When it comes to 3D model creation costs, the conversation in our team almost always starts with the software we use for the work. We model in Revit, AutoCAD and Rhino, and bring in Inventor or Grasshopper where needed. We use Dynamo and Vault to a limited extent, always in the latest versions of the packages.
That choice determines a large share of the hours, because a model we build in Revit develops differently from a set of loose Rhino surfaces.
We charge by the hour or at a fixed project price, and we decide together with you in the first conversation which option fits. We only charge net working hours; if a drafter steps away for five minutes for a coffee, the clock stops. We draft and model, and leave engineering and calculations to you. On this page we explain where the hours in a 3D modelling assignment end up, which part of the work is repetitive and how our team reduces that volume.
Cable tray routing in the model, built with parametric families that carry the material schedule with them.
Repetitive drafting drives the cost of a 3D model
Most of the hours in a 3D modelling assignment do not go into the special component, but into the volume around it. We see this in virtually every request: hundreds of similar components, variants that differ only slightly, and a set that has to be placed and adjusted over and over again. That is where the cost of a 3D model lies, and it is also where the biggest gains are. So we start with an inventory of what repeats. In a pipework layout for greenhouse construction, for example, that might be a valve that comes in 90 and 110 and that a drafter redraws by hand in AutoCAD every time.
In a facade job, it is a panel that recurs in twenty sizes. Once we have identified that pattern, we decide which part we set up properly once and which part we then only need to place. That choice reduces the hours more than speed behind the screen does. Our team consists of drafters with more than ten years of CAD experience, so the manual work goes smoothly, but manual work is still manual work. We prefer to look at the structure first.
We then decide in which order we will model, so you can review part of it early on. After all, we deliver in stages, gather feedback and continue. That prevents a wrong assumption from only becoming visible at the end of the model, which in this type of work immediately adds hours. We discuss that analysis openly, because you should be able to see where the money goes. If you want to manage the cost of 3D modelling work, in practice you manage repetition.
Parametric Revit families that help a 3D model grow faster
For us, a parametric Revit family is a smart component that adapts to a different situation or a different size. We build such a component once and then place it everywhere, without drawing it again. The material schedule updates with it, so if the component changes, the schedule changes automatically. For 3D model creation costs, that is the difference between drawing something a hundred times and placing it a hundred times. Back to the valve from greenhouse construction: AutoCAD is not smart at building up that kind of component in piping systems.
Anyone who needs a valve in 90 and in 110 there redraws it by hand every time. With a smart family, it is in place in a single action. In that type of work, this saves at least seventy per cent of the time, and that time saving goes straight into the hours we charge. We can clean up or rebuild existing sets of families and templates. That depends on the state of the existing set.
If a family set has become clogged over the years with variants, duplicate parameters and manual adjustments, rebuilding is sometimes faster than repairing. We assess that at the start and present our reasoning, so you can make the choice. We also use Grasshopper or Dynamo when a series of variants is better built up through rules than through individual actions. We use Vault and Inventor to a limited extent, depending on what you work with. For us, working parametrically is not an end in itself; it is how we keep volume manageable.
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.
What we deliver and how that affects the costs
A 3D model on its own has little value if the next stage of the process cannot work with it. That is why we deliver in the formats you use: DWG, DXF, Revit formats and STEP files, and in practice any common CAD format. From the model we extract the 2D drawings your drawing team needs, and where the dossier calls for it we update as-built drawings. We work to your standard and drawing conventions, which you supply to us. That saves a great deal of searching at the receiving end, because a model that does not follow your own layer structure and naming still costs hours internally. We draft and model. Engineering, calculations, structural advice and permits are not part of our work, and we do not claim otherwise. For the costs, that means a clear scope: we take over the drafting and you keep the substantive decisions.
Before a set goes out, it passes through at least three review layers. A drafter draws, a second team member checks that work, Sam, our team leader, then goes through it and Barry, our project manager, reviews it last. As a result, errors are kept to a minimum in practice, and in this work errors are the most expensive item there is. A revision round we prevent is one nobody has to pay for. On larger projects, such as greenhouse construction projects, we use software that you can log into to follow the project. For one-off drafting work, delivery simply goes by email, with the file your team expects and can open straight away.
Scaling up without the cost of permanent staff
Capacity is the reason behind almost every request. There is too little time, too few drafters, or a peak that your own team cannot handle. Depending on the project, we deploy one drafter or as many drafters as are needed, because our large, variable team scales per project. The team is already in place, so we deploy what the project requires, and when things are urgent we add people straight away.
On the cost side, that is a fundamental difference from a permanent employee: with us, you pay no ongoing payroll costs. If one of our people is absent due to illness or holiday, we replace them and the work continues.
We do not work with prepaid bundles of hours or a monthly hours subscription, because that forces a volume that is not always there. We invoice by the hour or per project at a fixed price. For a clearly defined assignment with a well-defined set, a fixed price is often convenient, while for a revision round whose size only becomes clear during the work, hourly billing is a better fit. We only charge net working hours.
A short assignment is fine too. If you wish, we start with a small first package, so you can judge our speed and accuracy for yourself before more volume comes our way. Barry is usually the first point of contact for a new request, after which Sam takes over the technical side, so there is one consistent line of contact. When a deadline once could not slip, our team worked evenings and weekends to deliver on time.
Frequently asked questions about 3D model creation costs
Let us build your 3D model
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.