SketchDeck 3.0 adds connection material and revision matching to the AI steel takeoff that more than 500 estimators use

SketchDeck.ai released SketchDeck 3.0 on October 15, 2026. It is a rebuilt version of the company’s AI takeoff software for structural steel fabricators and erectors, the tool that reads a PDF drawing set and returns the member counts, weights and bill of materials a steel estimator would otherwise build by hand.

Version 3.0 adds connection material, markup tools and bid tracking to the takeoff, and automates the matching of revised sheets to the originals. The company says more than 500 estimators use the software on hospitals, stadiums and data centers.

1. 1

   In

   The estimator uploads the PDF set, which can run to hundreds of sheets. SketchDeck sorts the sheets and reads the scale.

2. 2

   Detect and review

   A detection model, meaning software trained to find and label one kind of object on a page, here steel members, locates the beams, columns and bracing and sizes and measures them. It marks what it found and what it could not identify. The estimator reviews those marks, fixes members with a click, and adds connections, counts and markups.

3. 3

   Out

   The bill of materials exports to Tekla PowerFab, STRUMIS, FabTrol, E.J.E. or Excel. The 3.0 page also shows Bluebeam as an export target.

The release lists what changed in 3.0. With connection material, the estimator selects a group of members, enters the plates and bolts once, and SketchDeck applies them to every member in the group. The release says the new automations also match revised drawings, pull schedules out of tables and identify drawing scales.

Revision management carries over from earlier versions. An estimator loads the new drawings, lines them up with the old set, and sees every member that was added, removed or changed, ready for a change order. SketchDeck’s blog post on the release explains why it is pushing that feature.

The company says GCs are selling jobs at earlier design stages to lock in steel prices, so changes come after award and the fabricator absorbs them. It wants the takeoff to become an early advanced bill of materials (ABM, a bill of materials accurate enough to order steel from) so a shop can buy before detailing is finished.

The direct users are estimators and chief estimators at steel fabricators and erectors. A general contractor would see the effect in the fabricator’s response to a revised set, as steel pricing and a change order that lists members added and removed.

Two customers describe how much checking the output still takes. Matt Chance of NAFCO says on SketchDeck’s homepage that on a drawing with 100 beams he adjusts fewer than five, at a minute or two each.

“I actually appreciate that it’s not 100% perfect because it keeps me engaged and checking the work.”

An accuracy rate measured across customers, and error rates for connection material, are not yet public.

For comparison, Togal.AI’s recent takeoff benchmark tested general-purpose AI models on drawing tasks. SketchDeck’s FAQ says its own detection model is built only for structural steel drawings, and that estimators keep the final say on every number.

During the pilot, track a correction rate as well: members the estimator added, deleted or resized per 100 members SketchDeck detected. That number shows how much review the tool needs on your drawings, and it can differ from one drawing set to the next.

Run the same bid both ways on at least one job and compare the two bills of materials line by line. General contractors can track the third measure from their side, as days from issuing a revised steel set to receiving the fabricator’s change order pricing.

The same baseline works for other takeoff tools covered here, including Quotr and STACK IQ.

A first step is to pull your last ten steel bids and write down the tonnage, sheet count and estimator hours for each.