#Computer aided drafting jobs full
While it's true that engineers are becoming more savvy with CAD software, there are drafting skills and conventions that unlock the full potential of the software. I also can produce drawings faster and more effectively than three of our engineers combined. I also have become very good at tolerance stack up analysis, which also is not part of an engineer's study. Very few engineers have been exposed to ASME Y14.5 and even fewer can apply it, which is where I make my bread and butter in the company. Right now I am doing ~20 detail drawings a week, some weeks I have a lot more detailing to do if we've released a big project for detailing.Īs far as the future for drafters, incorporating GD&T in drawings is extremely valuable for a company (reduces manufacturing costs) and is well outside of the scope of study for the typical engineer. I do a little bit of the FEA in the office, some of the more simple or tedious analyses. Often times I am included in the design phase of projects very early to make sure the modeling and weldment conventions are nailed as quickly as possible. Smaller details being assembly structures, weldment specifics, complicated solid modeling and sheet metal design, and eventually the drafting/detailing of designs, including GD&T. Before I graduated I interned with a manufacturing company in Michigan and now work full time as a Mechanical Designer for a manufacturing company in Colorado Springs.īoth companies I have worked for follow the same philosophy: engineers perform high level design to meet design and structural requirements, then hand off designs to a designer to hammer out smaller details. I graduated with an Associates of Computer Aided Drafting - Mechanical last year in December. I am reasonably young in the career of drafting/design. Will there be more of us? I don't know, but it is definitely becoming more complex. So yes, I think we'll be around for a little while longer. This role is a mix of technical computer skills and interpersonal communication skills, both of which are in increasing demand, if you can learn both. The project managers, salespeople, machinists, business owners, and engineers all need someone that can clearly communicate with them throughout the whole design process, but also someone who can operate these intricate CAD systems. Remember, it's not only engineers you will work with.
#Computer aided drafting jobs software
I personally believe the drafter is slowly becoming the interface between the increasingly complex software and the humans designing the project. That human could be an engineer, but again, what's your budget? How complex is the design and how expensive is the engineer? Software is getting more complicated, and as tech constantly changes, so does CAD. You still need a human to tell the computer how and what to design. Will automation eliminate drafters? Maybe, but not for a long while. As boring as it was, it taught me a whole lot and paid my bills better than many other jobs could. Wireless Telecomm (cell phone towers) is like that. But I've also worked in "CAD Farms" where the work is dumb and repetitive, but there's a LOT of it. However, I'm the one who models those parts and figures out how it all fits, then spits it out onto paper in a way that a welder can understand (with the engineer's approval, of course). In my company, the engineers handle the Process & Instrumentation Diagram and pick which parts to use. Some senior drafters actually make design decisions, while the engineers handle the overall design. Some of their responsibilities also overlap with engineers. The function of a drafter is to make the design process faster because they know the software and the best way to efficiently communicate design ideas, not only on paper but also between people. If the company's work is complex, and/or they have many concurrent projects ongoing, they will need drafters to handle those details and the sheer volume of minutiae that a CAD system requires. If the company's project is (relatively) simple and doesn't have many projects at once, an engineer can probably handle that. They hire drafters to handle the rest of details and some of the design. Most companies want their engineers to design things and solve the bigger problems. Also, CAD software is getting more complex and the software landscape is constantly changing.Įngineers are expensive. Those variables are determined by the company you work for and the type of industry you're in. It's a game of balancing time & money VS volume & complexity of the work. Sometimes it's cheaper to only have engineers, but sometimes it's cheaper to pay for drafters.
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