CADD 1033 – CODE 144

MT-RSW-01
EFFECTIVENESS OF CAD VS.
MANUAL DRAFTING
MARCH 8, 2018
MARCH 11, 2018

REFERENCES:
[1] CAD APPLICATIONS: ARCHITECTURAL, David Goetsch (Ar 720.2840285 G599 1986 c.1)
[2] ARCHITECTURAL DRAFTING FOR INTERIOR DESIGNERS, Lydia Sloan Cline (2014)
[3] MANUAL DRAFTING TECHNIQUES Article, Design Buildings Wiki, 2016
[4] EXAMINING THE HISTORY OF ENGINEERING DRAFTING AND DESIGN, Trevor English, 2016
[5] HAND DRAFTING VS CAD, David Stewart
[6] ADVANTAGES OF CAD DRAFTING OVER MANUAL DRAFTING, Kuldeep Bwail, 2014
[7] HAND VS. COMPUTER DRAWING: A STUDENT'S OPINION, Enzo Tessitore, 2015

LASAM, PRECIOUS KRYSZELL L. AR.PETER PAUL ORTEZA

INTRODUCTION— THE EVOLUTION OF DRAFTING

Drafting has been in evidence almost since the beginning of time. Many of the world’s greatest
wonders—the pyramids, the Parthenon, the hanging gardens of Babylon—were the result of detailed
designs carefully drawn by drafters. Over the years, the tools and techniques of drafting have evolved
continually. [1]

Manual drafting was the start of the evolution of drafting. With the innovation of tools that
aide manual drafting, it is made easier and faster. Tools like technical pens, straight edges, protractors,
compasses, French curves and T-squares are commonly used in manual drafting. Technological
evolution brought the innovation of computers and software like Auto-CAD and IBM that brought
about Computer-Aided Drafting and Design. The tools of manual drafting are converted into codes
and used in modern way of drafting. These innovations made drafting faster and more precise.

More importantly, in order to understand CAD, one must first understand the definition of
drafting. In order to understand the definition of drafting, one must begin with the design process
because the need for the occupation of drafting is rooted in the design process. [1]

WHAT IS THE DESIGN PROCESS?

The design process is a systematic, five-step approach to solving problems or meeting needs.
It is the process engineers, architects and designers go through in designing every kind of structure
from the smallest house to the largest skyscraper. Drafting is the process through which the design
process is documented. [#] These documents are called construction drawings.

A design is consisted of ideas and imagination of the designer.

WHAT IS A DRAFT?

To designers, drawing is a way of communicating. They are able to convey their ideas through
visual representations and with explanations that aide the flow of imagination of the listener.
Sometimes, it is easier to make ideas understandable through drawing.

A draft is a technical drawing and it is used by designers to graphically present their ideas. It
is a formal way of making a drawing out of an idea. Drafting is used by different kinds of professionals,
especially designers, architects and engineers. It plays an important aspect of any function involving
construction and manufacture. And it can be done manually or with help of computers.

WHAT IS A CONSTRUCTION DRAWING?

A set of these drafted illustrations is called a construction drawing. These drawings follow
common rules and standards to ensure that all designers are able to understand what is in the
drawing. Also, these drawings use a graphic language to communicate each and every piece of
information necessary to convey an idea and ultimately create a design. [2]

The complexity of architectural drawings is managed by using industry standards. Drafters

must understand lines, symbols, and the concepts behind those symbols. No matter what part a
person plays in the project, it’s necessary to understand everyone else’s part. If an interior designer
has control of a project, such as a residential bath or kitchen redesign, he or she needs to understand
the content of consultant submissions to check their overall compliance with the design intent. [2]
WHAT IS MANUAL DRAFTING?

Often referred as hand drafting or architectural drafting, manual drafting is the practice of
creating drawings by hand. [3] Manual drafting is the traditional way—so old that it dates back to
prehistory.

