Construction drawings are the foundation of a successful renovation or new build and are essentially the instruction booklet that guides the process from start to finish. Typically drawn in AutoCAD or similar, a drawing package usually consists of floor plans, elevations, sections, materials, and notes and are used for many different types of projects. Whether you’re building or renovating a high-rise building, a hair salon, or a single-family home, an excellent set of drawings allows the designer to communicate the design intent, concept, ideas, details, and specifications needed to make the project a reality.

Architects, engineers, and interior designers all have the necessary knowledge to compile a set of construction drawings. Some types of drawings and projects need to be stamped by an architect or engineer, while many smaller or residential projects can be drawn in full by an educated interior designer. This is one of the reasons you should always hire an educated professional to lead your project.

Bungalow construction drawings for residential projects typically consist of the following:

SITE PLAN

A site plan is needed in residential design when renovating a significant portion of a home, doing an addition, or making any changes that may affect the exterior of the home and surrounding areas. This type of plan is not needed when renovating a small section of the home such as a kitchen or bathroom unless an opening is added or modified.

FLOOR PLANS

These are views of the space from above and they map out everything from walls, windows, doors, cabinetry, furniture, to plumbing locations. If there are a lot of elements in the design these components may be split into multiple plans to communicate the intentions better.

CALLOUT FLOOR PLANS

Callouts are pieces of the overall floor plans at a larger scale so that extra details can be added for greater clarity. When we are designing large scale projects that consist of a full floor of a home we use this type of plan to show the kitchen and bathroom plan(s) at a larger scale so that we can show cabinetry details, specific dimensions, notes, and much more that wouldn’t be readable at a smaller scale.

ELEVATIONS

Elevations can be interior and/or exterior and consist of one wall or façade at a time. These types of drawings show heights on the wall and details that can’t be seen in plan view. Some examples of these would be the height of a shower head or wall sconce, a wall of cabinetry, or a shower wall tile pattern.

SECTIONS

Sections are characterized as being a cut through a building, wall, detail, or space. When cutting through a building the focus of the section may be on the staircase construction, or how the wall is constructed to support another design element; with a detail the focus may be on how a cabinet is constructed; with a space it could be any number of elements.

REFLECTED CEILING PLAN

Reflected ceiling plans (RCP) and electrical plans show the types and locations of light fixtures, electrical outlets, switches, bulkheads, ceiling materials, and in commercial design plans, items such as telephone jacks, exit signs, sprinklers, fire safe equipment, and much more.

STRUCTURAL PLANS

Structural plans can either be drawn by an interior designer and then checked and stamped by a structural engineer, or they can be drawn and stamped by the structural engineer themselves. In residential drawings, structural plans are often included when we take out walls or alter the structural components of the home in any way. In these cases, the structural engineer will dictate how the load will be redirected and carried down to the foundation or piles to allow us to take out one or more load bearing walls.

DETAILS

Details are design elements that are drastically increased in scale and are included to communicate extremely specific components between the designer and the construction team. Details are very important in design work and are often the difference between good design and great design.

SCHEDULES, LEGENDS + NOTES

Schedules, legends, and notes support the visual drawings and communicate a multitude of detailed components. Schedules list things such as electrical and plumbing fixtures, materials, and accessories. Legends communicate items in the drawings such as wall types, symbols, and labels. Notes can be general to the page they’re on or key notes that direct the reader to specific elements or areas in the drawings. These supporting features allow the drawings to be read accurately and pair visual and written communication together to support the design intent.

Construction drawings are important because they allow for the proper and smooth execution of the construction process on site. While we as designers are on site regularly, a complete drawing package gives the build team the necessary tools to work when we’re not there supervising. Additionally, by making all of the decisions prior to your build as opposed to during your renovation, your project is not only more likely to be built on a tighter timeline, but run smoother, and cause you less stress because you won’t have to make important split-second decisions on site.

Taking the time in the design process to get the construction drawings right can also help you keep your budget down as everything required for your renovation can be ordered well in advance, minimizing the need for last minute additions and expedited shipping costs. Making all of your informed decisions in advance also means that you’re less likely to have to make changes down the line due to unforeseen problems, costing you more money, as the majority of (but unfortunately not all) issues can be addressed prior to construction.

At Bungalow Interior Design we complete all of our construction packages in house except for structural drawings. Armed with the necessary knowledge of construction drawings through our Bachelor of Environmental Design degrees, we’re dedicated to ensuring that your project runs smoothly, on time, and on budget by maintaining high construction drawing standards. We are known in the Winnipeg construction and renovation community for producing not only excellent designs, but excellent drawing packages. Whether you plan to renovate or build soon after the design process is complete or years down the road, documenting your design plan in a set of drawings will ultimately save you time, money, and many headaches.