shop drawings from a freelancer

[jelenko]

How common is it to have a freelancer prepare shop drawings off-site? What should be asked to indicate an individual is capable besides his/her previous work? Is it better to have an in-house detailer?
I'm involved primarily in miscalleneous fabricated metal work (stairs, railings, platforms, etc.).

 

[Watermelon]

1. Real common.
2. Call his references. See how they liked his work. Ask to see his most recent drawings. Judge for yourself; assuming you know what proper shop drawings should look like.
3. In-house is always better, but then you have to sign pay cheques when there's nothing for the detailer to do. If you're a small shop, then you'll want your detailer to have several talents, not just detailing.

There are industry standards for the quality of shop drawings. Find out what standards apply to your work and follow them.

 

[smcadman]

To add to Watermelon's reply, it would help if the freelancer has experience in the fabricated metal field, whether as a fabricator or as a draftsman in that field. For example, if he primarily drew kitchen cabinets and the like, that may show that he knows how to use the software, but it doesn't mean he will be able to draw what you require. You may not want to (or have the time to) teach him how stairs or whatever is fabricated. We once hired a guy who knew the software (Mechanical Desktop) but didn't know how sheetmetal can be formed and couldn't learn the concept. Basically management told him: "If I have to do your job, then I don't need you."

Flores

 

[jheidt2543]

A good portion of the structural steel and misc. steel shop drawings in our area are "farmed out" to shop drawing detailers by the local fabricators. The firms they send their work to are all experianced and specialize in steel shop drawings. Coordination and timing can sometimes be a problem, but the vast majority of the time the experiances have been good. I think the biggest thing is to have the detailer be familiar with how your shop operates, what type of equipment you have, how you handle material flow through your shop and your prefered details in certain situations.