R&D tax credit for manufacturers: which process records a study uses

What does an R&D tax credit study look for at a manufacturer?

A credit study at a manufacturer looks for documented process and product work: trial runs, prototype builds, tooling changes, engineering change orders and the quality records that show what was learned. The same paper trail tells an adviser how deep a client's operational records go, which is also the first question in a SourceX licensing fit check.

This page is for CPA and advisory teams who already run or support credit studies. It explains which manufacturing records a study pulls, which of them also signal a supplier profile SourceX favors, and how to raise a licensing introduction separately from the credit engagement and only with the client's permission. Whether a given activity qualifies for any credit is a tax question for the engagement team.

This is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Confirm with your own counsel, tax adviser or professional body before acting.

Which manufacturing records show up in a credit study?

Studies usually start from engineering and quality systems rather than the general ledger. The table below pairs each record with what a study uses it for and why it also matters to a licensing screen.

A manufacturer with several years of these records, spread across ERP, quality management, PLM or CAD vault, email and a ticketing tool, looks very different from one that keeps ECOs on paper in a binder.

How can an adviser tell the records are deep?

Ask about the systems, not the contents. During scoping you already learn which tools the engineering and quality teams use and how long they have been in place. Note three things and nothing more.

1. Tools: which systems hold ECOs, inspection results, CAPAs and project discussions.
2. Years: how far back each system goes, and whether any older system was retired but archived.
3. Ownership: who at the client can still run an export, and who is the authorized sponsor (owner, CEO, CFO or authorized representative).

You never need to open, copy or describe the records themselves. Partners make introductions and share basic fit information only. The Referral opportunities for accountants page covers how this fits an accounting practice.

A fit screen built around credit-study notes

Run this screen from what you already know, then stop. If an answer is unknown, leave it blank rather than asking staff to dig through files.

• Size: the company had 50+ full-time employees at peak (contractors excluded).
• History: several years of documented operations, including archived systems.
• Breadth: records across many systems; strong companies often run 10-15+ systems.
• Rights: the company created the records, and customer contracts do not give customers ownership of the engineering work.
• Sponsor: an owner, CEO, CFO or authorized representative who could approve a license.
• Appetite: the sponsor would consider an exclusive license for AI training for an agreed term.

The company fit checker runs a preliminary, non-binding version of this screen without contact details. The who qualifies page lists the full baseline.

What does a manufacturer's data need to clear before licensing?

Manufacturing records raise rights questions that a credit study never has to answer. A credit study cares whether the work happened; a license cares who owns the output.

Rights review happens between SourceX and the company, not with the partner. If most of a client's engineering files belong to its customers, treat that as a red flag and move on.

How do you raise it without muddying the credit engagement?

Keep the two conversations apart in timing and in paperwork.

1. Finish the credit scoping and fee discussion first. Do not tie any licensing introduction to the credit fee or to the client's decision on the study.
2. Choose a separate moment, such as an annual planning call or a systems upgrade discussion.
3. Ask permission before saying anything specific: whether the owner would be open to hearing how some companies license operational records for AI training.
4. If yes, share your referral link or submit the basic company details through the referral form. The company then works directly with SourceX.

How do partner rewards work for an advisory firm?

Partners earn 25% of the eligible platform fees SourceX actually collects from the referred company's licensing deals, capped at $100,000 cumulative per referred company. The reward becomes payable only after the buyer pays and SourceX receives its fee, and no reward is guaranteed. It is a share of SourceX's fee and is never deducted from what the company receives.

Professional rules on referral fees and commissions can apply to CPAs. The AICPA Code of Professional Conduct contains a Commissions and Referral Fees rule (ET 1.520) that restricts commissions for recommending a product or service to a client when the firm also performs certain attest services, and requires disclosure of permitted fees. Whether a reward counts as a commission or referral fee under that rule is for your firm's ethics lead to decide. State boards can be stricter. Check your firm's independence policy and your state board before registering, and read the program terms.

When is this not worth raising?

• The client builds almost entirely to its customers' designs and has no consent path.
• Engineering records are on paper or were deleted when a system was cancelled.
• The company does not meet the 50+ full-time employees at peak (contractors excluded) baseline.
• The data has already been licensed for AI training.
• Your firm performs attest work and has not cleared referral fees with its independence team.

Next step

Pick one manufacturing client from this year's credit work and run the fit screen from notes you already hold. If it holds up and the owner agrees, register as a partner and make the introduction. For the neighboring credit topics, see how AI development projects and the interview question bank use similar evidence, and how CAS growth at large accounting firms shapes referral conversations.