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IntelliCAD Training

The aim of this set of notes is to provide some 'in-depth' guidance for those considering undertaking CAD training courses. It is written with potential students of ours in mind, but should apply to anyone contemplating learning CAD.

Training locations and conditions

Our training can be delivered in your offices or in our training room at Thebarton, South Australia or by distance learning using the Internet. We are willing to travel and have delivered courses in Canberra, Melbourne and rural parts of South Australia. We do set an upper limit of three on the number of people in a group when delivering face-to-face training. We do not run regulary scheduled groups. Although face-to-face training is more costly than Internet based training, we do give participants in our groups, free access to the Internet course corresponding to their in-house course.

Distance learning

Distance learning is by far the most affordable way to learn to use CAD software. Learning is delivered via our broadband learning sites - http://www.softwaretutor.net and http://www.landscapetutor.net. Online learning has several advantages over face to face learning:

  • Training is available 24/7
  • Staff rosters are not affected as training takes placed when convenient.
  • There is no time limit on how long a student may take to complete a course
  • Courses incorporate various forums where questions can be answered.
  • Assignments can be submitted via the web site
  • Knowledge can be tested and immediate feedback given by taking multiple choice tests which are incorporated into the modules.

We have successfully taught students in remote areas of all Australian states (and Christmas Island) in Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States via this program. We have made considerable efforts to mimic the one-on-one approach in the online environment.

Here are some comments from  users:

The course is great, very detailed and allowing me to grasp better, lots of 'CAD' info.
and another:
The short movies are really useful. As the old saying goes, "A picture is worth a thousand words". I admire the way you are able to combine your computer skills with your CAD skills to provide a course like this.
 
Why should you learn CAD?

In many different disciplines, the advent of CAD has radically changed the way professionals work. Most project managers now expect that any drawings describing design work will be created using some type of CAD software. They also assume that the work will be delivered in both printed and electronic format. In most professions, design work on paper drawings alone is no longer acceptable. This change in attitude has major implications for many of us. If you are working, or intend to work, in the Architecture, Engineering or Construction industry, you need to be able to produce CAD drawings if required.

If you want to use a computer to generate accurate drawings describing your design work, then you need to learn how to operate (use) CAD software to create the drawings that you currently prepare on a drawing board. Our CAD courses help you do that. You can sample some learning materials, then start with a modest investment in an introductory course and if you like what we provide, progress along a learning path which leads to CAD competence.

Learning to use CAD software - word of warning!

Although the user interfaces in CAD software are very intuitive, learning to use CAD software to produce professional drawings is not a trivial exercise; you need to commit to CAD and allocate sufficient time to 'come up to speed'. Producing CAD drawings using CAD software is certainly not as simple as using Microsoft Word where with minimal instruction, raw beginners can 'knock out' an acceptable piece of work, such as a letter or report, in a very short space of time.

Software to use

Our CAD courses offer comprehensive tuition in the use of IntelliCAD. Since both AutoCAD and IntelliCAD 'speak' the same command language - a set of instructions to place entities in the drawing space and a common file format, what you learn in one environment can be directly applied to the other. 

Determining your training needs

You first step in determining a suitable training program for your needs should be to make sure that you understand what it is that you want to achieve i.e. you need to define your aims at the outset. There are many possible scenarios: You may simply want to know what CAD programs can do for your own interest. If that is the case, then read some of the more general articles on CAD in the support section of this web site. We have for example, published articles on choosing the correct CAD software, working in 3D, sending CAD drawings to laser cutting firms etc. You can also get a feel for what CAD entails by playing some of the movies from the syllabus pages of our CAD courses on our broadband learning sites - http://www.softwaretutor.net and http://www.landscapetutor.net.

Alternatively, you might be interested in CAD because you have been asked to manage a team of drafting staff involved in a major project, but not necessarily become CAD proficient yourself. If so, we suggest that you enrol for our QuickStart CAD course on http://www.softwaretutor.net. QuickStart CAD focuses on the overall process of taking a design idea to a plot on paper without going into any detail about the mechanism of performing each step. Thus this course is suitable for those who want to know what CAD is all about, i.e. architectural, engineering and other managers and professionals who want to understand what the CAD process entails and what they can expect from CAD drafting by their staff and consultants. It is also suitable for those who might be contemplating a career in CAD drafting, or apprentices who must complete a certain amount of exposure to CAD as part of their training. This course is affordable and costs $AUD250.00 when taken via broadband learning.

