TOMI EngineeringTOMI Engineering

How an Aerospace Supplier Reviews Purchase Orders 4x Faster

Tomi Engineering is a Santa Ana based manufacturing facility that machines aerospace and defense parts. Recently, they replaced their manual contract review process with GroundControl's PO Review tool. With this addition, they've cut down per-PO review time from 2-3 hours to under 30 minutes, while adding an added layer of protection to the revision.

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Time Savings Calculator

Estimate weekly PO revision time with PO Review

40 hrs

5 hrs80 hrs

With PO Review

10 hrs / week

About 30 hrs back each week at this volume.

Based on TOMI Engineering’s results: about 40 hours per week on manual revision for up to 20 POs, compared with about 10 hours with PO Review (roughly 4× faster). Your time will vary with PO volume and checklist depth.

TOMI Engineering on GroundControl PO Review

Jackson Lange, contracts administrator at TOMI Engineering, on moving from a two-hour manual PO and quote review to PO Review on GroundControl’s ITAR-compliant platform.

“It's pretty self explanatory. You just drop your files in, hit start, and you're ready to go.”

JL

Jackson Lange

Contracts Administrator, TOMI Engineering

01

The problem

Prior to PO Review, there was no standard, ITAR compliant tool for manufacturers to automate the contract review process. TOMI Engineering, like many other manufacturers, relied on a completely manual process which required a human to read documents line by line.

The contracts administrator at TOMI used to print out the Purchase Order from the customer and the Quote document, lay them flat side by side, and read through line by line, making edits with a pen. This process could take anywhere from 2-3 hours per PO as even missing a small discrepancy could lead to scrapped material, building the wrong part, liability for agreeing to the wrong ship date, unnecessary labor costs, and more.

02

The solution

GroundControl's PO Review tool is an intuitive, easy to use tool. With it, you simply drop the PO and Quote directly into the platform, and run the checklist (this checklist would have been created during onboarding). After a few minutes, the tool flags all discrepancies against the checks it searched for, and all that's left is for the contracts team to double check the work.

With GroundControl, TOMI's contracts administrator works 4x faster, completing POs in under 30 minutes.

03

The method

Same review goal—confirm the customer PO matches the quote—but a different workflow before and after PO Review.

Before

2–3 hours

Time per PO

Manual

Review style

  1. 01Print the customer Purchase Order and the Quote document.
  2. 02Lay them flat side by side and read line by line, editing with a pen.
  3. 03Type up an email identifying all the discrepancies, and send it to the customer

With PO Review

Under 30 min

Time per PO

4× faster

Speed vs. manual

  1. 01Drop the PO and Quote directly into the platform.
  2. 02Run the checklist created during onboarding.
  3. 03Double-check flagged discrepancies; the tool drafts the customer email.
04

The value

One miss can mean scrap, wasted labor, and liability. If a PO does not match the quote, the supplier could build the wrong part (scrapped material, wasted labor, and the cost of building it again). Agreeing to the wrong quantity or price is a huge revenue loss for the supplier. Agreeing to the wrong dates leaves the supplier liable.

A supplier like TOMI can receive up to 20 POs in a week. At two hours per PO, that was about 40 hours a week just on document revision. With GroundControl PO Review, the same work is done in about 10 hours, which frees Jackson up for other tasks in the shop and provides a second set of eyes on the revision.

By being able to review POs faster, TOMI can continue to take on newer orders and build more parts for their customers.

Document revision time: before vs. with PO Review

Up to 20 purchase orders per week at TOMI Engineering

Before PO ReviewWith PO Review

Hours per week on PO revision

Time per PO (typical)

05

FAQ

Is there software that can automate PO revision for contract manufacturers?
Yes. Purpose-built PO review tools compare incoming purchase orders against quotes or prior PO revisions instead of printing and marking up documents by hand. Teams typically upload files, run a checklist, verify flagged items, and send customer-ready discrepancy notes—often in a fraction of the time manual revision takes.
What should a PO review check before production starts?
PO revision should check for things like matching price, quantity, timelines, and related terms—confirming the incoming purchase order aligns with what the supplier quoted and agreed to before work hits the floor.
What happens if you miss something during a PO review?
A missed discrepancy can mean building the wrong part (scrapped material and wasted labor), agreeing to the wrong quantity or price (revenue loss), or accepting the wrong delivery dates (supplier liability). Catching mismatches before release helps avoid rework, late shipments, and customer disputes.
Can PO review software handle ITAR-controlled contract data?
Shops on export-controlled programs need to know how a vendor hosts data, supports regulated workflows, and meets ITAR expectations before uploading contracts. Evaluate hosting, registration, and security posture as part of vendor selection; see PO Review software for suppliers for how GroundControl approaches hosting and compliance.
How much time can PO review automation save?
Manual PO and quote revision often takes two or more hours per order when done by hand. Automation varies by volume and checklist, but teams commonly report completing the same review in well under half an hour per PO—and saving many hours per week when PO volume is high.
Does automated PO review replace a contracts or quality reviewer?
No. Software runs the document comparison and flags misalignments; a reviewer still verifies findings and decides what to send back to the customer. The tool acts as a second set of eyes and can draft discrepancy communications—human judgment stays in the loop.
What PO and quote mismatches are worth catching early?
Focus on conflicts between the customer PO and the supplier’s quote: price, quantity, delivery timing, flow-down requirements, and related obligations. Resolving those before production starts reduces rework, shipment issues, and liability when dates or quantities are wrong.
What does a manual PO review process look like?
Many shops print the PO and quote, read them side by side line by line, mark discrepancies by hand, and email the customer. That workflow is slow, error-prone, and can take multiple hours per PO depending on complexity and volume.
06

Related resources

  • Explore PO Review software for AI-powered PO vs. quote and PO revision checks with cited findings.

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