Drawings are the most important things we need to start any construction project. There are different types of drawings for different purposes. Construction drawings provide detailed measurements and clear section of every building part. After reviewing, the drawings are justified and modified and finally approved for construction.
The construction drawings set a benchmark for the construction process and assure compliance to the building standards. It can be said that these construction drawings provide an outlet to the architectures to convey their ideas and concepts regarding the building. The different types of construction drawings are listed below:
Architectural Drawings
An architectural drawing is a technical rendition of a building that is used by architects to develop a design idea into a coherent proposal, to communicate ideas and concepts, to convince clients about the merits of a design, to enable a building contractor to construct it, as a record of the completed work, and to make a record of a building that already exists. These drawings are made with lines, projections and are based on a scale. The types of architectural drawings are as follows:
Site Plan
A site plan is a large-scale drawing that shows the orientation and information about the site’s topography, landscaping utilities and site work for an existing or proposed development. Site plans, along with location plans, are necessary for planning applications.
Floor Plan
These are an in-depth version of the room layout. Floor plans are made irrespective of the fact that they are to be utilized during the construction of any commercial or non-commercial projects.
Working Plan
Working plan is a drawing that includes the information of horizontal dimensions of the building, thickness of walls, clear spaces inside the building and column locations. The benefits of this drawing include the convenience to fabricate the construction material according to the overall design.
Section Drawings
Section drawings show the structure in a sliced form. These drawings represent the type of materials to be used in construction, and heights and measurements of the different components. This also helps to identify the primary structures in relation to other surrounding structures of the building.
Elevation Drawings
These drawings contain the information of openings, size and shape of external surface and the height. They are prepared by having an aesthetic view of the building. They indicate the external and internal marking that includes the door and sizes of the windows.
Structural Drawings
This type of drawing provides information about structure, like strength of different structural elements, structural materials, grade, size and placement of reinforcement, strength of the building and how beams, columns, stairs, slabs etc. are connected.
General Note
General note is a draft that contains codes, by laws, details of all structural drawings like concrete mix, lapping length, curing time, abbreviation, mapping forms, construction type, legends, and other work procedures.
Excavation Drawing
Excavation drawing shows the footing excavation dimension, column position, footing plan and grid lines of column. This drawing talks about the extent of excavation like removal of soil, and the process of excavation like trenching, wall shafts, tunneling, and others.
Column Layout
Column layout reinforces the design and pattern of the columns of the whole structure. This plan is divided floor wise and demarcates the exact size and distance between every column of the building. Column layout drawings further make it easier for the contractors to learn the whole building layout.
Plinth Beam Layout
Plinth beams layouts reinforce the support system of a building. The plinth beam layout drawings showcase the position, length and sectional design of the plinth beam and are made floor wise.
Lintel Beam Layout
Lintel beam is yet another form of beam structures that is made to provide strength to the part of the building above the windows and doors. In this kind of drawing, the exact positions, dimensions, and the number of lintel beams on every floor are included.
Roof Beam and Shuttering Layout
A roof beam is made to strengthen the building’s overall structure. It is a triangular structure that is usually made on the top of the building and supports the roof. These are usually made out of wood, but even steel or concrete can be used.
Roof Slab Layout
As the name suggests, room slab layout is used to provide a detailed account of the floors, roof faces, and other such surfaces that require precise edge information. This is more prominently made in the AutoCAD architectural software.
Framing Plans
Framing plans are similar to the beam layouts. They offer information about the framework, sizes and positions of the beams. They are helpful to the builders as they can easily understand and layout the plans for structures that are an essential part of the building.
Electrical Drawings
Electrical drawings provide an in-depth details and location of electrical wiring, fixtures, sub-station, switches etc. The electrical load calculation, electrical legend, floor lighting plan, floor power plan, single line diagram, fire alarm layout, floor sound system and CCTV camera, equivalency chart, lightening protection and earthing details are also included in this drawing.
Plumbing Drawings
The plumbing construction plan illustrates the markings and the location of the plumbing components like sanitary, piping for water supply system, fixture, equipment, pipes, pumps, drains, taps and water outlets on every floor. This also includes the nature and size of sinks to the location of gas, and the process to connect every fixture.
Fire Fighting Drawings
Firefighting drawings show the pattern of the placement of fire hoses, points and water outlets. This drawing also includes the fire protection plan and safety systems that are to be set in place.
HVAC Drawings
These drawings are also termed as mechanical drawings. They provide information about the heating and ventilation systems. They also include air conditioning patterns and layout that are to be constructed inside the building. The HVAC drawings provide an insight into these complex systems and help the builders plan their construction process accordingly.
Environmental Plans
Some projects are built around rivers or streams. In such case, the environment plans offer insights into how erosion and sedimentation will be managed. In addition to this, these drawings also talk about plant removal procedures, chemical disposal mechanism and the procedures and plans to attenuate the harmful effects.
Construction drawings provide an insight into the development of a building. There is no standard rule of drawings required for a project. Depending upon the type of building and requirements, the types of drawings are made and issued. These drawings act as the guiding principles for every construction worker, supervisor, and builder.