Predictika · press brake models, tooling and backgauge packages, purchase programs, press force, options and service years

An AI sales agent's press brake quote, checked before it goes out

An AI sales agent prepares a press brake quote for a fictional sheet metal fabricator: a machine model, a tooling and backgauge package, a purchase program, a number of machines, a press force in tons, a service term, a bending programming software suite, a preventive maintenance plan and a discount. Before it goes out, the agent sends it to Predictika's validator, which checks it against a declarative model of the product and contract rules and reports every problem it finds, together with the price it computed, in one pass.

Scope: Press brake quotes for four machine models, three tooling and backgauge packages and three purchase programs, with machine counts, press force in tons, service years, a software suite, a maintenance plan, volume and extra discounts and order size. Prices in US dollars are illustrative estimates. See everything this validator covers

This validator checks any quote for these machines, tooling packages and purchase programs, not just the scenarios shown below.

  • Machines and tooling packages — an entry press brake, a mid-range press brake, a heavy-duty press brake and a robotic bending cell, with three tooling and backgauge packages, including the package that does not include the automation-ready tooling and safety package the bending cell needs.
  • Press force — a press force in tons checked against the machine limit and the tooling package limit, with a foundation and floor loading review above 300 tons.
  • Options and programs — the bending programming software suite and preventive maintenance plan by machine, and standard purchase, multi-machine agreement and global account agreement programs with their machine minimums and discounts.
  • Term and order size — service terms of 1 to 5 years, a finance review above 3 years, a production slot review above 10 machines, an approval band above 10 percent total discount, a limit at 18 percent, and a deal desk review above USD 5,000,000.
  • The stated total — the net total on the quote is compared with the total the validator computes.

Any quote for these machines, packages and programs is in scope, not only the scenarios pictured here. Not covered: other products such as laser cutting, laser welding or punching machines, real list prices, bend sequence and tooling engineering, regional safety and electrical codes, tax and other currencies.

The AI sales agentBuilds the press brake quote from the conversation and says it is ready to send.
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 this 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 or Conga) 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
Machine and tooling package compatibilityOnly with workarounds
A pairwise compatibility between two catalogs usually becomes one rule per combination.		Compatibility is a property of the machine and the package, checked on every call.
A press force that must fit two limitsOnly with care
A number that must fit both a machine range and a tooling package limit spans several validation rules.		Both limits and the review band are evaluated together.
Options by machineOnly with care
The software suite and maintenance plan differ by machine, so option rules multiply.		Each option is checked against the machine property directly.
Contract years and order sizeOnly with workarounds
A hard range, a review band and a value threshold are held in separate rules.		The range, the bands and the order value are all evaluated together.
Every problem returned in one answerOnly with workarounds
Rules tend to fire as the quote is saved, 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.

    
1The machine count must be between 1 and 40.
2The machine count must meet the minimum of the purchase program (3 for the multi-machine agreement, 8 for the global account agreement).
3The press force must be from 20 tons up to the limit of the machine.
4The press force must not be above the limit of the tooling package (300 for the precision package).
5The robotic bending cell needs a tooling package that includes the automation-ready tooling and safety package.
6The bending programming software suite is not available on the entry press brake.
7The preventive maintenance plan is not available on the entry press brake.
8The service term must be from 1 to 5 years.
9The total discount must not be above 18 percent.
10A press force above 300 tons needs a foundation and floor loading review.
11A contract longer than 3 years needs finance approval of the price lock.
12More than 10 machines need a production slot review.
13A total discount above the 10 percent a rep can give needs sales director approval.
14An order value above USD 5,000,000 needs a deal desk review.
15The net total stated on the quote must match the total the validator computes.

  

  

    
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. A service term that is too long: A 6 year service term on a standard purchase

    
The agent's request. Mid-range press brake 230 ton class with precision tooling and 6-axis backgauge, standard purchase, 3 machines, press force 200 tons, no software suite or maintenance plan, for a 6 year service term. Ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Contract length. A contract of 6 years is outside the 1 to 5 years allowed.
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2. A service term that is too long: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Same machines, now for a 4 year service term. Ready to send.

    
Verdict: Needs approval.

    
    
      
  • Long contract. A contract of 4 years is longer than 3 years, so finance must approve the price lock.
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3. A service term that is too long: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Same machines, now for a 2 year service term. Ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
4. The wrong tooling package for a bending cell: A robotic bending cell with standard tooling

    
The agent's request. Robotic bending cell 230 ton class with standard tooling and 2-axis backgauge, standard purchase, 3 machines, press force 100 tons, 2 year term. Ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Package missing automation tooling. The standard tooling with 2-axis backgauge does not include the automation-ready tooling and safety package the bending cell needs.
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5. The wrong tooling package for a bending cell: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Same bending cell with precision tooling and 6-axis backgauge. Ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

    
6. A press force beyond the machine range: A 250 ton press force on a 230 ton machine

    
The agent's request. Mid-range press brake 230 ton class with precision tooling and 6-axis backgauge, standard purchase, 3 machines, press force 250 tons, 2 year term. Ready to send.

    
Verdict: Blocked.

    
    
      
  • Press force over the machine range. A press force of 250 tons is outside the 20 to 230 ton range of the mid-range press brake.
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7. A press force beyond the machine range: The agent resubmits after fixing the errors

    
The agent's request. Same machines with a press force of 200 tons. Ready to send.

    
Verdict: Allowed.

  

  

    
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 prepares a press brake quote for a fictional sheet metal fabricator: a machine model, a tooling and backgauge package, a purchase program, and more. Before it goes out, the agent sends it to Predictika's validator, which checks it against a declarative model of the product and contract rules and reports every problem it finds, together with the price it computed, in one pass.
    2. 
      
  2. I will start with the first request by the agent.
    3. 
      
  3. The agent says. Mid-range press brake 230 ton class with precision tooling and 6-axis backgauge, standard purchase, 3 machines, press force 200 tons. Ready to send. The rest of the request is on screen.
    4. 
      
  4. Before it goes out, the agent calls the validator.
    5. 
      
  5. Blocked, with one finding, all in one answer. A contract of 6 years is outside the 1 to 5 years allowed.
    6. 
      
  6. The validator returned one blocking finding 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 contract years and order size, rules-based CPQ can do this only with workarounds.
    8. 
      
  8. Now the agent resubmits.
    9. 
      
  9. The corrected request. It changes the service term to 4 years.
    10. 
      
  10. It calls the validator again.
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  11. Not blocked, but held for a person.
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  12. The one blocking finding is cleared; one approval remains for a person: long contract.
    13. 
      
  13. The agent resubmits once more.
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  14. The revised request. It changes the service term to 2 years.
    15. 
      
  15. It calls the validator once more.
    16. 
      
  16. This time the validator clears it.
    17. 
      
  17. The earlier finding is cleared.
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  18. One problem 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.