Amazulu

While everyone has been concentrating on the resources boom, the upcoming infrastructure boom has been sneaking up on us. $200 billion at least planned.

Good luck to any of the boys who score this. The candy is awesome.

Cha f**king ching!

stevemich

If only my 3 years of dedicated AutoCAD experience was not 15 years ago!!

Talk about a missed opportunity!

bjddavies

Good luck to them. I can't imagine a more boring job than staring at the screen all day. Our company only charges $70 ph to the clients for our CAD people's time so I imagine they get paid about half that in salary.

Amazulu

Get back into it. Go to TAFE. Do a refresher course. I have a dodgy copy of AutoCAD that I can give you.

Amazulu

Each to their own. I don't do CAD but I think half the population stares at a screen all day - only some people get paid more than others to do it! A real designer will only be spending half his time doing CAD though. The other half will be spent on site, sketching, writing reports etc.

bjddavies

You are right about the population staring at screens. Add in the TV and most waking hours are now spent in front of one screen or another. At our place only the Head of the CAD team ever leaves the office. The sketching and expecially drawing marking-up is done mostly by the Engineers.

It sounds like this job would involve far more design work than the drafties get to do at our place.

I am eagerly waiting for some of this $200bn of infrastructure work to come my way.

Amazulu

I find a lot of engineering practices in Australia are very old fashioned. The engineers do all the designing and the designers are basically CAD monkeys - although they still get paid designer rates. I work completely the opposite. I run a design team, and I insist that the designers do most of the designing and the engineers just set the parameters and check their work. On the new part of the project that we are just starting, we have only 2 engineers but 15 designers/CAD operators. The designers also get to go to site in the Pilbara or Port Hedland if required. For the rates this mob are paying though, I think they will be wanting top notch, hands-on designers.

jimbo_d

To be honest i've found Oz very progressive and the UK stuck in the past relying on engineers to design, then again you just have to compare rates of pay now between the two countries to see why, engineers only getting 40k GBP is a joke. I've stayed out of the mining sector as I believe it only has a few years at most to run, infrastructure is where it's going to be at, esp. water. Trying to think what project it could be, I was working in Brisbane on the water recyling project, only other major infrastructure jobs going on were all the underground road tunnels and gateway bridge expansion.

Amazulu

Maybe. I think it has longer to run that just a few more years, but who knows? On the other hand, Gas/LNG has a HUGE future - both in Qld and WA.

Agree infrastructure is going to boom. Engineers/designers will have no problem getting hired for these projects - even if they only have mining experience.

Gems

You can do a distance learning HNC in AutoCad here:

http://www.motherwell.ac.uk/CADD_Dis...arning/faq.asp

You can pay per unit, and works out good price. They will also allow you to do in Australia.

Gems

Gems

Ha ha, me too. Ive got a copy of Autocad from a few years back on my computer desk
Does anyone pay for it?

Also found this if anyone is interested in latest versions. However not used this website so can not vouch for them.

http://www.xgsoft.biz/?au

jimbo_d

Best off going in as a trainee to one of the engineering firms, they'll pay you a minimum of to $40k start off and the only thing that really matters in this game is experience

Amazulu

A friend of mine did this. He was in a dead-end job (building maintenance - no trade qualifications) and going nowhere and decided to change careers. So, at 36 with a wife, 2 kids and a mortgage he quit his job and enrolled in TAFE for a year to study structural design. It was extremely tough for them but he managed to work part-time and got through his course. At the beginning of this year he got a traineeship with an engineering consultancy at about $45k plus loads of overtime. He had no problem getting a trainee position and actually turned several down. Good luck to him. He's worked hard to do this and within a few years he will be getting $150k+.

It can be done.

bjddavies

Where I work has done the with school leavers and career changers. I don't know the salary but $40k seems close.

Amazulu

I have 5 trainees working for me. They range in age from 18 to 26 and earn between $40k (18yo) and $85k (26yo). Their course takes 3-4 years and they do a combination of TAFE and on the job training.