I've had the same problem in a totally different line of work. (Apparently) I was so good with words that I eventually ended up writing copy for the company instead of art direction for what I was hired to do and one day I had apparently crossed over completely cause in the end they would hardly trust me with choosing what font to use...

Guess it comes down to what company you work for, and what kind of human resources they have.

i have a similar experience.. i am the 3d guy now, but i am going to grad school in few months, so..
but, if i were you, i'd talk to senior people in the firm and say that this is hindering your growth as an architect. if they tell you in so many words to shut up.. you know its time to go..
it really depends on what kind of people you have in a firm. so its important to understand that before making any decisions. but as a rule of thumb you can assume that everyone is selfish and "designers" who have been in the firm for years, will not want to leave their thrones...
your ideas will not be flatly rejected, but "modified" beyond recognition.. its rare to find a person who will try to be a mentor.. most see it as a competition and will throw their weight around to gain advantage... welcome to the real world.


i hope this is helpfull.. sorry if its not.

yes. in the early acad days, i was THE fastest CAD guy by a long shot. i just was always real good with computers and quickness and was super anal in my CAD standards. well, i ened up being CAD production manager for 10 years at every firm. BUT that was the highest paying position as that is where we could make the most money, not the glory designers.

so yes, you can get pigeon holded (not killed) and not accomplish YOUR career goals. one thing i've learned over 20 years, no one but YOU really cares about your career. you need to drive that b/c the company will use you as it benefits them the most financially. you are a cog in their machine, not much more. tell them straight up what your career goals are when you meet with your manager. huevos, get 'em.

my advice is to go to an office where the 3D leads design production, and determines the design intent. use your skills where they are needed most.

I'm lucky enough to be in a place that uses the 3D stuff in the schematic design phase, so my input as a designer is coupled with my ability to produce 3D work, there is always an open dialogue about design decisions here, feels a lot like a studio environment, not like a "hey this is how I want you to make it now go mindlessly re-create it" type". I'm thinking that this is a little less common with larger firms from what I've heard, maybe it's time to move on to an office that will utilize your entire skill set.

Well, I guess I should open up my own firm.
What bugs me is that I'm not an intern anymore, and I've learned these softwares while I was working on a personal competition. Come to think of it, I couldn't hide the skill I have, because I had all kinds of 3d images in my portfolio when I got this job as an architect.
I should get some teaching job, so I can be a full time professor near future.

really according to my experience you can do one of two things.
1. leave your job and go where these skills will be put to design use
or
2. talk to your bosses about your personal ambitions and setting up a 3d modelling mentor program in your office.

my experience has been that my 3d modelling skills helps move people into design positions, typically. sometimes this move is unwarranted, sometimes it is.
but the biggest way to get what you want is to be strategic and assertive in your ambitions...

I agree with the previous posters... You should make your intentions and professional goals clear to your employer, let them respond, and if nothing changes, go somewhere else. I would be careful too, that even if they say they'll let you do other things, that they actually allow you to do those things. If you are the only 3d modeler, and you get all the modeling work, they may unintentionally continue to pigeon hole you in this way. I think this is still unacceptable, so if they say they'll change and don't it's probably time for you to leave.

One thing to consider before jumping ship however, depending on your experience level (i.e. if you are an intern) you will likely be pigeon holed into one task or another at many firms. If you actually like doing 3d modeling, and you see some slight transition to other aspects of the project over time, it might be worth staying, and captializing financially on your unique skill. Would you rather be picking up redlines or drafting all the time? Just something to consider. I'd be careful about over estimating your importance, though. There's always another 3d guy out there willing to do your job.

this may sound crazy but it worked for me. i often found myself in the position of being involved in initial design, and modelling and rendering, so that was no problem, but then come the revisions. the ones that kill the whole thing. so i practiced blatant insubordination. you have to be sort of polite about it, so maybe its not so blatant. it still becomes awkward real quick, but really what option do they have, besides smudging your screen with more fingerprints.

also depending on how big the office is and how many projects are running concurrently, you could just find a new project to work on. see how imortant the shade of green is to them on their next project when they realize that if they push you they could find themselves out of luck entirely and making a presentation with their lame ass plan diagrams.

of course all this has to be handled with much tact....or not

side note: i heard a good term for the way people without any actual skills end up in roles of power - "fail to the top"

convince them to hire an intern with a lot of modeling talent, so that you can shove the presentation stuff off onto them, and have more time to do design work.

a bit higher than people on the design or drafting side who have been there the same amount of time, if they're the only one (or one of a very few) in the firm that does 3D. I had to sort the checks and reciepts and such for a former firm, and was surprised at what the 3D guy was making (esp. considering the principals didn't seem to like him much).

did not read all posts, however I have been practicing 8 years and am fairly adept with 3d software. my recommendation to all young architects, be selfish. no what your agenda is and go after it. early in my career I would only produce graphics if I had a role on the project, and when they asked to produce an image I would produce shit. the principals would wonder what is wrong because on another lproject the graphics were great. it was on the projects I was integral to the design process and I gave a damn. same was true for cad and drafting. was never very good at picking up redlines however if I worked with a senior architect to figure out the detail then it came out well, and I asked a lot less questions in the future.

purposefully f**king up a project or your work is not the way to get anywhere. If you were in my office i would fire your ass if you weren't performing. nothing personal, that is simply the way the business works. then again, i wouldn't do that pidgeon-holing thing either, and luckily have never worked in a firm that does so.

play straight, ask for other dutie. move on if the office has no room for you to do so.

if you are doing mostly 3D and are good at rendering, ask for a raise. Explain to them how being a specialist is worth more and that 3D guys get paid more than architects (which is the case).

I did a similar thing early on (by choice). I said I didn't know acad well, so I didn't have to much crappy drafting. Instead, I played with designing in 3D, as I could do it faster than most and have the model already to render.

This is an entertaining thread because im in the same position right now. Its a little bit different because I also have to help out the other staff with general computer melt downs and cad fires. On top of this I am also expected to do tons of 3d and graphic work within the office. I made it clear that this is not where i'd like to go with my career and they replied that they would try to find a cad manager.

This is my first job out of undergrad so its pretty hard to answer questions as the fill in cad manager guy because i have never even put together a full set of documents before. I find that most of the issues are about getting the cad widgets in ADT to work rather than getting a building built, communicating anything, or participating in the process.

I knew that it would be this way comming out of school with a ton of computer skills and no firm experience, but I have the feeling at times that some firms will pick and choose what skills they want you to use and then lock you away. This is strange because its not like I went to a vocational technical school, but thats how I am viewed. Some of the morons that come into the office dont even realize that I went to architecture school....

Hopefully, they will follow through with their word and let me move on from this role....or into a more participating stance.

I started this thread, because I was really stressed out on that particular day. It's been a couple of days since than, and I've got some time to calm down... I guess, as pencrush said, it's ten times better than picking up someone's redlines (sorry for those of you who still pick up redlines). I got a chance to talk to people in the firm, and I realized that some of them who are in same level as I am are doing really shitty stuffs (because they don't know how to use the program I use), so I guess I am in better position than they are. I guess I'll wait and see where it goes. As some of you already mentioned, I added some of my designs in 3D models, and it seems like my bosses really liked them, so who knows.
Thanks, guys.