Establishing Office drawing standards--any tips?

[Markus Dohner]

I've been assigned the task of setting up an office of 10 designers and project managers on a common VW drafting standard. They all have their own levels of experience and ways of organizing their own drawings, however, we are running into unfortunate inconsistencies, duplications, omissions, etc in the drawings. Anybody out there have some tips or experiences? Any checklists of things to do out there?

[Dieter @ DWorks]

1. Check for every person their latest drawing and see how the draw, then talk to them about everyting that's important for your drawings and how they do it.

2. Hold a meeting to know what everyone want so that thy can listen to each other.

3. Also think about what the end result must be. Make all needed classes and library files and set up a first standard.

4. Hold a meeting to talk about the new standard, how to use it, what's in it etc...

5. Let everyone test it and let them notate what they like and what they not like.

6. Hold a meeting too look at all data collected and how to change the standard.

7. Adapt the standard.

8. Repeat step 4 to 7 until you have what's needed for everyone.

9. From now on, you will only add extra library files, symbols, classes, etc... because they seem to be missing. Remember that a standard will always adapt to the current needs. What seems not needed now, can be needed in the future.

[Rossford]

In a bigger office, I can see DWorks point - with people working differently, the system probably will end up somewhere in between a detailed list of layers/classes and a simple one, where everyone can agree.

I gather the over riding goal is to use as few as possible but enough to separate the drawing into logical chunks?

I am a one man office after parting ways with my drafter who preferred to start anew in every document. I can never find layers, etc. because he used a unique name every time that suited him that day!

I do more landscape work and have read a few different takes on layers/classes that kind of work. Arhonocad manuals suggest floors for architects and work groups for LA's

I have set up my classes to follow all the items on my standard bid form, also using prefixes matched to the schedule (i.e. D for Drainage, just like my bid form) so they show up in order I am familar with in the drag down menu. I also use hyphens to create classes, sub-classes and sub-sub-classes (for example Drainage-Pipe-12")to reduce scrolling through a mile long menu.

As for layers, do most of you have separate layers for grading, drainage, planting, irrigation, etc. or do you just follow the design process - base maps, analysis, prelim, and construction dox and let the classes, visibility settings, etc. separate work items?

Thanks in advance!

[Markus Dohner]

Thanks, this is all very useful info. Anybody else out there working in an office of 10 or so designers and PMs?

On the layers matter, I use them like containers for objects with their own classes. That way I keep the layer count down, using them to isolate parts of the project. And I tend to put all things like elevations on one big layer and viewport them to sheets for printing, etc. 3D objects go on their own layer(s) too.