A TCA/TCIC Course Developed

For
the Construction Industry

Module 1 – Part 1
Principles of Blueprint Reading
– An Overview
 Course Description
This course focuses on the interpretation of
construction documents – drawings and
specifications. Participants will learn the
functions of different plan views, elevations,
sections, details and schedules presented on
Architectural, Structural, Plumbing, HVAC,
Electrical and Landscaping drawings.
Construction graphics – scales, lines,
dimensions, symbols, legends, shading, design
concepts and key terminology relevant to
interpreting construction drawings are analyzed
using sketches and construction drawings.
Course Objectives
After completing this course participants should be
able to:
 Interpret graphical information shown on design
and working drawings for buildings
 Coordinate graphical and written information on
Architectural, Structural, MEP and Landscaping
drawings
 Analyze information on schedules relative to plans,
elevations, section and details.
 Overview - Project Drawings

Purpose of Drawings
• Project drawings and
specifications are also know as
plans, blueprints, or prints
• Provide contractors with the
information to bid for projects
• Construction drawings are also
required to apply for a building
permit
 Project Drawings

Question?
What are Blueprints?

Write down your definition before

advancing to the next slide.
 Project Drawings

Answer - What are Blueprints?

Traditionally, drawings were done by
hand and run through a process that
resulted in a blue background with
white lines – hence the name
“blueprints” and to this day
construction drawing sets are often
still referred to that way.
 Project Drawings
Blueprints are 2-Dimensional
architectural and engineering design
drawings that indicate the size of a
planned building, the materials to be
used in its construction, and the
placement of its features.

• They provide builders with critical

information on foundations, structural
components, plumbing, electrical, HVAC
systems, interior design and landscaping.
• They indicate necessary information to
estimate: Cost of materials, labour,
equipment and time frame to project
completion.
 Project Drawings

Today most construction drawings

are drawn using computer-aided
design(CAD) systems.
Autodesk software include:
• AutoCAD (produces 2D drawings)
• Revit (produces 3D drawings)
Design software allow designers
to quickly design, revise and send
drawings electronically.
 Distributing Project Drawings
Accessing Portable Document Format files (PDFs)
• CAD (Computer Aided Design) software application for 2D and 3D design and
drafting is developed by Autodesk.
• Converting DWG to PDF is a practical way to share drawings with others,
without them needing to install design software.

Play this embedded video to learn

how to access PDFs CLICK HERE
 Accessing Project Drawings
Electronic Plans Room (EPR)
Play this embedded video
• Construction project documents are to learn about the TCA’s
provided on website portals of ConstructConnect Project
construction associations, government Intelligence (CCPI) Project
documents electronic
agencies, contractors and others. platform Clik here
• This service provides round-the-clock
online access to construction projects.
This digital service allows subscribers to
retrieve plans, specs and addenda
anytime, from anywhere.
Construction Drawing Types
The designing stage of any construction
project is essential for its satisfactory
execution. Every type of drawing has its
own purpose and a set of features.
Construction drawings offer a peek into the
different stages of the design and
construction of a project. Starting from
preliminary design drawings to working
drawings , every type of construction
drawing is important to understand.
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 Drawing Types
Construction drawings are generally categorized according to their
intended purpose. They are generally classified into five main
categories based on the function they intend to serve:
1. Preliminary drawings
2. Presentation drawings
3. Working drawings
4. Shop drawings
5. As-built drawings

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 Drawing Types
1. Preliminary drawings
• The designer often prepares preliminary
sketches, which are essential schematic
design/concept-development drawings at the
initial stages of a project.
• These drawings are not meant for
construction. They provide an overall concept
that reflects the client’s needs, as well as
preliminary construction approvals.
• They are also used to explore with other
consultants concepts relating to the
mechanical, plumbing, and electrical systems
to be provided.

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 Drawing Types
2. Presentation drawings
• The purpose of presentation drawings is to
present the proposed building for promotional
purposes. They usually consist of perspective
views complete with colors and shading.
• Presentation drawings are essentially selling
tools, a means to sell the building before it
reaches the working-drawing stage, and are used
in brochures and other advertising outlets.
• This phase is also where the schematic design is
developed, finalized, and approved by the client.

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 Drawing Types
3. Working drawings
• These drawings include all the drawings
required by the various trades to complete
a project. They are technical and are
intended to furnish all the necessary
information required by a contractor to
erect a building.
• They show the size, quantity, location, and
relationship of the building components.
Working drawings are typically prepared in
considerable detail by the architect or
engineer.

