Using pencil and paper construction planning in a tech-savvy world
In the midst of today’s modern and tech-savvy world, it’s incredibly refreshing to go “old school” at the start of a building vision. I enjoy going back to my roots, sketching and making shop drawings. I crafted the drawing below with nothing but an old-fashioned pencil, pen, ruler, piece of paper, and, most importantly, a vision. To me, this encompasses what a drawing is. A drawing, quite simply put, is someone’s vision that has been translated onto a piece of paper—preferably by the hands of the visionary.
A builder with creative vision can translate things in his mind before even putting them to paper. He or she can see an idea, further develop it within their mind, then bring it to life with their hands by putting pen or pencil to paper and beginning to draw before they even start to build. To do this, passion and creativity have to be in your blood. That is what translates a vision from the mind to the hands.
Throughout my middle school and high school careers, I also worked—proudly—as a draftsman for my father’s construction company. Because of my experience, my high school drafting class teacher permitted me to leave school in order to walk to my father’s office to work (this was rather unheard of during these days—prior to today’s traditional co-op and work experience opportunities.)
During the summers and over school holidays, I also served as a construction laborer, furthering my experience and knowledge and further pursuing my passion. I walked straight from school to job sites, hoping “the guys” would still be there so that I could learn more. If they weren’t there, I’d walk through the job site anyway, continuing to learn and dream about projects…then I’d walk to my father’s office.
Today, tapping into hand sketches takes me right back to those days of learning. As I get older I sometimes make the argument that these drawings are still faster than waiting for a CAD drawing file to be sent and shared, only to later have technology problems opening a file or having an email get lost in cyberspace. Whether these problems occur or not, it’s undeniable that a pencil-to-paper sketch contains more heart than any CAD-produced mock-up.
The heart in it is what makes it refreshing. A CAD file just can’t be in your blood the way that a hand sketch can. Likewise, a mouse will just never fit the hand the way a pencil does. I take pride in holding on to this “old school” passion, and in using it to put extra heart into the work I do for my clients.
Vice President/Owner,
Galbraith Pre-Design
As co-owner of Galbraith/Pre-Design, Inc., Mark Galbraith is responsible for the construction of commercial facilities in nine states. Continuing his family’s tradition of commercial and industrial construction in south central Pennsylvania and beyond, Mark’s experience includes site analysis and selection, pre-construction services, field engineering and project management.
