Predictika · Semiconductor deposition tool quotes
An AI sales agent prepares a quote for a fictional fab: an Endura-class PVD cluster tool with a mainframe, process chambers, preclean and degas chambers, cryo pumps, an AGS service agreement and consumable targets. Before it goes out, the agent sends it to Predictika’s validator, which checks the configuration, the facility, the shipping destination and the contract terms, compares the net total the agent states with its own, and returns a verdict with every reason.
This validator models 2 mainframes and 5 process chambers (TaN barrier, Cu seed, Ti TiN liner, Co liner and Al PVD) with preclean, degas and cryo pumps, built from public product information about the Endura platform. It handles any quote built from them, not just the scenarios shown below.
It does not cover other process platforms or non-PVD modules, and it does not use real prices or availability. Every price, limit and power figure is an illustrative estimate.
8 scenarios in workflow pairs · click one to switch
Before sending, the agent must call
What this means
Our assessment of what a typical rules-based CPQ (product rules, price rules and validation rules, as in Salesforce CPQ or Revenue Cloud) does with the same cases. It is a judgment about effort and reliability, not a claim that nothing can be built.
| What the validator catches | Typical rules-based CPQ | Predictika |
|---|---|---|
| Facets and chamber capacity | Only with care Each mainframe has its own process and pass-through facet limits, and preclean and degas chambers compete for the pass-through facets. This usually becomes one hand-written validation rule per mainframe. | The limits are catalog data; one rule compares the chamber counts with them for any mainframe. |
| Process order and prerequisites | Only with care Cu seed after a TaN barrier, and a preclean chamber for barrier, seed and liner chambers, depend on which chamber sits in which step, so they tend to be separate conditional rules. | All of them are evaluated together, and every one that applies is named. |
| Export-restricted destinations | Only with workarounds One destination field has two outcomes: advanced-node chambers are blocked outright, and any restricted destination also needs a license review. Rules-based CPQ commonly handles this with approval chains plus custom checks. | The same request returns the block and the approval in one answer, blocks first. |
| Facility power against the chambers | Only with care The power the tool needs is a sum over the chosen parts, compared with a figure from the customer; that needs a calculated field first. | The sum is derived on each call and compared with the fab supply when it is stated. |
| The net total the agent states | Only with workarounds Comparing a stated figure with a computed one needs a separate rule, and price rules rarely run on stated figures. | The stated net total is a field in the request and is checked against the computed net total. |
| Every problem returned in one answer | Only with workarounds Rules tend to fire as the quote is built, so a problem raised late can hide an earlier one. | Every rule is evaluated at the end of input and all findings come back together. |
Every rule is checked on every call, in whatever order the choices arrive, and one problem never hides another. Blocking findings stop the quote; approval findings need a person to sign off; everything else is computed.
| Rule | Effect | What it checks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | block | First-step chamber: at least one process chamber is required |
| 2 | block | Mainframe capacity: process chambers may not exceed the process facets (5 on the standard mainframe, 7 on the extended) |
| 3 | block | Pass-through facets: preclean plus degas chambers may not exceed the pass-through facets (2 standard, 3 extended) |
| 4 | block | Preclean: barrier, seed and liner chambers need a preclean chamber on the tool |
| 5 | block | Degas: every tool needs at least one degas chamber |
| 6 | block | Process order: Cu seed must follow a TaN barrier step |
| 7 | block | Throughput: the slower process step (chambers times wafers per hour each) must meet the wafers per hour required |
| 8 | block | Facility power: when the fab states its supply, the power the tool needs must not exceed it |
| 9 | block | Export: advanced-node chambers cannot ship to an export-restricted destination |
| 10 | approval | Export: any export-restricted destination needs a trade-compliance license review |
| 11 | block | Service term: Performance service needs a term of at least 3 years |
| 12 | block | Service uptime: requested uptime may not exceed the tier commitment (90 Basic, 95 Uptime, 97 Performance) |
| 13 | block | Lead time: the longest lead time of the mainframe and chambers must fit the weeks the fab needs |
| 14 | block, approval | Discount: above 12 percent blocks; above 5 percent needs manager approval |
| 15 | computed | Pricing: tool list from mainframe, chambers, preclean, degas and one cryo pump per process chamber; AGS as a percent of tool list per year; consumable targets from monthly wafers; installation |
| 16 | block | The net total the agent states must match the validator net total within $1 |