According to people in this career, the main tasks are...
| Task | Importance |
|---|---|
| Produce drawings, using computer-assisted drafting systems (CAD) or drafting machines, or by hand, using compasses, dividers, protractors, triangles, and other drafting devices. | 97% |
| Draft plans and detailed drawings for structures, installations, and construction projects, such as highways, sewage disposal systems, and dikes, working from sketches or notes. | 91% |
| Coordinate structural, electrical, and mechanical designs and determine a method of presentation to graphically represent building plans. | 87% |
| Analyze building codes, by-laws, space and site requirements, and other technical documents and reports to determine their effect on architectural designs. | 85% |
| Draw maps, diagrams, and profiles, using cross-sections and surveys, to represent elevations, topographical contours, subsurface formations, and structures. | 83% |
| Lay out and plan interior room arrangements for commercial buildings, using computer-assisted drafting (CAD) equipment and software. | 82% |
| Supervise and train other technologists, technicians, and drafters. | 81% |
| Determine the order of work and method of presentation, such as orthographic or isometric drawing. | 81% |
| Finish and duplicate drawings and documentation packages according to required mediums and specifications for reproduction, using blueprinting, photography, or other duplicating methods. | 80% |
| Draw rough and detailed scale plans for foundations, buildings, and structures, based on preliminary concepts, sketches, engineering calculations, specification sheets, and other data. | 79% |
| Correlate, interpret, and modify data obtained from topographical surveys, well logs, and geophysical prospecting reports. | 78% |
| Check dimensions of materials to be used and assign numbers to lists of materials. | 77% |
| Determine procedures and instructions to be followed, according to design specifications and quantity of required materials. | 75% |
| Supervise or conduct field surveys, inspections, or technical investigations to obtain data required to revise construction drawings. | 74% |
| Explain drawings to production or construction teams and provide adjustments as necessary. | 71% |
| Obtain and assemble data to complete architectural designs, visiting job sites to compile measurements as necessary. | 71% |
| Determine quality, cost, strength, and quantity of required materials, and enter figures on materials lists. | 70% |
| Locate and identify symbols on topographical surveys to denote geological and geophysical formations or oil field installations. | 70% |
| Create freehand drawings and lettering to accompany drawings. | 69% |
| Calculate excavation tonnage and prepare graphs and fill-hauling diagrams for use in earth-moving operations. | 65% |
| Prepare colored drawings of landscape and interior designs for presentation to client. | 64% |
| Calculate weights, volumes, and stress factors and their implications for technical aspects of designs. | 62% |
| Plot characteristics of boreholes for oil and gas wells from photographic subsurface survey recordings and other data, representing depth, degree, and direction of inclination. | 62% |
| Reproduce drawings on copy machines or trace copies of plans and drawings, using transparent paper or cloth, ink, pencil, and standard drafting instruments. | 53% |
| Calculate heat loss and gain of buildings and structures to determine required equipment specifications, following standard procedures. | 45% |
