Outsource Drafting for MEP Engineering

The cost of outsourcing drafting in MEP engineering

We charge per hour or per project at a fixed price, and we make that choice together. A defined package, for example a fixed series of schematic sheets for a familiar type of installation, can easily be captured in a fixed price. Work whose scope only becomes clear along the way, such as a round of revisions across an outdated file, is better suited to hourly billing. A fixed price on that kind of work means someone builds in a risk margin, and in the end you pay for that yourself. We only charge pure working hours. Five minutes to fetch a coffee means those five minutes are not charged.

We do not work with a prepaid hours card or a monthly hours subscription, because that kind of arrangement commits you to buying hours the project does not need. There are no ongoing salary costs either: in case of illness or holiday we replace someone, without it showing up in your books. What keeps costs down most in practice is the quality of what we receive. A complete set with a clear CAD standard saves more hours than any negotiation.

Repetition also lowers costs, especially when we build recurring components as smart components instead of drawing them again each time. We base an estimate on the material supplied, the number of sheets, the level of detail required and the pace. We also look at the next step in the process, because a set for purchasing requires different work from a set for installation. If you find the estimate hard to judge, we start with a small first assignment and you can measure our pace on real work.

Capacity and scaling up with outsourced drafting

Capacity is the trigger for almost all of our clients. There is too much work, too few drafters, or a peak that cuts straight through the holiday schedule. We absorb that without a recruitment process beforehand, because our team is already in place. When something is urgent, we add people to the running assignment straight away. A project sometimes starts with one drafter and grows within a few weeks to as many drafters from our large team as are needed, depending on what the schedule demands.

When the pressure drops, we scale back again and you are not left with surplus capacity. That difference from an employment contract is exactly why MEP engineering companies call us. Finding an experienced drafter takes months, and after the peak the salary cost remains. We take over when someone drops out: if a drafter goes home ill or on holiday, we bring in a replacement and the work continues. That is possible because project knowledge at our end does not sit in one person's head.

We record the drawing conventions, the assumptions made and the status of each sheet, so someone else can pick up the thread without explanation. For you it also means that an ill drafter at our end is not your problem. We deliberately keep staffing flexible, but not casual. Once someone is on a project, they keep working on it for as long as possible, because continuity delivers more than a smooth schedule on paper. For a deadline that could not move, our team has previously worked evenings and weekends to hit that date.

How outsourcing drafting works, step by step

Everything starts with a conversation. In it we discuss what exists, what it needs to become, when it has to be finished and which drawing conventions apply. You supply the details and usually an existing set that needs revising. We first take stock of that set: how complete is it, how legible, and does its structure still match the current situation. The approach follows from that first look, including the order of the sheets. We then start drafting and deliver in stages. After each partial delivery we gather feedback, process it and move on to the next batch. That way your project lead can see early on whether our work matches his expectations, rather than only at final delivery. Every sheet passes through at least three review layers with us. A drafter draws, a second team member checks, Sam, our team leader, looks at the technical side and Barry, our project manager, goes over it last.

In practice this keeps the number of errors to a minimum. We choose the meeting rhythm together: every two days when speed matters, weekly on a calmer project. Contact runs by email, phone and meetings, and visits in both directions are possible while the work itself stays remote. Files go back and forth by email. On larger projects we use software you can log into to follow progress. At the end there is a set in native format and PDF, with a revision stamp showing which version applies. Everything we make remains your property, so your team can carry on with it straight away.

Your fixed points of contact

Project manager Barry leads the first conversation, team leader Sam keeps a firm grip on the technical side

You never have to explain the situation all over again. Getting acquainted takes a short fifteen-minute call.

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MEP engineering clients and their bottleneck

The people at the table with us are usually managers, team leaders and owners. They are engineering firms, architectural practices, contractors and manufacturers, and more broadly companies with a lot of technical drafting work. Their problem is rarely about content. They know exactly what needs drawing; they just lack the hands to do it. A team leader sees an order come in that his drawing office cannot absorb without delaying the running work.

An owner notices that good drafters cannot be found on the market and that the vacancy has been open for two quarters. A project lead is sitting on a file that has been waiting for revision for two years because it is never more urgent than today's work.

We started this service last year because a client asked for it, it worked well, and since then we have offered it as a standard service. So far we have completed more than twenty projects and hundreds of drawings for Firefly. If you recognise your own bottleneck in the situations above, call us or fill in the contact form. A conversation then follows in which we go through the project and tell you what we can do about it.

Frequently asked questions about outsourcing drafting for MEP engineering