There is a very real stigma surrounding outsourcing shop drawings in our industry. If you’ve spent any time in the millwork world, you already know what I’m talking about.
And as CEO of a company that provides these services, I get that many of you are already tuning me out or rolling your eyes—and honestly, I don’t blame you.
There was a time when I was vehemently opposed to outsourcing shop drawings. As an engineering manager for a $30mm/year shop at the time, I actually wrote a letter to the president of the company outlining why we shouldn’t outsource.
So how does someone go from vehemently opposed to building a company focused entirely on that very thing?
The truth is: it took time, years of experience, and more than a little humility. I had to admit where I was wrong, inexperienced, or simply unable to see the bigger picture—namely, the needs of the business—over my ego as a career engineer.
My initial opposition wasn’t without merit. It was shaped by real, frustrating experiences. I had worked behind outsourced drafters, and I’d felt the pain of fixing missed details, redoing submittals from scratch, and picking up the pieces after poor handoffs. I had been the guy responsible for vetting new drafting vendors—both domestic and offshore—and I’ll be honest: I expected every single one of them to fail.
I didn’t believe it could work. I didn’t believe it should work. I didn’t believe an external team could deliver the results we needed without sacrificing quality, cost, or schedule.
In short, I didn’t think anyone could do it as well as me.
But here’s the deeper truth I had to confront: I didn’t believe I had the ability to develop or train an external partner to rise to the level of my internal team.
Once I understood that—once I realized I was the bottleneck—that’s when everything changed.
In 2018, I took a role with a fast-growing millwork group that had acquired three shops and would eventually grow to five. I was tasked with overseeing drafting and engineering across all locations and building an integrated workflow that allowed any job to be engineered at any facility.
From day one, it was clear that if we were going to scale to $200mm/year in millwork, we had to use external drafting resources. Even a $10–20mm shop hits a breaking point when multiple big jobs land at once. Our internal team couldn’t absorb all that work alone.
So we got to work. We started building a system to leverage outsourcing without sacrificing quality, cost, or schedule. We invested in better onboarding, communication, and accountability. We didn’t just hand over drawings—we built partnerships.
By then, I had cleared the first—and biggest—hurdle: myself.
I acknowledged the problem. I believed it could be solved. And I was willing to approach it differently.
That’s the leap many in our industry still haven’t made. I see it all the time—even with our own clients. A company owner or decision-maker recognizes the need for help and engages an outsourcing partner. But the engineering team? They’re not on board.
And when that happens—when the people reviewing and releasing the drawings aren’t bought in—failure is almost guaranteed. No matter how hard the drafting partner works, or how committed ownership is, it falls apart without alignment.
I understand that resistance deeply. I was that resistance for years.
That’s why we now put so much focus on aligning with the internal team—not just the executives. The drafters and engineers reviewing the work need to be fully committed to the success of the partnership.
That means clear and organized handoffs.
It means real-time communication.
It means giving feedback in good faith—even if you’re frustrated.
It means answering the “dumb” questions—just like you would for the person at the desk next to you.
The stigma around outsourcing thrives in silence and misunderstanding. It’s usually talked about behind closed doors, laced with frustration, shame, or blame. But the truth is, when done right—with the right partner, the right mindset, and the right process—outsourcing can become a powerful tool to reduce stress, increase capacity, and elevate the whole team.
It’s not about replacing anyone. It’s about augmenting your capabilities when you need it most.
And at DuckWorks, we don’t get it right every time either. We’re still learning. Supporting over 100 people across our team and integrating with dozens of clients—each with their own tools, standards, personalities, and workflows—is a massive challenge. But it’s a challenge we’ve committed to meet head-on.
We’re not perfect. But we show up every day with the intention to improve, to grow, and to serve our clients better. And when our partners are all-in with us—when there’s real collaboration and shared commitment—it’s a beautiful thing.
That’s when it works.
That’s when the bottlenecks break.
That’s when growth happens.
And ultimately, that’s what our clients need.
Jacob Edmond
CEO