Working drawings are a set of technical drawings that are used to define the construction of an architectural project. The drawings provide the necessary information for builders and contractors to accurately construct the project. These drawings are created by architects, building designers, drafts people and engineers and are a critical part of the design process.
The working drawings for a residential project include a variety of different elements. The first element is the site plan, which provides a detailed layout of the project site, showing the location of the house, the driveway, the walkways, and other important features. The site plan is used by builders to determine the placement of the project in relation to its surroundings.
The slab or sub-floor layout plan is another important element of the working drawings. It provides a detailed depiction of the foundation structure of the project, including the footings, subfloor walls if applicable and other structural elements contributing to the foundation of the home. This document is essential for builders to properly construct the foundation of the project and needs to be read in conjunction with the engineer’s design for the slab/footings.
The floor plan is a major part of the working drawings. This plan provides a detailed layout of the interior spaces of the project, it shows all the rooms, details their sizes and includes information and locations of doors and windows. Wall types and thicknesses are shown on this drawing and additional items such as beams above, dropped ceilings and flooring types are also stipulated on the Floor Plan.
The elevations are an equally important element of the working drawings. These drawings provide a detailed depiction of the exterior walls of the project, including their heights, material selections and other features such as wall treatments and roof features. The Ground line is also referenced on the Elevation drawings highlighting things such as ground clearances, driveway gradients, stair and landing requirements and heights of walls against boundaries.
The electrical plan provides a detailed layout of the electrical fittings in the project, including outlets, switches, and other important features such as smoke detectors, TV outlets, data points and light fittings. Additionally, there will be notes directing the electrician on the heights of the power outlets, TV outlets, data points and light switches. This document is essential for builders to properly install the electrical system of the project.
The roof plan provides an overview layout of the roof shape and shows the fall of different planes of the roof along with gutter and downpipe locations. The roof plan is a view from above the home so it does not detail trusses, beams or any other structural element within the roof space, these design details are generally part of the engineer’s scope of work.
Detail drawings make up the rest of the working drawings, these include sections that are similar to the elevations but show a slice through the home at certain points, these section lines are marked on the floor plan. A window schedule that gives greater detail including dimensions and notes about each window. Internal elevations which show the elevated views of the kitchen, laundry and all bathrooms, again showing dimensions and including notes about certain aspects of each elevation. Finally, the details, which are scaled-up drawings of important aspects of the construction process and include things such as shower base waterproofing, window installation, cladding installation and the like.
These make the architectural drawings required for the building project and need to be read in conjunction with the engineer’s drawings, the thermal performance assessors reports and any other reports, drawings or details as deemed required by the relevant building surveyor on the project.
