Shed and Carport 3D Configurator for US Dealer Networks

In short: In the US, sheds, carports and metal garages are largely sold through dealer networks; a custom 3D configurator gives the dealer and the online buyer the same tool, with the same rules and a configuration that can be shared by link.

A shed and carport 3D configurator is a web tool where your buyer designs their backyard shed, metal carport or steel garage by picking the size, roof, doors and colors, and watches it update in 3D as they go. If you sell through dealers, though, the real question isn't just what the buyer sees on your website. It's what your dealer pulls up when that buyer is standing on the lot.

How sheds and carports actually get sold

If you build wood sheds in Pennsylvania or metal carports in Georgia or North Carolina, you know the setup. The factory builds, and a network of independent dealers sells: a display lot by the highway, a corner of a garden center, a spot at a building supply store. They show a handful of models and take orders for everything else.

So a buyer looks at a 10 × 12 ft shed and asks: "Can I get it 12 × 16, with one more window and the door on the side?" That's where it gets messy. The dealer isn't the builder. They've got a brochure, an option list and maybe a spreadsheet. Anything outside the brochure means a phone call to the factory. And the factory is getting orders from dozens of dealers, each one writing things down their own way.

Metal carports have the same problem in a different shape. The buyer picks a roof style (regular, A-frame or vertical), width, length, leg height, side walls, a gable end panel. Not many choices on their own, but together they add up to hundreds of versions, and every one of them has to reach the shop floor correctly.

One configurator for the dealer and the website

The idea that pays off most in a dealer model is simple: one tool, two sides.

• On your website, the buyer designs their shed or carport on their phone, spins it around, sends it to their spouse and picks the nearest dealer to get a quote.
• On the dealer's lot, the salesperson opens the same tool on a tablet, pulls up the design the buyer brought (the share link opens that exact configuration) or builds one from scratch with the buyer right there.

The rules are the same on both sides: which sizes exist, which doors fit on which wall, which options depend on others. A dealer can't sell a roll-up door that doesn't fit the wall they picked, because the tool won't let them. And what reaches your factory isn't a handwritten order form. It's the exact configuration, with a picture of it.

I wrote more about this in the 3D quoting tool as a sales rep's tool, and it works the same way for a dealer as for an in-house rep.

What you get as the builder

• Orders that come in the same way. Every dealer sends the same structured order: size, options, colors. Your shop stops guessing.
• Fewer "can we do this?" calls. If the tool allows it, you can build it. If it doesn't, the dealer sees that on the spot.
• Dealer-specific pricing, if you need it. Depending on the project, each dealer can have a login and see the prices or margins you assign them. That's custom work, like the sales rep dashboard I built for EQUIBOX.
• Better leads from the website. The buyer who walks onto the lot already knows what they want. More on that in qualified leads with a 3D quoting tool.

What you can try today

This site has a metal building configurator that shows how my engine handles steel structures: width, length, height, roof pitch, gable or single-slope roof, truss or solid-web frames, wall options, frame and sheeting colors, side lean-to, a sliding door you set the width and height of (and can open), walk doors and windows. It has a Walk mode to move around inside at eye level, night view, layers, image download and a share link.

It isn't a shed or carport configurator yet. The engine builds structures from rules, and a wood shed or an American-style carport gets built on top of it, with the parts and styles from your catalog. The public configurator doesn't show prices either: pricing is part of each custom build.

Feet, English and your buyer's currency

For a US builder, the configurator runs in English, in feet and inches, in dollars. My site and configurators already work in English and Spanish; your units, currency and catalog wording are set up as part of the project. If some of your dealers serve Spanish-speaking buyers, the tool can have both versions.

Working with a developer in Argentina

I'm Facundo Campo, a software developer based in Quilmes, Buenos Aires. I work remotely, in English and Spanish. Argentina is on UTC−3, so I'm one or two hours ahead of the East Coast depending on the time of year, and four or five ahead of the West Coast. Pretty much your whole workday overlaps with mine.

We start with what you already have: your catalog, photos of your models, the option list your dealers use and a few sample orders. We talk on video calls, and every step comes to you as a link you can try in a browser, on your computer or on a dealer's tablet. The whole process is in how I work with manufacturers.

If you build sheds, carports or metal garages and sell through dealers, message me on WhatsApp at +54 9 11 6193-3176 or email facundocampo100@gmail.com. I answer in English and Spanish. You can also read about custom 3D quoting software.

Frequently asked questions

Can each dealer have their own login?

That can be built as part of the project. Anyone can use the public side; the side with prices, margins or customer follow-up opens with a login, like the sales rep dashboard I built for EQUIBOX. You decide what each dealer sees.

Can the configurator show American carport roof styles?

Yes, as custom work. The engine builds the structure from rules, so regular, A-frame and vertical roofs are variations of the same parts. The closest thing to try today is the metal building configurator.

Does it work for wood sheds or only metal buildings?

Both. What changes is the parts and the rules: a wood shed has siding, windows and roofs that a steel building doesn't. The prefab home configurator on this site already handles wood, brick and stone finishes.

Do dealers need to install anything on their tablets?

No. It opens from a link in the browser, on a computer, tablet or phone. If your dealers work somewhere with a weak signal, it can be made installable so it works offline, like the EQUIBOX tool at agricultural shows.