Transitioning from AutoCAD to Inventor

[Anonymous]

Hello everyone and thanks in advance for reading this and sharing your thoughts. I have a opening in the drafting department where I work for a CAD drafter who is proficient in Autodesk Inventor. I am having a very difficult time finding the correct applicants. I am curious if anyone knows what the transition is like going from another 3D drafting program to Inventor? The reason I am asking is because I do not have the time or expertise to teach a new hire Inventor. I am just trying to figure out other paths I may be able to take. Currently I have a job post titled "Entry Level CAD drafter / 3D Experience Necessary". Thanks again for looking.

[swalton · Accepted solution]

We use Inventor, Solidworks, and Creo for our various clients.  Our experience is that once a person has good modeling/drawing practices in one package, getting up to speed in a different package is quick. There is a learning curve as the user translates the command name/workflow concept from one system to another.  Plan on the first few projects running slower than you want.  

We try to hire based on design/drafting aptitude rather than knowing all the commands or workflows in the CAD package because we need independent drafters/designers/engineers.  The specific CAD workflows, button locations, and keyboard shortcuts will come with time.  The ability to understand the customer's design requirements or know what is required on a machined vs an injection-molded part print harder to find.  

[Anonymous]

Hi Swalton,
Thank you for taking the time to explain fully. This makes a lot of sense. I thought I had heard someone with comments similar to yours in the past. Just wanted to be sure that I did not dream it. Thanks again, this will definatly help in the hiring process. Have a great day.

[Frederick_Law]

It will be easier if you have a drafting standard set up.

Like template, file management, part number etc.

The more you can give the new hire to follow, the easier it'll go.

If you're looking for some one with 3D parametric skills, a 30 years AutoCAD drafter may not be a good choice.

If you could, give them a part to draw and make a drawing.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi Greg,

This is a very interesting topic. To a degree, it is an old topic too. Not that I have a good answer, I can share my opinions on this matter. Before you bring the new hire on board, you need to clearly define what you want to do in Inventor (or any other similar packages)? Are you moving completely over to Inventor (with minimum usage of AutoCAD)? Or you want to incorporate the two tools collaboratively.

This decision is very important and it will impact what the new hire needs to know first. If your process is mostly Inventor related, you should ask the person to go through the basic Inventor tutorials since it is the primary tool he will be using. If your process requires Inventor and AutoCAD to work side-by-side, you will want to focus on DWG Interop related workflows first. This will help him use Inventor and AutoCAD effectively at the same time and getting better understanding of how Inventor works.

This is a journey many users have gone through. There are a lot of good learning materials compared to 15~20 years ago. The forum has many experts with experience in this exact topic. Please feel free to ask any question.

Good luck and best wishes,

Many thanks!

[Anonymous]

I have been giving them a simple part with two bends a slot and a few holes. Seeing what they can do in 2d first then if that goes well ask them to give Inventor a whirl. The library in our vault is growing but there is still a ton of parts to be modeled and checked in. It's really time consuming being the only CAD drafter on board while self-learning the Inventor software and trying to get the vault populated and yet still being able to get initial job submittals out the door plus keeping the shop and installers busy. 

[Anonymous]

Thank you for your post.

[Frederick_Law]

So you're converting old AutoCAD drawings to Inventor 3D?

You'll need to spend lots of time with the new hire to instruct them what and how to do it and double checking everything.

There are too many ways to model it incorrectly.

[swalton]

Re-modeling AutoCAD designs in Inventor is a great training task to move 2d users to 3d users.  It is also nice to train 3d users on your company standards for modeling and detailing.  In any case, @Frederick_Law has a good point.  You will need to review/edit/correct files to make sure the new hires are following your company modeling and detailing standards.  

[Anonymous]

Sorry, got real busy with work. The answer to your question is yes we are moving everything from ACAD 2D to Inventor 3D. It has been a nightmare. Don't get me wrong, I love working in Inventor but still being a newbee to Inventor after working in 2D for the past 20 years is not easy as I believe someone - maybe you - had mentioned in an earlier post.

[Anonymous]

I'm still working on figuring out the modeling standards that would be correct for our company/product.

[Frederick_Law]

Instead of an entry position, you may want to consider someone with extensive skill in IV to guide you and the company.

Many companies found out the hard way when they sub out 2D to 3D conversion.

It was cheap but same as the result.

[JDMather]

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@Anonymous wrote:

 I am having a very difficult time finding the correct applicants.

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I have several students who are graduating in May with either a 2yr or 4yr degree who are very proficient in AutoCAD and Inventor.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the information but my company is located in Missouri and we are not offering compensation for relocation.