Crate, roadcase and pallet design for shops
Size it. Cut it. Ship it.
Pick a style, from cleated crates to roadcases and pallets. Enter the size, or the size of the thing going in it. Cratesmith builds it in 3D and hands you the cut list, sheet layouts, build plan, customer quote and CNC files.
Launching soon. Free to start. 50 founding shops get lifetime access.
- 01
Pick a style and size
Seven styles, from cleated crates to roadcases and pallets. Outside dimensions, or the item plus padding.
- 02
Pick your materials
Plywood or OSB walls, lumber or plywood-strip framing, skids, lids, dividers, dados and hardware.
- 03
Cut, build, ship
Print the plan, send the quote, run the CNC. Every number comes from the same model.
Crate styles
Seven ways to build it
Pick how it goes together. Every style gets its own framing, fasteners and hardware, its own cut list and its own build plan.
Cleated
The classic. Plywood or OSB panels framed with cleats, on a base frame. Screw-down, drop-over or hinged lid.
Cleats · screws · base frame
Corner posts
Plain plywood walls screwed to lumber posts in the inside corners, with rails top and bottom. Quick to build, no cleats.
Posts and rails · screws
Edge-screwed
Thick plywood sides screwed straight into the end panels' edges. A clean box with nothing on the outside.
3/4" ends · screws
Clip-together
Panels held with spring clips that seat in slots cut through the panels. Comes apart without tools. Made for the CNC.
Clip slots · dados
Steel-edged
Thin plywood walls with steel corner angles and lid and base channels, locked with bend-over clips.
Steel edges · bend-over clips
Roadcase
Ball or flat corners, recessed latches and handles, casters or feet, and stacking dishes. Optional aluminum extrusion.
Rivets · real hardware
Upright roadcase
Stands on its casters with a hinged front door, shelves inside, and a caster under the door if you want one.
Hinges · lid stays · shelves
Pallet
Just the pallet: skids with deck boards or a solid plywood top, bottom boards, fork openings and carriage bolts.
Skids · deck · boltsWhat you get
Everything the shop floor needs, from one model
Change one number and the 3D model, cut list, sheet layouts, build plan, quote and CNC files all update together.
Every part, in 3D
Orbit the crate, explode it, hide the lid. Tap any part to find it in the cut list.
- Cleats, posts, clips, steel edges or roadcase hardware, placed for you as crates get bigger
- Skids, bottom boards, cross struts, load blocking, dividers and dados
- Hinged lids and doors that swing open in the 3D view
- Realistic wood or a clean drawing look, your choice
Roadcases with real hardware
Pick latches, handles, corners, casters and dishes by size. Each one is a real catalog part with its true plate, cutout and rivet pattern, so the cutouts and holes land where the hardware goes.
- Lid-and-base and angle extrusion, notched at every latch
- Lift-off or hinged lid, or stand it upright with a front door
- Dividers that clear any hardware standing proud inside
- Part numbers, rivet sizes and counts in the parts list
Sheet layouts that waste less
Every panel nested on your sheet size with blade kerf, plus board layouts for the lumber. Know how many sheets to buy before you touch the saw.
- Lettered parts that match the cut list and build plan
- Plywood, OSB and plywood-strip framing
- Your own stock sizes and prices
A build plan you can hand off
Printable pages for the shop floor: the crate assembled and exploded, dimensioned elevations, the cut list, the fastening schedule and the assembly order.
- Letter-size pages that split cleanly
- Save jobs and crate designs to your library
- Multiple crates in one job
Quotes in a minute
Your shop rate, labor cost, markup and waste. Labor scales with each crate's part count, quantity breaks are built in, and you see your margin before the customer sees the price.
- A clean customer view to print or send
- Extras for foam, hardware, stamping and delivery
CNC files, ready to cut
One DXF per sheet with clean layers for profiles, through cuts, dado pockets and holes. Opens in VCarve, Aspire, Fusion and most CAM software.
- Screw and rivet holes drilled through stacked parts so they line up
- Clip slots, hardware cutouts and divider dados included
- Inches or millimeters, your bit size and edge margin
- Go all plywood and cut the whole crate on the router
Mozaik add-on
Already run Mozaik? Send crates straight in.
Design the crate in Cratesmith, then cut it through the Mozaik setup you already have. No redrawing, no retyping.
Mozaik is a trademark of its owner. Cratesmith is independent and not affiliated with Mozaik.
Pricing
Start free. Pay when it earns its keep.
One crate pays for Pro. Shop pays for itself the first week you quote.
FREE
- All seven styles in 3D, roadcases included
- Cut list, hardware list and material cost
- Up to 3 crates per job
PRO
- Everything in Free
- Sheet and board cutting diagrams
- Printable build plans with fastening tables
- Saved jobs, designs and materials
SHOP
- Everything in Pro
- Customer quotes with your margin
- CNC export with dados, holes and hardware cutouts
FOUNDING SHOP
- Everything in Shop, forever
- Never pay monthly
- The Mozaik add-on included
- A direct line to shape what gets built next
Founding spots open at launch. Join the list to hear first.
Prices in US dollars. Launch pricing, subject to change before launch. See our refund policy.
Early access
Get in before launch
Leave your email and we'll let you know when Cratesmith opens, and when the 50 founding spots go on sale.
- First shot at a founding spot
- Early access to try it on your own crates
- No spam. One email when it matters.
You're on the list
Thanks. We'll be in touch.
Watch for an email from [email protected] when Cratesmith opens and founding spots go on sale.
Questions
Good to know
When can I use it?
Cratesmith is in final testing now. Join the early access list and you'll hear the moment it opens, along with first access to founding spots.
Do I need to install anything?
No. It runs in your web browser on a computer, tablet or phone. Plans print from the browser, and CNC and Mozaik files download straight to your computer.
What kinds of crates does it design?
Seven styles: cleated, corner-post, edge-screwed, clip-together and steel-edged shipping crates, plywood roadcases (lying flat or standing upright with a front door), and pallets on their own. Size any of them from outside dimensions or from the item with padding. Add skids with fork openings, bottom boards, carriage bolts, cross struts, load blocking, dividers, dados and hinged lids.
What hardware does it know for roadcases?
Standard flight-case hardware in common sizes: recessed latches, surface and recessed handles, ball and flat corners, L-brackets, casters with or without brakes, stacking feet, dishes, hinges and lid stays, divider braces and aluminum extrusion. Each part's real cutout and hole pattern goes into the cut list and CNC files, and its part number and price into the parts list. Rivets or screws, your choice.
Does it handle export crates (ISPM 15)?
Yes. Turn on international shipping and Cratesmith marks every solid-wood part that needs heat-treated, stamped lumber, and adds the requirements to the build plan. Plywood and OSB are exempt.
Inches or millimeters?
Both. Switch any time, round to the fraction you cut to, and export CNC files in either unit.
How does the Mozaik add-on work?
It adds two downloads: a parts file for Mozaik's Optimizer, for every crate style, and a ready-made product library with the crate built in 3D, for crates built from wood and screws. Roadcases, clip-together and steel-edged crates and hinged lids rely on metal hardware Mozaik doesn't carry, so they come in as cut parts only, with every cutout and hole. Your Mozaik material list is read right in your browser to match materials. It isn't uploaded anywhere.
What happens to founding pricing after 50 shops?
It closes. Founding shops keep lifetime Shop access for the one-time price, and everyone after that is on the regular monthly or yearly plan. Founding access includes the Mozaik add-on for life too.