Got called out on my dims at a job site in Nashville

I was laying out some duct runs for a commercial build last week and a senior drafter pointed out that all my dimensions were from the wrong reference point. He showed me how using the column grid instead of the wall saved me 20 minutes of math per drawing. Has anyone else had a mentor catch something basic like that and totally change your workflow?

3 comments

3 Comments

mark36115d ago

That little trick with column grids vs walls is the kind of thing that makes you wonder how much time you wasted before (and it really adds up on a big commercial job). Once you switch over, it feels like a cheat code for laying out ductwork.

claire_walker14d ago

That column grid trick is the real deal. Makes me cringe thinking about all the extra math I did before someone showed me that same thing on a hospital job. Once you start referencing off the grid lines everything lines up cleaner too, less fighting with architectural offsets that move between sheets. It's one of those basics that nobody teaches in school but saves you hours on a big build.

drew_park13d ago

Man I feel that. My first week on the job I was dimensioning everything off the nearest wall edge like some kind of caveman and my lead just stared at me for a solid five seconds before he showed me the grid trick. Felt like he was holding back laughter the whole time. Now I look back at those old drawings and wonder how I wasn't fired for making everyone redo their layouts around my wall-based nonsense.