CAD Training

Why learn CAD?

In many different disciplines, the advent of CAD has radically changed the way professionals work. Most project managers now expect that any drawings describing design work will be created using some type of CAD software. They also assume that the work will be delivered in both printed and electronic format. In most professions, design work on paper drawings alone is no longer acceptable.

This change in attitude has major implications for many of us. If you are working, or intend to work, in the Architecture, Engineering or Construction industry, you need to be able to produce CAD drawings if required. If you want to use a computer to generate accurate drawings describing your design work, then you need to learn how to operate (use) CAD software to create the drawings that you might currently prepare on a drawing board. Our distance learning CAD courses help you to do just that. You can start with a modest investment in an introductory (QuickStart CAD) course and if you like the way we present our learning materials, progress along a path which leads to CAD competence.

The aim of this set of notes is to provide some 'in-depth' guidance if you are considering undertaking CAD training. It is written with potential students of ours in mind, but should apply to anyone contemplating learning CAD.

Learning to use CAD software - word of warning!

Although the user interfaces in modern CAD software are very intuitive, learning to use CAD software to produce professional drawings is not a trivial exercise; it is not difficult, but you need to commit to CAD and allocate sufficient time to 'come up to speed'.  Producing drawings using CAD software is certainly not as simple as using applications like Microsoft Word where with minimal instruction, raw beginners can 'knock out' an acceptable piece of work, such as a letter or report, in a very short space of time.

The software tool to use

The most common CAD software in use in the Architecture, Engineering and Construction industry is AutoCAD. We offer comprehensive tuition in the use of AutoCAD (and IntelliCAD - AutoCAD compatible software) and in DraftSight - free AutoCAD compatible CAD software. These CAD software programs, AutoCAD ($6500) IntelliCAD ($200) and DraftSight (free),all 'speak' the same command language - a set of instructions used to place entities and edit into the drawing space.

Tip This means that what you learn in one CAD program can be directly translated and applied to the others. IntelliCAD is an affordable clone of AutoCAD. DraftSight is free CAD software and available as a link from http://www.draftsight.designcad.com.au.

Training locations

Our training can be delivered:

  • In your offices (Adelaide or Canberra, ACT) - all we need is a small room, we can bring two computers with us, one for us and one for your use,
  • In-house in our design studio at Regency Park, South Australia, or
  • By distance learning which is delivered via our broadband learning site. The cost is low ($75 per course), enrolment is rapid, the material is available 24/7 and once you are enrolled for a course, you can take advantage of our support forums and email help.
Tip Please visit the learning site and check out the syllabus (click on the blue information link alongside uickStart CAD) and play some of the sample instructional movies there before placing an order. That will ensure that your computer and iits Internet connection is compatible with our learning systems.

Our distance program

We have spent many years developing a learning system which mimics a personal one-on-one approach. Our distance students tell us that it nice to know that there is someone on the other side of the computer screen, no matter how far away they are from a major centre. We support you by email, a support section on this web site and if broadband eLearning is chosen, by Q&A forums associated with the individual course. We have successfully taught students in remote areas of all Australian states (and Christmas Island) in Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, South Africa, New Zealand, Dubai, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Determining your training needs

Your first step in determining a suitable training program for your needs should be to make sure that you understand what it is that you want to achieve i.e. you need at the outset to define your aims. There are many possible scenarios:

  • You may simply want to know what CAD programs can do for your own interest. If that is the case, then read some of the more general articles on CAD in the support section of this web site. We have for example, published articles on choosing the correct CAD software, working in 3D, sending CAD drawings to laser cutting firms etc. You can also get a feel for what CAD entails by playing some of the movies from the syllabus pages of our CAD courses on our broadband learning site.

  • Alternatively, you might be interested in CAD because you have been asked to manage a team of drafting staff involved in a major project, but do not necessarily want become CAD proficient yourself. If this is the case, we suggest that you enrol for our QuickStart CAD course ($75.00 by broadband learning). This course, 'QuickStart CAD - An Introduction to Computer Aided Design', focuses on the overall process of taking a design idea to a CAD drawing (model) in the computer and finally to a print of that design on paper. Please note that the course does not go into any detail about the mechanism of performing each step in the process. Thus QuickStart CAD is suitable for those who want to know what CAD is all about, i.e. architectural, engineering and other managers and professionals who want to understand what the CAD process entails and what they can expect from CAD drafting by their staff and consultants. It is also suitable for those who might be contemplating a career in CAD drafting, or apprentices who must complete a certain amount of exposure to CAD as part of their training. It is a low cost first step to 'put your toe in the water' and sample our materials. QuickStart CAD can be taken as a broadband course costs ($AUD75.00) and requires about 20-30 hours of your time, (and more if you take advantage of the Q&A and submit exercises forums). Experience shows us that many students do better with this form of training than they do with group or one-on-one training as they can take their time and there is no sense of competition with others in the class.

