About PencilHB

SteelBox is a PencilHB product.

The PencilHB name identifies the brand behind SteelBox. SteelBox is the software we are developing to help estimators, fabricators, detailers and engineers work through structural drawings, review members and prepare takeoff information.

The starting point is the issued drawing set. A reviewer needs to find the member, understand its label, locate the relevant evidence and decide whether a quantity can be trusted. SteelBox by PencilHB brings those tasks into a drawing-first review workflow.

Engineering judgment stays with the reviewer.

Our approach is to make the evidence easier to find and the next decision easier to review. AI can suggest a member or read a section label; a person confirms, corrects or rejects it. Measurements require calibration, and applying a length to a group requires approval.

That distinction matters when drawing information becomes a material quantity. SteelBox supports professional review; it does not certify quantities, approve a design or replace the people responsible for the project. The takeoff workflow explains where the software helps and where the reviewer decides.

Building with structural steel teams.

SteelBox is in a limited early-access pilot. The takeoff and bill-of-materials output workflow is under active development with pilot teams. Public pricing is not yet available, and suitability for a particular drawing set is discussed during pilot evaluation.

The PencilHB guides cover manual takeoff practice, estimating checks and questions to ask when evaluating AI tools. The interactive illustration offers a small example of the review approach; it is not a production application.

Contact PencilHB.

For product demonstrations, pilot access or a conversation about your drawing workflow, request a SteelBox demo or email mail@pencilhb.com. Please arrange an agreed process before sharing confidential project drawings.