From Quote to Final Weld — Zero Guesswork.
Steel fabricators and custom metal shops run on precision — in the material, in the tolerances, and in the job cost. TrueScope gives small and mid-size fabrication shops a unified ERP and Material Requirements Planning (MRP) system to manage multi-level BOMs, calculate steel and hardware shortages via MRP, route jobs through work centers on a visual Gantt, track NCR quality, and see true job cost in real time.
TrueScope covers
Sound familiar?
The operational pain points that hold most steel fabrication & metal shop erp / mrp businesses back.
Quoted cost and actual cost never match
You quote a structural job based on estimated material and labor, the shop runs long on cutting and welding, and by the time it ships you've lost margin you didn't even know was at risk.
Engineering drawings are in five different places
Revisions are emailed around, shop floor operators are sometimes working off the wrong version, and there's no single place to find the current approved drawing for a job.
Rejected parts create rework with no paperwork
When a weld fails or a dimension is wrong, the fix happens informally on the floor. Nothing is documented, root causes are never analyzed, and the same defect comes back on the next order.
How TrueScope Helps
Real platform features, applied directly to your industry.
Fabrication ERP Routing, MRP Material Planning & Work Center Tracking
Plan steel demand, map every routing step, and measure every minute.
Define the fabrication routing for every assembly in TrueScope — plasma cut, press brake, weld, grind, paint, inspect — assigning each step to the correct work center with setup time and run time standards. Built-in Material Requirements Planning (MRP) compares BOM plate, structural shape, and hardware demand against warehouse stock to flag shortages and generate supplier POs before production starts.
What you get
Engineering Blueprint Management
One place for the current drawing. Always.
Upload engineering drawings, shop drawings, and weld procedure specs directly onto each product record in TrueScope's Products module. Open any drawing in the built-in annotation canvas to calibrate measurements, trace dimensions, and add review marks. The most current version lives on the record — shop floor operators access the same drawing your engineering team uploaded.
What you get
NCR Quality Control & Corrective Actions
Document defects. Close the loop. Prevent recurrence.
When a quality issue is caught — an out-of-tolerance dimension, a weld defect, a surface finish failure — create a Non-Conformance Report in TrueScope immediately. Describe the defect, assign a root cause category, and define the required corrective action with a due date. The NCR status tracks through Open, In Progress, and Closed — with resolution documentation required before closure.
What you get
Everything Included
Every feature below is included in TrueScope — no upsells, no add-ons.
Compare TrueScope to Steel Fabrication & Metal Shop Software
Practical ERP and MRP for structural steel, miscellaneous metals, and custom fab shops.
From the Shop & Field Perspective
"Balancing steel plate, tubing, and hardware inventory against cut, brake, and weld work centers requires accurate multi-level BOMs and live routing — without spending $25,000 on legacy software or buying specialized barcode guns."
TrueScope vs. Tekla PowerFab
Quote-based (third-party listings report starting costs from ~$8,000 to ~$50,000)
All 18 modules included. $0.10/GB storage. No base fee, no setup fee, no contract.
Key TrueScope Advantages for Your Business:
Enterprise Complexity vs. TrueScope's Practical Approach:
Tekla PowerFab is an enterprise production control system designed for massive multi-acre structural steel mills using complex 3D IFC modeling and multi-million-dollar CNC sawing/drilling lines. For custom steel fabricators, misc metals shops, and ornamental ironworks that need straightforward BOM costing, work center scheduling, and tablet check-ins without six-figure IT overhead, TrueScope is the perfect fit.
Frequently Asked Questions About Software Alternatives
Disclaimer: Competitor pricing and feature descriptions were verified on October 21, 2026 from public vendor websites and verified third-party research reports. Software prices, tier limits, and feature sets change regularly; please verify current details on each vendor's official website. Product names, logos, and trademarks are the property of their respective owners. TrueScope is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any competitor listed.
Run your fabrication shop with a modern ERP & MRP.
Steel fabricators and metal job shops on TrueScope eliminate raw material stockouts with MRP, know their true job cost, and close more profitable orders.
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