Guide

How do you connect Claude or ChatGPT to PlanElec Pro through MCP?

PlanElec Pro connects to your own Claude or ChatGPT through MCP. What works today, setup in both assistants, three example requests for installers, engineering offices and architects, permissions and limits.

Published on 27 October 2026 Updated on 29 October 2026 8 min

AuthorStephan Behm

With PlanElec Pro you can connect your own AI assistant, for example Claude or ChatGPT, to your projects through MCP (Model Context Protocol). You add PlanElec as a custom connection with the server URL https://planelec.be/mcp, sign in to PlanElec with OAuth and review the requested permissions. After that, your assistant can find your projects, read the saved planning status and, with write permission, create projects and make supported changes. The connection is only available with active PlanElec Pro. Your project roles keep applying, and you can revoke access at any time.

PlanElec is not affiliated with OpenAI or Anthropic. Claude and ChatGPT are trademarks of their respective owners.

What is MCP, in two sentences?

MCP is an open standard that gives an AI assistant access to specific functions of another application through an authenticated connection. For PlanElec this means: instead of copying project details into a chat, your assistant fetches them itself, with the rights you granted.

What can your assistant do with PlanElec today?

The scope follows the tools that are actually released. The goal is to control the entire PlanElec app from the conversation, but that is not available yet. What the integration page lists today:

Area	What your assistant can do	Needs write permission
Read projects	List the projects you can access, read their details and summarise circuits, distribution boards, cables and installation settings	No
Planning tools	Check an inverter against the Synergrid C10/26 list, look up inverter datasheets, calculate voltage drop or LED strip requirements, find PlanElec help guides	No
Manage projects	Create projects, change name, description and notes, archive and restore projects (no permanent deletion)	Yes
Edit the planning	Supported planning operations on floors, rooms, devices, circuits and cables; ask the assistant to list the available operations before a change	Yes
Export readiness	Check which details the saved plan still lacks for an export and fetch a protected download link for documents that already exist	No

Not available yet are, among others, generating a new PDF through the assistant, PV roof and string layout, KNX automation and the control of an open Studio session. Such steps still happen in the PlanElec Studio. The integration page shows the current list.

How do you set it up in Claude?

Open Customize → Connectors and add a custom connector. On Team and Enterprise plans, an owner or administrator must first allow the connector for the organisation.
Name it PlanElec and enter the server URL https://planelec.be/mcp. Use OAuth and follow the PlanElec sign-in.
Review the requested permissions and approve them. Enable PlanElec in a conversation and ask it to list your projects.

Anthropic describes custom connectors in its help article on remote MCP. Menus and plan availability are set by Anthropic and may change.

How do you set it up in ChatGPT?

Open ChatGPT Plugins on the web, select the plus button and choose Add custom MCP server. Your account or workspace must allow custom connections.
Name it PlanElec, enter the server URL under Connection and choose OAuth. Sign in to PlanElec and review the requested permissions.
Create the plugin, review the discovered tools and select PlanElec in a conversation with @. Ask it to list your projects first.

OpenAI describes the steps in its guide to connecting a custom MCP server. Which plans and roles may add custom servers depends on OpenAI and your workspace settings. If your screen differs, follow the provider's current instructions. Further details are on the integration page.

Which example requests fit installers, engineering offices and architects?

The three scenarios below are illustrations, not customer references. Project names are invented. Adapt the wording to your own projects and always check the result against the project.

Installer: project status for the site meeting

Starting point: Before the next visit you want to know which circuits and distribution boards are recorded and what you last noted.
Example request: "Read my PlanElec project 'House renovation' and its planning summary. Summarise the circuits, distribution boards, installation settings and existing project notes for a site meeting. Separate recorded information from follow-up questions and flag missing data."
Result you can check: A meeting brief with the recorded planning status, your existing notes and questions for the visit. Compare it with the project, then add points resolved on site in the Studio. Read access is enough.

Engineering office: compare two options before handover

Starting point: The original design and an alternative are in two separate PlanElec projects.
Example request: "Compare the planning summaries of my projects 'Office – original design' and 'Office – alternative'. Put circuits, distribution boards and installation settings side by side in a table. Flag missing or truncated information and suggest questions for the handover."
Result you can check: A comparison table and concrete questions for the discussion. It covers only the summaries returned by the tools. Review spatial differences and technical sizing in the projects themselves.

