freelance CAD drafters - what do you charge?
Discussion
i am registering with a few agencies and have been asked what my rate is but i have no idea what is reasonable. the contracter in our office reckons £23 an hour [PAYE] is pitching right in the middle but that I should get more.
i know there are a glut of unemployed draughtsmen about so i need to pitch it right - i don't want to look expensive but at the same time don't want to add to the trend of driving down rates.
so, what's your rate, field of work, and are you PAYE or Ltd?
fwiw i'd be over the moon at £23 an hour!
i know there are a glut of unemployed draughtsmen about so i need to pitch it right - i don't want to look expensive but at the same time don't want to add to the trend of driving down rates.
so, what's your rate, field of work, and are you PAYE or Ltd?
fwiw i'd be over the moon at £23 an hour!
I guess it depends on your experience and the type of CAD work... we have people who do PDMS and 3d work in Microstation and Civil 3D... people like this on contract get like £40 per hour
If you are just looking at basic 2d drawings then i think £20-25 is the starting area where I work, and this rises to £30-35 with more experience. I'm Personally not on contract so this is all hearsay from people so can't say its 100% true.
If you are just looking at basic 2d drawings then i think £20-25 is the starting area where I work, and this rises to £30-35 with more experience. I'm Personally not on contract so this is all hearsay from people so can't say its 100% true.
shirt said:
i am registering with a few agencies and have been asked what my rate is but i have no idea what is reasonable. the contracter in our office reckons £23 an hour [PAYE] is pitching right in the middle but that I should get more.
i know there are a glut of unemployed draughtsmen about so i need to pitch it right - i don't want to look expensive but at the same time don't want to add to the trend of driving down rates.
so, what's your rate, field of work, and are you PAYE or Ltd?
fwiw i'd be over the moon at £23 an hour!
£23 PAYE is high-20s Ltd Co.i know there are a glut of unemployed draughtsmen about so i need to pitch it right - i don't want to look expensive but at the same time don't want to add to the trend of driving down rates.
so, what's your rate, field of work, and are you PAYE or Ltd?
fwiw i'd be over the moon at £23 an hour!
Am sure you don't want to drive rates down but if you'd be over the moon with £23/hr I think you've just set yourself a rate.
The fact that there's loads of unemployed people pitching for work will force the rate lower anyway. I'm afraid that you have a choice of pitching low and getting work, or taking a moral stand and let others get the work instead, cos they'll be pitching low to get it...
If the bloke in your office thinks you should get more (be careful he's not telling you this so that you price yourself out of the market: ask yourself exactly why you'd expect to get more than he's on?) then you're looking at £30 Ltd co, £25 PAYE. Progress from there once you've got a porfolio and a track record.
What discipline are you?
If your construction related civil / structural or architectural don't do it stick with your staff job. Or at the very least speak to some agents about what is available.
There are very few contracts about and lots of people sat at home looking for them. The contracts that do come up tend to be short term.
My last contract was £28 p/h ltd I'm civil /structural with 20 years experience. This year all I have done is house extensions (planning and building regs).
Rates have really dropped I would guess now people will be looking sub £20 p/h.
If your construction related civil / structural or architectural don't do it stick with your staff job. Or at the very least speak to some agents about what is available.
There are very few contracts about and lots of people sat at home looking for them. The contracts that do come up tend to be short term.
My last contract was £28 p/h ltd I'm civil /structural with 20 years experience. This year all I have done is house extensions (planning and building regs).
Rates have really dropped I would guess now people will be looking sub £20 p/h.
shirt said:
that's sound advice, thankyou.
£23 an hour equates to a £10k annual payrise from my current position which is why i'd be happy. our contractor is on the level, my leaving a staff role is securing his position and he put me in touch with the agency he works for.
Glad you can trust your colleague.£23 an hour equates to a £10k annual payrise from my current position which is why i'd be happy. our contractor is on the level, my leaving a staff role is securing his position and he put me in touch with the agency he works for.
£10k p/a (are you comparing after-tax?) is maybe £6/hr and relies on you having work every week, so if people are pitching sub-£20 make sure your contract is linked to a strong program that'll last a while!
Be pretty bad to leave a salaried position to earn the same or less in a bidder's market.
I have to say, in the current climate I'd stay put. I'm also not surprised that your colleague is helping you with contacts, I'd be doing the same I'm afraid. And I'm a very nice chap, like I'm sure he is too.
Good luck whatever you do.
The rates depend entirely upon the industry, the discipline you specialise in, your level of experience/competence and your location...
In my company, a London based Oil & Gas Consultancy, the rates vary between about £25/hr to just under £50/hr. They were higher up until June this year when the rates were cut, across the board..
The lower rates go to the guys producing simple 2D drawings/diagrams/schematics. The higher rates are for the people doing the 3D plant design work.
In my company, a London based Oil & Gas Consultancy, the rates vary between about £25/hr to just under £50/hr. They were higher up until June this year when the rates were cut, across the board..
The lower rates go to the guys producing simple 2D drawings/diagrams/schematics. The higher rates are for the people doing the 3D plant design work.
Edited by crossle on Thursday 5th November 12:27
To clarify my position:
I volunteered for redundancy about 6mths ago. Heard nothing so presumed i was staying, then on weds was told I have until next week to decide whether I accept it with approx. 6mths salary as a lump sum or appeal. If I appeal I can't actually keep this role and there aren't any others within the division that I want. I have been wanting to leave for ages anyway, hence the VR. I have had approx. £8k in paycuts over the past 12mths so the salary is a pittance for what I am expected to do - I couldn't believe that I could increase my pay by solely drafting as that is the easiest bit of my job!
I plan on travelling at some point next year but have a renovation project ongoing that is tying me geographically until it is complete. I could just about manage on the severance alone but would prefer to drop on some short term contracting to allow me to squirrel that towards my travel[or cerbera!] fund.
Based in East Yorks. but willing to travel within Yorks/Lincs.
Not sure where I should be pitching myself at the moment though - what are the varying disciplines? I'd definitely struggle with architectural work.
I volunteered for redundancy about 6mths ago. Heard nothing so presumed i was staying, then on weds was told I have until next week to decide whether I accept it with approx. 6mths salary as a lump sum or appeal. If I appeal I can't actually keep this role and there aren't any others within the division that I want. I have been wanting to leave for ages anyway, hence the VR. I have had approx. £8k in paycuts over the past 12mths so the salary is a pittance for what I am expected to do - I couldn't believe that I could increase my pay by solely drafting as that is the easiest bit of my job!
I plan on travelling at some point next year but have a renovation project ongoing that is tying me geographically until it is complete. I could just about manage on the severance alone but would prefer to drop on some short term contracting to allow me to squirrel that towards my travel[or cerbera!] fund.
Based in East Yorks. but willing to travel within Yorks/Lincs.
Not sure where I should be pitching myself at the moment though - what are the varying disciplines? I'd definitely struggle with architectural work.
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