  • Finally, you may have decided that you want to acquire professional CAD drafting skills and earn at least part of your income by producing CAD design work. If this is the case, you will need to do more study. We suggest that you take the QuickStart CAD course first, perhaps by broadband learning to keep your learning costs low, confirm that you like our learning system and then enrol in three more courses which follow one after the other. These courses are: Basic CAD 1, Basic CAD 2  plus Paper Space & Model Space - each costs $75.00 and each will take > 100 hours of study and lead to CAD competency. You can certainly take these course by distance learning, but might prefer to take some or all of these latter courses in our design studio in Adelaide or Canberra. The cost is $AUD550.00 for a single day of training.

This latter step - enrolling in full scale CAD learning requires a major commitment of your time and effort and should not be entered into lightly.

  • When you graduate, we offer discipline specific workshops and for those for which it is appropriate, a course in how to produce design work in 3-D.

So, the sequence of courses leading to a professional drafting standard is:

  • Enrol in our QuickStart CAD and
  • follow it with Basic CAD 1,
  • Basic CAD 2 
  • then Paper Space & Model Space .

This series of courses will cost a total of $AUD300 when taken as a broadband distance student, but the cost will be spread over a considerable time.

Tip Please note that you do need to allocate considerable time if you choose this option (>100 hours practicing skills that we have taught you) in addition to the formal course instruction (approximately 20 -30 hours per course).

Our distance learning program - some preliminaries before enrolling

  1. Don't forget, visit http://www.softwaretutor.designcad.com.au and examine the syllabus for the course you intend to take.

  2. Play at least one of our sample movies embedded within the course description page. These movies are in WMV format and will play using Windows Media Player which is installed by default on most Windows based computers. You may possibly have to download a (free) copy of Windows Media Player, although most modern computers have this tool built in. Our courses contain many instructional movies. These are an integral part of or learning model and we want to be assured that your equipment works with the movies that we make before you enrol. These movies provide comprehensive instruction on the use of CAD commands to build drawings.

  3. Obtain a copy of the (free) trial version of some CAD software. DraftSight is best for beginners. Establish that it works on your computer before ordering a course.  Alternatively, make sure that you have a working copy of CAD software (AutoCAD or IntelliCAD) on your computer.

Postgraduate courses

We offer several advanced modules for those drafters who have been working with CAD for some time. Various CAD workshops (covering Mechanical, Electrical, Chemical, Instrument, Process & Instrumentation Drawings, Civil, Survey, Landscape disciplines etc.) follow QuickStart CAD and Basic CAD 1 and 2. These workshop courses are usually taken some time after a student has been working professionally as a CAD drafter and are designed to enhance your skills. We like you to come to us with some 'real work' so that we can work on the CAD drawings in your discipline together. Courses will also be available at a later stage in the programming languages supported by AutoCAD & IntelliCAD - AutoLISP and Visual Basic for applications.

The CAD software to use

The most commonly used CAD software in Australia (and in many other parts of the world) is AutoCAD. It is general purpose software and is used by professionals in fields as diverse as surveying, landscape architecture, circuit board design, mechanical engineering, architecture, electrical engineering, boatbuilding, monumental masonry and so on. There is really no limit to the use to which the software can be put; it is even used by some graphic designers to create logos.

AutoCAD is quite expensive (approx $AUD6,500.00), and the company that makes it (Autodesk) encourages you to pay an annual maintenance/upgrade fee to them. This annual fee can be as high as $AUD750.00.

Even though our company owns several AutoCAD licenses, we tend to use IntelliCAD, a much cheaper alternative to AutoCAD. The commands used in AutoCAD to produce drawings are replicated in IntelliCAD. Note that there are different versions of AutoCAD and IntelliCAD and also other CAD software, so obtain some expert advice before 'putting your money down' on some CAD software. As mentioned, we produce GardenCAD, our own free CAD software and you can certainly use it to get a good feel for Computer Aided Design. Please visit http://www.gardencad.net for more details.

Q. Is some form of certification provided?

Yes. We provide all students with a "Certificate of Achievement". A statement that a student has reached a satisfactory standard and completed a competent set of working drawings can also be added on request. This endorsement is subject to satisfactory submission of exercises. We are not endorsed by the University of Adelaide (our erstwhile landlord) and this certificate carries no official weight, but has been used by students in Australian TAFE colleges to claim recognition for prior learning.

Q. Do you need a copy of the CAD program loaded on your computer?

Yes. As mentioned, we can provide a trial version of IntelliCAD if you do not own a licensed version of IntelliCAD or AutoCAD. DraftSight is another (free) alternative. We would expect that anyone embarking on the series of four courses leading to CAD competency, QuickStart CAD, Basic CAD 1, Basic CAD 2 and Model Space/Paper space would have a full copy of DraftSight, IntelliCAD or AutoCAD installed on their computer.

Q. Is it necessary to own a plotter?

A. No. As long as you have a printer attached to your computer, that will do. The principles involved in preparing a drawing on an A1 sheet (which measures 801mm by 566mm) are the same as those used to prepare a drawing on an A4 sheet. We also teach you to print drawings to PDF file which is the best way to communicate with external clients. These PDF files can be taken to your local copy center and plotted in black and white quite cheaply.

Q. What methods of payment do you offer?

Online enrolment at http://www.softwaretutor.designcad.com.au is available 24/7. Pay by PayPal or credit card and start straight away.