When window frame manufacturers outsource drafting, almost everything revolves around lead time. An order book that fills up turns within a week into stacks of sheets that someone has to draw, check and release. We solve that by scaling with the work. A project with us sometimes starts small, and our large, variable team grows with it where needed, with as many drafters as the work demands.
The team is already in place, so scaling up costs us no recruitment process and no onboarding period of months.
When something is urgent, we add someone to the running work straight away. Everyone who drafts for us has more than ten years of CAD experience, and the core of our team has around twenty-five years of experience combined. We draft and model; we do not do engineering. The work is done remotely from our own office, with our own licences and the latest software versions. Our clients are in the Netherlands and that is where our focus lies. When a request 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.
Drafting for window frame manufacturers, from element sheet to revision
Drafting for a window frame manufacturer consists mostly of 2D production sheets for us. We draw element sheets with elevations, sections and dimensions, plus the junction details installation needs. We also produce overview drawings showing the positions of the elements in the building. If a project calls for a model, we model in 3D and derive the sheets from it. Revisions are a steady stream of their own. A changed daylight opening, a different glazing layout or a moved opening usually affects more sheets than a work preparation engineer expects, and we update that entire series consistently.
We bring as-built material back to a clean digital set, even if the file supplied has partly been updated by hand. Our output goes out as DWG, DXF, Revit file or STEP. In practice we deliver in any common CAD format, and we keep to the naming and sheet layout the manufacturer already uses. We also build parametric Revit families for components that recur in dozens of variants. Such a smart component adapts to a different size, and the material schedule changes automatically along with it.
For a manufacturer with a fixed profile series, that saves redrawing on every order. Existing families and templates that have become clogged after years of use, we clean up or rebuild, depending on the condition of the set. With a very messy set, rebuilding is sometimes quicker than repairing. What we do not do is just as important: no structural calculations, no declarations of performance and no permit documents. That responsibility stays with you and your consultants. We are the drawing office, not the engineering firm.
The outsourced drafting process, step by step
It starts with a conversation. We want to know what you manufacture, which series is coming up and which sheets go with it. We then ask for the documents: existing drawings, details, profile information and the drawing conventions that apply internally. We usually receive a set that needs revising, and that is a fine starting point for us. Having enough information means we can begin. Barry, our project manager, is the first point of contact for a new request, after which Sam, our team leader, takes over the technical side.
We deliver in stages. The first package deliberately goes back early, often a single element type, so your work preparation engineer can test our interpretation of the standard. We process that feedback and only then does the rest of the series go into production at our end. That prevents a deviation from spreading across a hundred sheets. We choose the meeting rhythm together. With a tight schedule we speak every two days; on a calmer project a weekly moment is enough.
For standalone AutoCAD drafting we simply send the files back by email. If there is a sizeable project running, we use software in which you can see the status of each sheet yourself. Day-to-day contact runs by email, phone and meetings, and we visit you or welcome you at our office. We work in our own environment, so you do not need to free up a workstation or licence for us. We will sign an NDA without objection if there is a need for one. At the end you receive not only the sheets but also the source files, because the intellectual property belongs to you.
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 a window frame manufacturer should outsource drafting, and when not
Outsourcing is not always the answer. We would rather say that straight away than afterwards. It works well with volume and repetition: a large series of element sheets, a revision round across an existing set, or an archive that needs updating. It also makes sense for a peak lasting two or three months, because a permanent appointment does not fit that. The same goes for work that keeps your own drafters from their core tasks. If you put your best people on detailing standard variants, you lose them for the difficult work. There are also situations in which you are better off keeping the work in-house. Work that is closely intertwined with the production line, with knowledge that only exists in the factory hall, costs more in handover than it delivers. The same applies to short, one-off jobs of a few hours that come up in between.
An outsourced project is too much of a detour for those. A third consideration is the state of the input. If the drawing conventions are completely missing and nobody is available to answer questions, we get stuck on detective work and you pay for it. In that case we advise getting things in order internally first. We would rather give an honest no than start a project that falls apart halfway. For our clients the trigger is almost always capacity, and that is exactly when the decision is mainly a planning question. If in doubt, a small first assignment is the most level-headed test. If it goes well, we scale up. If it goes awkwardly, you know that after a limited effort.
Our team compared with a freelancer or a permanent drafter
A window frame manufacturer looking for capacity has roughly three options. Hire a freelancer, take someone on permanently, or place the work with a team like ours. A freelancer is quick to arrange and often works well, but he remains one person. If he drops out through illness or holiday, the work stops, and nobody checks his drawings except the manufacturer.
With us, every sheet passes through at least three review layers before it goes out. A drafter submits, a second team member checks, Sam looks at the technical side and Barry signs off. A permanent employee is a different calculation. Recruitment and onboarding take months, and after that the salary costs carry on through every quiet period.
For a manufacturer with an erratic flow of orders, that is a heavy fixed block. We supply capacity that moves with you and does not sit on your books. There is one more difference that often only becomes apparent later. A team builds up knowledge that does not depend on one individual. If someone at our end leaves the project, the project knowledge stays with Sam and the rest of the group.
On the other hand, an in-house drafter is closer to the shop floor, and we recognise that advantage. For the repetitive part of the drawing office, it rarely outweighs the flexibility we add. We also regularly combine the two: your own team keeps the special work and we take on the series. That way you stay in charge of your own drawings while keeping lead time under control.
Frequently asked questions about outsourcing drafting for window frame manufacturers
Hand your window frame drafting over to us
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.