Architect: record agreed requirements

Starting point: After a meeting, three agreed points need to go into the shared planning project.
Example request: "Read the notes in my project 'House – coordination'. Add these agreed points: a desk in the guest room, terrace lighting, provision for an EV charging point. Preserve the existing content and show me a draft of no more than 500 characters. Save it only after I confirm."
Result you can check: You review the draft and approve it explicitly. Afterwards the points appear in the project notes, which you see in PlanElec. This example needs write permission.

What do permissions and data protection look like?

Question	Answer
Who can use the connection?	Users with active PlanElec Pro. Sketch, Sketch with the AI add-on and a trial do not include it.
Which rights apply?	Your project roles still apply. Changes also require write permission in the OAuth consent. Every action is checked again on the server.
What does the assistant see?	The results of the tools it calls, such as project names, descriptions, notes and planning summaries. The consent screen also names addresses and contact details if you grant those permissions.
Who processes the data?	After the tool call, your AI provider processes the data under its own terms and privacy settings. Review the consent screen carefully.
How do you revoke access?	In PlanElec under My profile → Connected apps, and in Claude or ChatGPT by removing the connection. Revocation stops future access; data already in earlier conversations is not deleted.
Does it use my PlanElec AI allowance?	No. The conversations run through your own AI subscription; its limits apply separately.

Assistant answers are not an approval of the installation. PlanElec supports planning and self-checks; the recognised inspection body carries out the official inspection. For the assistant built into the Studio, see AI assistant for electrical planning.

What should you do first after connecting?

Start with read-only requests, because they change nothing and show you what your assistant actually sees. Ask it to list your PlanElec projects, then to summarise one project by name. Also ask which PlanElec tools are available in your connection: the list depends on the permissions you granted, your plan and what your AI provider supports. Only when the answers match your project should you allow changes.

Write permission is a separate step. It appears on the consent screen, and a connection without it stays read-only. Before the first change, ask the assistant to list the available operations and to show a draft of what it intends to save. PlanElec checks every action again on the server, and your project role still decides whether you may edit that project.

How do you phrase a good request?

Name the project exactly as it appears in PlanElec, so the assistant does not guess between similar projects.
Give one task per request, for example reading, comparing or adding notes, and check the result before the next step.
Ask the assistant to separate recorded information from follow-up questions and to flag missing data, as in the scenarios above.
For changes, ask for a draft first and tell the assistant to save only after your confirmation.
Review the answer against the project itself. The assistant works from the saved project status, not from the browser tab you have open.

What are typical setup problems?

Symptom	Likely cause	What to do
The sign-in was cancelled or the connection fails	OAuth was not completed	Start the connection again and finish the PlanElec sign-in and consent screen
The consent screen does not release the connection	No active PlanElec Pro	Activate Pro first; Sketch and trial do not include MCP. See the pricing page
No option to add a custom connection	Your account or workspace does not allow it	Ask the workspace administrator, or follow your provider's current instructions
No write tool is shown	Write permission, plan or provider support is missing	Ask the assistant for its PlanElec tools, then reconnect and review the consent screen
The connection asks for a new approval	The permissions text changed since your last approval	Reconnect and review the current permissions

If the problem persists, the integration page links to help with connecting.

What is coming next?

The aim is that Pro users can control the entire PlanElec app through their own assistant, from project creation to preparing documentation. This expansion is in development, and the list above is the current state. Capabilities will be described here only once they are released.

Frequently asked questions

What does the connection cost?

MCP is part of PlanElec Pro and requires an active Pro account; current plans are on the pricing page. Your Claude or ChatGPT subscription is separate and is billed by your provider.

Does it work with Sketch?

No. MCP access requires PlanElec Pro. More about the product is on the PlanElec Pro page.

Can the assistant draw my electrical installation?

For supported planning operations, yes: it can read the saved project and make checked changes to floors, rooms, devices, circuits and cables. Full app control is the goal but not available yet. Some steps, such as generating a new PDF, remain in the Studio.