[djfobbz]

Good question! Right now we’re starting with the sheet metal side of things: laser cutting, forming, welding, surface finishing, and final touches like anodizing, powder coat, or just a clean mill finish. The platform takes the customer’s CAD file, runs DFM checks, figures out material usage, laser time, bend complexity, and weld length, then instantly generates a production-ready quote based on each shop’s own pricing and capabilities. This quote includes delivery cost + an estimated time you can expect the part. There’s 2D and 3D visualization built in, but the real magic is the drag-and-drop, get-an-instant-quote experience. The reality is, most fab shops are still painfully slow when it comes to quoting. Even in 2025 it’s not unusual to wait a week (or three) just to hear back. That’s the gap we’re closing.

[abdullahkhalids]

Very interesting. The big followup question is to ask is: Currently shops spend X% of their time creating quotes and talking to incoming customers, and (100-X)% time actually doing the work. What is X% for a typical shop and how much are you hoping to reduce it to?

[djfobbz]

Based on industry data and first-hand experience, most small to mid-sized fabrication shops spend 25–40% of their total time on quoting-related activities: reviewing customer drawings, clarifying requirements, preparing cost breakdowns, and going back and forth over email or phone. In some job shops with limited staff, quoting can even eat up half a workweek for the owner or lead estimator.

Our goal is to bring that number down to under 5% by automating geometry analysis, material costing, and lead-time estimation. Essentially turning what used to take days (or weeks) into an instant, self-service process for customers. That frees up the shop to spend the remaining 95%+ of their time doing what actually makes money: fabricating parts.

For reference: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskEngineers/comments/n1yryi/mfg_qu...