Guide · Manufacturing & Engineering · By the AutoScribble Team · Published 22 September 2026

Using whiteboard animation to explain engineering concepts

Who this guide is for

Engineering training leads, apprenticeship providers and engineers explaining concepts to non-engineers. It's part of our manufacturing & engineering resources.

What you'll need

• The concept and its learning objective
• One worked example
• A real-world link to your site or product

Step by step

1. 1

   One concept

   Tolerance stacking, not ‘tolerances’.

2. 2

   Round numbers

   Simple arithmetic keeps attention on the idea.

3. 3

   Build the diagram

   Ask for each element to be drawn in order as the narration introduces it.

4. 4

   Connect to the job

   End with where learners will meet this on the shop floor.

5. 5

   Engineer review

   Check the maths and terminology.

Illustrative worked example: tolerance stacking

Scene 1 — Three blocks side by side, each labelled 10 mm ± 0.1 mm.
“Each part is made to 10 millimetres, give or take a tenth.”

Scene 2 — Blocks stacked end to end with a bracket.
“Stack three together and the nominal length is 30 millimetres.”

Scene 3 — Worst-case: all three at +0.1, bracket reads 30.3.
“But if every part comes out slightly long, the stack is 30.3.”

Scene 4 — A slot 30.2 mm wide, the stack not fitting.
“That's why we check tolerances on the whole assembly, not just each part.”

Illustrative figures.

Copy the AutoScribble prompt

Make a 3-minute landscape whiteboard video explaining [concept] to first-year engineering apprentices. Use one worked example with round numbers: [example]. Draw the diagram progressively as each element is introduced, define each term on first use, and finish with where apprentices will meet this in [workplace].

Questions