Do engineering drawings imply solid and uniform parts?

[iusedtobehydrogen]

If I were to have a drawing of, let's say a cube, and the material specified was simply "ABS", and after sending the part to a vendor I recieved an average quality 3D print instead of a solid piece, could the part be said to be out of spec?
In my view, the discontinuities inherent in normal 3D printed parts would mean the part is out of spec. In other words, if really did want a solid piece for strength reasons or any other reason, I would not have to specify that it not be 3D printed. But a friend from work who is a drafter disagreed. What say you?

 

[JStephen]

I believe that ASTM A6 and/or A20, some of the stainless standards, define plate, strip, bar, etc. But yes, those terms do have definite meanings in various standards. I think the mill catalogs also made that distinction in the past.

The short answer is, you're communicating information, and your drawing needs to include whatever information needs to be communicated TO THAT PERSON.
I can detail a part, send it out to our welding shop, and after fabricating 10,000 other parts that I've also detailed, I have a pretty good idea of what they need, and they have a pretty good idea of what I intend. If I draw a cube, they don't have to ask "is that machined or forged or heat-treated or what". If I'm sending it off to somebody I've never dealt with, that may not be the case.
A similar issue is use of abbreviations, acronyms, welding/finishing/inspection symbols, tolerances, etc.