Estimation & BOM — Overview
The Estimation module turns "the customer wants a panel" into a priced parts list: manage drawings, generate Bills of Materials (by hand, from a spec, from a description, or from a drawing with AI), cost them, and push them into quotations.
Estimation Engineer, Company Admin and Super Admin (with the Estimation module on). The BOM Generator and Drawing Manager are also shared with other roles — Purchase Managers get BOMs and drawings; Sales Executives get the Drawing Manager.
📷 Screenshot spot — capture this screen and save it as static/img/screenshots/estimation-overview.png, then replace this whole box with the single line:
The estimation flow
Drawing Manager BOM Generator
(upload SLD/layout/CAD) ──▶ Spec Form / Describe / Upload Drawing
│ AI matches every component
▼ to a real catalog product
DRAFT BOM (₹0 placeholders flagged)
│ set charges & margin
│ Approve
▼
Create Quotation ──▶ Sales takes over
│
└──▶ linked to Sales Order → production planning
The screens at a glance
| Screen | What it's for |
|---|---|
| Estimation Dashboard | Pending/approved drawings, BOM counts, approval status. Estimators land here at login. |
| BOM Generator | Build BOMs three ways, price them, approve them, quote them. |
| Drawing Manager | The shared drawing library — upload, version, approve, send to AI. |
| Panel Templates | Your BOMs as reusable panel designs. |
| Auto Costing | Turn any BOM into a defensible selling price with a full calculation trace. |
| Quotation Drafts | Every draft quotation awaiting review — confirm, print or email. |
Related AI tools estimators use daily: the Photo Analyzer (photo of a built panel → components) and the Panel Design Studio (draw/trace/measure → BOM).