Understanding Architectural Drawings Outline

1. CAD is utilized in nearly all projects (AutoCAD)

1. Visualization projects
2. Final construction drawings
1. Submitted to city or county dept.
1. Supplied to contractors that intent to bid on the project
2. These often lead to addendums and on-site adjustments
2. Architectural Design Process
1. Owner approaches firm with concept or idea
2. Architect takes concept and designs a structure
1. Has appropriate engineering to satisfy
1. Local
2. State
3. Federal guidelines
3. When complete
1. Submit to local building dept.
1. For review and approval
2. Once approved
1. A contractor is selected
3. Construction starts under watch of architect
3. Schematic Design (First Phase)
1. Feasible concept and in a form that the client can understand
1. Appropriate program
1. Projects functions, goals, expectations, budget, and site
requirements
2. Preliminary construction costs are estimated
2. Architect researches
1. Figure out problems
3. Architect usually comes up with multiple versions of the design,
depends on the cost
4. They provide clients with sketches of the design
5. Client approves
4. Design Development (Second Phase)
1. Design is refined into a clear, coordinated set of drawings
1. Floor plans, exterior elevations, building sections, and a fully
developed site plan
2. Critical areas
1. Interior elevations, reflected ceiling plans, roof plans, wall
sections, and details
3. Usually include notes and dimensions
2. During this phase, the work is evenly split between the architect
and the draftsmen
3. Architect comes up with cartoon drawings

5.

6.

7.
8.

1. Hand-drawn letter size sheets of paper with a tentative layout of

the full working set of the construction drawings
2. Once that is set, the drafter will add generic information required
such as
1. Dimensions, scales, sheet titles, building/wall section callouts
4. Engineers are brought in to engineer the building
1. Structural
2. Certified approval by the engineers sealed
5. 3D Project
1. Visualize
Construction Drawings (Third Phase)
1. More design changes
2. County officials deny certain aspects
3. Must include all details according to the city, county, and federal
guidelines
Bidding and Contract Negotiations (Forth Phase)
1. Drawings are submitted to the building dept.
1. Contractors are pre-selected before the project even begins
2. Architect is the manager of the bidding
3. Contractors study and determine their costs and place a bid
1. Sometimes the project owner looks for the lowest bid, other
times if the owner has a preference towards a firm thats the one
they will choose
Construction Administration (Last Phase)
1. Landscaping
2. Color of the building
Anatomy of Architectural Drawings
1. Small projects can have up to 100 individual sheets
2. Large projects can easily have 700 individual sheets