Technician, drafter or designer?

[SuperCAD]

I made a suggestion to my supervisor the other day that we should be called CAD Technicians, rather than CAD Designers. All four of us in the CAD department are split down the middle on this one. Myself and one other person think that Technician is more appropriate, while the other two seem to think that the word technician implies that we're on the same level as the mindless laborers on the shop floor. They basically said "designer's use their brains, and technician's use their hands" (loosely translated, since I can't remember the exact words).

So which is the better title for a CAD position?

[nocturne00]

... but maybe to give an insight to what each Title presents on why ive chosen it.
In my Point of View- Coz this became a debate also with our positions;
CAD Technician- position more aquianted with the mechanics of CAD, LISP Building, Scripts, Troubleshooting.
Draftsman- a position more aquianted with Drafting Standards, Presentation Techniques, Contract Requirements in Drawings, Documentations etc.
CAD Designer- a position knowlegable in CAD and also centered in Designing. eg, Design and Draft Floor Plans, Design and Draft Structural Plans whereas a Draftsman is only concentrated in Drafting.

Another Position that would have a general experience with all would be Preferred as a CAD Manager, Though usually CAD Managers are also strongly linked to CAD Technician

[ReMark]

Some companies call entry level CAD operators technicians. I've also seen CAD Draftsman used to denote the same as well. CAD Designer implies greater responsibility in terms of input. An engineer may approach the designer with an idea and after some discussion leave the majority of the design to him/her.

[SuperCAD]

CAD Technician- position more aquianted with the mechanics of CAD, LISP Building, Scripts, Troubleshooting.
Draftsman- a position more aquianted with Drafting Standards, Presentation Techniques, Contract Requirements in Drawings, Documentations etc.
CAD Designer- a position knowlegable in CAD and also centered in Designing. eg, Design and Draft Floor Plans, Design and Draft Structural Plans whereas a Draftsman is only concentrated in Drafting.

Another Position that would have a general experience with all would be Preferred as a CAD Manager, Though usually CAD Managers are also strongly linked to CAD Technician

Would this also be the hierarchy of position ranking too?
Technician is the low man on the totem pole, Draftsman is one step above, Designer is near the top and Manager is at the top of his game? Is there an established ranking of position in CAD?

To me, CAD Designer is kind of a misnomer since we aren't designing CAD. We're only using CAD as a tool to complete our work. Not to mention the fact that most of the "designers" that we get plans or information from don't really know what they're doing and their thoughts aren't based on reality. I don't feel comfortable being associated with those kind of people. I'm not just making pretty pictures to "WOW" people with.

Where I work, there are basically three levels of CAD user:

1. General user (pretty much all of us at this point).
2. Lead user (what I'm trying to get promoted to next week).
3. Manager (what I'm looking to do in the future, maybe next year).

I'm just trying to find the best title for each position that seems appropriate and professional.

[grain]

Where does a 'CAD Technologist' fit into this.

Also: As we say Architect and not CAD Architect, shouldn't we just say Draughtsperson. They've always done a fair share of designing.


Someone once said 'The trouble with computers is that by amplifying the production of the user the user makes the error that they are more capable than they are.

I shouldn't try and get involved in.....

[ReMark]

CADD = Computer Aided Drafting and Design.

Right...we don't design CAD. But we use CAD as our main tool for design purposes. I guess it is all semantics no matter what way you look at it.

Hey, as long as I have a job they can call me anything they want. What's in a title anyway?

[nocturne00]

Would this also be the hierarchy of position ranking too?

for draftsman and CAD technician, no. you could almost say that they are on the same footing based on the level of education that these two defined positions have accomplished, only their job definitions are different.
one way to differentiate would be to view a draftsman that has no background in CAD but can still produce standardized drawings using only the crude drafting tools- such a person is still referred to as a Draftsman. CAD technicians are viewed more as individuals knowlegable in the workings of CAD, its programming, etc.
But then again nowadays, these two w/c you have separated could also be merged and are only recognized generally as "Draftsman", differences are just to the amount of knowledge and skill the induvidual posesses in drafting.

[hotrodz0321]

not to put anyone down that has a job title that includes "technician"..but I cant stand it when im called a cad technician....back in the day, technician actually had meaning but these days they use it for every job title to make it sound more lucrative...sanitation technician (trash man), food prep technician (fast food), etc...

my vote is for any of the option EXCEPT CAD Technician

[BOB'27T]

In my office I'm referred to as a CAD Technician. I agree with Hotrodz, as it is an overused title today. I feel that designer is a better title.

[wannabe]

I think CAD manipulator would be the prefferable to most of the above.