What should I capture before an engineer leaves a hardware team?
Capture five things for every part they own: where the current files are, the work in progress and its next step, the open decisions and the reasons behind them, the suppliers and which revision each has, and where the test data lives. Record it against each part, not in one handover document nobody opens again.
What actually gets lost
The files rarely disappear. What goes is everything around them: which of three copies is current, why a wall is 2.5 mm and not 2.0, which supplier said the tolerance was fine on the phone, and what the half-finished change on the desktop was for.
On a team of five to ten engineers, one person often owns a whole subassembly. When they leave, the team keeps the geometry and loses the reasons. The next engineer either keeps everything as is because they're afraid to touch it, or changes something that was that way for a reason.
Worked example: 810-0045 gearbox housing assembly
The engineer who owns the gearbox housing assembly has two weeks left. The assembly has four custom parts. The handover is built into the part folder, one sheet per part:
/810-0045 Gearbox housing assembly/
/handover/
810-0045_handover.md the assembly summary
810-0046_housing_handover.md one per custom part
810-0047_cover_handover.md
810-0048_shaft-seal-plate_handover.md
810-0049_mount-bracket_handover.md
/walkthroughs/
810-0045_walkthrough_2026-10-28.mp4
Each part sheet answers the same questions:
| Section | What goes in it | Example for 810-0046 housing |
|---|---|---|
| Files | Where the current files are and which revision is released | Released Rev D in /released; a WIP copy on their laptop with a rib change |
| Work in progress | What's half done and the next step | Rib change for a stiffness issue; next step is to rerun the FEA case and update the drawing |
| Open decisions | Choices not yet made, and what's known so far | Cast or machined for the next 500 units; casting quote pending |
| Why it's like this | Features that look odd but are deliberate | 3.0 mm wall at the seal face: thinner walls leaked in the Rev B pressure test |
| Suppliers | Who makes it, which revision they have, open quotes | Machine shop at Rev D; foundry quoting Rev D |
| Tests and data | Where results live and what's still running | Pressure test reports in /test/810-0046; thermal test scheduled |
Step 1: Collect the files first. Search their laptop, desktop and downloads for every file of their parts, and move the current versions to the shared folder. For SolidWorks assemblies, GoEngineer recommends File > Pack and Go for copying file sets, so the copies don't stay tied to the originals (GoEngineer). See also How do you version SolidWorks files without PDM?
Step 2: Fill one sheet per part, together. The leaving engineer drafts it; the engineer taking over asks questions until they could explain each line to a supplier.
Step 3: Record a walkthrough per assembly. 20 to 30 minutes of the engineer sharing their screen and talking through the model, the features that look odd, and the things they'd change. Save it next to the part, not only in a meeting tool where recordings can expire.
Step 4: Write down the "why" for anything that looks wrong. These are the features the next engineer is most likely to "fix". Put a one-line reason on each, as in How do I document why a part was designed a certain way?
Step 5: Hand over the outside relationships. Introduce the new owner to each supplier by email, with the revision each supplier has. A register like the one in How do I keep track of which revision each supplier has? makes this one table.
Ways to capture what a leaving engineer knows
| Method | Good for | Main risk |
|---|---|---|
| Exit interview notes | Process and team feedback | Too general for part-level detail |
| One handover document | A single place to start | Long, written once, rarely opened again |
| Sheets per part in the part folder | Finding the reason when you're working on that part | Takes the engineer's last two weeks to do well |
| Recorded walkthroughs | Context that's slow to write down | Hard to search; useful only if saved next to the part |
| Two weeks of overlap with the next owner | Questions answered in the moment | Not always possible; answers stay in a conversation |
When this stops working
- The handover sheets disagree with the released drawings within a few months.
- The team relies on calling the former engineer.
- Every departure needs the same two-week scramble.
- Reasons written down at handover were never recorded anywhere while the work was being done.
The lasting fix is to capture the reason when each change is made, so a handover is a review of what's already there rather than a rush to write it all down.
FAQ
How long does a proper engineering handover take?
Plan on the full notice period for someone who owns a subassembly, with the last week overlapping the new owner. One meeting in the final days is not enough to transfer the reasons behind a design.
What should a mechanical engineer document before leaving?
For each part: where the current files are, what's in progress, open decisions, why unusual features are the way they are, which suppliers have which revision, and where the test data lives.
Should handover walkthroughs be recorded?
Yes, if they're saved next to the part they describe. A recording is quick to make and keeps context that's slow to write, but it's hard to search, so pair it with the written sheet.
How do I handle a co-op or contractor leaving at the end of a term?
Do the same handover, scaled to what they owned, and start it in the second-to-last week. Short terms make it more important, because the work often ends half done.
Internal links
- How do I document why a part was designed a certain way?
- How do you version SolidWorks files without PDM?
- How do I keep track of which revision each supplier has?
Sources
- GoEngineer, Non-PDM File Management Recommendations: https://www.goengineer.com/blog/non-pdm-file-management-recommendations
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