Tip Please note that distance courses such as this require at least 20-30 hours of study time, and more if you take advantage of the Q&A and submit exercises forums.

Finally, you may have decided that you want to acquire professional CAD drafting skills and earn at least part of your income by producing CAD design work. We suggest that you take the QuickStart CAD course first, keeping your learning costs low, confirm that you like our learning system and then enrol in the other courses which lead to CAD competency:

  • Basic CAD 1,
  • Basic CAD 2 
  • Paper Space & Model Space. 

Workshops and further study

We offer discipline specific workshops and for those for which it is appropriate, a course in how to produce design work in 3-D.  Designing in 3-D is a major commitment of time and effort and should not be entered into lightly, certainly not until you are IntelliCAD literate at 2-D drafting. You should also investigate whether or not Google SketchUp can handle your 3-D requirements before plunging into 3-D CAD with AutoCAD or IntelliCAD.

Our distance learning program - some preliminaries

Don't forget to visit http://www.softwaretutor.net and examine the syllabus for each course. Play at least one of our sample movies embedded within the course syllabus. These movies are in WMV format and will play in Windows Media Player on most Windows based computers. If they do not play, you may have to download a an update for Windows Media Player from the Microsoft web site. We want to be reassured that your equipment and Internet connection works with the training materials before you order.

IntelliCAD

Obtain a copy of the trial version of IntelliCAD software and establish that it works on your computer before ordering a course.

Postgraduate courses

We offer several advanced modules for those drafters who have been working with CAD for some time. Various CAD workshops (covering Mechanical, Electrical, Chemical, Instrument, P&ID, Civil, Survey, Landscape disciplines etc.) follow QuickStart CAD and Basic CAD 1 and 2. These workshop courses are usually taken some time after a student has been working professionally as a CAD drafter and are designed to enhance your skills. We like you to come to us with some 'real work' so that we can work on it together.

AutoLISP Programming

Courses will also be available at a later stage in the programming languages supported by AutoCAD & IntelliCAD - AutoLISP and Visual Basic for Applications.

Some comments about AutoCAD and pricing

The most commonly used CAD software in Australia (and in many other parts of the world) is AutoCAD. It is general purpose software and is used by professionals in fields as diverse as surveying, landscape architecture, circuit board design, mechanical engineering, architecture, electrical engineering, boatbuilding, monumental masonry and so on. There is really no limit to the use to which the software can be put, it is even used by some graphic designers. AutoCAD is quite expensive (circa $AUD 6,500.00), and Autodesk, the company that makes (publishes) it encourages (insists) you to pay them an annual maintenance/upgrade fee. This annual fee can be as high as $AUD 750.00. Even though our company owns several AutoCAD licenses, we sell and support IntelliCAD, a much cheaper alternative to AutoCAD which we sell for (AUD$425.00). We can do this because the commands that you use in AutoCAD to produce drawings are replicated in IntelliCAD. Note that there are different versions of AutoCAD and IntelliCAD and also other CAD software, so obtain some independent advice before 'plumping your money down'.

Questions about training 

Q. Is some form of certification provided?

Yes. We provide all students with a "Certificate of Achievement". A statement that a student has reached a satisfactory standard and completed a competent set of working drawings can also be added on request.

Q. Do you need a copy of the CAD program loaded on your computer?

Yes. As mentioned, you can use a trial version of IntelliCAD for much of the early training. This trial version allows you to practice creating drawings, but will not allow drawings to be saved or printed beyond the 15 day trial period. We would expect that anyone embarking on Basic CAD 1 or Basic CAD 2 to own a copy of IntelliCAD.

Q. Is it necessary to own a plotter? No. As long as you have a printer attached to your computer, that will do. The principles involved in preparing a drawing on an A1 sheet (which measures 801mm by 566mm) are the same as those used to prepare a drawing on an A4 sheet. We also encourage you to generate PDF versions of your designs on large format sheets.

Q. What methods of payment do you offer?

If you take a course as a distance student, you can pay and enrol on the web sites in 'real time' and start immediately. We can, on receipt of an official order from your company (a purchase order) enrol you separately and email you a password to enter your course. If you wish to pay by credit card, we use the PayPal system (www.paypal.com). PayPal offers a very secure system for processing payment across the Internet and takes all major credit cards. PayPal acts as an intermediary between you and Design Cad.

More information on our distance learning program can be found at http://www.softwaretutor.net and http://www.landscapetutor.net.



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