Does Planichapa replace Plate 'n' Sheet?

For the 50 parts in the catalogue, with 3D, PDF and DXF, yes, and with nothing to install. For shapes outside the catalogue, or for working offline, no: those are cases for the desktop program.

Does Planichapa open Plate 'n' Sheet files?

No. There is no project import: you type the dimensions of the part and get the development. What comes out, PDF and DXF, opens in any CAD and on any cutting machine.

Can I use it on a phone?

Yes. It is a page in the browser: it works on a phone, a tablet, a Mac and Linux, with nothing to install. The PDF template and the DXF download the same way.

How does the price compare with Plate 'n' Sheet?

Planichapa is a one-off 12-month purchase, £69, €69 or US$79 by region, with a free plan of 20 calculations a month. Plate 'n' Sheet offers several licence options and does not publish prices on its site, so the comparison is with the figure they quote you.

Do I need to uninstall Plate 'n' Sheet to use Planichapa?

No. One does not interfere with the other. Shops keep the desktop program on the office PC and use the online calculator on the shop floor or away from it.

Plate 'n' Sheet alternative: Planichapa develops sheet metal parts in the browser, with the price on the page

Updated on 17 September 2026

Plate 'n' Sheet is the desktop program most fabricators name when they talk about pattern development software, and people looking for an alternative usually want one of four things: to work on any computer or on a phone without installing anything; to see the price before asking for a quote; to pay little for occasional use; or to try it on a real part before deciding. Planichapa was built for those four. This page says what changes, what does NOT change, and where Plate 'n' Sheet remains the right choice. The facts about Plate 'n' Sheet are the ones its website publishes, checked in September 2026.

What changes

It runs in the browser. Nothing to install and nothing tied to one computer: the same account on the office PC, the laptop and the phone on the shop floor, with the calculation history on all of them.
The price is on the page. Full access is a one-off 12-month purchase, £69, €69 or US$79 depending on where you are, by card, with no subscription that renews by itself. Plate 'n' Sheet offers several licence options and does not publish prices on its site.
You can start without paying and without an account. The four most requested parts are calculated on their own pages: cone, cylinder, 90° segmented bend and pipe branch. With a free account it is 20 calculations a month, with 3D and PDF.
Neutral axis on all 50 parts, with the thickness offset taken along the normal to the surface, and the working shown: every part page carries the formulas and a worked example. Plate 'n' Sheet's site does not say how it treats thickness.
The output the shop uses: a 3D view to check the part, a PDF template at 1:1 for marking out, and DXF with cut, bend and weld lines on separate layers for plasma, laser and CNC cutting.

What Plate 'n' Sheet does that Planichapa doesn't

Being straight here is what makes this page worth anything. If your work is one of these, Plate 'n' Sheet stays the right tool and there is no reason to switch:

Working offline. Planichapa calculates on the server; without a connection you only have the PDF templates you downloaded earlier. A standalone program runs on a shop floor with no signal.
A shape outside the catalogue. Planichapa has a closed catalogue of 50 parts. Plate 'n' Sheet publishes its own list of shapes; if the part you make is on theirs and not on ours, that settles it.
An existing licence and routine. Changing tools costs learning time. The two coexist: many shops keep the program on the desk and use the calculator on the phone.

Part by part: what the shop calls it, and where it is here

The name used on the shop floor is not always the catalogue name. This table joins the two: on the left, how the part is usually asked for; on the right, the Planichapa page that develops it. There are 50 pages in all, under all parts.

What the shop calls it	Planichapa page
rolled shell, cylinder, pipe	Cylinder
cone, frustum, concentric reducer	Cone
eccentric reducer, offset cone	Offset Cone
oblique cone, offset transition	Oblique Cone
conical cap, Chinese hat	Chinese Hat
lobster back, mitred elbow, segmented bend	90° Segmented Bend
return bend, 180° bend	180° Segmented Bend
two-gore bend	Elbow
saddle, tee, pipe branch	Pipe Branch (Tee)
cyclone inlet, tangential inlet	Offset Pipe Branch
breeches, Y piece, fish mouth	Y Piece Trunk
square to round, rectangle to round	Square to Round
chute, spout, hopper	Discharge Chute
pyramid frustum, hexagonal duct	Regular Pyramid Frustum
angle cut cone, chimney cowl	Angle Cut Cone
mitre cut, truncated cylinder	Truncated Cylinder
screw flight, screw conveyor, helicoid	Screw Flight (Helicoid)
dished head petal, sphere gore	Sphere Gore
pipe offset, U-shaped offset	Pipe Offset (Portal)
round to oval, flat-oval duct	Round to Oval

How to compare them in ten minutes, with your own part

Do not take a comparison page's word for it, this one included. Take a part you have already made and run it through both tools:

A rolled shell: diameter, height and thickness. The plate length must come out as π × (D − t). If it comes out as π × D, the tool does not offset the thickness, and the seam will overlap.
A cone of 800/1200/800 in 3 mm plate. The sector radii must be 1643 and 2468 mm and the angle 87.3°. The cone development guide shows the whole calculation.
A 90° segmented bend with 4 gores: 2 half gores and 3 full ones, the full gore twice the height of the half.
Export the DXF and open it in CAD or on the machine: cut, bend and weld lines must be on separate layers.

How Planichapa reaches those figures, and how it checks itself, is written out in how we check. About Plate 'n' Sheet, what we know is what its website publishes; prices and coverage change, so check at the source.

Price and payment

Free: 20 calculations a month with an account, and four parts with no account at all. Full access: a one-off 12-month purchase by card, £69, €69 or US$79 depending on your region, which unlocks unlimited calculations, DXF export and the saved history. No auto-renewal: when the 12 months end the account returns to the free plan and nothing is charged. Details are on plans and pricing.

Frequently asked questions

Does Planichapa replace Plate 'n' Sheet?: For the 50 parts in the catalogue, with 3D, PDF and DXF, yes, and with nothing to install. For shapes outside the catalogue, or for working offline, no: those are cases for the desktop program.
Does Planichapa open Plate 'n' Sheet files?: No. There is no project import: you type the dimensions of the part and get the development. What comes out, PDF and DXF, opens in any CAD and on any cutting machine.
Can I use it on a phone?: Yes. It is a page in the browser: it works on a phone, a tablet, a Mac and Linux, with nothing to install. The PDF template and the DXF download the same way.
How does the price compare with Plate 'n' Sheet?: Planichapa is a one-off 12-month purchase, £69, €69 or US$79 by region, with a free plan of 20 calculations a month. Plate 'n' Sheet offers several licence options and does not publish prices on its site, so the comparison is with the figure they quote you.
Do I need to uninstall Plate 'n' Sheet to use Planichapa?: No. One does not interfere with the other. Shops keep the desktop program on the office PC and use the online calculator on the shop floor or away from it.