As new technology is introduced every day into the world, the way that people are doing things is also changing. Many architects and engineers prefer to use computer aided design or CAD to draw and set up their representations and plans. However, despite all the innovations and revolutionary changes to the science of planning and building, drafting equipment remains an integral tool in developing great designs.

drafting equipment was and is still used for technical drawing or drafting. Drafting is the skill of creating accurate representations of objects such as buildings or machine parts that would fulfill technical, engineering or architectural needs. The basic component of drafting and the piece of drafting equipment that no draftsperson could ever be without was the drafting table. The drafting table was nothing more than a smooth flat surface with straight sides and right-angle corners. Attached to this table was a sliding straightedge that was also known as a t-square. This was attached to the sides of the table that allowed it to be slid across the surface of the table and, therefore, the paper.

The advantage of the t-square was that parallel lines could easily be drawn with a pencil or technical pen along the edge of the t-square. The t-square was also used to hold other drafting equipment in place like such as set squares or triangles. These items allowed the draftsperson to easily draw angled lines and other technical bits that would require too much time otherwise. Other drafting equipment that a draftsperson would often use would be a variety of curves and bends to help in drawing curves and circles of every sort. The common items were the French curve that was simply a piece of molded plastic with various different curves on it. The familiar compass was used to draw circles and the spline was, essentially, a rubber-coated articulated metal that could be bent into the desired shape or curve.

Technical drawing or drafting required the expert use of drafting equipment to create the desired effect. Needless to say that drawing even a simply representation could probably take hours but precision is of utmost importance in drafting. There were a few shortcuts here and there that made the job easier but it was the introduction of computer aided design that changed the industry.

While most of the world’s draftsmen have moved over to computer aided design and the many different programs that are available, there are some who still stick to the tried and tested methods and drafting equipment. The precision and expertise is just as good, if not better, than computer aided design if only because a person puts a bit of himself into the representation.