Posted on

Creating Quality Shop Drawings

Over the past few months, Stephen and I have been making an effort to produce Blog Content that does a good job of anticipating and answering questions from Potential Superior Shop Drawings Customers.

In this article, we want to go beyond the basic questions – such as How Much do Millwork Shop Drawings Cost? and How Long Does it take to Produce Shop Drawings, and take a deeper look at what is involved in Creating Quality Shop Drawings.

The goal of this article is to be more than just a resource for our potential customers – we want anyone … Read the rest

Posted on

Wire Brushing Cabinet Doors

A couple of years ago, I was seriously considering moving on from my then employer. I had been Drafting and CNC Programming Commercial Casework for a little over ten-years and felt like it was time for a change.

I was put in touch with the Production Manager of a Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturer here in Pennsylvania. After my initial interview, I asked for a Shop Tour so that I could see first hand what I would be getting myself into.

While walking around, I noticed a small group of guys that appeared to be grinding away on cabinet doors with a … Read the rest

Posted on

Expanding our Woodworking Plans Store

DIY Blanket Chest Woodworking Plans
DIY Blanket Chest Woodworking Plans

When Steve and I started Superior Shop Drawings, we knew that business was going to be slow until we began to establish ourselves as a viable source for Quality Shop Drawings.

In an effort to fill some of this initial downtime, I thought it would be a good idea to produce Shop Drawings for the DIY Woodworker and then offer those plans for sale here on our website.

I began by making a list of interesting projects that I thought Beginner to Intermediate Woodworkers could handle in their Garage Workshops. Once I settled on a few ideas, I opened up … Read the rest

Posted on

How Long Does it take to Produce Shop Drawings

When Steve and I receive a Request for a Quote, it is usually followed by two questions that are absolutely critical to being awarded the project. The first, and probably most important, is How Much do Millwork Shop Drawings Cost?

The second, and equally important, is How Long does it take to Produce Shop Drawings?

On the surface, this is actually a simple question to answer. When we produce a Superior Shop Drawings Quote, we take the time to review all of the areas outlined in the Scope of Work.

An estimated time is assigned to each Plan, Elevation, Section, … Read the rest

Posted on

Shop Drawings From a Photograph

Superior Shop Drawings - Desk Design

Before starting Superior Shop Drawings, I spent over a decade drafting Commercial Casework for an Architectural Millwork Company here in Pennsylvania. The company I worked for treated me well and I genuinely enjoyed working there.

The one downside to being with that particular company for so long was that there were stretches of time where the work became monotonous. It felt like I spent weeks drawing one large run of Plastic Laminate Cabinets after another.

Don’t get me wrong – there were plenty of interesting Reception Desks and Built-Ins along the way but the bread and butter of the company … Read the rest

Posted on

Creating Casework Shop Drawings

When it comes to Millwork Shop Drawings, at Superior Shop Drawings we receive quote requests that fall into two basic categories – Residential and Commercial.

Residential Cabinets and Commercial Casework require a different approach to complete and while both are worth discussing, we would like to focus on the Commercial end for the purpose of this blog post.

In this post, we’ll touch on what Commercial Casework is and the roll that Construction Techniques and Material Selection play on creating a set of Casework Shop Drawings.

Commercial Casework

Photo Credit: K&L Woodworking

Commercial Casework is a type of Cabinet that … Read the rest

Posted on

Using Tech to Improve Shop Drawings

Improving Shop Drawings with Tech

A couple of years ago, I worked as a Draftsman for an Arichtectural Millwork company here in Pennsylvania. We focused primarily on Commercial Casework and had a decent system for Creating Quality Shop Drawings.

The process started on paper. Our Estimating Department would print off Architectural Drawings on either 24×36 or 30×42 sheets. Those drawings would be marked up by hand – notes were hand-written on the sheets and items included in the quote were highlighted.

When the job was awarded, those Architectural Drawings would make their way back into the drafting office. Using those drawings, combined with a Scope … Read the rest

Posted on

What are As-Built Shop Drawings?

Superior Shop Drawings - Field Dimensions

When it comes to Millwork Shop Drawings, there are generally two common types – Submittal Drawings and As-Built Drawings. The difference between the two types is typically where they fall in the project schedule and information provided during a visit to the job site.

Submittal Drawings

Submittal Shop Drawings are normally completed prior to framing and drywall. They will detail how the Casework or Millwork is to be constructed based on the Architectural Drawings.

Cabinet Runs between walls will almost always have the letters VIF following the dimension. This signifies that the dimension will be Verified In F… Read the rest

Posted on

Do You Release CAD Files?

Not long ago, we had a conversation with a new customer in regards to CAD Files. This potential customer wanted to know if we released AutoCAD DWG Files upon completion of the project.

I was a bit surprised by this question as Steve and I both feel that it should be standard practice. As such, we release all AutoCAD Files as well as any support files when we turn over Millwork Shop Drawings for Final Submittal.

This wasn’t the first time we had been asked this question, so I decided to look into it. I was a bit surprised to … Read the rest

Posted on

Superior Shop Drawings Drafting Standards

When Steve and I first started Superior Shop Drawings, we envisioned a Millwork Shop Drawings Service that was attentive to the needs of all potential customers. This required an abundance of custom templates and standards that adapted to each and every customer.

When our workload was light, this totally custom view on shop drawings worked well. We were able to adapt to each customer and provide drawings that looked as if they were done in-house.

As our business took off, however, we found ourselves spending an extreme amount of time setting up for each customer. Between the increased setup … Read the rest