| Overview | | | | performed design calculations for a structure could |
| Structural drafting is the craft of turning an | | | | do all the structural drafting work himself. |
| Engineer's structural design calculations and design | | | | Conversely, all of the drafting work could be done |
| sketches into presentational plan, section and detail | | | | by a structural drafting CAD Technician. |
| drawings. More simply put, a Structural Drafter | | | | The Knack |
| creates (i.e. draws) structural drawings. | | | | There is definitely a knack to structural drafting, |
| Structural drawings are the bridge between an | | | | as there is with any other discipline of drafting. |
| Engineer's design and a Contractor who will build | | | | This is why structural drafting was referred to |
| the design. A typical structural project would have | | | | earlier on in this article as a craft. A craft is the |
| three main players in it. Those would be the | | | | skilled practicing of an occupation. |
| Owner, Designer (i.e. Architect or Engineer) and | | | | Structural drawings have a certain look and feel |
| Contractor. An Owner would get a structure | | | | to them, which is called line work. Line work could |
| designed by hiring a Designer. Then once the | | | | include a drawing's dimension styles, font styles, |
| design was complete the Owner would get the | | | | leader styles, scale of details, title block style and |
| structure constructed by hiring a Contractor to | | | | symbols, including: column bubbles, detail markers, |
| build what the Designer designed. | | | | elevation markers, section markers and structural |
| In this article I'll briefly explain some of the | | | | shapes. |
| fundamentals of structural drafting. | | | | To become competent in creating well formatted |
| Herein I will not discuss shop drawings of any | | | | structural drawings one would need hands-on |
| sorts, including steel detailing or rebar detailing. | | | | experience, or a good training course, or perhaps |
| The Effort | | | | sample drawings to study and mimic. Perhaps the |
| Anything more complex than a tree fort will need | | | | best way to learn structural drafting is on-the-job |
| some type of drawing to depict what will be built. | | | | training, either as an entry level CAD Technician, |
| Complex structures are first designed in | | | | or as a Junior Engineer. |
| accordance to local building codes, and then the | | | | In Closing |
| design calculations and design sketches are drawn | | | | There are many different niches of structural |
| up in presentational format. | | | | drafting that this article hasn't explored. Hopefully |
| Going from the design to the presentational | | | | this article has set the stage for you to drill down |
| drawings can happen in a number of different | | | | further into this topic, if you chose to do so. |
| ways. For instance, the Structural Engineer who | | | | |