Photo by Kumpan Electric on Unsplash
Feeling a bit lost post school studies, and are wondering what career path you should pursue? Perhaps you should consider the exciting and dynamic field of draughting!
“But what is draughting and will it suit me?” you ask. Draughting is the practice of transforming design ideas and concepts into a visual representation that the construction team can use to guide them and ensure that these design ideas align with real world building.
Draughting is all about precision and clearly communicating what needs to be done through concise drawings. These drawings were traditionally draughted on paper, but with modern software such as AUTOCAD® and Solid Works, all drawings are now done via digital graphics that can easily be shared with industry professionals at the click of a button.
What Can You Do with Draughting?
The great thing about draughting is that there are many specialisations you can choose, depending on your interest. There’s engineering draughting, which includes draughting for civil engineering, electrical engineering, and mechanical engineering. There’s also architectural draughting, piping draughting, and structural steelwork detailing to pick from.
Draughting will have common principals and practices that will carry across in all specialisations. However, you are required to have expert industry knowledge and understand industry terminology that will come through in the way that you ‘draw’ or draught.
Electrical draughting may require an understanding of how power stations operate and what they’re composed of, whereas civil draughting will require an understanding of civil infrastructure such as roads and bridges, and what the industry best practices are when designing these and deciding on where they should be placed.
Should I Study Draughting?
If you have a keen interest in any of the above-mentioned industries, excel at technical drawing, and have a sharp eye for detail, then draughting may just be the ideal career path for you!
However, if you do have a technical mind and an interest in draughting, but aren’t sure what to specialise in, then you may want to try out our Multi-Disciplinary Drawing Office Practice course. This course exposes you to a wide range of industries that require draughting, and it teaches you how to use professional software to render accurate and practical draughting designs.
TO SUM IT ALL UP…
“What is draughting?” In a nutshell, draughting transforms a design dream into a working drawing that any artisan or professional can use to construct the final product. A draught is part of a universal code of industry communication – it should be understood from one workplace to the next and as far as one continent to the next!
Have any further questions on draughting and want to know whether it’s right for you? Our staff will fill you in on everything you need to know to make an informed decision. Get in touch with portia@africanacademy.co.za or info@africanacademy.co.za for all your queries.
