Creating a quote
The quote is the centre of PressCal. It isn't just a document with prices — it's the job's file: the emails hang off it, the artwork, the costing, the approval, the job on the board and the invoice.
Three ways one is born
From scratch — on the Quotes page, the "New Quote" button. Pick a customer and start.
From an email — open the message and hit "New Quote from this email". The customer is matched from the address on its own and the AI prepares the items (see "AI email parsing").
From the calculator — already costed a job? Save offers you "Create a new quote with this item", and once saved it asks whether you want to add another item or go to the quote.
The number
It assigns itself: QT-2026-0001, QT-2026-0002 and so on. One counter per year, no gaps, no setting — there's nothing to configure and nothing to break.
The customer: company and human
A quote holds two things: the company (who gets invoiced) and the contact (the person who asked for the job). They're independent, because in practice the same person changes companies and the same company sends you three different people.
Customer not in the database? You create them from inside the quote, without leaving the page.
The items
Two kinds of line live together in the same table:
- Costed items — they've been through the calculator and carry the whole specification with them (paper, press, imposition, finishing), plus cost and profit. The 🖩 icon on the row takes you back to the costing of that item.
- Free lines — name, quantity, unit, price. For anything that doesn't go through a machine: delivery, design, installation, stamps, a service.
A print shop doesn't only sell printed paper, and the quote doesn't force you to pretend otherwise.
The line's tools
- Copy line — for variants of the same thing (500 / 1,000 / 2,000).
- Lock price — "won't change from costing". Agreed €250 on the phone? Lock it and go on recosting underneath; the customer's price stays put.
- Apply costing to the rest — costed the first of five identical items? Push it to the others with one button.
The totals
Subtotal, VAT (from your organisation's rate) and the final amount. Alongside, the quote keeps cost and profit — numbers only you see, never the customer.
Title, deadline, notes
The title is what you'll search for in six months ("Cards 9x5 2/2"), and it goes into the job folder's name too. The deadline shows up later on the job board and in the Calendar. Notes stay internal.
The life cycle
Draft → Sent → Approved or Partial or Rejected → Completed. The status changes itself from what you do; you don't set it by hand.
On top of that you get: Duplicate quote (the repeat customer with the same job every quarter), Archive (it leaves the list and PressKit moves the folder into _01 Archive) and Delete. Archiving has Restore too — nothing is lost because you hit the wrong button.