predictika validatorChecks every rule at once and returns the verdict, each finding, and the computed figures.

7 scenarios in 3 groups · each group runs from the agent’s first attempt to the outcome · click one to switch

What the agent proposes

The AI sales agent says

Illustrative agent statement. The validator receives the structured request below.

Proposing agent: AI sales agent (scripted)

Before sending, the agent must call Recorded run

Predictika validator


      

        
        
        
      

      
Waiting for the call.

      
    

  

  
  

    
Where rules-based CPQ gets it wrong
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Our assessment of what a typical rules-based CPQ (product rules, price rules and validation rules, as in Salesforce CPQ) does with the same cases. It is a judgment about effort and reliability, not a claim that nothing can be built.

    
What the validator caughtTypical rules-based CPQPredictika
Slab widths that depend on the thicknessOnly with care
Each of the six thicknesses has its own list of widths; that is a grid to load and keep in step with the brochure, and a wrong cell lets through a size that is not offered.		The width is looked up against the thickness on every call.
Alloys that are only cast in fixed mouldsOnly with care
AA5083 and AA5182 are offered only in three fixed-mould sizes; a rule has to read alloy, thickness and width together.		Alloy, thickness and width are checked together in the same call.
Purity and impurity limits that follow the gradeOnly with care
Each primary grade guarantees its own silicon, iron, copper, other-element and aluminium limits; a customer limit has to be compared with the grade's figure for every element.		The grade's limits are looked up and compared with each customer limit, and with the minimum aluminium the agent states.
Carbon tiers the brochure only partly publishesOnly with workarounds
The brochure gives the carbon limit for AC0 and AC4 but not for AC1 to AC3; someone has to write and maintain a rule that sends the unpublished tiers to a person.		Tiers the brochure does not publish are flagged for approval rather than guessed.
Every problem returned in one answerOnly with workarounds
Rules tend to fire as the order is saved or a step is completed, so a rep often fixes one error and meets the next.		All findings come back together, whatever order the choices arrived in.

  

  

    
What this validator catches: findings from its test cases
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Every rule is checked on every call, in any order the choices arrive; one problem never hides another. Blocking findings stop the quote; approval findings need a person to sign off; everything else is computed.

    
1A billet diameter of 300 mm is not offered; the brochure lists 152, 178, 203, 216, 229, 254 and 305 mm.
2A billet length of 8501 mm is outside the 500 to 8500 mm range.
3A billet length of 499 mm is outside the 500 to 8500 mm range.
4This alloy is not in the brochure list of billet alloys.
5A slab thickness of 500 mm is not offered; the brochure lists 400, 460, 560, 600, 610 and 620 mm.
6A slab width of 1250 mm is not offered at a thickness of 400 mm.
7A slab width of 2000 mm is not offered at a thickness of 610 mm.
8A slab length of 10001 mm is outside the range offered for this thickness (4500 to 10000 mm; 4700 to 5000 mm at 460 mm thick).
9A slab length of 4499 mm is outside the range offered for this thickness (4500 to 10000 mm; 4700 to 5000 mm at 460 mm thick).
10A slab length of 5001 mm is outside the range offered for this thickness (4500 to 10000 mm; 4700 to 5000 mm at 460 mm thick).
11A slab length of 4699 mm is outside the range offered for this thickness (4500 to 10000 mm; 4700 to 5000 mm at 460 mm thick).
12This alloy is not in the brochure list of rolling slab alloys.
13AA5083 and AA5182 are cast in fixed moulds; only the 600 x 1736, 620 x 2000 and 600 x 1950 mm slab sizes are fixed-mould sizes.
14Foundry alloys are offered as T-ingots, 10 kg and 22.5 kg standard ingots and 9.8 kg Properzi bars.
15This alloy is not in the brochure list of foundry alloys.
16Primary ingots are offered as T-ingots, 10 kg and 22.5 kg standard ingots and 750 kg low-profile sows.
17This grade is not in the brochure table of primary aluminium grades.
18Billets, rolling slabs and liquid metal are not ordered as ingot forms.
19A liquid metal load of 120 tenths of a tonne is not offered; crucible net weights are 5, 11 and 13.5 tonnes.
20The customer needs iron at or below 0.07 percent; the selected grade allows up to 0.08 percent.
21The customer needs silicon at or below 0.03 percent; the selected grade allows up to 0.04 percent.
22The customer needs copper at or below 0.01 percent; the selected grade allows up to 0.03 percent.
23The customer needs each of Mn, Mg, Cr, Ni, Zn, Ti, Ga and V at or below 0.01 percent; the selected grade allows up to 0.02 percent each.
24The customer needs aluminium of at least 99.9 percent; the selected grade guarantees at least 99.88 percent.
25The customer needs silicon at or below 0.05 percent; the selected grade allows up to 0.1 percent.
26The customer needs iron at or below 0.1 percent; the selected grade allows up to 0.2 percent.
27The customer needs aluminium of at least 99.8 percent; the selected grade guarantees at least 99.7 percent.
28The customer needs 30 percent recycled content; the selected product does not carry that recycled-content grade.
29The customer needs 15 percent recycled content; the selected product does not carry that recycled-content grade.
30The customer needs at most 3 tonnes of CO2e per tonne; the selected product does not meet it.

  

  

    
Scenarios and results
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The recorded result of the validator for each scenario on this page: the request the AI agent sent, the verdict, and every finding, in the order they appear above.

