Marine Deck Manufacturer Integrated New Technology into Their Products by Leveraging AutoCAD 3D Drawings

Our Client – Marine Deck Non-skid Products Manufacturer

Our client is a US-based company that provides sturdy, non-absorbent, non-skid decking material that reduces noise and fatigue for marine decks and platforms. Their custom decking materials increase safety by adding traction, provide comfort when standing on marine decks and platforms for extended periods of time, and protect surfaces from wear and damage.

The non-skid material is made of closed cell marine grade foam and backed with (PSA) marine grade peel-and-stick adhesive, so it can be stuck directly onto the deck, platform, or steps of the type of marine craft including sport or commercial fishing boats, ski boats, sailboats, houseboats, and personal watercraft.

Requirements for the CAD Drafting Project

The client needed to modify their older drawings for design purposes to accommodate enhancements in technology for their newer drawings. IndiaCADworks (ICW) was asked to model the older drawings in AutoCAD, ensuring that measurements would allow for optimal use of space on the boat once the marine decking has been installed.

Challenges Faced by IndiaCADworks Drafting Team

Some of the biggest challenges the ICW team faced throughout the duration of the project were:

• Finding team members with existing knowledge of the materials being used in the project so they could provide an outline for the AutoCAD drawings with the materials in mind.
• Since the client customizes each order for marine decking for their clients based on their clients’ boat, each AutoCAD model would be unique in size and construction which added complexity to the project.
• Since the older drawings provided by the client for remodeling didn’t contain all the important information required for the AutoCAD drawings, we struggled to find team members with knowledge and experience in working on drawings for the marine industry which was difficult.

Detailed Process for Developing the AutoCAD 3D Drawings

Bearing the client’s detail requirements in mind, our team set up a smooth, step-by-step process:

• Project scope, requirements, and deadlines were discussed and agreed upon with the client.
• It was decided that three team members would work on approximately 30 tasks each week.
• We requested that the client provide all their older drawings and floor plans of the building areas on the boats which needed to be reformatted in AutoCAD.
• The client provided scanned copies of the older drawings and floor plans.
• The team verified the drawings and details and requested images of the older boats as well as additional information regarding dimensions from the client.
• Once this information was received, our team began developing the models in AutoCAD.
• We suggested changes to be made to models based on the materials being used on a case-by-case basis.
• Once the client approved the suggested changes, the AutoCAD models were finalized and sent to the client.

Key Takeaways Benefitting the Client and IndiaCADworks

The client was able to save valuable time and money by outsourcing these projects to ICW instead of attempting the lengthy process of trying to find the right candidate for the job and hiring someone full-time. The client was able to maintain their good client service without delays with the help of our team.

Note: References available on request