E-commerce
July 1, 2026
"The bot announces a 10-day delivery while my premium option adds 2 weeks." "The AI confuses warehouse preparation and workshop manufacturing." "Nobody calculates my ETA with 18 parts ordered." Three failures where the AI invents a lead time, mixes up prep (#395) and prod (#485), or promises tracking before the end of manufacturing.
An AI manufacturing lead time chatbot does not replace VARLEAD-FLOW agents (#485). It reads LEAD-MAP, calculates base + option + volume, separates manufacturing and shipping, reroutes premature WISMO, and hands off capacity delays.
This guide #486 covers intents bot_varlead_*, flow VARLEADBOT, and KPI varlead_bot. Companion bot of the VARLEAD playbook (#485). Distinct from the warehouse prep bot (#396): here, variable production ETA based on SKU, option, volume, and capacity.
Summary
Why automate manufacturing lead times with a bot?
ETA MTO questions arrive pre-purchase (configurator PDP) and post-purchase (premature WISMO). A calibrated bot calculates the grounded lead time in seconds.
What the bot resolves
Opaque ETA: Generic PDP without delta option
Option impact: how many +N days for premium finish
Volume tier: wholesale qty lengthens queue
Premature WISMO: prod status before tracking
Ecom Design Pro reminds to separate manufacturing and shipping in each response (Ecom Design Pro, lead time 2026).
What the bot does not do
No free rush without policy. No tracking before ship_ready. No warehouse prep delay (#396). No invented ETA outside of LEAD-MAP.
VARLEADBOT vs VARLEAD #485, MTO #288 and PREP #396
Four bots, four time horizons.
Quick Matrix
#486 VARLEADBOT: variable pre and post-buy production ETA
#485 VARLEAD-FLOW: agents delay cancel rush capacity
#288 MTO: workshop status delays
#396 PREP-BOT: warehouse stock cut-off
#482 CFGBOT: pre-buy choice option
CFGBOT #482 reroutes bot_cfg_lead_time to VARLEADBOT for grounded LEAD-MAP calculation.
Which bot_varlead_* intents should be classified?
Eight intents cover 90% of sessions for the bot's manufacturing lead time.
Eight bot_varlead intents
bot_varlead_eta_pdp: lead time before purchase according to cart options
bot_varlead_eta_order: ETA of order placed order lookup
bot_varlead_option_delta: impact in days of option X
bot_varlead_volume_tier: lead time according to quantity
bot_varlead_mixed_cart: multiple items with different ETAs
bot_varlead_wismo_early: tracking requested while production is in progress
bot_varlead_capacity_delay: handoff capacity delay #485
bot_varlead_vs_prep: confuses prep #395 and prod
Tier 1 auto: eta_pdp, eta_order, option_delta, volume_tier, mixed_cart, wismo_early, vs_prep. Tier 2 handoff: capacity_delay.
How do I consume LEAD-MAP #485?
The bot reads LEAD-MAP #485: base_days, delta_days option volume, ship_add_days, client_label_fr, capacity row if active.
Grounded calculation
VB-3: prod_days = base + sum(deltas). delivery_date = order_date + prod_days + ship_days. No LLM-hallucinated numbers ever.
Shared corpus
Macros VARLEAD-ETA-01, VARLEAD-OPT-01 (#485) + /pages/lead-times FAQ RAG.
VARLEADBOT-SUP policy in six rules
Six bot rules for safe manufacturing lead time.
LEAD-MAP grounded : ETA from map + order/cart context
NO-INVENT-ETA : block uncalculated map date
SPLIT prod ship : always state manufacturing days + shipping days
PREP-REROUTE : warehouse 24-48 h → #396 PREP-BOT
NO-TRACKING-EARLY : ship_ready false → VARLEAD-WISMO prod status
CAPACITY handoff : delay slip → agent #485
Flow VARLEADBOT VB-1 to VB-8
Eight-step flow.
