THANK YOU FOR RESPONDING TO OUR EMPLOYMENT AD.
PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING.
Thank you for your interest in the drafting position at Shop Drawings, Inc. Please take a moment and read this document as it tells you a little more about the company and the position. If it looks like the kind of job you want, please call us back to sc
hedule an interview.
Shop Drawings, Inc. was founded in 1980 and are in the business of providing shop, coordination and fabrication drawings for Sheet Metal, Plumbing and HVAC piping contractors nationally.
The projects we work on are schools, churches, office buildings, government buildings, hospitals and virtually anything that is commercial construction. Projects are completed locally but we service contractors in every state in the United States includi
ng Hawaii. Our web page (www.shopdrawings.com) has even drawn international Attention.
We believe that the person(s) we are interested in must have a genuine interest in architecture and /or mechanical design. There is no scheduled pre-requisite for this job other than requiring that you have an aptitude for this kind of work
. People we have hired in the past have been mechanics, college students, architects, engineers and even someone who used to be a carpenter and a receptionist.
To understand the work we do, you must have the ability to visualize 3 dimensional information while looking at a two-dimensional drawing. You must study the drawings to determine what the Architect's and Engineer's design intent really is. You must do s
ome calculating and research. This is important because the job is to take two dimensional information (the Mechanical Engineer's drawings which is diagrammatic) and determine how it will fit, in most cases, between the ceiling and the structure allowing
for lights, other utilities, etc. Shop Drawings, Inc. takes a conceptual design and creates a practical one. We commonly report many areas on the job that will not fit in the space they intend. The purpose of this business is to alert the contract
or of potential installation problems before the job is constructed.
It is important that you are the kind of person that would double-check his/her work to make absolutely sure that the drawing you produce is correct. Are you this kind of person? (Mistakes on drawings mean that contractors fabricate at great expen
se and then throw away materials drawn in error.)
Some people stop and smell the roses. Are you the kind of person who stops and looks at a construction site or interesting building? If so, this may be the job for you.
Even though this is a design business, the drawings we provide are "hands-on" and go directly to manufacturing shops and to construction sites. These drawings are viewed by many different contractors and are also reviewed and approved by Architects and M
echanical Engineers.
Shop Drawings, Inc. is also the creator of a unique CAD program (16 years of development and use) which has been compared to and is considered by many to be much faster to use than the popular Auto Cad ™ and other software programs for this type of
work. The basis of this program is "Rapid-Input" ™ which means that one of the skills that you must have (or must learn) is how to key numbers in the right side keypad "fast-like a bookkeeper would". The program we use has a unique way of using a
standard computer keyboard so that it functions as a very fast interface. We have yet to see anyone in any industry use it in this manner.
Shop Drawings, Inc. uses mostly Apple ™ (or Mac) computers do to its superior graphics capability and speed. (we also have some "Windows"™ machines) If you do not have any Mac experience and know "Windows ™", the interface is very simil
ar.
We also use the AutoCad ™ program for some miscellaneous tasks. If you have knowledge of this program, we would be interested in anything you can offer.
Shop Drawings, Inc. also uses the Internet (T-1 connection) to send and receive files. Our completed drawings are sent through the web for printing at our customer's office.
There will be a learning curve. Most people take about 2 weeks to thoroughly understand the system and another 2 weeks to get up to speed. The program is difficult to understand at first because it is different than what you are probably used to.
When you get up to speed, it is incredibly easy to use. We will expect you to give it your absolutely best effort.
Skills which are helpful in this business:
Organizational skills, Keyboard input skills, hand drawing, 3 dimensional sketching, computer aptitude, understanding word processing and spreadsheet programs.
It is helpful if you are mechanically inclined: Are you a hands-on type of person i.e. builds things, work on cars, etc? Have you fixed your own plumbing or electrical at home or built a shed in the backyard?
Do you have any hobbies, which relate to this type of activity?
Good eye-hand coordination is essential for the keyboard skills. We have found that people who play a musical instrument have an easy time at this.
Work hours are initially from 8:30 am to 5 pm. (1/2 hour off for lunch) After you are trained and if you can demonstrate that you are reliable, the work hours can be adjusted slightly to suit your personal life.
Shop Drawings, Inc. is a small company with plans on getting much larger. This is a very good ground floor opportunity because we have plans to open a 2nd office in the next year and we will need someone to head up that office.
The work is very rewarding and fast paced. In this business, you are constantly interacting with many different construction professionals. The market for this business is solid due to the ratio of contractors in need vs. specialized drafting companies
like this one.
Please fax your resume and salary requirements to 1-480-247-5739 or you may email it to employment@shopdrawings.com
Sincerely,
David A. Fleming,
President.
Disclaimer:
Shop Drawings, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. This letter is intended only as a means of advising prospective employees of the responsibilities associated with employment at Shop Drawings, Inc. Anything that may be written here that is inconsist
ent to any State or Federal Law is purely unintentional. If anything that is on these pages refers to any discriminatory practices is unintentional. Please call 301-926-6000 if you feel that you have read something that suggests any violation.
All references to other programs are stated as opinion only. No factual finding has ever been officially acknowledged by Autocad ™. No actual comparison test has been done.
