ENVS10003 Studio Journal Week 4 Christian James Virgona – 641276 This weeks tutorial activity consisted of developing a fundamental knowledge of how to read and interpret architectural plans. The class split into groups and focused on plans from the structures we obersved the week previous. My groups building was the Melbourne School of Land and Environment (MSLE). By assessing the structural plans of the building we could gain a greater understanding of the certain structural materials used and the construction methods that were undergone. 1. Title Block a) List the types of information found in the title block on the floor plan page:

• Project Name • Drawing Number • Title • Project Number • Drawn By • Checked • Date Printed • Scale

b) Why might this information be important? The title block gives the reader brief details about the drawing at hand, it labels the drawing, as well as outlines the scale. 2. Drawing Content - Plans

a) What type of information is shown in this floor plan? Information shown on the floor plan includes: Dimensions of the site (includes windows, walls, doors, rooms, exteriors etc)

• Doors • Windows • Existing and new walls • Existing structures and buildings are labelled • References to other plans in the document

b) Provide an example of the dimensions as they appear on this floor

plan? What units are used for the dimensions? Dimensions are given in millimetres (mm). Example shows the width of opening between two existing walls.

c) Is there a grid? What system isused for identifying grid lines? Yes there is a grid system used on the floor plan. A numerical grid runs vertically through the plans and an alphabetical grid runs across the page horizontally. The grid helps users to identify certain parts of the plan, for example which areas are included in the scope etc. A key with specific details is located on a different page. This helps to aid the visual information and provides extra detail.

d) Why is some information found in General Notes - Information found in general notes is often relevant to many parts of the drawings and plans therefore it is more efficient to have it noted in detail once than every time it appears on a drawing. - Also makes it easier to change details if need be after reviews of the plans. - It is an efficient way to label the plans

Dimensions (mm)

e) What is the purpose of the legend?

The legend helps to differentiate between the different elements or materials noted on the plan.

f) What are some parts of the drawing annotated? Illustrate how the annotations are associated with the relevant part of the drawing.

 Annotated arrows are used to label certain areas of the plan which require extra information to be stated on the plans.

g) Illustrate how the locations of sections are identified on the plan. What do these symbols mean?

This is identified by a line drawn through the section. There is usually an arrow pointing in the direction that the cut is in.

h) Illustrate how references to the other drawings are shown on the plan. What do these symbols mean?

References to other drawings and plans are often stated by a symbol in the legend, so that users can identify them within the plans.

Reference  Code  

i) How are windows and doors identified? Provide an example of each. Is there a rationale to their numbering? What do these numbers mean? Can you find the answer somewhere in the drawings?

The numbers usually coincide to number a door/window is in relation to the entire plan or a specific area. Doors are usually labelled in the following way: DG #_____ (eg. DG03) Windows are labelled in the same way WG #_____ (eg. WG21).

j) Illustrate how the floor levels are noted on the plan: For some parts of the drawings arrows have been used to depict a fall in the ground/floor level. The arrow points in the direction of the decline/incline.

k) Are some of the areas of the drawing clouded? Why? Yes some of the areas on the floor plan are clouded/cross hatched over. This is because they are not within the scope of works.

3. Drawing Content - Elevations What type of information is show in this elevation? How does it differ from the information shown on the plan? Basic information such as scale and date printed are written just as the floor plan. This elevation plan differs, however, as it illustrates the building as seen at the front rather than the floor plan. However, it also indicates the height of not only the building itself but also the height of the windows doors and any columns or poles that are present. Are there dimensions shown? If so how do they differ from the dimensions on the plan? Provide an example of the dimensions as they relate to elevation. While the dimensions shown on the floor plan were on a scale of 1:100 the dimensions shown on the elevation plan were scale of 1:50. Dimensions generally change because floor plans are taken from a horizontal perspective whereas elevation scale is taken from a vertical perspective. What types of levels are shown on the elevations? Illustrate how levels are shown in relation to elevation. Each floor is shown on the elevation plans, rather than looking at a floor plan. The elevation plans do not show a birds eye view, they show a view looking directly at the building which gives an idea of the height of the building. Levels are shown according to the height of the structure. Is there a legend? What does it identify and how is it used? The legend shown on the elevation plan is called the “Material Legend”. Each material is identified with varying codes and those codes are placed on the actual map. For example, GL01 is a code of General Glass. This makes the map a lot easier and neater to read. What types of information on the elevations are expressed using words? Illustrate how this is done. The information that is written as clear words on the map is usually annotations. Small black arrows that point to the specific area in which they are talking about follow the annotations, like the floor plan. Are any parts of the elevation clouded? Why? A small section drawing that identifies materials on the interior of the building complements areas that are clouded.

