A course to teach drafting to engineers who can do CAD 3

[Sparweb]

Some of you will understand what I'm asking right away (or have bemoaned this themselves) but for the rest I will explain what I'm considering and why I'm asking:

There is a difference... in fact there is a very wide gulf... between the ability to select and place the drafting icons on your CAD screen, and the ability to produce a clear, concise, and adequately detailed drawing that a fabricator can use to produce the part or assembly correctly. The distinction is important to me. Many students come out of school knowing the former. Few are taught the latter, formally. I wasn't either, but I was lucky that I started in workplaces with people prepared to teach and they set me on the right track. I think it's my turn to do the same for my younger co-workers. They are currently churning out crap.

I work with a large (~30) team of engineers who, for the most part, have a lot of experience with CAD, mostly CATIA and Inventor (SW and AutoCAD take strong runner-up places) but few of them have any training at all in preparing good drawings. Sure, they know what a hidden line is, but few know when to use it for effect and clarity. What I want to do is to create a drawing class for this group so that they can produce better, more clear drawings for the fabricators that use them. I have just completed a project where the average rate of shop error, query, revision, or change notice rate is roughly 10 per drawing. The time wasted on these frequently exceeded the original drawing time. While I don't believe that the engineering dep't has to take responsibility for all production errors, I have personally seen many errors that could be traced back to confusing instructions on drawings.

I have started preparing to give a course that does the following:[ul]
[li]Teaches good techniques for detail, assembly, and installation drawings[/li]
[li]Shows examples of good drawings and bad, and discusses the reasons[/li]
[li]Gives the engineers strategies to prevent omissions on their drawings[/li]
[li]Prepares the engineers to lay out a drawing package in a logical order before making the first drawing[/li]
[/ul]
...and by the way, I do not want the class to:
[ul]
[li]Teach the minutiae of the company's drawings standard - they can read that for themselves[/li]
[li]Teach where to click the button to make a feature appear - that course already exists[/li]
[li]Hold their hands (or their mice, either) - the point is to make the hand-holding stop[/li]
[li]Point fingers at anyone who has more difficulty than others[/li]
[/ul]

I have been looking for such a course and have yet to find one. The courses I find all seem to be about "how to click the button". So I decided to start designing a course of my own.

I confess that I'm old enough that I can say I took 3 drafting courses, with boards, pencils, rulers and such in school. I think I'm the beneficiary of that, and I'd like to pass it on, just in a way that doesn't force these kids to use a #2HB. There won't be much point in trying this if I start off on the wrong foot giving them the impression that "my way is better" or that something archaic is good for them. I love CAD and I know that CAD can be used to make excellent drawings because I've seen it done.

For those tempted to remind me that management has to care before all of this happens, I agree. I have been laying the groundwork in the minds of my superiors and their superiors for a few months, and "taking the temperature" before I make my case. I believe I am ready to do that, with facts and numbers of dollars saved by the company, or cost if not done.
Also made a few allies.

Does anyone have suggestions for making this course a success?

STF

 

[Dave K]

"Why is this, because each engineer, at one time, had multiple drafters working for them on their project and they both understood the industry they worked in."

Started my career as a draftsman, and that title evolved to "designer" once CAD became common place. Now the title is "design engineer"... Still, the best CAD guys, in my opinion, are those that can make drawings with a pencil and paper. I believe they can see it in their heads better, because that was the only way you could "rotate the model" then.

As a draftsman, we created "inspection drawings", and put way more detail on the drawings than we do now. The advent of the CNC machine working from the solid model, has reduced a lot of the less critical drawing requirements.

-Dave

NX 9, Teamcenter 10

 

[berkshire]

Gunman,
The advent of the CNC machine working from the solid model, has reduced a lot of the less critical drawing requirements. This is interesting because I find myself doing a lot of CAD unbordered "Patterns" for CNC Router and Waterjet cutting machines where there is no information on the drawing other than a 1" dimensioned square in one corner of the " Drawing" to allow the machine operator to set up his machine. And the material the part is made from in the title block.
B.E.

You are judged not by what you know, but by what you can do.

 

[berkshire]

Sparweb,
You mention that you use Autodesk programs, Are you using anything other than Inventor and the Vault.
I used Inventor 3 many years ago, I am sure it has improved since then, I also used Solidworks, then the later iterations up to 2006 , I just went back to using a version of SW 2016 I have also used Alibre , then the later Geomagic Design.
I have not used Catia Although I have a business associate who does and reports on it to me.
All of these programs have their strengths and weaknesses, and one of the major tricks is to Unlearn what you knew on the other programs that are now no longer where you are now working. However I see your frustration with composite materials drawings, which for the most part describe the cloth used, the direction it lays ,and how many layers are used.
How much detail are you prepared to draw versus putting a symbol and a note. Now you have to get everybody on the same page ? This is like herding cats.
B.E.

You are judged not by what you know, but by what you can do.

 

[mkcski]

The advent of the CNC machine working from the solid model, has reduced a lot of the less critical drawing requirements.

I agree with your statement. But the model defines the perfect, so where is the allowable error - the tolerance - coming from?

Certified Sr. GD&T Professional

 

[JNieman]

I expect that tolerances would be a 'critical drawing requirement'.

 

[Dave K]

In our case, any critical dimensions, are shown on a drawing. Anything that can be +/- the machine tolerance of the CNC or water jet cutter, is not dimensioned.

Hopefully we will move to using PMI on the model, but for now the machine shop likes to print a paper copy to take with them to the machine, even if the programming was done on a separate computer.

-Dave

NX 9, Teamcenter 10

 

[mkcski]

Anything that can be +/- the machine tolerance of the CNC or water jet cutter, is not dimensioned.

Gunman: Based on your statement, I assume when a dimension is not "critical", no tolerance is defined, and you are saying the accuracy and repeatability of the machine tool (movements) defines the tolerance. Y-N? If yes, is there a program to calibrate the machines so there is a known accuracy and repeatability?

Certified Sr. GD&T Professional

 

[Dave K]

No, we are at the mercy of the operator, inspection, or the assembly mechanics to catch something that isn't right. NOT the best way to do it, and a far cry from when I was in the aerospace industry.

-Dave

NX 9, Teamcenter 10

 

[mkcski]

Gunman:

Your company is not alone. This system relies on institutional (tribal) knowledge to make and accept usable parts. This "common sense" approach relies on a stable employee level. As soon as new hires get in the mix because someone quits or dies,etc. quality goes "south" because no one has trained the "newbies" to know what the "common sense" is - Gone with the wind comes to mind. Haha.

We have some "common sense"at my place of employment. But we are trying harder to define the requirements using GD&T, written standards and procedures because more and more of our mfg is being outsourced.

Certified Sr. GD&T Professional