For Independent CNC, weld, sheet metal, and make-to-order job shops
Catch a job running over its estimated hours while it is still on the floor
A job burns through its setup and run hours early, but nobody sees it until the work order closes. By then the extra hours are spent and the job made little or nothing. The same overrun repeats on the next order for that part.
What it can cost you
Example: 6 jobs a month running 15 hours over estimate at a $95 shop rate = $8,550 a month in unbilled shop time.An illustration, not a promise. Your Opportunity Scan puts a real number on it.
What the system checks overnight
- Compares hours clocked to estimated hours on each open job, by operation and work center.
- Compares percent of hours used to percent of quantity completed.
- Flags rework and scrap hours logged against a job.
- Flags operations where setup alone has used most of the estimate.
- Notes when the same part overran on its last run too.
Where it reads from
- JobBOSS², ProShop ERP, Global Shop Solutions, ECI M1, or Epicor (labor tickets and routings)
What happens when it fires
You or the foreman check the setup, the program, or the fixture. The system lists the operations over estimate and drafts a note for the estimator to review the routing before the next quote.
Autonomy level: Suggest only. The brief tells you what changed and what to do. Nothing happens without you.
What we guarantee
Every open job's clocked hours compared to its estimate nightly, with overruns flagged before the work order closes. We agree on the metric before the Sprint starts and measure it over the first 20 business days after go-live. If we miss it, you get half your Sprint fee back. Dollar savings are tracked in your monthly saves log, reported rather than promised.
Questions
Our ERP shows estimate versus actual already. Why do we need this?
It usually shows it after the job closes, in a report someone has to run. This checks every open job every night and puts the few going wrong in the morning brief.
What if operators clock in late or to the wrong job?
That shows up as odd hours, and the brief flags it as a clocking issue rather than a real overrun when the pattern points that way.
Do I need new software for this?
No. The system reads from the tools you already use, with read-only access by default. A guardrail layer controls exactly which data the AI can see.
What does it cost?
A 3-week Sprint is $6,000 fixed and includes the morning brief plus one automation tied to an agreed metric. Ongoing support is $1,500 a month, or $500 a month to keep it running without new automations. If the agreed metric is missed over the first 20 business days after go-live, half the Sprint fee is refunded.
How is this different from a dashboard app or a free AI kit?
A dashboard app shows numbers when you go look. A free AI kit gives you the parts, and you do the setup, the upkeep, and the checking. Here the alarms are built for your kind of business, they watch outside data like market rates and rule changes alongside yours, and on Run or Keep-Running, the person who built them keeps them working and logs what they caught.
More alarms for machine and fabrication job shops
Seven more things worth watching.
- Repeat orders at a losing priceWhen a repeat PO comes in, compare its price to what that part really cost on past runs, so you requote losing parts instead of repeating them.
- RFQs sitting unquotedTrack every RFQ from inbox to quote by estimator and due date, so good opportunities from your best customers do not age out unanswered.
- Orders about to ship lateCompare remaining routing hours, work center load, material, and outside processing to each promise date, so late orders are caught early.
- Material and outside process cost creepCompare vendor invoices for metal, plating, heat treat, and coating to PO prices and quoted costs, so supplier increases get caught early.
- Machines idle or stuck in long setupsCompare run hours to available hours per machine and track setup time per job, so your most expensive machines spend more time making parts.
- Paid hours not landing on jobsCompare paid hours to hours clocked on work orders by employee and shift, so indirect time and clocking gaps stop hiding in your shop rate.
- Shipped but not invoicedMatch every packing slip to an invoice and every invoice to its PO price, so shipped work does not sit unbilled or go out at the wrong amount.
See all machine and fabrication job shops alarms · Browse every industry