A fellow patternmaker replied to Friday’s email to add that “it’s a good idea to get these files at the end of each batch of styles.” I definitely agree!
While you certainly want to get your files before you leave to work with a different service provider, you don’t have to wait until that point to ask for them. There are many reasons why getting them as you work on each style is better.
There are likely several files for each style you are working on (one for sketches, one for the tech pack, pattern files in different formats, 3D files, etc.). Getting those and organizing them after each project is not that much work. If you put off getting your files in hand and organized until a much later date, though, the sheer amount of files could make it a much bigger undertaking. Even the transfer time can be hours or days long or hard drive space could fill up before you know it.
It is like waiting until the last week of March to gather and organize your taxes. It is so much work if you leave it until the last minute, but if you do it incrementally throughout the year, it is much more manageable.
Getting your files as you go also safeguards your files if something ever happens to the patternmaker or designer you are working with. For example, if their computer gets dropped and hard drive breaks, no problem. You have a copy of all your files and you can both pick things up right where you left off.