The Product Builder
Every product in your catalog opens into the Product Builder — a single workspace organized into tabs that walk you from "what the customer picks" all the way to "what the shop floor builds." This page is the map: it explains what each tab is for, what the little colored dots mean, and which tabs your plan unlocks. Every other catalog page hangs off this one.
Think of a product as the thing a customer orders — a cabinet door, a drawer box, a countertop. The builder is where you define its options, its price, its parts, and its paperwork.
Opening the builder
From the sidebar, go to Catalog, then click any product (or add a new one — see Creating a Product). The product opens with a tab bar across the top:
Setup · Pricing · Add-ons · Configurator · Shipping · Production · Advisories
Add-ons and Advisories are marked Optional — most products never need them. The rest form the natural build order for a new product.
Tip: Build a product left to right. Get Setup right first (options and order-form fields), then Pricing, then the Configurator and Shipping if the product needs parts and freight. Production and Advisories come last.
The status dots
Each tab shows a small colored dot so you can see, at a glance, how complete the product is:
| Dot | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 🟢 Green | Configured — this tab has real settings saved |
| 🟡 Amber | Partially configured — started, but not finished |
| 🔴 Red | Has issues — something needs your attention (for example, a pricing formula that references a field you deleted) |
| ⚪ Gray | Not configured — nothing set up here yet |
A red dot on Pricing almost always means the formula points at an attribute or line-item field that no longer exists — open the tab and the builder will show you which one.
What lives in each tab
Setup
The heart of the product. Everything that shapes what the customer sees and fills in on the order form:
- Product Attributes — the dropdown choices (wood species, finish, edge profile, hardware). See Attributes.
- Line Items — the fields the customer types into per row (quantity, width, height, notes). See Line Items.
- Custom Layout — arrange attributes into rows to control how the order form is laid out.
- Document Display — combine attribute slots into one clean line on quotes and invoices, and style how attributes print. See Document Display.
- Storefront Preview — a live, read-only preview at the bottom showing exactly how customers will configure this product.
Setup is Free — you can build a full catalog structure on any plan.
Pricing
The formula that turns the customer's selections into a price. You build it with the step-based Formula Builder or describe it in plain English to the AI Pricing Assistant — there is no code to write. See Pricing.
Add-ons (Optional)
Extra products or services a customer can tack on at checkout — soft-close hinges, a protective finish, installation. See Add-ons.
Configurator
Where you define the product's physical parts — the pieces that get cut, the cut list, shipping dimensions, and (for many product types) an interactive 3D preview in the storefront. Start from a template for a common product type, or build from scratch for full manual control. You can even upload your own custom 3D model. See Parts & Cut Lists and the Visual Part Builder.
Shipping
Per-product freight settings: assembled vs. unassembled, package type, freight class, and how dimensions and weight are measured. See Shipping Options.
Production
Everything your shop floor needs printed:
- Build Sheets — production tables. See Build Sheets.
- CSV / ORD Exports — spreadsheet and Cabinet Vision exports. See Exports.
- Labels — product and package labels. See Labels.
Advisories (Optional)
Rules that warn or block a customer as they configure the product — for example, "a door this wide needs a center stile," or a hard Blocker that stops an un-buildable order from being submitted. See Advisories.
Which tabs your plan unlocks
Feature access follows your subscription tier. This is why some tabs may look locked or blurred.
| Tab / capability | Lowest plan |
|---|---|
| Setup — attributes, line items, categories, custom layout | Free |
| Pricing — formulas + AI Pricing Assistant | Commerce |
| Add-ons | Commerce |
| Configurator — 3D templates, custom models, parts | Commerce |
| Shipping / Carrier Services | Commerce |
| Advisories | Commerce |
| Catalog Photos (AI photo matcher) | Commerce |
| Document Display / PDF styling | Commerce |
| Production — Build Sheets, Exports, Labels | Build |
Availability: Building a catalog (products, attributes, line items, categories) is Free and inquiry-only. Pricing, the Configurator, Shipping, Add-ons, Advisories and the AI helpers arrive at Commerce. Production tools (Build Sheets, Exports, Labels) require Build.
Note: On the Free plan the paid tabs aren't hidden — they show as blurred upgrade teasers so you can see what's there before you upgrade. You can still open and explore them; you just can't save paid settings until you're on a plan that includes them.
The AI helpers
TimberCloud has three live AI features inside the Product Builder, all Commerce and up:
- Catalog Photos (Setup tab) — upload a PDF catalog and let AI match its photos to your attribute options.
- AI Pricing Assistant (Pricing tab) — describe a price rule in plain English and AI writes the formula.
- AI Advisory Setup (Advisories tab) — describe a warning and AI writes the rule. See Advisories.
Note: There is no "AI builds my whole catalog" importer. The three helpers above are the real AI touchpoints — see the AI overview for how they fit together.
Next Steps
- Creating a Product — the three honest ways to start a product
- Attributes — the dropdown choices customers pick
- Line Items — the fields customers fill in
- Pricing — turn selections into a price
- Advisories — warn or block un-buildable configurations
- Match Photos from a Catalog — the AI photo matcher