A steel detailer is a person who produces detailed drawings for steel fabricators and steel erectors. The detailer prepares detailed plans, drawings and other documents for the manufacture and erection of steel members (columns, beams, braces, trusses, stairs, handrails, joists, metal decking, etc.) used in the construction of buildings, bridges, industrial plans, and nonbuilding structures. Steel detailers (usually simply called detailers within their field) work closely with architects, engineers, general contractors and steel fabricators. They usually find employment with steel fabricators, engineering firms, or independent steel detailing companies. Steel detailing companies and self-employed detailers subcontract primarily to steel fabricators and sometimes to general contractors and engineers.
Training and certification
United States Collegiate degree programs specific to structural steel detailing are rare to nonexistent in the U.S., but more general degree and certification programs may be found with curricula pertaining to design, manual or computer-aided drafting in general, or specific computer-aided drafting software. A college degree is not required to become a steel detailer in the U.S. Training is usually provided on the job, with a new trainee usually needing about five years of practice under an experienced detailer to become proficient with all of the requirements of the trade. Practitioners of this occupation in the U.S. may range from degreed, and possibly licensed, civil/structural engineers to those with little or no formal academic training who nevertheless possess extensive industry experience. Certification of structural steel detailers is not required in the United States. The National Institute of Steel Detailing (NISD) offers a selection of certification programs for steel detailers and detailing companies, but these are strictly voluntary.
Canada In Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada there are College courses specifically for Steel Detailing. Vancouver Community College Downtown Campus has been offering a Steel Detailing Certificate for many years. It is approximately a one-year program. BCIT (British Columbia Institute of Technology) also offers training. Many of the most well trained Steel Detailers in British Columbia have attended these institutions.
Responsibilities A steel detailer prepares two primary types of drawings: erection drawings and shop drawings. Erection drawings are used to guide the steel erector on the construction site ("in the field") as to where and how to erect the fabricated steel members. These drawings usually show dimensioned plans to locate the steel members, and they often also show details with specific information and requirements, including all work that must be done in the field (such as bolting, welding or installing wedge anchors). Since the erection drawings are intended for use in the field, they contain very little specific information about the fabrication of any individual steel member; members should already be completed by the time the erection drawings are used. Shop drawings, also called detail drawings, are used to specify the exact detailing requirements for fabricating each individual member (or "piece") of a structure, and are used by the steel fabricator to fabricate these members. Complete shop drawings show material specifications, member sizes, all required dimensions, welding, bolting, surface preparation and painting requirements, and any other information required to describe each completed member. The shop drawings are intended for use by the fabrication shop, and thus contain little or no information about the erection and installation of the steel members they depict; this information belongs in the erection drawings. The detailer must comply with the requirements of the design drawings and with all industry standards and protocols, such as those established by the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) and the American Welding Society (AWS). The detailer is usually not responsible for design, including structural strength, stiffness, and stability (which are the responsibility of the structural engineer), major dimensions of the structure and compliance with relevant building codes (which are the responsibility of the architect). A detailer is generally required to submit his drawings to the structural engineer and/or architect for review prior to the release of drawings for fabrication. However, to complete his drawings, an experienced steel detailer usually suggests connections subject to the approval of the structural engineer in cases where the structural drawings have insufficient information. In these situations, the steel detailer is guided by his experience and knowledge of existing engineering codes such as the Steel Construction Manual published by AISC. In the case of non-building structures there is typically no architect, and detail drawings are reviewed exclusively by the structural engineer of record. This design review ideally assures engineering accuracy and compliance with the design intent.
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