CAD SERVICES: OUTSOURCING OR IN-HOUSE?
CAD services are a must-have stage for every architectural and design project that is made from scratch. Digital drawing is an effective and flexible bridge between an idea and a start of its implementation.
Contents:
- Where an in-house drafter costs you
- Where an in-house drafter pays off
- The downsides of outsourcing
- The upsides of outsourcing
- Freelancers as a third option
- CAD outsourcing FAQ
An architectural firm got a large-scale project that requires different kinds of CAD drawing services. The Architects have to find draftsmen as soon as possible because the deadline is very strict. They tried to look for specialists on job search sites but there are so many CVs and most of the draftsmen have very narrow specialization. The company can’t afford to hire a few specialists, not to mention that there is no time for this. The Architects decided to find outsource CAD types of drawing services but there are so many studios – how to choose the real professionals and get the drafts on time? Learn more about outsource CAD studios and compare them with the services of in-house specialists.
In-House CAD Drawing Specialists: Disadvantages
Salary Costs. The wages of full-time employees are generally much higher than the payments for outsource services. In particular, freelance CAD draftsmen charge only for hours spent on the project, while staff receive a monthly salary regardless of their results. In addition, an employer pays taxes and other government fees for every full-time specialist.
Specific Drawing Skills. Every CAD draftsman has his own specialization and does a specific type of drawings. In the case of complicated projects that require different drafting services, it is necessary to hire a whole team of employees with different skills. Needless to say, such HR strategy demands a large budget.
Equipment. Full-time draftsmen should be provided with everything necessary at the expense of their employer. Usually, it means a powerful PC, a drawing tablet, the latest official updates of CAD drawing software such as AutoCAD, Revit, SketchUp, 3ds Max and so on. On the other hand, freelance draftsmen use their own equipment and resources.
Employee Benefits Package. Official employment requires such basic benefits as leaves, medical insurance, days off on state holidays etc. All of these things cost money and interfere with the work process. For example, a leave or illness of an employee in a small architectural company leads to delays as no one can replace him for a period of time.
Count the real cost of a staff draftsman before comparing: salary, taxes, a workstation, AutoCAD and Revit license seats that renew every year, plus the slow months when there is nothing to draft and the salary still runs.
In-House CAD Services: Advantages
Personal Communication. Employers are able to always communicate with staff members which allow personal control over the process of creating drawings. In-house draftsmen are within a hand’s reach in case of emergency, tight deadlines or urgent corrections. Though working hours should not be overlooked – no employers are happy to work overtime.
Concentration on One Project. In-house team of draftsmen works only for an employer. They concentrate all their efforts on an on-going project and don’t get distracted by anything else. Sometimes, freelancers work on several projects simultaneously which make the process slower and increases the number of mistakes. However, big outsource drafting studios have solved this problem: they can hire and keep enough professionals for large-scale projects, so they work on each of them until it’s finished.
Want to know more about CAD services our studio provides? Check out this archive with projects examples and learn more.
Outsource CAD Drawing Studios: Disadvantages
Hard to Choose. The growing number of outsource studios, drawn in by how outsourcing speeds up drafting , makes it difficult to choose specialists, especially for those who try to hire them for the very first time. It’s not easy to understand who is reliable and who can fail. However, this problem is easily solved by viewing companies’ portfolios and ratings as well as reading customer reviews. For instance, ArchiCGI studio has a portfolio on the website, case studies with details, reviews from clients – everything a viewer needs to make a decision.
Higher Possibility of Misunderstanding. Sometimes online chatting and rare Skype calls are not enough to clarify all the nuances of a project. The lack of personal communication and rare updates about drawing process can lead to misunderstandings and mistakes. Though it’s not a problem for an outsource CAD company with a good customer-relationship management. For instance, our studio has CGICRM that allows clients to control the process 24/7. Moreover, ArchiCGI Clients Managers and Project Managers are always ready to report on drawings progression.
No Guarantees. Most of the freelance draftsmen don’t promise any confidentiality or on-time guarantees. In contrast, big outsource studios can guarantee confidentiality. ArchiCGI offers clients to sign NDA agreement. As well as that, we have quality and on-time guarantees which means if our specialists don’t provide high-quality results within a deadline, clients won’t have to pay for the received CAD services.
Before signing anything, look at the portfolio, ask about NDA practice and give a small paid test task. We collected the red flags in a separate piece on how to choose a drafting firm.
Outsource Drafting Services: Advantages
Multitasking. Large-scale projects require different types of CAD drafting services. In order to accomplish it, a company will need a big team of specialists. Outsource studios have experienced and skilled staff of draftsmen that are able to combine their drawing skills for the most complex projects. A client gets all types of CAD services he needs and doesn’t have to pay a fortune for a full-time team of employees.
