Palletizing System RFQ Checklist: What to Specify Before Requesting Quotes

A useful palletizing RFQ gives every supplier the same operating case and the same supply boundary. Record the packs, required output, pallet loads and site conditions before comparing proposals. Use the editable worksheet below to collect the information; it does not select a robot or validate a cell design.

Fill the requirements before naming equipment

Ask production to confirm the pack range and demand, engineering to confirm the layout and interfaces, and the project owner to assign the scope. Put an owner and a due date beside unconfirmed information. An empty value should remain visibly unresolved rather than becoming a supplier assumption that nobody reviews.

The form runs in your browser. You can print it, copy its contents or export a CSV to send through your own channels. Filling it in does not submit an enquiry or upload the answers. Export your draft before refreshing or closing the page. The worksheet is a project discussion aid, not a machine specification approved by an engineer.

Seven groups of RFQ inputs

Group	Record	Ask the supplier to return
Product	SKU list; minimum, nominal and maximum dimensions and mass; surface, closure and handling limits	Proposed handling method, trial-sample requirements and any excluded pack variants
Throughput	Good-output target, normal and peak demand, operating time, product sequence and counting boundary	Rate assumptions, included interruptions and the proposed test method
Pallet	Pallet drawing and condition, layer pattern, load limits, consumables and exchange method	Pattern restrictions, pallet-quality assumptions and exchange responsibilities
Site	Usable layout, clear height, access, utilities, environment and installation window	Layout, utility requirements, access needs and site work excluded from supply
Upstream and downstream	Infeed presentation, outfeed destination, signals, identification and exception handling	Mechanical and control interfaces with a named party at each handover
Supply boundary	Equipment, engineering, installation, documents, software, training and support	Included, optional, excluded and buyer-supplied items listed separately
Acceptance	Representative products, measurable criteria, FAT/SAT allocation, witnesses and closeout	Proposed tests, evidence, responsibilities and unresolved conditions

Make the rate measurable

“Packs per minute” needs a counting point and a time basis. A rate at the robot pickup position does not establish how many accepted pallets leave the line during a shift. Include pallet exchange, replenishment and product changeovers in the discussion, and state which of them belong in each test.

For an assumed example, a site needs 600 good packs during a 30-minute observation that includes pallet exchanges. Its requirement is 20 good packs per elapsed minute for that observation. That arithmetic describes demand; it does not prove a proposed machine can meet it. Record product mix and pack orientation alongside the calculation. Use the throughput calculation guide for the separate capacity discussion.

Draw the supply boundary

Ask who supplies empty pallets, takes full pallets away, provides pack identification and connects the controls. Mark existing equipment on the layout. A conveyor, pallet dispenser or wrapper can sit outside one supplier’s quotation while remaining necessary to the project.

ISO 10218-2:2025 addresses industrial robot applications and cells, including integration. Its published scope supports treating the assembled application as a project responsibility. A robot quotation alone does not describe that responsibility. Ask the integrator which requirements apply to the proposed application and what supporting documents will be supplied.

Attach evidence and control revisions

Keep drawings, SKU data and photographs in a separate attachment list with filenames and revisions. The form does not upload files. Ask for trial quantities using the actual product and pallet range, including the variants the supplier considers difficult. Record sample availability rather than promising a test that cannot be staged.

Give each RFQ issue a date and revision. When a dimension or layout changes, send the same revision to every bidder and ask them to identify the effect on scope and price. Use the project cost guide to reconcile exclusions and the FAT/SAT planning guide to agree evidence before the order.

Prepare your draft for supplier review

Check units, unresolved fields, attachment revisions and named owners before exporting. Keep supplier answers next to the original requirement so that a qualified response is visible. The buying guides connect this RFQ to budget, acceptance and maintenance planning; the editable worksheet follows this article.