Hiring a Draftsperson or CADD

Designing a building is more than cool AutoCad rendering. There are state and federal regulations that must be met in every aspect of building design. As of 2008, the U.S. Green Building Council has building codes that have become mandatory for any new building. Your draftsperson should be well acquainted with these laws.

LEED.  LEED is an acronym for Leadership in Energy Efficient Design.  There are six points in a LEED certified building or home:

• Energy efficiency


• Water efficiency


• Materials made of renewable materials


• Cost Effectiveness


• Lowers carbon footprint


• Reduces waste

Qualifications and Screening:

• Knowledge of LEED construction, USGBC standards and upcoming legislation related to Green construction.  These laws are voluntary at this time, but are likely to become mandatory in the future. Going USGBC compliant will save you future Green renovation expense.


• Perform a background check with the Department of Commerce and BBB.  See if there have been any complaints.


• Review his rate.  Expect to pay $37 to $45 per hour for services as of the date of this publication.  It should take him about one and  a half to two hours to complete your project.


• Ask if he is insured and bonded.


• Request references from past clients.


• Search for his business on Duns and Bradstreet.  They are a monitoring company for businesses.  The length of time in business, business record and customer reviews are available.  Go with the company who has the longest active business tenure.


• Go to BidSync.com to see if he is listed as a county or state contractor.  If he is, search for awards his firm may have worked on.


• Verify with your local State licensing board as to the status of your prospective draftsperson' licensing.