CUTL opens full 3D STEP models straight in the browser, so you and your customer can look at the same part together without anyone installing CAD. Rotate it, zoom in, pin a comment on the exact face that worries you, and agree on the part while you talk. When everyone is happy, the same model goes straight to quoting, with no exported screenshots and no long email threads.
The viewer also carries a built-in assistant, "Documentation from a 3D model", that turns an assembly into a finished parts document. Both features share the same 3D model you already uploaded, so nothing is drawn or entered twice.
Open a STEP model
CUTL reads STEP files (.step and .stp) as native 3D input. It detects a STEP file by its content, so a renamed file is still handled as a 3D model.
Review together
Reviewing a part in CUTL is a shared session, not a static image. You invite the customer, and both of you drive the same live model.
Invite the customer in one click
Share a link and the customer opens the identical 3D model in their own browser. There is no CAD to buy, nothing to install, and no account hoops to clear before they can look.
Discuss right on the model
Drop pins and comments on any face or edge. Each pin stays attached to the geometry it marks, so "this radius" or "this hole" is never ambiguous. Comments appear in real time for everyone in the session.
Open full assemblies, not just parts
Multi-body STEP assemblies open with their component tree intact. You can:
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Browse the tree | Walk the assembly structure component by component. |
| Isolate | Focus on one part and mute everything around it. |
| Hide | Remove parts from view to reach what sits behind them. |
| Explode | Spread the assembly apart to see how it fits together. |
Read PMI and metadata
When the STEP file carries product manufacturing information (PMI), CUTL reads it: dimensions, tolerances, surface finish, and datums. You review the maker's own callouts instead of re-measuring the model by hand. PMI travels in AP242 files, and only when the exporting CAD system was set to include 3D annotations, so enable annotation export in SOLIDWORKS, NX or Creo if you want the callouts to come through. Older AP203 and AP214 exports carry little or none.
Everyone sees the same view
As you rotate and zoom the model, the customer's screen follows. The live shared view keeps both sides pointed at the same feature, which is what turns a review into a decision rather than a description.
Documentation from a 3D model
Inside the viewer sits an assistant that turns a 3D assembly into a finished document. It is one of CUTL's AI agents: it reads everything the file already knows, asks only for what is missing, and produces a parts document in your company template.
It reads the model for you
The assistant breaks the assembly into parts and pulls what the STEP file already carries:
- Part names, materials, thickness, sizes, and quantities.
- PMI dimensions and tolerances, which flow into each part card automatically.
You do not retype values that are already in the model.
It asks only what is missing
Whatever the file cannot answer, the assistant asks in a few short questions. It is careful about your time:
What you get
The output is a structured document, ready to send, archive, or edit:
| Section | Contents |
|---|---|
| Cover | General view of the assembly plus the full parts list. |
| Part pages | One page per part, with the values and PMI pulled from the model. |
| Format | PDF to send as is, or an editable DOCX to open in Word. |
For more on the assistant and the rest of CUTL's helpers, see AI agents & bots.
From review to quote
Because the review, the documentation assistant, and costing all run on the same uploaded model, there is no handoff gap. Once the part is agreed, send it straight to quoting with no re-drawing and no re-uploading.
STEP parts are costed the same way as any other part: tubes and profiles per metre, flat and bent sheet-metal parts by unfolded area. The mechanics of that are covered in Preparing files and Quoting and cost.
Do
- Share the viewer link so the customer sees the live model, the PMI and the pins.
Avoid
- Exporting a screenshot and emailing it for sign-off: you lose the 3D geometry, the PMI and the live pins, and the agreed part cannot flow into quoting without being re-entered.
Next, see Preparing files to learn exactly how a STEP part becomes a costed, quotable line item.