Just a CAD drafter 1

[DemarEngr]

I am just curious if anybody else has run into this problem I am having.

I consider myself an above average designer, and I could be wrong here, but here is the situation. For the last two years the lead designer on most of my jobs has let me do most of the design work and he checks it, tells me what needs to be fixed, and we move on to the next job. He has moved on to another company.

Now because of my age (28), I was born into the computer age and have never done any manual drafting in production. Actually had 4 months of class on it though.
Our boss has hired one of his older "friends" to replace our lead designer who I don't think of as all that competent.

The direction I am getting from my boss is this, in a lot more words.

Since I have never done any manual drafting/design work, I can not be a competent designer and I am now stuck in a drafting position. All new designs will be laid out by hand by our more "experienced" lead designer and I will draft everything on the computer for him.

Now I see som many problems with this, it is not any funny.

Basically is this some industry philosphy or am I just getting screwed by the man.

Give you a little insight, I am in the petrochemical design industry, and have built and designed 3D models that would blow most peoples minds away.

Loyd
"Just another hot shot cad drafter"

 

[TheTick]

Sounds like time to move on.

I started my first engineering position after a series of contract drafting positions. Each position offered some design opportunities. I carefully documented my design experience so it was ready to present when the opportunity came. (btw I was 28 at the time).

Bottom line: It's your career; take care of it. No one else will. If you need to move out to move up, so be it. Ultimately, you owe your employer nothing beyond the hours they bought from you. God knows they don't feel they owe you.

"Great ideas need landing gear as well as wings."--C. D. Jackson

http://www.EsoxRepublic.com

 

[MASSEY]

...or you could hang around for a while and see what happens.

The new 'older friend' could have alot of valuable knowledge that you may benefit from.

Try to give him the respect he deserves and whenever possible work with him not just for him. Inevitably there will be things that come up that you have experience in and he does not. If your relationship is good, he will come to appreciate the value you can add to the total design. If your relationship is bad, you, he, and the company will suffer for it.

...or you could cut out and start over somewhere else. 28 is not old. I went back to college at 28 and earned an engineering degree, and I continued to work full time while doing it. That is also an option for you.

 

[CSEllc]

I agree with MASSEY....give it some time.....the "older" engineers generally don't trust engineers that cannot hand draw since they were taught tio hand draw....also it has been my experience that older engineers actually use this method ......(I design and detail....you copy and draft) as a way of teaching younger engineers on proper detailing. I know it sound funny but that is what was done in the old days.

Also try talking to the lead designer...tell him how the previous designeer worked with you....show him some of your previous work.....he might just loosen the chain if he sees you are capable.

The flip side is as you said "I consider myself an above average designer, and I could be wrong here"......maybe he has seen your work and thinks you are not as hot as you think and he is trying to "reel" you in a bit by showing you how he designs.....

Give him the benefit of the doubt and talk to him and/or your boss before you decide to leave..

 

[toolmantwo]

Demareng
Just thinking out loud, but you can still hand draw some things by hand and learn other elements. You could also show some of your hand drawings to those you feel need to know and then they would know you have done these with skill. When I did my hand drawing their was more pride and the feel of accomplishment and you had your own twist on workmanship or quality of the drawing. Now with CAD anybodys work looks the same....no better, no worse and this is something of a let down. I felt I lost some of my competive edge when we went to CAD. In other words, Joe next to me looks the same with the output.

Maybe test the water with a hand drawn storage building for you back yard and share this with your co-workers.

Have a productive day, John

 

[MASSEY]

toolmantwo:

I disagree that all CAD drawings look the same. I think I know what you are saying and in a sense it is of course true. However, there are alot of added attention to detail that can make one CAD drawing 'look' better than another.

For example: text positions, leader angles, consistant color scheme etc. I admit these are small details but they add a touch of class and pride in presentation that some may feel is not important enough to address.

By the way, great idea about hand drawings!

 

[TomBarsh]

I agree with Massey that attention to the details he mentions are important and can make one CAD drawing stand out over another. This is not trivial because a well thought out and well executed CAD drawing can contribute GREATLY to how easy it is to understand the information presented: a poor drawing can obfuscate the information unnecessarily. Interesting...this is exactly how it is with drawings done by hand with pencil and paper.

Anyone making engineering drawings should understand that they are presenting information to others. It should be as clear as possible. This duty parallels any "design" that they may do.

I spent 10 years "on the board" making drawings by hand before I went back to school to complete my engineering degrees. I always felt that my board experience complemented my formal education. I have been chagrined at times when working with CAD 'operators' who had no understanding of geometry and who made major errors in laying out (not so) complicated geometries such as sprocket teeth and gears: they made pretty-looking pictures but that was about it.

People learning CAD these days would do well to continue to study geometry and projections, and to learn the techniques of presenting infomation in an attractive and easy to understand format.

 

[ewh]

I must agree with the above two posts. A good drawing is more than proper line weights and good lettering. It also involves dimensioning in which the manufacturing intent is clear and concise.

It seems that good drawing checkers went the way of the drawing board. Anymore, it seems that drawings are checked only to verify that dimensions exist. I've worked at more than a few locations as a contract worker, and they all had this in common. It doesn't seem to matter anymore that tolerances are stacking up unnecessarily, leader lines cross extension lines, features are double dimensioned, geometric tolerances are completely mis-applied, and excess verbage is everywhere. ASME Y14.5 is only given lip service.

While you may lose some of that pride in producing excellent board drawings, you don't have to lose it all using CAD. Plan your dimensioning scheme, put only enough information on the drawing to produce the part, and adhere to the standards, and you can make it that much easier (and less expensive) for the manufacture of that part. The people on the shop floor making the part will thank you. That is something to be proud of.

Do they even teach descriptive geometry anymore?

 

[swertel]

ewh,

Leader lines can cross extension lines, or so I thought. They can't, to my knowledge, cross dimension lines.

Then again, the terminology seems to switch where dimension line = extension line and extension line = witness line.

--Scott

For some pleasure reading, try FAQ731-376

 

[ewh]

Scott,

You got me there. What I meant to say was extension and leader lines crossing dimension lines. I think I lost the trees for the forest.

Eric

 

[swertel]

No problem.

I just wish people would catch my mistakes like that more before they become published public knowledge.

Then again, when I make mistakes like that (on this forum anyway -- I cross dimension lines all the time ), I just red-flag myself and repost. No need to air my dirty laundry for any googler to find.

--Scott

For some pleasure reading, try FAQ731-376

 

[VCIUPA]

I am a mechanical engineer working in ACAD 2d and 3D over 10 years.
I want to work as ACAD freelancer.

 

[debodine]

ewh:

Don't feel too bad about losing the trees for the forest. I often find myself in the wrong forest!

 

[HVAC68]

Have seen this scenario where I worked earlier. Here's my $0.02 worth of input.

The "older" guy probably is quite good in what he does. Most of them generally are. This is probably a great opportunity for you to learn something from him. At the same time, if your "frequency" matches with his, then, you could tell him how you would like to do your work for the benefit of yourself, him and of course, the organisation. In case the frequency doesn't match, time to move on !!! and maybe move up.

I think you also need to have a little bit more of self-confidence in yourself - I say this after observing your opening line - "I consider myself an above average designer, and I could be wrong here, but here is the situation".

Good luck.

HVAC68

 

[aamoroso]

If you are learning and growing stay put, if not move on.