CAD Technician

One way may be to omit the word 'maintenance' from the CV !

I moved from Senior Q A Engineer to Senior Design Engineer at a different company by omitting the 'Q A' and letting them assume 'Design'....I knew I could do it...but it's getting your foot in the door!

I ended up as Chief designer...so I didn't con them...

Baaaad Kitty

Good advice Del, as maintenance and QC are considered to be from a different planet vis-a-vis design. That being said, both offer insight and experience that is valuable to design. If I'm re-designing production machinery, the first persons I talk to are maintenance. If re-designing products, QC and customers.

But from my own experience, I would go a step further, and advise that you go 3D, as 2D is all but dead. If you like Autocad, you will LOVE 3D solid modelling. I worked in mechanical design with Autocad since version 9. Two years ago, after careful research, I went with SolidWorks. I not only taught myself on-line (igetit.com, SolidProfessor), but bought my own seat of Solidworks, am now self-employed, and have never looked back since. I rarely have to leave home, make good money, am regularly turning down work, and my company dress code is pants-optional!

Thanks for the advise. Solidworks looks really good but also alot to learn. Bet it costs a bundle too. Went to that site igetit.com but it seems to keep giving me links to other things. Where did you do this online course? Would love to try it myself but if it costs alot then I may have to leave it.

Thanks for any advise.

It's not cheap, that's for sure, but it's a lot better than it used to be, and the computers capable of running it are commonplace now as well. I run a Dell P4 2.8 workstation, great for my purposes (the SolidWorks website lists the hardware requirements in detail). The full seat is about $7,000 Can. (approx. 3,500 pounds?), which you would only need if you are running your own (legitimate) operation, but you can get a student edition for about a $200 (for free if you know where to look . In fact, SW will send you a free trial copy). I took an intro course at the local community college, and then trained at home (avg. about 25 hours/week) with the igetit online course (about $400/yr) for about 6 months before I was confident enough to offer my services. The advantage of this "academic" approach is that I developed a well rounded understanding of the software, as opposed to many who have limited abilities as a result of learning just what they needed to know for their job requirements (employers rarely encourage you to learn things that are of no use to them).

It's really not that difficult, in fact it's being updated and improved constantly to be easier to learn and more user friendly. Theres a significant difference just since I got on board.

If you do decide to pursue it, just take the time you need to become proficient before testing the employment waters, and providing you have half a brain design-wise, you will find yourself highly valued in short order.

I agree with the academic aproach too. Another engineer I work with said that he was going to teach himself and I signed up to the 3 month night class accredited by the Scottish Qualifications Aurthority. He learned how to draw simple things but was out of his depth very quickly. The course I did enabled me to get the basics then teach myself from then on.

Think I'll have a look for a cheap version of solid works (borrow for free type thing) to get an idea of what it's all about.

Cheers

I HAVE BEEN USING AUTOCAD SINCE VERSION 10 AND HAVE BEEN INTO SOLID MODELING FOR THE LAST 5 YRS. I AGREE THAT 2D IS DYING HOWEVER IT IS STILL OUT THERE. 3D IS DEFINETLY THE WAY THINGS ARE GOING. I HAVE USED CATIA AND SOLIDWORKS A LITTLE. I HAVE TAUGHT MYSELF USING BOOKS I PURCHASED FROM LOCAL BOOK STORES (15 - 100 DOLLARS U.S.) SO THE POINT IS, YOU HAVE MANY OPTIONS AND YOU REALLY DO NOT NEED A "CLASS" TO LEARN HOW TO USE THESE SYSTEMS. YOU WOULD BE SURPRISED WHAT IS AVAILABLE.

GOOD LUCK

No need to SHOUT

Also look into Inventor from AutoDesk. Do take some drafting course so you know the standard of dimensioning and tolerances. Anyone can draw up a model and make a drawing. Very few could dimension it properly with correct tolerance.

I took my drafting course in high school with AutoCAD 9. I've then self learn Mechanical Desktop, Inventor and SolidWorks. You need about 6 months in the job to really get used to the software. Playing around at your own time is not enough. Also the more you know about manufacturing process the better it is. One can draw anything in CAD but is it possible to make and how much it gonna cost.

Pineapple

I also got started with Solidworks 5 years ago by just "climbing in" and drawing. It is actually not at all difficult to crank out simple parts, assemblies and drawings. After a few months I went on a training course and discovered just how large the cracks were in my self-taught knowledge. For instance, one has to consider the design intent carefully before starting - how the model will behave when it is changed. For example if one has a part with a hole in it, and the shape or size of the part changes, what should happen to the hole - should its position stay relative to a feature of the part or should it move in relation to the way that the part changes.

http://www.solidprofessor.com/ is a good place to start for training courses, videos, tips and user queries. There are similar sites for the other popular packages.

If you want to get started in 3D modeling, I would also suggest Sketchup which is free from http://www.sketchup.com/ I haven't tried it myself, but I have heard it is quite useful.

Brgds

Welcome aboard Maurice!

Yes, you are absolutely right, design intent is key, and it becomes painfully obvious at the assembly level as well as at the part level.

I forgot to mention, that I also talked my VAR into selling me the SolidWorks training manuals (after they verified that I had spent more time training with igetit than anyone else they had ever heard of before, so they felt confident I would not get too lost on my own). These also served to fill in the gaps, as well as continuing to provide handy reference and refresher material.

And let's not forget, with the SW subscription service, I have online and telephone tech support, which has proven invaluable on many occasions. In fact, I have taught them a few things (I have become very proficient with weldments), and some of my enhancement requests have actually been incorporated! This, among other reasons, is why I stand behind SolidWorks, as they listen to their users and give us what we need, not just what they can dream up (a la Autocad) to justify a new release.

BTW, there is essentially a full version of Autocad inbedded in SolidWorks.

Good advice regarding dimensioning and tolerancing. Also keep the application in mind when tolerancing. Many novices make things more precise than necessary, making for an overly expensive part.

Manufacturing process knowledge is probably best learned from experience and exposure. Nothing like hands-on with a mill or a lathe to teach that. I was a "plant rat" before going back to school, and it was and is an invaluable background. Extensive exposure eventually leads to an almost "instinctive" mechanical design ability. I was employed as a mechanical designer for 12 years before going self-employed, and I always enjoyed the opportunity to get my hands dirty in the shop, often prototyping my own designs.

While I agree that "playing around" may not be enough, I have to disagree that you cannot gain comprehensive skills and knowledge of 3D software (I can only vouch for SolidWorks) on your own with the on-line and self-study programs available today. Not to brag, but I am proof, though I will admit that taking time off or working part-time while training would (and did) make it a lot easier.