For many clients, having 3D drafting done is mainly a question of volume: how many models, components and variants are needed in a short time, and how repetitive that work is in practice. We see that pattern all the time. A piping schematic in greenhouse construction with valves in different sizes, a series of components that keeps coming back in a slightly different version, a model that a drafter rebuilds by hand again and again while the structure stays largely the same.
It is precisely in that repetitive part that we gain time, because our team works with it every day.
We work with Revit, AutoCAD, Rhino, Inventor and Grasshopper, always in the latest versions, and we deliver in DXF, DWG, Revit formats or STEP, depending on what you need. Our team scales with the project, from a single modeller to a full crew, so a peak in your drawing office does not cause delays. Our focus is on the Netherlands and we carry out the work entirely remotely, with weekly or fortnightly catch-ups on progress.
Cable tray routing in the model, built with parametric families that carry the material schedule with them.
Repetitive 3D drafting and where the time savings lie
In many clients' drawing offices, the problem rarely lies in the most complicated part of a project. It lies in the number of similar drawings and models that have to be produced one after another, while the available drafting capacity is not set up for that. A contractor with a series of similar units, a manufacturer with dozens of variations of the same component, an engineering firm that has to convert an existing file into an up-to-date set. In projects like these, the manual work quickly adds up, while the underlying logic barely changes from drawing to drawing.
We recognise that pattern from our own work for Firefly, for whom we have now completed more than twenty projects and hundreds of drawings. Take a piping schematic in greenhouse construction, where a drafter builds a size 90 valve and a size 110 valve by hand each time because the drafting software does not assemble those components intelligently. Every repetition costs time that is no longer needed once someone has set up the structure properly. Even with as-built files that were partly drawn by hand and reach us in poorly legible form, we do not look for the gain in drawing each piece more cleverly, but in streamlining the volume.
That is why we do not put one drafter on a large repetitive package, but spread the work across several people on our team who work to the same structure and the same CAD standard. That keeps the turnaround time predictable, even when a deadline cannot slip and in practice we have to put in evenings and weekends to deliver on time.
Parametric modelling with smart Revit families
Much of the time we save on 3D drafting comes from working parametrically. We build parametric Revit families, also known as smart components, that adapt to a new situation or a different size without us having to redraw the component. We build such a component once and then place it anywhere in the model, in the right size and with the right properties. The material schedule updates automatically: if the component changes, the schedule changes with it straight away, without anyone having to update it manually.
In greenhouse construction many companies work in AutoCAD, and AutoCAD is not smart at building components such as valves in a piping system. Anyone who needs a size 90 valve and a size 110 valve draws them by hand in that package every time. With a smart family, the component is placed in a single action, in the right size, without repetition. In that kind of work, our approach saves at least seventy per cent of the time compared with redrawing each time.
Not every project calls for a completely new family set. Sometimes an existing set is still usable and we only clean up what is already there. If the existing set has become very messy, with duplicate variants and components that no longer add up, we often rebuild it faster than we could repair everything piece by piece. We assess in each situation which option is wiser and discuss it with you before we invest time in it, so the choice fits what the project actually needs.
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.
The delivered set after having 3D drafting done
When you have our team do your 3D drafting, we do not just deliver a standalone model, but a complete set that can move straight on in your own process. We deliver 2D drafting where needed, as well as 3D modelling, as-built drawings and revisions, depending on what the project calls for. We deliver the files in DXF, DWG, Revit formats or STEP, or in virtually any other common CAD format, so the set connects directly with the environment you continue working in. We do not work in our own preferred structure, but follow your standard and drawing conventions, including layer structure, naming and the way components fit together. That is necessary, because a model that looks good on its own but does not match the existing set still creates extra work further down the line.
On projects made up of several phases, we deliver in stages, gather feedback and adjust the model before picking up the next stage. That keeps you involved, and we do not throw one large package over the fence that you then have to correct afterwards. Every piece of work goes through at least three review layers before it goes to you, from the drafter who produces the work to Sam, our team leader, and Barry, our project manager, who check it last. That keeps the chance of errors in the delivered set limited, even for a set that had to go out quickly. The intellectual property of what we deliver belongs to you, so you can use the set without restrictions in your own process.
Scaling up drafting capacity when you have 3D drafting done
For many clients, capacity is the direct reason to have 3D drafting done by an external team. There is too little time, too few drafters, or a peak arises that the in-house team cannot handle without other projects suffering. Our large, variable team is already in place and we assign what the work requires per project: one drafter for a small assignment, and as many drafters as are needed on a large project.
When things are urgent, we add extra people straight away, so we really do meet a deadline that cannot slip. Everyone who works for us has more than ten years of CAD experience, and Sam, as team leader, has more than fifteen years of background in architecture, with experience in the Netherlands and abroad.
Barry is usually the first point of contact for a new request, and then hands the technical side over to Sam, so you are not constantly dealing with a different face. If someone is out due to illness or holiday, we replace that person, so the work simply carries on and you do not bear ongoing salary costs as you would with a permanent employee. We do not work with prepaid hour bundles or a monthly hours subscription; our team scales with what the project needs at that moment and scales back down once the peak is over.
If you first want to see how fast and accurately we work, you can start with a short, smaller assignment before a larger project follows. We reply to a new request within 1 to 2 working days, after which we go through the project and the scaling you need in a conversation.
Frequently asked questions about having 3D drafting done
Let us handle your 3D 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.