【Haichuan Building Review】Reviewing and examining drawings – an essential skill for those working in the construction industry

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Table of Contents: 1. Start with the general aspects before moving on to the details; 2. Deal with the architectural elements first and then the structural ones; 3. Focus on the larger elements first and then the finer details. (1) Review of architectural drawings; (2) Review of structural drawings; (3) Unified review of civil engineering drawings and plumbing/electrical drawings; (4) Whether the layout of pipes affects the final appearance of the space. 4. Complete the main structure first before proceeding with the finishing work; 5. Handle general aspects first and then the special cases. Construction drawings are legal documents for engineering projects and serve as an important basis for carrying out such projects. Both construction work and project supervision must be carried out in strict accordance with the requirements specified in these drawings. The review conducted by the drawing inspection office focuses mainly on structural safety. Additionally, bidding processes in the construction industry are not standardized; as a result, many construction companies have very low profits. To cut costs, many of these companies reduce the number of management staff or lower the requirements regarding their qualifications, which means that many of these managers are unable to understand or comprehend the construction drawings. Therefore, upon receiving the design drawings, the project management department and the project supervision department have the project manager or the chief engineer organize the staff of the project management department, while the project supervisor organizes the professionals from the project supervision department to carefully review and study these drawings. This allows for the identification of any difficulties or issues in the drawings, which can then be clarified and resolved promptly. At the same time, opinions are provided regarding the functional aspects of the construction project, the structure and selection of equipment, the feasibility of construction, and the project cost, thereby enhancing the ability to plan and control tasks in advance and setting a good foundation for the comprehensive execution of the project. 【Directions and content of reviewing construction drawings】Start with the overall aspects before moving on to the details; focus on the building structure first and then the components; address the larger elements first and then the smaller ones; consider the main parts first and then the decorative elements; handle the general items first and then the special cases. 1. Start with a rough overview before delving into details: first examine the plans, sections, and elevations to get a general idea of the entire project’s design drawings. This allows one to understand the scale of the project, its structural features, characteristics, and the materials required, as well as to check whether the drawings are clear and complete. Then, examine each one carefully, checking whether the detailed dimensions and overall dimensions in the drawings are consistent, whether the axes, coordinates, elevations, positions, as well as the plan and elevation views match, whether all annotations are present, if there are any errors or omissions, whether the various connections are correct, and whether the lists of door and window types, their sizes, and quantities correspond to those shown in the plans. 2. Building first and then the structure means first reviewing the architectural drawings, and then the structural drawings, carefully checking for any contradictions between them regarding axis positions and dimensions; verifying that the floor elevations shown in the elevation drawings match those in the architectural drawings, and then ensuring that these elevations are consistent with those in the structural drawings. Are the detailed drawings of the structure, such as the layout diagrams, along with their corresponding numbers, consistent with the structural layout plan? ； Whether the reinforcement layout is appropriate and complete, whether the quantity, size, and shape of the rebar match those specified in the reinforcement schedule, especially whether there are any errors or omissions in the reinforcement arrangement and whether there are any issues with its installation. 3. Start with the overall view and then move on to the detailed drawings: first look at the overall diagram before examining the detailed drawings, in order to understand the requirements and construction methods for the details. Pay special attention to whether the connection methods at the joints are clear and reasonable. Check whether the numbers, dimensions, shapes, and construction methods indicated on the floor plans match those in the detailed drawings. Also verify whether the standard atlas numbers, categories, and models used are consistent with those specified in the drawings, and ensure that all the detailed drawings are present and nothing is missing. During the construction process, the review of drawings must be thorough and detailed, with the following key points: (1) Review of architectural drawings: Check whether the markings on the floor plans of each floor correspond along the same axis. Check whether the dimensions and elevations in each floor plan are clearly marked, complete, and legible. Check the floor plans at all levels above and below to ensure that the sizes of openings and the positions of doors and windows are consistent. Check whether the detail drawings in the plan correspond to the index details, and whether the detail drawings correspond to the node cross-sections. (2) Review of structure diagrams: Examination of basic structure diagrams ； Review of floor structure ； Check whether the structural diagram indicates any special requirements regarding the embedded rebar, reserved holes, and structural construction joints, as well as whether there are any enhanced construction measures for these areas. Unified review of architectural drawings and structural drawings. It mainly involves checking whether the positions of the axes of walls, columns, and beams, as well as the annotations in the architectural drawings and structural drawings, match each other, and whether there are any contradictions or misalignments. (3) Unified review of civil engineering construction drawings and plumbing/electrical construction drawings: Whether walls, columns, beams, etc. in the civil engineering structure affect the installation of sanitary fixtures, fire protection equipment, lighting fixtures, electrical devices, as well as plumbing and electrical pipelines ； Are the axis lines in the civil engineering drawings, as well as the center lines of walls, columns, and beams, aligned with those in the plumbing and electrical drawings? ； It is necessary to check whether the layout, process requirements, and dimensions of the equipment and fixture rooms in the hydraulic and electrical diagrams are consistent with the design requirements in the civil engineering drawings. (4) Whether the layout of the pipelines affects the finishing results: In general, as long as careful attention is paid to reviewing the drawings, any issues present in them can usually be addressed early on before construction begins. This helps to improve the quality of construction, shorten the construction period, reduce costs, and enhance economic efficiency. Therefore, reviewing drawings is an important task in the engineering construction process, and it is also a key indicator reflecting the quality of construction and supervision during the building process. 4. Focusing on the structure first and then on the decorations means examining the main structural components first, and then looking at the decorative elements (including decoration, insulation, fire protection, padding, sound insulation, etc.), as well as the construction details and material requirements for other special decorative areas. 5. Start with the general aspects before moving on to the special ones: first, examine the standard building structural components, and become familiar with their basic dimensions, locations, elevations, construction methods, and requirements. Only then should one consider the special components and requirements (such as foundation treatment, fire protection measures, installation of expansion joints, seismic design, etc.), in order to understand the construction methods and treatment techniques involved. It is also necessary to determine whether special materials are used, and whether their specifications, types, and quantities meet the required standards. With the progress of society, as well as the development of technology and the economy, construction drawings in the future will become increasingly detailed and complex. This requires supervision personnel to continuously learn advanced technologies, become familiar with construction measures, and understand the design process, so as to better carry out the task of reviewing construction drawings. In summary, drawing review is an important part of the work during the construction phase, and it serves as a crucial mechanism for implementing preventive controls. The quality of drawing review is related to the effectiveness of the approach that emphasizes prevention and control at the early stages. Moreover, drawing review is also an important means of demonstrating the professional competence of construction workers and earning the trust of project owners.