
October 20, 2026 | Tampa, FL
Visit us at the AACE Region 3 Symposium
The AACE Region 3 Southeast Symposium is an annual regional conference uniting project controls and Total Cost Management professionals from across the southeastern United States, featuring technical presentations and workshops on project and program management, TCM, and project controls tools, alongside valuable networking opportunities with owners, contractors, executives, and engineers from across the industry.

Don't miss our presentation(s) on stage

Wallace Penn Scott
Head of Business Development US
October 20, 2026
The RFQ Paradox: Why More Effort Isn't Producing Faster, Better Estimates
In 2002, the Center for Automotive Research found that automotive suppliers processed 495 RFQs a year at a cost of 134 labor hours each. A 2025 CAR/UHY Consulting update found suppliers now handle 800 RFQs annually and spend 157 hours per quote — working harder, not smarter. Win rates improved, but only because suppliers threw more people and hours at every bid. The study's root causes are strikingly consistent across industries: cost, BOM, and RFQ history data fragmented across incompatible systems; a widening "sticky knowledge" gap as experienced estimators retire or change roles; and inconsistent post-launch reviews that let the same costing mistakes repeat bid after bid. This session translates those findings into a practical framework — for cost engineering teams in any industry, not just automotive — for using agentic AI to modernize should-costing and RFQ response. We cover how autonomous AI agents, working inside existing CAx, PLM, and ERP tools, evaluate requests, generate cost estimates, and capture institutional estimating logic as durable, reusable knowledge instead of tribal know-how. Attendees leave with a model for measuring their own RFQ efficiency gap and a roadmap for closing it, turning cost estimating from a growing burden back into a competitive advantage.
Schedule a meeting with our experts and experiencing Synera live
Want an in-depth overview of Synera and a chance to ask your burning questions? Book a meeting with us and engage in insightful discussions with our product specialists on how to drive digital transformation in engineering through process automation.

