Sketch-to-CAD · Stainless & foodservice equipment

Turn Stainless Sketches into CAD Drawings

LaunchAI converts stainless fabrication sketches and kitchen plans into CAD drawings. Create shop drawings for tables, sinks, hoods and counters. The drawing is built from the supplied measurements, notes and specifications. Unclear details are flagged for your team to review.

See your sketches converted to CAD See the approval screen

For estimators, drafters and project managers at custom stainless steel and foodservice equipment fabricators

Monday, 7:20. The dealer wants shop drawings for the whole back line by Thursday.

The consultant's set came in Friday: a kitchen plan with forty item numbers, an equipment schedule where half the custom items say "by K.E.C., field verify", and a spec section that wants 14 ga 304 on everything food touches. The dealer forwarded it with "can you price items 12 through 31?" The restaurant owner sent a phone photo of a sketch on the back of a menu: a dish table, "8' wall to wall?" and an arrow for which way the dishes go. The installer texted that it's 96 between the walls. The GC wants to know if the hood clears the duct.

So you draw them. Every table in plan and elevation: length after clearance, depth, work height, splash height and return, marine edge or bullnose, bowls with drain location, drainboards pitched to the sink, faucet holes on 8" centers, legs, undershelf, crossrails. Gauge and grade per part, #4 finish, NSF notes. Then the price: sheet, welding, polishing, bowls, legs, crating. Then the submittal, in the consultant's item numbering.

It's skilled work and it's the bottleneck. The dealer is pricing the same set with two other fabricators, and the one whose drawings come back first usually gets the order. Get one wall-to-wall wrong and it's a table that won't go in the hole, a grinder in the dish room, and a second trip.

What the job looks like today

  1. Read the set

    Find the "by fabricator" items, and what the consultant left for you to decide.

  2. Draw every item

    Tables, sinks, hoods, counters: plan and elevation, by hand, in AutoCAD.

  3. Make the calls

    Clearance, bowl size, drain, edge, gauge, which way is left.

  4. Price it

    Sheet, welding, polish, bowls, legs, crating, item by item.

  5. Chase the field

    Text the installer for the wall-to-wall, call the GC about the hood.

Where it goes wrong

The table fit the drawing. It didn't fit the room.

Custom stainless goes between walls, under hoods and around columns that were never quite where the plan put them.

  • Wall to wall is not table length

    "96 between walls" is the opening. The table has to be shorter to get in, with the splash scribed to the wall. Build it at 96 and somebody is grinding an end panel in the dish room.

  • Which end is left?

    "Sink left" facing the table, or looking at the wall from the dish machine? The drainboard side sets the dish flow, and the dish machine is already on the other end.

  • The splash with a surprise

    "10" splash" can be 10" with a 2" return at 45°, or 10" overall. If there's a window sill, a tile cap or an outlet at 12", the return decides whether it sits flat.

  • Gauge by habit

    The spec wants 14 ga 304 on tops and allows 16 ga 430 on undershelves. The dealer's sheet just says "stainless". The price is in that difference, and so is a rejected submittal.

Why it's still manual

Software hasn't fixed this. Here's why.

Stainless shops have AutoCAD, SolidWorks and good nesting. What arrives is a consultant plan, a dealer spreadsheet and a photo of a menu.

  • Your CAD and quoting software

    Waits for someone to type

    AutoCAD and SolidWorks draw a table with a sink and splash quickly once someone has decided the length after clearance, the bowl size, the drain location, the edge and the gauge. That deciding, item by item, is the job.

  • Generic AI and OCR models

    Confidently wrong

    A chat model reads "14 ga 304" as "14 ga 3O4", turns "96 w-w" into a 96" table, and invents a bowl depth when the sketch doesn't give one. It has no idea a wall-to-wall number is an opening.

  • Image-to-CAD converters

    Traces lines, not intent

    Image-to-CAD converters trace the rectangles on the consultant's plan. You get lines at plan scale with no gauge, no bowls, no splash, no edge, and nothing to say which items are by the fabricator.

