At a 3D drafting office, every project starts with two questions: in which file format the result needs to be delivered, and which CAD standard the work should follow. Those two matter more than the choice of software. We deliver in DXF, DWG, Revit formats and STEP files, and in practice in any common CAD format, so a model can go straight to the party that needs to work with it next.
You provide the drawing conventions, because your standard takes precedence, not ours.
We model in Revit, Rhino and Inventor, using Grasshopper for geometry that can be built up from rules, and to a limited extent Dynamo and Vault. AutoCAD also remains in the picture for the flat drawings that follow from a model. We always work with the latest versions, in our own environment and with our own licences. We model and draft, but we do not do engineering. Once an enquiry comes in, we respond within 1 to 2 working days.
Cable tray routing in the model, built with parametric families that carry the material schedule with them.
What a 3D drafting office delivers in models and drawings
The end product is rarely just a model. In most assignments we deliver the model plus the sheets derived from it, because the shop floor still works with flat drawings. Specifically, that means 3D models of parts and assemblies, and the floor plans, elevations, sections, detail sheets and assembly drawings derived from them. We also produce as-built drawings and process revisions in an existing model, including the sheets that change along with it. If you only have flat drawings and want a model, we build it from the material you supply.
That is a different assignment from modelling from a design, because the work then lies mainly in reconciling sheets that do not match each other. Output goes out in the format the supply chain requires. STEP files for exchange with production or with another software package, Revit formats when work continues in a shared model, and DWG or DXF for the flat drawings. If you are still working in an older version, we save to that version.
What we do not deliver are calculations, structural advice or permit documents. We set out the geometry and make sure the sheets comply with the standard we have been given. So what you get back is a model that fits your way of working, not ours. The volume where we make a difference lies in repetition, meaning variants of the same component, series that share the same structure and sets that need to be checked sheet by sheet after a change.
The process at a 3D drafting office, from conversation to delivery
Everything starts with a conversation in which we go through the project. It covers what is already there, what needs to come out and in which format. You supply the details and usually also existing drawings that need revising. With 3D work, we pay extra attention to the set-up, meaning the way components are divided, which naming is in use and how the sheets are extracted from the model. Those choices determine whether a later change carries through in a single action or has to be checked manually. Once we have enough information, we get started.
We deliver in stages. For a model, that is often a first component or a clearly defined zone, so you can see how we have chosen to structure it before the rest follows. We gather feedback, process it and move on to the next batch. That first round is usually the most important of the entire project. Changing the set-up at that stage is still cheap, whereas the same change at the end of a series takes much more time. The meeting rhythm differs per client and ranges from every two days to weekly.
Contact runs via email, phone and meetings, and we visit you or you come to us. On larger projects, we use software you can log into to follow progress. For standalone assignments, files are exchanged by email. If you want a trial run first, start with a clearly defined component and judge the result on that basis.
No ongoing payroll costs and no idle staff once the peak is over. If one of our people is off sick or on holiday, we replace them and the work simply carries on.
When it makes sense to bring in a 3D drafting office
Outsourcing makes sense when the work is predictable in structure and large in number. A series of variants of the same component, a set that needs to be fully updated after a change or an as-built file that needs to be rebuilt are assignments where extra hands deliver an immediate return. The same applies to a peak your own team cannot fit in alongside ongoing work, and to a deadline that cannot be moved. If a vacancy for a drafter has been open for a long time, outsourcing is the quicker route, because there is no recruitment and onboarding period in between. There are also situations in which your own team is better off keeping the work in-house. Work that is closely interwoven with ongoing design decisions is one of them, because then more time goes into coordination than into modelling.
The same applies to assignments where you do not yet know yourself which direction things are heading. Outsourcing works best once the direction is fixed and volume is the bottleneck. That distinction can usually be made in a short conversation. A third consideration is the state of the source material. If all the necessary knowledge is in the head of one of your own staff and nothing is on paper, the gain is limited. If there is material, even messy material, we can work it out. We did exactly that for Firefly with drawings that had been printed incorrectly and partly drawn by hand. If you are unsure which side an assignment falls on, the best approach is to put forward a clearly defined part as a small first assignment.
Freelancer, in-house drafter or outsourcing the work
In practice, the choice comes down to three routes. Hiring a freelancer, taking someone on as a permanent employee, or handing the work to us. A freelancer is a single person and therefore also a single point of failure. If they drop out due to illness or holiday, the work stops and the search starts all over again. Scaling up is not an option, because there is no second drafter behind them.
We have a large, flexible team that scales with each project, and if someone drops out we replace them so the work carries on. On top of that, a freelancer usually delivers their own work without a second pair of eyes. With us, the work passes through at least three review layers before it goes back to you.
Taking someone on permanently is a different consideration. It costs a recruitment process, an onboarding period and then an ongoing cost that remains long after the peak has passed. With a structural flow of work that can make sense, but not with a project that has a clear end. A third difference lies in the run-up, because a new employee still has to get to know the company's standard, whereas we are given that standard and apply it straight away.
With us, you pay no ongoing payroll costs, and there are no prepaid hour bundles or hours subscriptions in which hours go to waste. What we also bring is management. Sam, our team leader, oversees the technical side and project supervision, so you do not have to coordinate the work yourself. Everyone involved has more than ten years of CAD experience.
Frequently asked questions about our 3D drafting office
Let us handle your 3D modelling and drafting
Send us your documents and drawing conventions and we will let you know within one to two working days what we can take on and when.