huangyhg

book on preparing drawings?
i would love to get my hands on a book that deals with developing a set of drawings. i feel like i'm ahead of my peers on the technical end of the job, but only on par (possibly lagging a little) on the drawing side.
i feel like at least part of the reason is that this seems to be fairly subjective. when i work with one engineer they like to see things a certain way. if i try following that with another engineer, they'll typically want it done differently. i don't feel like i have a good handle on how it should be done.
any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
that's exactly how i felt when was starting out in my career. i don't think there's one way to do it. and when you say drawing, do you mean your cad skills or how to detail things on say an rfi response? or how to prepare an entire set of drawings?
it should be done my way. seriously, there is no answer to your question, although most large consulting firms try to standardise by developing a drafting manual. it is terribly difficult to police, particularly in this time of contract drafters, outsourcing, etc.
as the others have said, there are many ways to draw things, some better than others.
the best i advice i can give is to observe what your office does and the way other offices do it and decide which is better. take note whenever you have an rfi or misunderstanding or question on the shop drawings because there may be something on the drawings or in the spec that led to the question or confusion.
thanks guys (and gals).
i didn't mean my personal cad skills, i meant actually putting together a full set of drawings.
i guess i'll have to continue to plug along and learn as i go. this definitely seems to be the hardest part of the job.
another thought is to create a folder of your own with what you consider good examples of drawings (both plans and details). i think, at one time, i used to do this. i used to look at as many drawings and notes and buildings under construction as i could.
sometimes, your client will have plan presentation requirements or drafting standards. for example, dot's often have standards that must be followed for their permanent projects. these standard requirements would include sheet sizes, margins, lettering size, title block content, etc. check with your client. if the client has no requirements, use your company's standards so that you can quickly and easily copy and edit previous drawings or details as needed.
i think you have hit upon one of the most difficult jobs in an engineering office. after working more than fifty years in the practice, i still found drawings which did not convey the information as clearly as they should.
part of the problem is with the drafters themselves who may be conversant with cad techniques but don't always know how structural materials fit together in a simple way.
the other part of the problem is that i failed to spend enough time in the early part of the drawing development to ensure that the final product would end up the way i wanted it. and once the drawing is half completed, there is a reluctance to make a major change.
ba
take every opportunity to collect drawings of projects that you consider 'well done'. even when they are done by someone else, or, especially when, they are done by other firms.
i have a collection of drawings, that i have acuired over the years, for projects that were done by other engineers and other firms. i reference them not only for technical issues, but also for drawing layout, format, what kinds of things are they detailing/not detailing, etc. i have found them to be very helpful in helping me develop my 'style' of putting together a drawing set.
its often good to see how other engineers in other firms appoach such basic things as drawing layout, format, etc. sometimes, when you work at the same place, with the same people, for a long period of time a kind of 'group think' takes hold that you may not even be aware of. a different perspective on things is very helpfull.
i agree with lkjh345 - stock up on drawings and review them crtically, away from your coworkers. decide what you like about them and don't like. you'll form an opinion that is independent of your peers and when you temper it with the opinions of the experienced engineers you will find that is valued quite a bit.
unfortunately there is no "cure-all" but you can rest assured that's the way many of us have perservered.
hey, feel free to write a book, could bring you some extra cash!
regards,
qshake
eng-tips forums:real solutions for real problems really quick.

don't forget that your plans must be bid and constructed by a contractor. it hardly matters if you think your plans look nice if the contractor has difficulty with them. if you have a contractor that you work with, have them make suggestions.

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借用达朗贝尔的名言：前进吧，你会得到信心!
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