Building Drawing and Design: Plans and Elevations — CSEC Building Technology

Building drawings communicate a design so it can be constructed accurately.

Types of drawing

• Site (block) plan — shows the position of the building on the plot, with a north point (e.g. 1:500).
• Floor plan — a horizontal section viewed from above, showing the layout and sizes of the rooms (e.g. 1:50 or 1:100).
• Elevation — a view of an external face of the building (front, side or rear).
• Section — a vertical cut showing the internal construction and heights.

Conventions

• Walls — two lines showing thickness, often hatched to indicate material.
• Doors — a gap in the wall with a swing arc.
• Windows — lines within the wall thickness showing the frame and glass.
• North point — shows orientation; dimensions in mm or m.
• Schedules — tables listing doors, windows, finishes etc.

Scales

Building drawings are reductions: 1:5 (details), 1:50 (sections), 1:100 (plans), 1:500 (site plans). At 1:100, 1 mm on the drawing equals 100 mm on the building.

Working drawings

A complete set of working drawings gives builders the information needed to construct the project.

Exam tips

• Match each drawing to what it shows: plan, elevation, section, site plan.
• Conventions: walls (two hatched lines), doors (swing arc), north point.
• Building scales are reductions (1:50, 1:100, 1:500).
• A schedule lists components such as doors and windows.