Engineering Drafting

Engineering drafting is no longer a frequently used term. The term refers to the earlier use of large slant tables that were used to, “draw,” technical documents directly onto a sheet of paper using such items as T-Squares and triangles to maintain angularity. Today’s technology provides the same information transfer using computers with the term, “CAD,” which is short hand for Computer Aided Design.

In the engineering world it is necessary to have a means of conveying to a builder what the engineer/designer wants built. This is accomplished by use of CAD documents. These CAD drawings/documents are very complex and specialized training is required as using the various techniques and screens in the software are not intuitively obvious. The following is an example of what might be contained in such a CAD project. Say the project involves an engineer or home builder who wants to provide a set of plans to a building contractor. The CAD information to be provided to a building contractor would include: a floor plan with all the dimensions of each room, a plan with all the electrical outlets and wiring runs, the heating and air conditioning duct runs, the plumbing runs, details on the foundation and roofing structure as well as the wall support design. In addition to the more physical aspects of the building, the CAD document would also include a full set of specifications for all of the materials to be used, some of which would include: concrete strength, paint types and colors, wall coverings, roofing materials, plumbing fixtures, and specifications on the wiring and plumbing materials.

So, use of the term CAD now replaces engineering drafting as the appropriate term used for the documentation used by an engineer/designer to convey to the builder/fabricator the design and all pertinent parameters required for construction.