Kitchen Cabinet Design

[Peter Elliott]

Anyone using a fairly simple Kitchen Design Software that will give presentation view of a kitchen, Cutlist and maybe Cost list?

I did a search on our forum and most are 2yr old threads. So looking for fresh ideas, links, etc.

I have Ecabinet software and not sure if this is right for me. Learning curve is a bit complex with multi screens and editors.

Have a small kitchen (11x11) to do and would like to draw it out for the customer and save me some time with cutlist, etc.

Thanks
Peter

[Joe Dusel (Vista, CA)]

KCDw is an easy to use cabinet design package that will do all you need, but it's going to cost you around $6K or more depending on the features you need.

eCabinet Systems will also do everything you need to do, but it will cost you some time to sit down and learn how to use it, or else take one of their classes. I have been using eCabs for about 5 years now and I find it to be a great program which is constantly being improved. If you don't know about it there is a very good forum run by the eCabinets folks where you can get just about any question answered quickly about using the software.

Joe

[Peter Elliott]

Thanks Joe, I do see your point.

Just wondering if there was another program out there that was a bit less complicated that Ecabs system.

Have you bought anything from them? I am confused on the designing a kitchent then sending off for a quote. I like the concept but not sure....

Anyone else know of other programs?

Thanks as always....
Peter

[Lou Miller]

The bulk of the work I do is custom kitchens for clients so I've explored this quite a bit in the past. I'm a cheap SOB so spending too much on a program was never an option for me. I used Ecabs in the past and thought it was just okay. I know its probably not what you're looking for, but I currently use Sketchup to draw the kitchens and make presentations to my clients. Then I use Cutlist Plus for my cut lists and estimating.

Not exactly the popular choices, but they work very very well for me. The thing that I find that's great about Sketchup is that I'll go out and download the free version on my clients computer when I meet with them. That way they can view my drawings on their computers. Then I can simply e-mail changes back and forth to them. Its made selling kitchens for me a whole lot easier.

Sketchup isn't really intended to be used that way, but I think its better than Ecabs (well, for me anway). The renderings are great and once you learn the program, its super easy to draw up an entire kitchen. Best part is that its free and if you don't like using it, you're not out anything.

[Peter Elliott]

Thanks Lou !

We maybe related since I too am cheap about spending tons of money on software. My time is limited like all of ours and I need to spend more shop time than Computer time. Yes, I know...all in the business.

I have downloaded Sketchup and haven't played with it.

I assume you have to draw each detail? Cab,face frame, raised panel doors, etc. Nothing pre-drawn already?

I guess you draw each cab and then place it into a kitchen layout?

Cutlist seems right to me. I understand that one. Need to buy that.

Peter

[Joe Dusel (Vista, CA)]

A few dumb questions for you guys - I just started teaching a class on eCabinet Systems software at a local community college. If you don't mind, can you tell me what you found difficult about using the software? Did you read eCabinets Made Easy? What did you find lacking in the software?

I do buy items through the eCabs co-op, but I am selective. I know what my local vendors are asking for hardware, so if it is close in price I buy it through eCabs. I do make a point of letting them know if I think a price is out of line. When you design cabinets using the hardware in the system the prices shown are the prices you will pay, plus shipping of course. I always check the shipping costs to make sure that they are also reasonable.

I know that Sketchup is a nice tool, but for parametric cabinetry design, cut lists, nesting, rendering and costing I think eCabs is a better choice. If you change the size of a cabinet box in eCabs everything is updated automatically including all of the cabinet members, drawer boxes, doors, drawer fronts and molding. Can Sketchup do that?

Thanks!

Joe

[Lou Miller]

Peter, keep in mind that I'm very much a novice when it comes to these design programs. What I did was to start with cabinet carcasses and draw them in detail. Since kitchens tend to use basic sizes over and over, I just saved each drawing as a component. I just started with one size, saved it, then went back and altered it for another size (the push/pull feature is great for that) and saved it again. I quickly amassed a library of different drawings. As time went on, I added doors and so forth and kept them as seperate components.

All I do now is simply draw a room, then start popping in the components one by one. I can do a full ktchen drawing (including crown molding, light rail moldings, tile, sinks, appliances, etc.) in less than an hour now. I'm not sure I did this right, but I attached one of my recent kitchen drawings to give you an idea of what the customer sees.

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Like I said before, the best part about all of this is that I can end up e-mailing the Skecthup files to my customers. They simply download them and then can view them on their own computer anytime they like. They have the ability to scan in or out and highlight any details they like or don't like, or view from whatever angle they want. It also helps when it comes to disagreements with customers. I very sledom have an issue with a customer saying to me, "I didn't think it would look like that". They know exactly what things are going to look like before I start.

Joe, I can't answer your question with specifics all that well. All I can say is that I was using a somewhat older version of the Ecabs software. That version didn't allow me to customize things to the level that Sketchup does. Perhaps today's current version does? I just find that, for me, skecthup was easier to learn and use. It takes longer to set everything up initially, but all of my items are customized to exactly how I build things. SketchUp doesn't automatcially do anything for you like Ecabs does though. Its not a matter of which program is better overall, just which I find works best for me. I can't e-mail Ecab files to customers and let them view things on their own computer unless they happen to have the software already (highly unlikely). Also, being that I'm just very comfortable with Sketchup now, that's the one that works best for me.