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Tech Pack → BOM

🟡 In Development (Phase 1) This is Brain’s first capability and the anchor for everything that comes after. It takes the most painful manual work in the studio — interpreting a client tech pack — and turns it into a fast review loop.

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Why this first

Building a BOM by hand is the highest-pain, highest-value repetitive task Mai does. Every new tech pack requires going through:
  • Silhouette
  • Fabric panels (shell, contrast, lining)
  • Buttons, zippers, drawcords, eyelets
  • Trims (rib, lace, labels)
  • Interlining, fusing
  • Shoulder pads, sleeve head rolls
  • Thread, sewing components
  • Packaging (polybag, carton, tissue, hangtag, spare button bag)
  • Hidden construction materials based on garment type
A meaningful chunk of every RFQ cycle is consumed here. Getting this right unlocks everything downstream (true cost, quotation, pricing intelligence). This is also the hardest workflow to fake with a thin wrapper, which makes it the best place to start. If the BOM agent works on real Jaspal, Lulus, and ASOS tech packs, the rest of the framework is worth building. If it doesn’t, we discover that before we’ve invested in the platform.

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How this is built

This workflow is a dedicated agent, not a simple skill or workflow. It needs to:
  • Read PDFs (tech packs)
  • Read Excel files (POM sheets, measurement sheets)
  • Analyze images (garment construction, visible trims)
  • Apply garment category templates
  • Identify visible vs. hidden materials
  • Output a structured BOM draft with per-line confidence
See Architecture / Tiers for why this needs Tier 3 (full agent with tools) rather than a Tier 1 skill or Tier 2 workflow.

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Inputs

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What a BOM is at this stage

The BOM is not yet about sourcing specific materials. It’s about identifying the structure of materials needed — what lines exist, how many, what type. Material assignment (which specific button from which supplier) is a separate workflow. See Material Sourcing. Example BOM structure:

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Visible vs. hidden materials

About half of the materials in a typical BOM are visible in the tech pack. The other half are hidden or templated.

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Visible (AI can detect from tech pack or image)

  • Shell fabric
  • Contrast fabric
  • Buttons (with count)
  • Zippers
  • Rib
  • Lace
  • Drawcord
  • Elastic
  • Eyelets
  • Patches
  • Embroidery
  • Prints

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Hidden / templated (AI infers from garment type)

  • Interlining
  • Fusing
  • Shoulder pads
  • Pocketing
  • Sewing thread
  • Main label
  • Care label
  • Size label
  • Hangtag
  • Polybag
  • Carton
  • Tissue paper
  • Stickers
  • Spare button bag

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Garment templates

Brain maintains BOM templates per category. Templates supply the hidden materials list when the tech pack doesn’t enumerate them explicitly.

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Women’s jacket — default hidden items

  • Fusible interlining
  • Shoulder pad
  • Sleeve head roll
  • Lining
  • Pocketing
  • Thread
  • Main label
  • Care label
  • Size label
  • Hangtag
  • Polybag
  • Carton

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Pants — default hidden items

  • Waistband interlining
  • Pocketing
  • Zipper
  • Hook and bar / button
  • Thread
  • Main label
  • Care label
  • Size label
  • Hangtag
  • Polybag
  • Carton

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Dress — default hidden items

  • Lining (if applicable)
  • Invisible zipper (if applicable)
  • Interlining for neckline/armhole
  • Thread
  • Main label
  • Care label
  • Size label
  • Hangtag
  • Polybag
  • Carton
Templates are extended as new categories appear.

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BOM draft output

The output is a structured BOM with confidence scoring per line:

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Database behavior

BOM drafts are written into the Brain database (and visible in CutMake) with a clear status:
The merchandiser edits the draft in CutMake’s normal BOM interface. Edits are tracked and fed back into the correction log. This is one of the few workflows where Brain writes a draft to the database before human approval — because BOM drafting is high-volume, the draft is clearly labeled, and the merchandiser can edit it in their normal tool. See Principles for the rules around when drafts can be written before approval.

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What gets logged

Every human edit of the BOM draft is recorded with: This correction data feeds the evaluation loop and drives prompt and template improvements.

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Approval gate

Before the BOM is marked final (and feeds into True Cost), Mai reviews and approves. Until then, it stays in AI First Draft status.

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Next-step suggestion

After BOM approval:
“BOM approved. Would you like me to start the true cost draft now?”
This typically chains into True Cost.