CAD History

Discover how engineering design moved from drawing boards and early computers to the CAD systems used today.

Start at the beginning

Historic blue engineering drawing of a destroyer escort

CAD History · Part 1

When Engineers Drew by Hand: The World Before CAD

Drawing offices, technical instruments, blueprints and the foundations of modern engineering drawing.

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Coming next

The First Computer Drawings: How CAD Began — early computer graphics and the beginnings of computer-aided design.

Our historical articles follow the development of CAD broadly in chronological order. This is an educational series, not a product recommendation section.