  • Measuring apps and configurators

    Only if everyone uses them

    Dealer quoting tools like AutoQuotes are built for catalog equipment. Custom fabricated items show up there as a placeholder line that says "see drawing", and the drawing is still yours to make.

Written on the paperGeneric OCR / AI modelLaunchAI agent
96 w-w? 96" table 95-1/2" OA from a 96" opening, flagged An opening isn't a length, and the "?" says nobody confirmed it.
2 comp 20x20x12 2 comp 20x20x122 2-compartment, bowls 20" x 20" x 12" deep Handwritten digits run together; the agent checks against real bowl sizes.
FV (ignored) Field verify: hold cutting until site dims are in Two letters decide whether the shop can cut today.

How the agent does it

From sketches to CAD drawings and layouts

LaunchAI converts the sketch and its measurements into CAD geometry, applies your drawing standards and prepares the related order information. Missing dimensions and unclear notes are flagged for your team to review.

AutoCADLucia's · item 14 · worktable w/ sink Agent working · your login · this PC
GeneralDetailsPricingNotes
  • 14 · worktable w/ sink ← Equipment schedule
  • 95-1/2" OA ← 96" opening − your 1/2" rule
  • 30" ← Consultant plan FS-101
  • 34" ← Spec 11 40 00
  • 14 ga 304 · #4 ← Spec 11 40 00
  • 10" · 2" return at 45° ← Detail 4 / FS-501
  • 20" x 20" x 12" · right ← Owner's sketch
  • Splash mount · 8" centers ← Equipment schedule
  • 16 ga 304 · full length ← Your table defaults
Saved as draft. Nothing is sent until you approve.Send to review

  1. Reads what came in

    Consultant plans, dealer sheets, sketches and texts, with a confidence score on each value.

  2. Applies your rules

    Wall clearances, splash and edge standards, gauge by part, bowl and leg defaults, from your rules table.

  3. Draws and prices it

    Opens AutoCAD or SolidWorks and draws each item, then prices it the way your estimator would.

  4. Asks only what it must

    Opening not confirmed? It drafts the text to the installer instead of guessing.

  5. You approve

    Confirm the flagged length and the drawings go to the dealer.

Caught at the desk

Problems caught before the shop floor

Today the order bounces when someone hits save. The agent runs the same checks first, fills what it can from a trusted source, and brings you only the one thing that needs a person.

Today

Convert to order · quote #10482Failed rules 4

Item not ready · cannot price or submit

  • Bowl size and depth not set
  • Drain and faucet locations missing
  • Edge profile not selected
  • Gauge and grade not specified

Verify the following

  • Wall-to-wall length needs field confirmation

With the agent

Agent checks · before review5/6 passed

  • Wall-to-wall unconfirmed

    Text says "96 between walls", sketch says "96 w-w?". Drawn 95-1/2" OA per your 1/2" rule; confirm the opening.

    Needs you

  • Bowl fits the top

    20" x 20" bowl fits the 30" top with the splash and the marine edge, clear of the end.

    Pass

  • Dish flow

    Drainboard left of the sink, pitched to the bowl, matches the arrow on the owner's sketch.

    Pass

  • Gauge and grade

    14 ga 304 top and splash, #4 finish, per spec 11 40 00.

    Pass

  • Faucet holes

    Two holes on 8" centers in the splash, centered on the bowl.

    Pass

  • Priced

    Sheet, welding, bowl, legs, undershelf and polish rolled into item 14.

    Pass

Human review

You approve the drawing, not the typing

The paperwork on one side, the agent's drawing on the other, and every value it read in between, with the one it's unsure of called out.

LaunchAI Portal · Reviews

Approval you asked for

Approve item 14, the dish room worktable Pending

The agent drew the worktable with sink, drainboard and splash from the consultant plan, the owner's sketch and the installer's text. The length needs field confirmation.

Medium risk 1 of 43 in your queue Sketch to CAD · step 02.5 · Review fabrication drawing

Agent suggests: Approve after confirming the 96" wall-to-wall opening. Depth, bowl, splash, gauge and faucet holes match the plan and the spec.

