CAD Bureau Services from The Magnum Group (TMG)

Engineering Drafting

Our Edge

Our CAD bureau services in this regard are outstanding because we employ several experienced engineers. And how do you benefit from this? The advantage is that we can solve problems that non-engineers cannot solve, and your work is not held up by us asking you questions.

An example: Recently a client FedExed us a threaded part and asked us to create an assembly drawing of it. There was no information about the thread standard. But being engineers, we knew what a thread gauge was, and used it to correctly identify the thread and quote the thread standard in the drawing. This saved turnaround time and saved the client the bother of looking up the thread specifications.

Another advantage of our being engineers is that we often make useful suggestions for improving designs (several such suggestions have been enthusiastically adopted by clients).

What types of engineering drafting do we do?

• We perform HVAC design and drafting (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) drafting. The details:

We have a European client who gives us complex projects which are challenging and therefore very interesting. They ask us to build 3D models of HVAC machinery rooms, and then generate annotated 2D drawings for their installation workforce to use.

All we have to go on is the architectural plan, a schematic diagram of the HVAC circuit and data sheets of the equipment (air handling units, fans, silencers). We have to calculate duct cross-sections and route all ducts and pipes from their source to their destination without any one of them colliding with the other.

If it sounds simple, it isn't: it takes ten months to finish one design.

We recently completed ten machinery rooms for a mammoth cruise liner with 3,000 cabins.

We use the latest 3D design software to perform this task: Bentley MicroStation with the PlantSpace plugin.

The same client asks us to create similar plans for very large land-based projects, like massive public hospitals.

Learn more about our HVAC design and drafting

• We perform mechanical design and mechanical drafting as part of our CAD bureau services.

Some clients FedEx us physical parts and ask us to create 2D or 3D engineering drawings of them. The requested output format is usually AutoCAD .

Other clients send us 2D views of their component or product, and then ask us to create photorealistic 3D models of them.

• We perform structural engineering drafting. Clients send us architectural plans and ask us to design and draw raft slabs or waffle slabs, then superimpose them on the architectural plans.

Learn more about our structural engineering drafting

• We perform furniture drafting. We have furniture manufacturer clients who want us to build 3D engineering models of their pieces, and then create several 2D views of each piece. They want these views to be in 1:1 scale, so that on the manufacturing floor their production people can put the physical pieces on the drawings and see if they are congruent.
• We have other furniture manufacturing clients who ask us to produce 3D visualizations of rooms full of their furniture (for which we use ArchiCAD, a popular CAD platform).

Architectural Drafting

Our Edge Again

As in the case of engineering, we have the advantage of a skilled professional on board, this time an experienced architect. This has proved invaluable in the interpretation and execution of the complex architectural tasks we regularly provide as part of our CAD bureau services

What types of architectural drafting do we do?

• We perform what is known in the trade as "Sketch to CAD". The client sends us a dimensioned hand sketch; we program it in CAD, usually AutoCAD.
• Other clients send us paper drawings by FedEx and ask us to program them in CAD.
  (We often add on some architectural analysis to this. The client sends us sketched floor plans and elevations; he asks us to figure out architectural sections as well)
• Some clients email us existing CAD drawings and ask us to modify them based on their written instructions. They might ask us to change room sizes, add doors or windows or change the roof design, perhaps modify the exterior detail or perhaps modify the drawing template.
• Another client is the world's largest publisher of architectural books. We have created thousands of drawings for this client for use in their authority reference books.
• As part of our CAD bureau services, we also create photorealistic 3D visualizations of buildings. If necessary we can drop these into photographs of a location to create a photomontage of what the location will look like with the building.

Learn more about our architectural drafting

Image Modification

Background Removal

• Given a photograph of a target object surrounded by background, we remove the background, which results in product images ideal for use in product catalogs

Learn more about removing background from photographs

Publication Editing

• We have extensively edited catalogs and price lists in PDF format

Technical Literature Creation

• We have created assembly instruction sheets for flat-pack furniture. The instructions consisted of images and text.

Learn more about our technical literature creation

Conclusion

The Magnum Group is a large, professional organization committed to accuracy, timeliness and excellent communication. Message us from the form below saying what you need done: we'll reply within one day with specific details!