Recipe: a quote from a photo of a job sheet¶
Take a photo of the handwritten or printed job sheet from your technician and give it to Hermes with your price list. Hermes reads the photo, matches every line to a price, and writes an itemised quote with VAT.
| Time needed | 5 minutes |
| You need | A Hermes agent connected to an AI model, a clear photo of the job sheet, and your price list as a CSV file (code, description, unit, price without VAT) |
| Result | An itemised quote with subtotal, VAT 23% and total, saved in quote-marta-costa.md |
Check every line before you send the quote
Hermes reads the photo with the AI model. A messy photo can be misread, and a vague line on the sheet (for example "new basin") can match the wrong product. Read the quote line by line against the job sheet before it goes to your customer.
1. Upload the photo and the price list¶
Upload both files in FILES → workspace (see Hermes reads a contract for you). For the photo, a PNG or JPG taken straight from above, with good light, works best.
Our test job sheet, job-sheet.png, from a plumber called Rui:
Our price list, plumber-prices.csv. It has one extra item that is not on the job sheet (the radiator), to check that Hermes does not add it:
code,description,unit,price_eur_excl_vat
WC-200,Close-coupled toilet WC-200 with seat,each,189.00
BAS-60,Washbasin 60 cm with pedestal,each,95.00
TAP-M,"Basin mixer tap, chrome",each,48.50
SHW-T,Thermostatic shower mixer,each,132.00
CU22,Copper pipe 22 mm,metre,7.80
FIT22,Fitting 22 mm (elbow/tee),each,2.35
FLEX,Flexible hose 30 cm,each,4.90
SIL,"Sanitary silicone, white",tube,6.20
LAB,"Labour, one plumber",hour,28.00
TRAVEL,Call-out and travel (Porto area),visit,25.00
DISP,Removal and disposal of old fixtures,job,40.00
RAD-600,Radiator 600 x 800 mm,each,155.00
2. Ask for the quote¶
In CHAT (we started a New chat) we wrote:
Look at the photo workspace/job-sheet.png (a job sheet from my plumber Rui) and the price list workspace/plumber-prices.csv. Make an itemised quote for the customer: code, description, quantity, unit price, line total, then the subtotal, VAT 23% and total in EUR. Tell me if anything on the sheet is not in the price list. Save it as workspace/quote-marta-costa.md.
Hermes answered in less than a minute:
- Hermes looks at the photo (Vision Analyze), reads the price list, and does the sums with a small program.
- The totals: subtotal €1,049.90, VAT 23% €241.48, total €1,291.38.
- Nothing on the sheet is missing from the price list.
- The choices Hermes made, for you to check with your technician: the 60 cm washbasin is the model with pedestal, "2 plumbers × 8 h" became 16 hours of labour, the removal is the flat disposal price, and the radiator is not quoted because it is not on the sheet.
3. Read the quote¶
The file quote-marta-costa.md in FILES → workspace has the customer, the start date from the sheet and every line. Exactly as Hermes wrote it:
| Code | Description | Quantity | Unit price (excl. VAT) | Line total |
|---|---|---|---:|---:|
| DISP | Removal and disposal of old fixtures | 1 job | 40.00 | 40.00 |
| WC-200 | Close-coupled toilet WC-200 with seat | 1 each | 189.00 | 189.00 |
| BAS-60 | Washbasin 60 cm with pedestal | 1 each | 95.00 | 95.00 |
| TAP-M | Basin mixer tap, chrome | 1 each | 48.50 | 48.50 |
| SHW-T | Thermostatic shower mixer | 1 each | 132.00 | 132.00 |
| CU22 | Copper pipe 22 mm | 4 metre | 7.80 | 31.20 |
| FIT22 | Fitting 22 mm (elbow/tee) | 6 each | 2.35 | 14.10 |
| FLEX | Flexible hose 30 cm | 3 each | 4.90 | 14.70 |
| SIL | Sanitary silicone, white | 2 tube | 6.20 | 12.40 |
| LAB | Labour, one plumber (2 plumbers x 8 h) | 16 hour | 28.00 | 448.00 |
| TRAVEL | Call-out and travel (Porto area) | 1 visit | 25.00 | 25.00 |
To turn it into a PDF for the customer, see Recipe: make a price quote PDF for a customer.
Check that it worked¶
We made the quote ourselves from the same job sheet and price list before asking Hermes. Every line, the subtotal (1,049.90), the VAT (241.48) and the total (1,291.38 EUR) matched. Hermes read all 8 lines of the photo correctly, including the quantities (4 m of pipe, 6 fittings, 3 hoses, 2 tubes of silicone) and the start date (Monday 30 November).
To check your own quote, count the lines on the job sheet and the lines in the quote, then redo the VAT with a calculator: subtotal × 0.23.
Make it yours¶
- Another VAT rate: write the rate you must charge in the message, instead of 23%.
- Add your margin or a discount: "Add 10% to materials, not to labour."
- Ask for a short message to the customer with the total and the start date.
- No job sheet? Describe the job in the chat, or send a photo of your own notes.
Common problems¶
Hermes read a number wrong on the photo
Take the photo again, from above and with more light, or type the doubtful line in the message: "Line 5 is 4 metres of pipe, not 14."
A line was matched to the wrong product
Write the code on the job sheet (as Rui did with "WC-200"), or tell Hermes: "For the basin, use the model without pedestal." Read the list of assumptions in the answer: that is where Hermes tells you what it guessed.
Something on the sheet is not in my price list
Hermes should tell you, because we asked it to in the message. Keep that sentence in your message. Then give the price in the chat, or add the item to your price list and ask again.