Turn rate request emails into structured load records — automatically.
The Quote Intake Agent handles inbound rate requests from email body text, PDF attachments, and EDI 204 transactions. It creates a draft load record and routes to the Rating agent. It does not price or commit a rate.
Trigger
Inbound email or EDI 204 arrives requesting a rate
Human approval required
No — intake and routing are fully automated
Hands off to
Rating & Routing Agent via load_needs_rating event
What the Quote Intake Agent does
Works on structured and unstructured input — email body text, PDF attachments, EDI 204 transaction sets — and produces a consistent, structured load record every time.
Unstructured email parsing
Shippers and brokers send rate requests in dozens of formats. The agent reads free-form email body text, extracts shipper name, pickup city and state, delivery city and state, commodity description, weight, and required delivery date — without templates or field mapping.
PDF attachment extraction
Rate request PDFs, scanned BOL templates, and capacity request forms are processed through document extraction. The agent pulls structured fields from attachments and merges them with any data found in the email body.
EDI 204 transaction parsing
Electronic motor carrier load tender transactions (EDI 204) are parsed in full — including N1 name segments, L11 reference numbers, S5 stop details, and OID order identification. No EDI middleware required.
Draft load record creation
Every parsed rate request becomes a draft load record with a unique load ID, source document links, and a structured field set. The record is created in the platform and logged against the originating email or transaction.
Duplicate detection
The agent checks new requests against open load records using shipper name, origin ZIP, destination ZIP, and required delivery date. Probable duplicates are flagged for human review rather than creating a second open load.
Routing to Rating agent
Once the load record is complete, the agent emits a structured handoff event. The Rating & Routing agent picks up this event and begins pricing the lane. The Quote Intake agent does not price or commit a rate.
From inbox to load record in under 60 seconds
The agent processes each request the moment it arrives. No dispatcher needs to open the email or enter fields manually before the load record exists.
Rate request arrives
An inbound email hits the monitored mailbox, or an EDI 204 transaction clears the gateway. The agent is triggered immediately — no polling delay.
Source document is classified
The agent determines whether the request is a plain-text email, an email with a PDF attachment, or an EDI transaction set. The correct extraction pipeline runs for each type.
Freight fields are extracted
Shipper, consignee, origin, destination, commodity, weight, hazmat flag, equipment type, and required delivery window are pulled from the source. Missing required fields are flagged for dispatcher review.
Draft load record is created
A new load record is opened in the platform with all extracted fields populated. The source document is attached. The load enters the 'needs rating' state on the lifecycle timeline.
Handoff to Rating & Routing
The agent emits a load_needs_rating event. The Rating & Routing agent picks this up and begins applying rate tables, spot-market logic, and carrier selection — without any dispatcher action required.
What this agent does not do
Tight scope is a feature, not a limitation. The Quote Intake Agent stops at the boundary of load creation.
Does not price the lane or apply rate tables
Does not select or contact carriers
Does not send any rate confirmation to the shipper