Source sketchIMG_7720.jpg
96 w-w?3020 marine edge 10" splash 14 ga 304 faucet 8" ctr
Worktable w/ sink · planOpen in AutoCAD
95-1/2" OA30"20" BOWL MARINE EDGE FRONT 10" SPLASH · 2" RTN 14 GA 304 · #4 FAUCET 8" CC IN SPLASH Worktable w/ sink · plan · Rev A ● Preview synced just now

Dimensions read from sketch

  • Depth“30” 30"
  • Bowl“20” 20" x 20" x 12"
  • Splash“10" splash” 10" · 2" return
  • Top“14 ga 304” 14 GA 304 · #4
  • Faucet“faucet 8" ctr” 8" CC in splash
  • LengthLooks like “96 w-w?” 95-1/2" OA
Every value links back to where it was read on the sketch. Request changes Approve CAD

Inputs and outputs

Sketches and measure sheets in. CAD drawings out.

  • Kitchen consultant plans, elevations and equipment schedules
  • Dealer spreadsheets of custom items to price
  • Owner and chef sketches, on whatever paper was handy
  • Installer field measurements by text, photo or voicemail
  • Spec sections for gauge, grade, finish and NSF requirements
  • Fabrication drawings in AutoCAD or SolidWorks, in plan and elevation, with your title block
  • Gauge, grade, edge, splash, bowls and faucet holes set from the spec and your defaults
  • Field-verify items called out and held until dims are confirmed
  • Each item priced in your estimating sheet or ERP
  • A submittal package in the consultant's item numbering

Your numbers

What it gives back to your team

Change the numbers to match your shop.

Example values. Put in your own.

23hours back per week
1,133hours back per year (50 weeks)
0.6full-time people's worth of typing

today with the agent: review only

Your software

Create CAD drawings in your team's tools

LaunchAI converts sketches into drawings through your CAD and design workflow. Bring your software version, drawing standards and a sample sketch so we can confirm the conversion steps and outputs for your setup.

  • AutoCAD
  • SolidWorks
  • Autodesk Inventor
  • SigmaNEST
  • Bluebeam Revu
  • JobBOSS²
  • Excel price sheets
  • Outlook and text inbox

FAQ

Stainless & foodservice equipment: questions we hear

Can it draw in our AutoCAD blocks, layers and title block?

Yes. LaunchAI agents use your AutoCAD or SolidWorks through the screen, with your team's logins and your templates. Your bowl blocks, leg details and title block are what it uses. There's no integration or import to set up.

What happens with "field verify" items?

The agent never invents a dimension. A field-verify item gets drawn from the best source available, clearly marked, and held: it can be priced, but it won't be released for cutting until the measurement is confirmed. It drafts the text to your installer asking for exactly what's missing.

Who approves before drawings go to the dealer or the shop?

Your drafter or PM. The agent stops at a review screen with each item, its drawing, its price and every flagged value. Nothing is submitted or released to the shop floor until someone on your team approves it.

Does it know NSF and the consultant's spec?

It applies the rules you give it and the spec section you point it at: gauge and grade by part, finish, coved corners, sealed undershelves, leg and foot types. Every value on the drawing shows which rule or document it came from. Compliance sign-off stays with your team.

Hoods and counters too, or just tables and sinks?

Tables, sinks, dish tables, wall shelves, hoods, counters, serving lines and cabinet bases. Anything you draw from a consultant plan or a field measurement, the agent can draw the same way.

Every dealer sends things differently. Does that matter?

No. A PDF set, a spreadsheet, a photo of a sketch and a text all get read the same way, matched to item numbers, and assembled into one job.

Other industries

The same agent, other trades

Pools & outdoor living

Metal & fabrication

Kitchens, interiors & glass

Building products & structures

Signs, covers & soft goods

How the Sketch-to-CAD agent works

Send us the last consultant set you priced.

See your stainless sketches converted into CAD drawings.

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