Illustrate where this elevation is located in relation to the plan? There are numerous elevation plans within the entirety of this plan. There is one based merely on windows and doors and others based on just the exterior of the building. There are also elevations plans that focus on the interior desiging of the building. 4. Drawing Content – Sections What type of information is shown in this section? How does it differ from the information shown on the plan and elevation? If the plans are viewed as an overview of the development and elevation plans show the intricacies of the exterior of the development. A section is an enlarged picture of a critical area within the development. This section provides more detailed information and has annotations of relevant materials to that specific area, for the purpose of our development, The scale is much smaller, ranging from 1:5 to 1:20. We’re focusing on section 1 & 2. Are dimensions shown? If so, how do they differ from dimensions on the elevation? Elevation Plan Dimensions:

Section Dimension: As we can see the elevated dimensions are much more brief, whilst they state the height of the building with each level (in millimetres). The only annotations that are written are the corresponding levels. The dimensions that are seen in the section area of the plans are much more intricate, dimensions are smaller and state the specific size of certain structural elements, for example:

• 2 x 150mm Galvanised Painted Steel Portal Frame • 500mm Galvanised Steel Shroud • 10mm Infill Gap

What types of information on the sections are expressed using words? Illustrate how this is done. As mentioned earlier, the information that is expressed using words describes critical, structural elements and the material that they are made from. As we can see from a detailed window section below, the annotations show the composition of not only the glass, but the structure which holds the glass in place i.e. 120mm Stud Wall with Insulation:

Illustrate how the section drawing differentiates between building elements that are cut through and those that are shown in elevation: As seen below, in an excerpt from the elevation plans. Elevation refers only to the exterior parts of the building, therefore the building elements are going to be subject to forces such as wind and rain. These materials have to be able to withstand the pressures of the environment as they form a waterproof barrier for internal elements. Some of these elements include Colorbond Flat Sheets,

Concrete Deck and Zinc Cladding: The structural elements that are shown in the section segment of the plan are interior elements that would not be subject to the environment. These elements may include steel frames, cladding or insulation which from an aesthetic perspective are unattractive. Therefore they are ‘covered up’ by plasterboards .

Provide examples of how different materials are shown on the sections: As section plans comprise of the layers that make up a certain structural element (for example a wall). The different materials are generally highlighted by an arrow, as there is the potential to be many different structural elements in a condensed area, the arrow allows for room to make annotations and comments about the material. As seen below, an intricate breakdown of the layering of a wall is shown, each specific element that this wall are comprised of are highlighted, with their dimensions also.

Find where this section is located on the plans: The specific section of this development which we were analysing in the most

detail was the recently constructed link between the MSLE and MSLU buildings. This modern connection structure was interesting because the structure depended heavily on the load-bearing capacity of the existing buildings, the new structure was bolted onto the existing brickwork for support. The section we’re analysing was between Section 1 & 2:

5. Drawing Content – Details

a) What sorts of things are detailed? Parts of the design that are too small to show all the information on the larger scale drawings are usually detailed at a smaller scale on another page.

b) Are the details compressed using break lines? Why?

Yes, there are break lines used on the detail drawings. This is used to symbolise continuity of the drawing.

c) Provide examples of how different materials are shown on drawings at this scale.

Concrete Texture Insulation

d) Find the locations of these details on the plans, elevations and sections.

Plan View:

Wall section 3. Found on page A07.01

Section View:

Floor detail 1 Drawing A09.10