Drafting and design have been around since the dawn of time. The earliest recorded history
of engineering drafting was in 2000 B.C., of which we have a fossilized aerial view plan of a Babylonian
castle. For the majority of drafting’s history, it was an art form perfected by skilled designers and
essential to a culture’s infrastructure. [4]

Manual drafting uses a series of tools that help the draftsman. These tools are the straight
edges, protractors, compasses, French curves and T-squares as have been mentioned in the
introduction. Manual drafting also requires a huge workspace, such as a drafting table. It requires
many kinds of inking pens, markers, and different pencils and colored pencils.

In this generation of computers, manually doing things are often deemed as slow-paced or
time consuming. It also requires a lot of tools to help in drafting, numerous mediums, a lot of space
and a ton of effort. It is full of iteration—it requires repeatedly doing things.

WHAT IS CADD (COMPUTER-AIDED DRAFTING AND DESIGN)?

The term Computer-Aided Design applies to a wide range of programs that allow the user to
create drawing and designs electronically. It can be used to create two-dimensional (2D) drawings or
three-dimensional (3D) models.

CAD drafting has several advantages over hand drafting, the foremost being that it is quicker.
CAD drafting also offers flexibility of design and convenience of work environment, as compared to
hand drafting. Some experts feel that hand drafting is crucial to understand and retain basic drafting
concepts. Students exposed to hand drafting ultimately become skilled drafters using the CAD
software more effectively. [5]

ADVANTAGES OF COMPUTER-AIDED DRAFTING OVER MANUAL DRAFTING

1. Time Factor
The greatest advantage of CAD drafting over hand drafting is the reduction in design
time, which leads to reduced design costs. Drafters need more time for the desired results
with hand drafting, as each line has to be accurately measured and drawn. CAD software
ensures total accuracy of measurement with a few simple commands, thus saving time. [5]
2. Ease of Manipulation
Design changes are often required due to client preferences or material changes. CAD
software offers tremendous flexibility to designers to make necessary changes or
modifications. Revisions can be made simply and easily without redrawing the plans. With
hand drafting, to make any changes, drafters have no alternative but to go back to the drawing
board and start again. [5]
3. Convenience of Work Environment
Hand drafting uses tools like the drafting board, T square, special drafting papers
pencils, erasers and drafting pins. These tools take up space, and the work environment
appears cluttered. Most CAD computer workstations are Windows-based personal
computers. So a CAD drafter has just a computer on his desk with the human interface, which
may be a mouse, a track ball or a pen. [5]
4. Accuracy
 In manual drafting, all the objects drawn must be of correct size and alignment. Each
object need to be manually verified and dimensioned as the slightest error can be catastrophic
to the entire project. With CAD, there are numerous techniques available to obtain exact
dimensions thus leading to improved accuracy in the project. [6]
5. Data storing and Accessibility
One of the advantages of CAD drafting is that the drawings need not be filed and
stored in folder unlike in manual drafting. CAD drafting can be easily saved on the computer
server and can be accessed from anywhere with internet connection. The chance of losing the
documents is higher in manual drafting. As CAD drawings can be saved electronically without
the use of paper, it is also an environment friendly method. [6]

CONCLUSION

As architecture students, we are exposed to both types of drafting. We have experienced the
advantages and disadvantages of both types. There could be different opinions over which one is more
preferred than the other.

It is easy to find a lot of articles supporting both sides. One can read as many arguments as
they want and find valid points supporting both hand-drawing and computer production. One could
argue that there is nothing prettier than a well done hand-rendering of a project. Another could say
that, although hand-drawing is something that catches the eye, it is not practical at all, takes longer
than doing it on the computer and does not allow architects to easily modify it. [7]

On my own opinion, using Computer-Aided Design and Drafting software is more preferable—
many companies look for CAD operators, and outputs made with this is more presentable than
manually drafted illustrations. But as an architecture student, being exposed to manual drafting in the
beginning of my journey gave me an imperishable skill that I can carry throughout my professional life
as an Architect someday.