As-Built Drawings vs Construction Drawings

The architectural, engineering, and construction industry is transforming rapidly. For small, medium, and large-sized projects, AEC professionals use advanced technology such as BIM and advanced software to improve their efficiency in developing design drawings.

The design drawings methodology starts right from the conceptual stage and goes till the facility management stage of the project. There are diverse construction documents developed throughout the design and construction stages of construction projects.

Each of these construction documents has its significance for design management, coordination, facilities management, etc. 

Construction drawings and As-built drawings are important documents that are developed during the construction and post-construction stages respectively.

This blog mainly focuses on explaining the major differences between as-built drawings and construction drawings. Before we dive into the meat, first let’s understand each of these drawings type.

What are Construction Drawings? 

These are the drawings that are developed by design stakeholders before the construction begins. These drawings demonstrate the layout, dimensions, and specifications of a building.

Construction drawings encompass the details that are essential for constructing a building on site.

The Different Types of Construction Drawings

Architectural Drawings

These drawings provide a comprehensive view of a building’s design and layout, encompassing typically three views i.e., plan, sectional, and elevational view.

• Floor plans: These plans showcase layouts of each floor, showing room sizes, doors, walls, windows, and fixtures.
• Section Drawings: These drawings demonstrate the vertical slices through the building, presenting the interior structure, layers of walls, roofs, and foundations. 
• Elevational Drawings: These are the exterior views of a building showing overall design and dimensions. Elevational drawings are typically developed for the East, West, North, and Side sides of buildings
• Site Plans: These plans represent the building’s location on the plot, including landscaping features and driveways.

Structural Drawings

Structural drawings are developed by structural and civil engineers. These drawings contain the plans, sections, and elevations of the skeleton of a building i.e., Columns, Beams, Slabs, Foundations, Shear walls, etc.

Mentioned below are the common Types of Structural drawings:

• Foundation Plans: These drawings demonstrate the size, depth, and type of the footings
• Column Layouts: These drawings demonstrate the location and sizes of the vertical pillars as designed by the structural engineer
• Beam Layouts: These drawings show the dimensions, location, and sizes of the horizontal beams running across the slabs
• Roof Layouts: The roof layouts represent the dimension, location, and size of the structural components used in the roof

MEP Drawings

Mechanical, electrical, and plumbing drawings represent the systems proposed by the mep engineers in a detailed manner.

Mentioned below are the most common MEP drawings produced for a construction project:

• HVAC drawings: These drawings represent heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems, including ductwork and equipment placement.
• Electrical drawings: The electrical drawings show the electrical wiring, lighting fixtures, and power panels.
• Plumbing drawings: These drawings present the plumbing system, including pipes for water supply, drainage, and sewage.
• Fire Protection Drawings: These drawings show the fire safety systems in the building, including sprinklers, fire alarms, and evacuation routes.

More: As Built Services California

What are As-built Drawings?

These drawings are developed for the facilities management team. These are generally created after construction. They document the building as it exists, reflecting any changes or deviations made from the original design during construction.

As-built drawings capture the final, “as-built” state of the building, including the exact location and dimensions of all elements. As-built drawings come in various types, categorized based on their focus and the building elements they depict.

The Different Types of As-Built Drawings

1. Architectural As-Built Drawings

These drawings focus on a building’s physical appearance as it is on site. The elements include; floor plans reflecting the final placement of walls, doors, windows, and fixtures, elevations showing the final exterior appearance, and sections depicting the as-built construction details of walls, floors, and roofs.

2. Structural As-Built Drawings

These drawings demonstrate the building’s structural elements in their final configuration. Structural as-built drawings typically include foundation plans with revisions made during construction, as-built layouts of columns and beams, highlighting any size or location changes, and Details of any structural modifications made on-site.

3. MEP As-Built Drawings

These drawings present the final installation details of the building’s mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems.

MEP as-built drawings typically include layouts of HVAC ductwork and equipment, reflecting any on-site adjustments, revisions to the electrical wiring plan showcasing the actual placement of fixtures and panels, and as-built plumbing drawings indicating the final pipe routes for water supply, drainage, and sewage.

Summing up the Differences between As-Built Drawings and Construction Drawings?

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