Agricultural Building 3D Configurator for Machine Sheds and Storage
By Facundo Campo, 3D quoting tool developer
In short: An agricultural building 3D configurator is a web tool where a farmer or sales rep designs a machine shed, storage building or open-sided shed around what it will hold, sees it in 3D with doors, side canopies and walls, and the manufacturer quotes it with their own rules.
An agricultural building 3D configurator is a web tool where a farmer, a custom harvester or a manufacturer's sales rep designs a machine shed, storage building or open-sided shed around what it has to hold, sees it in 3D with its door, side canopies and walls, and gets a quote calculated with the manufacturer's rules. For a steel building company that sells to farms, it's how you quote at the farm gate, at the farm show or over a message without waiting for the owner to get back to the office.
What makes a farm building different
Nobody buys a farm building by floor area. They buy it by what has to fit inside. A custom harvester who just bought a new combine needs it to clear the door and, with the header off, fit lengthwise. A farmer storing hay needs height and airflow. Someone storing fertilizer or seed needs it closed and dry, with a door a truck can get through.
Timing matters too. Farmers decide on a building after a good harvest, when they have cash and want to put it to work before it slips away. If the quote takes a week, they've already talked to two other builders or changed their minds. I cover that in the quote in the meeting.
And the place where the sale happens is its own thing: the farm, the farm show, the co-op, a phone call at midday. Often with poor signal.
The three buildings farmers ask for most
Machine shed. Clear height and the door are what matter: the tractor with its cab, the planter and the combine all have to get in. It's often open on one side or has a deep side canopy to keep implements under cover without enclosing them. A 20 × 40 m (about 66 × 130 ft) building with a wide sliding door and a canopy down one side is a typical order.
Storage building. For bagged grain, fertilizer, seed, square bales or round bales. Volume, ventilation and room for a truck to get in and turn around all matter. It's usually enclosed, sometimes with a masonry base wall so the load can lean against it.
Open-sided shed. A roof with no walls, or half-height walls, for cattle shade, equipment that doesn't need to be locked up, or a loading area. It's the simplest one and the one most often requested by message.
What the buyer builds in the configurator
The metal building configurator can already build all three. The scene is a realistic farm setting, and the buyer chooses:
- Dimensions. Span from 6 to 40 m (about 20 to 130 ft), length from 6 to 90 m (about 20 to 295 ft), eave height, roof pitch.
- Structure. Truss frame, solid-web frame or curved roof; gable or single-slope; frame spacing.
- Walls. Open, half-height, enclosed, block with metal sheeting, brick with metal sheeting, or exposed brick with pilasters.
- Door. Width and height, and you watch it open; walk door and windows.
- Side canopy. With its own width and slope, for implements.
- Finishes. Frame color, colored sheeting, concrete floor.
Walk mode lets you move through the inside at eye level, which is the fastest way for a farmer to tell whether the height works. The Share link sends that exact configuration to a partner, the son or daughter running the farm, or the accountant. The full walkthrough is in the metal building 3D configurator guide.
The public configurator doesn't show prices: pricing is part of each manufacturer's custom build.
What gets added in a custom build
On the same engine, which generates the structure from rules, each manufacturer's quoting tool gets built with what its farm sales need:
- Live pricing from your own price table, which you update when steel or sheeting moves.
- A PDF quote with views of the building the customer chose.
- Delivery priced by distance, as in the EQUIBOX quoting tool, which matters when the farm is hours away.
- Offline mode to quote at a farm show or out in the field and sync when the signal comes back. I go into it in offline 3D quoting tool.
- Payment plans on whatever terms you offer.
- Farm-specific options, like an equipment outline to check that it fits, built if you need them.
What a farm building manufacturer gets out of it
- Reps who quote at the farm. With a tablet in the truck, the rep builds the shed with the farmer and shows the result right there.
- Farm shows that pay off. People who stop by the booth leave with their building on their phone, not with a brochure. I wrote about that in selling at agricultural shows.
- Fewer mistakes. The rules block a door that doesn't fit the frame spacing or a canopy that doesn't match the structure.
- The owner stops being the only one who can quote. More in sales team autonomy.
If you sell in Ireland, there's a piece written for that market in agricultural sheds in Ireland, and for the US, pole barns.
How we'd work together
I'm Facundo Campo, a software developer in Quilmes, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and I build 3D quoting tools for manufacturers end to end. I work remotely, in English and Spanish, over video calls, WhatsApp and email, and I deliver links you test in the browser. What I need from you is how you quote today: the spreadsheet, the structural rules, your door types and two or three real quotes.
If you sell farm buildings and want to see yours in 3D, message me on WhatsApp at +54 9 11 6193-3176 or email facundocampo100@gmail.com. You can also read about custom 3D quoting software.
Frequently asked questions
Does it work for open-sided sheds, not just enclosed buildings?
Yes. The metal building configurator already has open, half-height and enclosed walls, plus a side canopy. An open-sided shed is a building with open walls.
Can my reps quote at a farm with no signal?
The public configurator needs a connection. Offline mode is built custom, as with EQUIBOX, where quotes are saved on the device and sync when the signal comes back.
Does the quote include delivery and erection?
It can be built that way: delivery by distance, erection and slab as options with their own rules, so the farmer gets the full number.
Does the farmer see the price online?
That's up to you: a reference price or prices for sales reps only. The demo configurator on this site doesn't show prices.
