Drafters are always going back to the drawing board. That’s where they do their work, traditionally using a variety of drafting devices to prepare a drawing by hand. Computer-aided design (CAD) drafters became more prominent during the 1980s and 90s. Consequently, some drafters may be referred to as CAD operators. Still, board drafting remains the foundation of the CAD system.
Regardless of the system they use, drafters still need knowledge of traditional drafting techniques. Despite the near global use of CAD systems, manual drafting and sketching are used in certain applications.
Drafters’ drawings provide visual guidelines and show how to construct a product or structure. These drawings are complex and include technical details and specify dimensions, materials, and procedures. Drafters fill in technical details using drawings, rough sketches, specifications, and calculations made by engineers, surveyors, architects, or scientists.
Some specialties in drafting include:
- Aeronautical drafters
- Architectural drafters
- Civil drafters
- Electrical drafters
- Electronics drafters
- Mechanical drafters
- Process piping or pipeline drafters
- Photovoltaic drafters
Other areas in which drafters work include Land Desk Development, Auto Cad, Microstation, Geopak, Pro-e, Pro-Engineer, Unigraphics, Solidworks, PLS CAD, Inventor, AutoDesk, CAD/CAM, moldflow, and more.
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