We Still Need Technical Drawings

Technical Drawings are not used anymore. Right? Wrong! Today they still build the backbone of the engineering world. Each German Automotive company still produce more than 1000 new drawings per day.   

As a definition, engineering drawings are used to define the requirements of an engineered item fully and clearly. An engineering drawing transfers what is required, wanted, and needed to enable resources to be expanded to turn an idea into reality.  

Let us explain why manufacturers and suppliers need the technical drawings from their point of view:   

OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturers) View

Why? Simple: essential information is missing in most 3D models – for example, the material or tolerances. While there are sophisticated models that contain this information (see Model-Based Definition), their usage is usually limited to the internal engineering department. In the Model-Based Definition, when the part needs to be produced or purchased from a supplier, it is converted into a Technical Drawing to be apprehensible.

Supplier View

In consequence, most suppliers worldwide work with technical drawings. Some of them do not even accept 3D models and process all their incoming orders as PDF or TIFF files. The reason for this is given below:

The 2D drawings for parts are useful to convey critical information immediately. Finding the balance between using 2D Drawings and CAD Models (Computer-aided design) can be done by asking this question: “What would take more time, looking at the CAD model or glancing at a spec sheet?”. The answer is: Critical data can be communicated quickly through a 2D drawing without the need to pull up a CAD model and measure. Moreover, engineering drawings have many further advantages such as portability, storage, ability to amend minimal costs and due to standardization, it gives the ability to be interpreted by others across the globe.  

There is, of course, an easier way to process these technical drawings, which are essential in the engineering industry. To automate their processes, Werk24 has developed a unique solution that automatically understands these drawings and extracts key information so that they can automate their feasibility checks, automate their price calculations, automate their ERP registration and much more. So, the dream has come true by AI technology!