canoa-parse-pdf

name	canoa-parse-pdf
description	Parse a dealer-quote PDF or manufacturer line-card PDF into the Canoa catalog. Use when the designer wants to ingest a quote, line card, trade-show catalog, configurable workbook, or any PDF with FF&E product specs and pricing. Phrases include "parse this PDF", "ingest this dealer quote", "extract products from this catalog", "add this line card", "I have a quote from <dealer>", or any PDF attachment with FF&E content.
allowed-tools	Read, mcp__canoa__ingest_parsed_products

Ingest a PDF

Reads a PDF the designer attached, extracts product candidates from the rendered pages, and stores them in the Canoa catalog with provenance. Parsing happens client-side via Claude's native Read tool; the canoa MCP only ingests already-extracted structured data.

When to use

• Dealer quote PDF — products with negotiated, project-specific prices
• Vendor line-card PDF — manufacturer's official multi-product catalog
• Trade-show catalog — aggregate brochure with multiple products
• Configurable workbook — option-matrix PDFs (Steelcase Leap configurator workbook)

For single product pages on the web, use /canoa-parse-url.

Workflow

Step 1 — Identify source kind

The designer attaches the PDF (drag-and-drop into chat). If context is missing, ask once:

"Is this a dealer quote (project-specific pricing), a vendor line card (public catalog), or something else?"

Pick the right source_kind (dealer_quote_pdf, vendor_pdf, or line_card). The choice affects tier and dealer-net handling on ingestion.

Step 2 — Read the PDF

Call the native Read tool on the attached file path. Read returns the rendered pages as multimodal content (visual + text), 20 pages per call. For PDFs longer than 20 pages:

• First call: pages 1–20
• Subsequent calls: pages 21–40, 41–60, etc.
• Concatenate extractions across calls before ingestion

Step 3 — Extract product candidates

From the rendered pages, build a structured product array. For each product:

• manufacturer — the brand that makes the product, not the dealer (DWR resells Hay → manufacturer is Hay)
• product_name + collection if applicable
• variants — size / color / material SKUs when the page enumerates them
• list_price_cents — manufacturer list price (even when dealer-net is also shown)
• dealer_net_cents — only when the PDF shows a dealer-specific quoted price (server stores per-user)
• page_reference — string like "p.34" or "pp.12–14" for citation
• dimensions, materials, image_url — when surfaced

For configurable products without enumerated SKUs, leave variants: [] — the server will synthesize placeholder SKUs with :attr-<hash> prefixes during ingestion.

Step 4 — Confirm before ingestion

Show the designer the extracted product list (5–10 line summary, manufacturer + product + price + page ref). Ask:

"Ingest these N products into the catalog? Dealer-net pricing will be stored privately to your account."

Wait for explicit approval. Don't ingest silently.

Step 5 — Ingest

Call:

canoa.ingest_parsed_products({
  source_kind: "dealer_quote_pdf" | "vendor_pdf" | "line_card",
  source_metadata: {
    filename: "suite-ny-2026-05-08.pdf",
    designer_provided_dealer: "Suite NY",     // optional, for dealer quotes
    page_count: 12
  },
  products: [ ...extracted product candidates ]
})

The server:

• Canonicalizes manufacturers against the 50-mfr reference + 24-dealer exclusion list
• Synthesizes :attr-<hash> SKUs for variant-less configurables
• Applies dealer-net redaction (allowlist-driven, server-side only)
• Returns ingested IDs, rejected products with reasons, and warnings (e.g., "Heuristic-matched 'DWR' → 'Hay' on row 3")

Surface warnings to the designer in plain language. Don't bury them.

Tier assignment (server-side)

• vendor_pdf / line_card → tier verified (manufacturer source retained)
• dealer_quote_pdf → tier observed (community-observed pricing)

Manufacturer canonicalization examples

The server canonicalizes; the skill body shouldn't pre-guess. Examples surfaced in warnings:

• Stool 60 → Artek (not Vitra, even though Vitra distributes)
• Gather Tables → Hem (not DWR)
• Menu products → Audo Copenhagen (post-2021 rebrand)
• DWR / YDesign / 2Modern / Suite NY → manufacturer detected from product; dealer name dropped

If the PDF is ambiguous (no clear manufacturer markers), the server returns the row in rejected with reason: "ambiguous_manufacturer". Show the designer the row and ask which manufacturer to assign before re-submitting.

Long PDFs (>20 pages)

Chunked Read calls may split a product across page boundaries (header on p.20, specs on p.21). Catch this in Step 4 cart review: if a product's spec block looks incomplete, prompt the designer:

"Row 7 (Hay Mags Sofa) is missing dimensions — looks like the spec sheet continues on the next page. Want me to re-read pages 20–22 and re-extract?"

For very long line cards (100+ pages), recommend the designer split the PDF or ingest in passes by section.

After ingest

Common next steps:

• Spec out a parsed configurable → /canoa-spec
• Audit existing schedule rows against the new prices → /canoa-audit-row or /canoa-audit-schedule
• Source a room using newly-ingested products → /canoa-source-room