Order status replies, drafted from the order, the job and the shipment.

A buyer writes: where is PO 55120, and will line 3 make the 14th? Your rep finds the order, opens the job or calls the floor lead, checks whether anything shipped, and writes back. Some buyers send a spreadsheet of every open line they have with you and want an answer on each one.

In the proof of concept, AI works through copies of those emails. For each line it finds your order, the job's last reported operation and any shipment, then drafts the reply your rep would send. A line the records can't answer gets a note for your rep, not a guess.

The answer lives in three records. The order line says what was promised, the job says where the parts are on the floor, and the shipment record says whether anything left. In Epicor, Order Tracker shows whether a job is linked to the line and how many have shipped, while Job Tracker holds the labor transactions and actual operation times that show which step the job last finished. NetSuite keeps tracking numbers on the item fulfillment, not on the sales order. In SAP the order header carries a delivery status such as partially delivered, and goods issue is recorded on the delivery itself.

The floor runs ahead of the system. A job can be finished and boxed while its last operation still shows open, because nobody has clocked off it yet. Parts can be out at a plater or heat treater, waiting on paperwork, or packed at your dock for the customer's own carrier. None of that reads as shipped. Each draft names the record behind every statement, so your rep can tell when an answer needs a look on the floor first.

Buyers ask in their own numbers. The email quotes their PO, line and release, their part number and the date on their PO, rarely your order number or your promise date. Customers on EDI may ask with an X12 869 order status inquiry and expect an 870 order status report back, or get the 870 on a schedule agreed in advance. The proof of concept covers email and spreadsheets only, and your EDI stays as it is.

Late lines are why people write. When the promise date has passed and nothing has shipped, the real answer needs a new date, and only your planner can give one. The draft never offers it. It marks the line late, lists what the records hold (the last operation reported, material still on order, a quality hold) and leaves the date to a person. Shipped lines get their ship date, carrier and tracking number, so the easy half of a long list is already done.

Old emails need old status. Today's records already know how every order turned out, so the test rebuilds what was true on the day each email arrived, from dated shipments and labor entries. Your reviewer, the person on your team who knows these customers and orders best (often the customer service lead), sets each draft beside the reply your team actually sent. They check that the facts match, that late lines went to a person, and that nothing was said the records don't support.

With a yes, new status emails get a draft reply as they arrive, for roughly 30 days.

Your rep reads, edits and sends every reply from your own email, and nothing reaches a customer by itself. Lines that need a new date still go to your planner first, and the same comparison keeps scoring the live month.