Faster Work Process. The big staff of outsource studios ensures that CAD drawings will be finished much faster. When it comes to complex projects, a few teams of specialists can work on them simultaneously making everything two times faster. Only the biggest architectural and design companies are able to hire so many full-time employees, so outsourcing CAD services is a real solution for small and medium-scale businesses.
Cost-effective. Freelancers only charge for hours spent on the project which means the simpler drawings, the lower the price a client gets at the end. In addition, there is neither hospital and holiday pay nor equipment expenses. While using outsource CAD services, clients pay only for the completed drawings which significantly reduces the budget.
Having your own team of draftsmen at hand is quite beneficial, but it should consist of specialists with different drawing skills for higher effectiveness. Hiring so many employees is not a problem for large companies with huge budgets, but what should ordinary architects and design companies do? Outsource studios provide the same CAD services as large staff, only faster and cost-effective. There is no need to spend time on hiring full-time workers – an outsource drafting studio will select specialists for each project and deliver professional results on time.
The rate question comes up first, so here it is: our drafting costs $20 per hour, Revit work $25, and the estimate is free. What actually moves the number is scope and geometry, we broke that down in what affects the cost of CAD drawings.
Freelance CAD Drafters: the Third Option
Freelancers sit between staff and studio. Hourly rates look attractive and for a one-off sheet a good freelancer is often the fastest route. The catch shows up at scale: one person means one calendar, no backup when they get sick, and quality control is whatever they had time for at 2 a.m. A studio costs about the same per hour, but behind the rate there is a project manager, an internal check before every delivery and a second drafter when deadlines squeeze. We wrote about the situations where outside CAD drafters make sense, freelance or studio alike.
Wonder how much high-quality drafting services cost? Check out the examples of our real projects with pricing.
Want to get all types of drawings without spending a lot of money on hiring your own staff? Use ArchiCGI CAD drafting services and get the guaranteed high-quality results without any risks and efforts.
Daryna Romaniv
Senior Client Manager
Daryna is a Senior client manager at ArchiCGI. She can guide you through our workflow and quickly resolve any issue along the way. In her spare time, Daryna enjoys cooking, reading fantasy books, and watching “Friends”. She also loves traveling, especially to sunny Italy.
CAD Outsourcing FAQ
What is CAD outsourcing?
Handing drafting work to an outside company instead of keeping it in-house. You send sketches, PDFs or models, the contractor returns finished drawings in your standards, and you pay per hour or per project instead of per employee.
Is it cheaper to outsource CAD drafting or hire in-house?
For a steady full-time load, in-house can compete. For everything else outsourcing wins, because you skip salary, taxes, software seats and idle time, and pay only for drafting hours actually spent. Most firms we work with keep a small core team and push overflow outside.
How much do outsourced CAD services cost?
Studios typically charge fixed hourly rates, ours is $20 for drafting and $25 for Revit based work. Freelance rates swing wider in both directions. Either way, ask for an hour estimate before work starts, a serious contractor gives it for free.
How do I choose a CAD outsourcing company?
Portfolio in your project type, an NDA offered before you ask, clear communication through one manager, and a small test order before anything big. If revisions policy is vague, walk away, corrections are where loose contracts get expensive.
Can outsourced drafters work in our CAD standards?
Yes, and they should. Send your template, title block, layer and naming conventions with the first order. A good team drafts inside them from sheet one, so the files are indistinguishable from your own.
Will CAD drafters be replaced by AI?
Not the good ones. Software already eats the boring half of the job. Layer cleanup and dimension chains and sheet numbering are all getting automated fast. What no tool does yet is look at a messy sketch set and work out what the person on site actually needs to build from. That judgement comes from having drawn the detail before and watched it fail once. Roles that were pure button pushing will shrink. Roles that involve deciding things will not.
How much does a draftsman charge per hour?
A staff drafter in the US runs roughly $30 to $60 an hour once you fold in payroll taxes, software seats and the weeks with no work to give them. An outside team costs less because that overhead is not on your books. We charge $20 an hour for drafting and $25 for Revit and BIM. The first two rounds of revisions are free.
What is a CAD contractor?
An outside drafter or studio you pay per project instead of per year. No desk, no license seat, no payroll. You hand over the input, agree the scope, and get files back. What separates a contractor from a lone freelancer is capacity. A team with a bench can swallow a rush job that one person physically cannot finish in time.
It’s good to know that outsourcing your drafting can lead to having a faster work process. I think it’s important to get work done quickly and efficiently. I’ll be looking further into the benefits of outsourcing drafting in the future.
Great post!
The cost of both In-house and outsource CAD services can be expensive. But what matters is the quality of the work. Your article is top notch and it is very helpful!