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 Drawing Types
4. Shop drawings
• Every building comprises a set of
components. All of these components
have their distinct specifications and
measurements.
• Shop drawings are the detailed
versions of these components and help
to identify how they will fit into the
building structure.
• They are produced before the
installation of these components.

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 Drawing Types
5. As-built drawings
• These drawings are prepared
by the contractor after the
building has been constructed.
• They depict how the building
was constructed on paper.
• They are needed to compare
what was originally planned
and what was actually built in
the end.

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 REVIEW
Drawing Types
Match each drawing type with the best statement.

Drawing Types :
1. Preliminary
2. Shop
3. Working
Statements:
1. Show the size, quantity, location, and relationship of the building
components
2. Present the proposed building for promotional purposes
3. Help to identify how components will fit into the building structure.

Make your selection

before moving to the next slide.
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 REVIEW
Drawing Types
Match each drawing type with the best statement.

Drawing Types / Statements

1. Working Drawing: show the size, quantity, location, and relationship of
the building components
2. Presentation Drawing: present the proposed building for promotional
purposes
3. Shop Drawing: help to identify how components will fit into the building
structure.

Feedback:
Good try. Here are the correct matches.

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BREAK
Blueprint Reading Fundamentals for Construction

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 Blueprint Reading Fundamentals for Construction

Module 1 – Part 2
Principles of Blueprint Reading

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 Construction Drawing Views

 Drawing Views
 Foundation Plan
 Floor Plan
 Elevation
 Section

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FOUNDATION PLAN VIEW
• Foundation plans are not necessarily the
basement plans or below grade floor plans.
• The purpose of this plan is to convey the
dimensions, sizes, shapes, and every single
configuration of the lowest floor below
grade.
• Walls, Footings, Grade Beams and Piles
support the structure above and are essential
parts of a foundation plan.

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 .

FOUNDATION PLAN VIEW

• Shows the foundation wall and
footing supporting the
foundation walls and includes
all of the dimensions
necessary for their layout.

• The foundation for this

building require a slab-on-
grade foundation which
consists of a concrete slab
placed on a gravel base at
grade level.
 FLOOR PLAN VIEW
• The floor plan is a section view taken at a
height of 1.20 metres or 4 feet
from finished floor level (FFL), showing
the functional space layout.
• Floor plans show rooms location, sizes
and room identification.

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FLOOR PLAN
VIEW

This Ground Floor

plan shows the
general layout of
the functional
spaces and
placement of walls,
doors and other
important features.
 .
Elevations
• Drawings that show the height of a building are
called elevations and shows the finished
appearance of the building
• A set of working drawings usually includes an
elevation of each of the four sides of the building
• Elevations are usually named according to compass
directions. The side of the building that faces North
is the north elevation and the side that faces South
is the south elevation. It is not uncommon to see
elevations named Front, Back, Left and Right

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 .

SECTION VIEW
Sections are cutting-plane views:
• Cross sections allow us to look at the different components
of a building vertically. This 2- dimensional imagery is
useful to provide an overview of both the visible and
hidden components in a building.
• Wall section provides a view of both sides of the wall.

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 .

Section view – Using Revit (a 3D

design software):
• This section drawing show the structure in
a sliced form.
• This kind of drawing helps to identify the
primary structures in relation to other
surrounding structures of the building.
• Further, section drawings also provide
information for the types of materials to
be used in the construction.

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Working Drawings
• Working drawings represent the final
step in the design process.
• Working drawings comply with all
regulatory agency requirements and
include all the detail that the contractor
will need to prepare the detailed
estimate.
• Working drawings are organized so that
each particular scope of work
associated with the project is
represented.
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Organization of Working Drawings
Type of Drawing Information Provided
Architectural drawings Show the layout of the project: floor plans, elevations and
details.
Structural drawings Depict how the various load carrying systems will be built
Mechanical/Electrical Show the physical service plan of the structure such as
drawings lighting, power, plumbing, HVAC, and fire protection
Site Plan drawings Show the relationship of the structure to the property it will
occupy, including various site improvements such as sanitary
systems, utilities etc.
The intentions of the design team is presented in several ways on the
drawings – in plan views, sections, elevations, details and schedules.