VB-1 Classify: bot_varlead_* intent
VB-2 Context: PDP cart or order_id, sku options qty
VB-3 LEAD-MAP: base deltas ship capacity
VB-4 Reroute: prep #396, cfg #482, capacity handoff
VB-5 Respond: TPL-VARLEADBOT-* grounded
VB-6 Branch: close | mixed lines | handoff delay
VB-7 Log: intent, prod_days, eta_date
VB-8 Conversion: tag varlead_bot_assist checkout or close
bot_varlead_option_delta Example
TPL-VARLEADBOT-OPT: "Premium option +7 days manufacturing. Total prod 14 days + shipping 4 days. Estimated receipt [date]."
TPL-VARLEADBOT templates and touchpoints
Four essential templates.
TPL-VARLEADBOT-ETA
Manufacturing [N] days (base [B] + options [D]). Shipping [S] days. ETA [date].
TPL-VARLEADBOT-MIX
Line [A]: [N] days prod. Line [B]: [M] days prod. [split ship policy if applicable].
TPL-VARLEADBOT-WISMO
Order in manufacturing, not yet shipped. Estimated end of prod [date]. Tracking upon shipment.
TPL-VARLEADBOT-HANDOFF-DELAY
Workshop capacity delay: agent transfer within 4 hours. Order [id] ETA promised [date].
Touchpoints
PDP configurator: chip "What is the lead time with my options?"
Post-order: automatic VARLEAD-ETA confirmation email + bot thread
Account order: bot embed status prod vs ship
Edge cases and reroutes
Five cases outside tier 1 bot.
Capacity slip: handoff #485 VARLEAD-UPDATE agent
Rush request: handoff policy rush_fee
Cancel deadline event: handoff #485 cancel branch
Prep warehouse stock: reroute #396
Config option choice: reroute #482 if upstream choice
Essential varlead_bot KPIs
Five VARLEADBOT steering metrics.
varlead_bot_auto_resolve: tier 1 without agent
varlead_bot_eta_resolve: satisfied customer ETA explained
varlead_bot_invent_eta_violation: NO-INVENT-ETA violations, target 0
varlead_bot_wismo_early_deflect: premature WISMO resolved by bot
varlead_bot_prep_reroute_accuracy: correct bot prep vs prod
Monthly review: top SKUs invent_eta → enrich LEAD-MAP delta rows.
VARLEADBOT anti-patterns
Six common mistakes.
Inventing ETA: NO-INVENT-ETA violation
Confusing prep and prod: PREP-REROUTE missed
Promising tracking early: NO-TRACKING-EARLY
Forgetting volume tier: qty unread order
PDP generic 10 d: without delta option
Empty handoff delay: without eta_promise order_id
VARLEADBOT with Qstomy
Qstomy on Shopify: classify bot_varlead_*, LEAD-MAP calculator, split prod ship, WISMO early deflect, handoff capacity payload.
Pipeline: #482 option choice → #486 ETA → checkout → #485 if delay or cancel.
Explore AI support and request a demo.
Checklist, FAQ and going further
VARLEADBOT Checklist (8 steps)
Sync LEAD-MAP #485: RAG + calculator API
VARLEADBOT-SUP Policy: 6 rules
8 intents bot_varlead_*: flow VB-1 to VB-8
4 templates TPL-VARLEADBOT-*: ETA MIX WISMO HANDOFF
PDP post-order Touchpoints: delay chips
Reroutes: #396 #482 #485
6 scenario tests: pdp eta, option delta, volume, mix, wismo early, capacity handoff
KPI Dashboard: varlead_bot_* section 9
FAQ
Does Bot modify promised ETA?
No. Explains calculation. Delay slip = agent #485.
Difference from #485?
#485 agents delay rush cancel. #486 bot calculate explain tier 1.
Difference from #396?
#396 warehouse stock prep. #486 workshop manufacturing days.
Go further
This week: sync LEAD-MAP, activate PDP chip "What delay with my options?", test premium option +7 d + qty tier 12, check NO-TRACKING-EARLY in staging.
Enzo
July 1, 2026
