A Model Experience:
MTC Drafting Students Render Three-dimensional Replicas
Pictured with the beginnings of their model home are, from left to right, Moultrie Technical College student Richard Felton III, drafting technology instructor Ashley Spurlock and student Andrew Johnson.
MOULTRIE , GA. Moultrie Technical College student Richard Felton, III enjoys the process of taking something ordinary and making it extra-ordinary . Felton and his fellow drafting design technology students see a building formed from just a mental concept to a computer drawing to a model completion.
According to Felton, “In drafting technology it is extremely important to have hands-on projects where you can see the development of taking something from two dimensions and turning it into a three-dimensional representation.”
One example is the model house the students created during MTC’s spring quarter.
“It was a good feeling to see what was developing before me. I had to take the time to understand and appreciate every board and nail which needed to be handled with care,” says Felton.
Ashley Spurlock, an MTC drafting technology instructor, says students actually draw their own house plans during one quarter of study and make working models of their houses in the next.
He echoes Felton’s opinion on the value of applied learning, “It benefits the students by giving them the reasoning for why they draw what they draw. It reinforces the theory they learn.”
Felton says, “Hands-on experiences are essential to progression in career fields. State-of-the-art tools and equipment are needed to progress in an extremely competitive work environment.”
Much of that work environment, says Felton, involves pleasing customers. “I’ve also learned that clients have difficulty visualizing building design in two dimensions, so the use of a three-dimensional model helps them to visualize their own concepts.”
Since most of the drafting technology training is computer-based using the Computer-Aided Design, or AutoCAD, program, Spurlock says that, “Putting hands to it is critical.”
He adds that classroom lecture and textbook work emphasize the concepts of building foundation and floor plan development, but model kits aid in teaching students how to put walls and a roof together.
Spurlock explains that a “drafter” is an artist who prepares detailed diagrams for manufacturing products and architectural structures and adds that anyone who likes computers and likes to draw would feel at home as a drafter.
He says the full program takes about a year and a half to two years to complete with the first year covering the fundamentals of drafting technology. Students can choose to specialize in either architectural or mechanical drafting.
Graduates of Moultrie Tech’s drafting technology diploma program can expect to find jobs as CAD operators or designers who create the drawings for architects or automotive and mechanical engineers, or even as land surveyors.
But Felton sees his lifetime goals as more than just finishing his college education and landing the perfect job in the drafting field. “My American dream is to own my home and raise a family in that home. It is not about a house or a place to live; it’s about a future and a dream being built.”
For more information on Moultrie Tech’s drafting technology program or admissions requirements, call (229) 891-7000 or log onto www.moultrietech.edu. The program accepts new students every quarter and holds both day and evening classes. Summer quarter classes begin July 11.
Media Release-For Immediate Distribution- July 5, 2005
Contact: Jana Wiggins, Moultrie Technical College, Director of Marketing
(229) 217-4139 or (229) 891-7000
Ashley Spurlock, Drafting Technology instructor, Moultrie campus
(229) 217-4156
Email: jwiggins@moultrietech.edu or aspurlock@moultrietech.edu
