Cost of Drafting Services 2

[dpa]

So far I have always done my own drafting (ACAD 2004) but I wondered how common it is for engineers to use a drafting service and what kind of prices you pay. Is it by the hour (risky perhaps) or by the sheet? Do you get a fixed price or just an estimate? Is this something you do frequently or only when completely swamped with work? Does using a draftsman help you save your clients money? Appreciate any insights.

Thanks
DPA

 

[RDK]

Why the concern over the maximum in this area?

If you used an employee draftsman you would simply manage the production of the drawing but it would take as long as it takes and the salary cost would be what the hours expended multiplied by the salary cost works out to be.

If contracted out why not manage the production and let the cost be the time multiplied by the hourly rate?

The difficulty is in managing the work of someone not on your site and not under your direct control. However do you watch over the employee draftsman’s shoulder every minute? No you trust the employee. The same rule should apply to the contract draftsman. You should only hire contractors that you trust and have confidence in that they will do the work diligently and only bill you for the hours actually expended.

That is much the same as what our clients do when they hire us on an hourly rate.

As to my experience in this area, I have paid between $15 and $50 per hour. The $50 was the better deal since I got a better final product, was able to have the drawings plotted at that cost, and had a draftsman who was actually thinking about what was being drawn and helped with suggestions on the presentation. The $15 draft required essentially a full pencil and paper drawing before it could be converted to CAD.

I stopped using contracted drafting services because of geography. I live about a 1-hour drive from a major city where the good drafting services are located and it is simpler for me to do my own drafting and save not only the cost of drafting services but the time to travel to their office or use courier services. (My drafting needs are slight and I have the time to do it myself.)

22004

Please do not type with your cap lock turned on. Its harder to read and is considered SHOUTING.

Rick Kitson MBA P.Eng

Construction Project Management
From conception to completion

http://www.kitsonengineering.com

 

[LHA]

RDK:

I checked out your website...stole some of your jokes (I credited you, so I don't THINK its plagerism).

I notice you are in Manitoba. This might explain how you get quality drafting (design, planning and CAD) for $50. No less than $75 in PA, USA, more in major metro areas.

Although you make an excellent point about cost relating to bid price, so in the end if you get what you pay for, it is irrelevant who earns what per task-hour. But the trouble is: CAD has changed all the rules. Drafting used to be blindly drawing what is handed to you, engineering used to be all design and calcs. At least in the land development area, CAD wiped that out. I draft about 1/3 of my time, our good planners (I refuse to call them drafters, because they are not) spend as much time laying out roads, utility grading, checking for conflicts in 3D as they draw.

This leads to a huge degree of scope differential amoung Planners and those who are desperately trying to remain old-fashioned Drafters. This differential is barely manageable in-house and (only from my experience) totally unmanageable with subs.

 

[BRIS]

I thought I would give an update on outsourcing our drafting to India - we now have a team of four draftsmen working in India at a rate of $10 per hour. They provide engineering support as necessary at $20 per hour. Progress is approximatly 12 hours ($120) per drawing. We load up onto the web site and they download. Obviously we have to colour scan sketches and correction mark ups. So far it is working well.

Brian

 

[jheidt2543]

BRIS,

Can you tell us how you found the draftsmen you use. I'm not asking who you use, but how you orginally made the connection, how you negotiated the pay scale, etc.

What kind of turn around time do you get? Do you have a variety of work you send there or is it pretty much the same type and details? How about size and complexity of the projects? Have you shipped out a long duration project?
What do you do about confidentiality? Some clients require a confidential aggreement prior to starting work or do you just figure since they are in India, you don't really have to worry about it?

Just wondering. I use local firms that I can walk in on and see my drawing on their CAD machine.

 

[txeggplant]

Just two cents worth here ... okay maybe a dime's worth ...

First, you should have a general idea of how long a drafting job should take so paying by the hour is not always a bad idea. If you are hiring someone for the first time, do it by project and ask them after it's all said and done how long it took and tell them why. You have to establish a rapport or you'll never get the quality you want. All a freelancer has going for them is their work and their reputation. You can see what their work is like ... and after working once with them you can see if they take pride in their work or if they are just "trying to rack up hours." Those are the ones that will not make it independently.

Second, one of your best resources for drafters is people who have left your firm in good standing or, if you outsourced it, their firm in good standing. If you know the drafter's work, you know what to expect. If you can't get that info from the firm, if the person is freelancing it, you can do a search from the name on the plans. You can also ask at your local blueprint shop because independent contractors will utilize them from time to time. Leave your business card there. When you are getting permits etc. leave your card or just talk up your needs. Again ... it's all about rapport and networking.

Third, anyone worth their salt is going to have good references and letters of recommendation. Not just from former employers but also from clients and officials they've had to work with. And they should be able to show you examples so you can see if their style is just lines or if they include everything you ever wanted the guys in the field to know. Most will have examples of both, as some employers do and some don't want that information on there. The good ones I know have been out in the field so they have an understanding of what is going on there. Flexibility is what you're looking for.

In the end, hiring a reputable draftsperson will save you money. If you pay per project or by the hour, you still don't have to pay benefits or for down time. You can upload to the independent contractor's web site or use FedEx and charge the FedEx back to your client and it will still come out less overall.

And while outsourcing to other countries is fine (although I personally am against it) there are lots of people in your country who will do the job for the same or slightly more money. When you've just been laid off, you don't want to do it for less but when you've been laid off for a while or are just establishing yourself independently, you'll take work at lower rates.

Once that person is established, I guarantee there will always be consideration for a good client who was with them at the beginning. The first job you get at $15/hour should be just as good as the most recent job at $50/hour. You want someone who is proud of their work, not of how much money they can squeeze out of you.

Bottom line ... if the draftsperson is good and honest and you are specific as to what you want, you will wonder why you didn't hire an independent contractor before. Try it out before you need to actually utilize it (like in a non-critical overflow situation). The hardest part, IMO, is the lack of "hovering" you'll have to do