    
1. Billets: Billets in a diameter and length that are not offered

    
The agent's request. Please quote Alba AA6063 billets, 280 mm in diameter and 9,000 mm long. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Billet diameter not offered. A billet diameter of 280 mm is not offered; the brochure lists 152, 178, 203, 216, 229, 254 and 305 mm.
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  • Billet length out of range. A billet length of 9000 mm is outside the 500 to 8500 mm range.
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2. Billets: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please quote Alba AA6063 billets, 254 mm in diameter and 8,000 mm long. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
    
      
  • Order summary. Order checked against the Alba product brochure; no prices are modeled.
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3. Can-body slabs: AA5182 slabs in a width that is not a fixed-mould size

    
The agent's request. Please quote Alba AA5182 rolling slabs, 600 mm thick, 1,500 mm wide and 10,000 mm long. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • High-magnesium alloy needs a fixed-mould size. AA5083 and AA5182 are cast in fixed moulds; only the 600 x 1736, 620 x 2000 and 600 x 1950 mm slab sizes are fixed-mould sizes.
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4. Can-body slabs: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please quote Alba AA5182 rolling slabs, 600 mm thick, 1,736 mm wide and 10,000 mm long. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
    
      
  • Order summary. Order checked against the Alba product brochure; no prices are modeled.
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5. Primary ingots: Primary ingots for a low-iron, high-purity order

    
The agent's request. Please quote Alba primary aluminium, grade G1085, as 22.5 kg standard ingots. The customer needs iron at or below 0.06 percent and aluminium of at least 99.9 percent. The quote states a unit weight of 22.5 kg and a minimum aluminium content of 99.9 percent. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Iron limit tighter than the grade. The customer needs iron at or below 0.06 percent; the selected grade allows up to 0.08 percent.
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  • Purity requirement above the grade. The customer needs aluminium of at least 99.9 percent; the selected grade guarantees at least 99.86 percent.
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  • Stated purity does not match. The quote states a minimum aluminium content of 99.9 percent; the brochure table gives 99.86 percent for this grade.
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6. Primary ingots: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please quote Alba primary aluminium, grade G1090, as 22.5 kg standard ingots. The customer needs iron at or below 0.06 percent and aluminium of at least 99.9 percent. The quote states a unit weight of 22.5 kg and a minimum aluminium content of 99.9 percent. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Purity requirement above the grade. The customer needs aluminium of at least 99.9 percent; the selected grade guarantees at least 99.88 percent.
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  • Stated purity does not match. The quote states a minimum aluminium content of 99.9 percent; the brochure table gives 99.88 percent for this grade.
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7. Primary ingots: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Please quote Alba primary aluminium, grade G1092, as 22.5 kg standard ingots. The customer needs iron at or below 0.06 percent and aluminium of at least 99.9 percent. The quote states a unit weight of 22.5 kg and a minimum aluminium content of 99.9 percent. It is ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
    
      
  • Order summary. Order checked against the Alba product brochure; no prices are modeled.
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Narration transcript
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The text of the narrated walkthrough, step by step.

    
    
      
  1. Welcome to a demo of Predictika's Validator. An AI sales agent takes a customer's order for aluminium billets, rolling slabs, foundry or primary ingots, or liquid metal: the alloy, the size or form, the purity the customer needs and the carbon or recycled content. Before the order goes out, the agent sends it to Predictika, which checks it against a declarative model of the tables in Alba's public product brochure and returns a verdict, every reason and the figures it computed.
    2. 
      
  2. I will start with the first request by the agent.
    3. 
      
  3. The agent says. Please quote Alba primary aluminium, grade G1085, as 22.5 kg standard ingots. The customer needs iron at or below 0.06 percent and aluminium of at least 99.9 percent. The rest of the request is on screen.
    4. 
      
  4. Before it goes out, the agent calls the validator.
    5. 
      
  5. Blocked, with three findings, all in one answer. The customer needs iron at or below 0.06 percent; the selected grade allows up to 0.08 percent. The customer needs aluminium of at least 99.9 percent; the selected grade guarantees at least 99.86 percent. The quote states a minimum aluminium content of 99.9 percent; the brochure table gives 99.86 percent for this grade.
    6. 
      
  6. The validator returned three blocking findings in one answer. A check that reads one field at a time would pass most of this; it shows only when the choices in the quote are checked against each other.
    7. 
      
  7. What this shows: for purity and impurity limits that follow the grade, a rules-based CPQ is error-prone for this.
    8. 
      
  8. Now the agent resubmits.
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  9. The corrected request. It changes the grade to G1090.
    10. 
      
  10. It calls the validator again.
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  11. Still blocked, with two findings, all in one answer. The customer needs aluminium of at least 99.9 percent; the selected grade guarantees at least 99.88 percent. The quote states a minimum aluminium content of 99.9 percent; the brochure table gives 99.88 percent for this grade.
    12. 
      
  12. One finding cleared. Still blocking: purity requirement above the grade and stated purity does not match.
    13. 
      
  13. The agent resubmits once more.
    14. 
      
  14. The revised request. It changes the grade to G1092.
    15. 
      
  15. It calls the validator once more.
    16. 
      
  16. This time the validator clears it.
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  17. Both earlier findings are cleared, and the validator's figure matches the quote.
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  18. Three problems caught in one call, fixed in two passes, and a clean quote. That is the value of Predictika's validator: catching mistakes before they reach the customer. Now you can try the other scenarios yourself.
    19.