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 Organization of Working Drawings
Drawings for each of the four categories will
show only the work of the particular discipline.
For example:
• If the building is a reinforced concrete
building, structural drawings will only show
the concrete elements including (rebar)
reinforcing steel.
• If the building is a structural steel
building, structural drawings will show
layout and details of structural steel
elements.
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 Overview - Construction Drawings

COVER PAGE
 Overview - Construction Drawings
Title Block
Appears on the right side of the drawing and includes
information on:
1. Revision details and dates
2. Consultant’s name and stamp
3. Project Name and location
4. Drawing Title
5. Date
6. Scale – Metric or Imperial
7. Drawn by
8. Project No.
9. Drawing No.

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 Measurement Tools

Read or scale dimensions

from drawings
• Scale dimensions from drawings:
manual - rulers
software – electronic/digital
files

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 Measurement Tools
Identifying Dimensions
Read or scale dimensions from
drawings

 Manual scale - use different rulers to

measure dimensions from drawings
use highlighters / markers to highlight
the dimensions that are taken

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 Measurement Tools
Electronic Tools
 Read or scale dimensions from drawings
 Software - using electronic drawings
From the electronic drawings you can take
measurements such as length, areas, count and
get the quantities automatically.
All measurements are highlighted so at the end
you will have a clear picture of all taken
measurements.

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 Scales

Drawing Scales
•The two drawing scales
commonly in use for the
drawing of plans are the metric
and imperial scales.
•Construction projects are too
large to be drawn full size on a
sheet of paper, everything must
be drawn proportionately.
•A small scale is used to fit a
large object on a drawing and a
larger scale is used for smaller
objects in drawings. 38
 Scales

Metric Scales
•The list at right are examples of
commonly used metric scales
along with some examples of
where they might be used.

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 Scales

Metric Scales
•Metric scale
comparisons.

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 Reading an Imperial scale
• The architectural scale is the most common Imperial
scale used for drawings
• It is based on portions of 12” for example ¼”:12” is
1/48th of a foot because ¼” divides 48 times into a
foot

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 Imperial Scales
•The list at right shows
the most common scales
used for architectural
drawings and their
typical uses.
•1/8” and 1/2” scales
shown below, both are
displayed on the same
face of scale.

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 Use of scales
Reasons it may not be appropriate to scale drawings:
• Photocopying will reduce accuracy
• Drawing may have been enlarged by a photocopier without changing the
scale shown
• It can be difficult to get an accurate reading with a small scale
• The designer may have redrawn portions of the drawing and changed
dimensions without scaling the changes accurately

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 Scaling Drawings

• Usually you will see a note that says not to scale or

n.t.s. even though the drawing are drawn to scale this
abbreviation informs you to use the dimensions given
as opposed to scaling the drawing for dimensions.
• Designers place this note on the drawings to ensure
that the measurements are followed. It is possible
that the scaling will not be accurate. If you proceed
to scale and it is wrong you will be at fault not the
designer.

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 Scales

Metric scale 1:5 scale

reading example:
• Determine the
length of lines
1. and 2.
Answers are on
the next slide.

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 Scales

Metric scale • 1:5 scale

reading
example

1 = 515 mm
2 = 335 mm

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 Imperial scale reading example

1 ½ “ scale
Imperial scale
reading example:
• Determine the
length of lines
1. and 2.
Answers are on
the next slide.

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. . 25
 Imperial scale reading example

•1 = 2’-9 1/4”
•2 = 2’ – 4 ½”

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. . 26
 WEEK 1 - Summary
To summarize Module 1
• Construction drawing sets are often referred to as “blueprints” because
traditionally, drawings were done by hand and run through a process that
resulted in a blue background with white lines
• Drawing sets provide builders with critical information on foundations,
structural components, plumbing, electrical, HVAC systems, interior design
and landscaping.
• Construction project documents are provided on website portals of
construction associations, government agencies, contractors and others.
• Construction drawings are generally categorized according to their intended
purpose. They are generally classified into five main categories.
• The two drawing scales commonly in use for the drawing of plans are the metric and
imperial scales.

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 WEEK 1
Next is Quiz No. 1 before moving on to Module 2.

You should now be familiar with the following concepts:

 The types of construction drawings produced by the various design disciplines.
 The difference between 2D and 3D drawings.
 The organization of drawings by design discipline
 The steps required to use metric and imperial scales on construction drawings.

Reminder
Do Activity 1. Answers to self-test will be available next week.

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