interim submission 2

Constructing Environments Student Journal | Nicole Tan

Construction Journal Submission Report

Week Four: Construction Documentation Guided Tour

Nicole Tan 641433

CASE STUDY BUILDING NAME: EASTERN RESOURCE CENTRE (ERC) STUDENT CENTRE

1 TITLE BLOCK

List the types of information found in the title block on the floor plan page.

Drawing Number_ A0207

Name of architect and contact information (email, telephone, fax, office

address): Cox Architects and Planners

List of consultants (including Civil Engineers, Electrical Engineers, Surveyors,

Hydraulics and Fire Protection Consultants, Acoustic Consultants) and their

respective contact information

Client: University of Melbourne

Project name: The University of Melbourne Eastern Precinct Project

Drawing Title

Scale and Orientation

Drawing Number

Project Director and Architect

Why might this information be important?

Provides details of key consultants for accessibility if they need to be

contacted

Provides a concise summary of the project and major stakeholders which is

important in terms of transparency and ensuring the parties involved and the

public understand the scope of the project.

Drawing conventions like scale and orientation, drawing number to ensure

coherency when reading the floor plan


2 DRAWING CONTENT – PLANS

Drawing Number_ A0207 (FLOOR PLAN OF ERC STUDENT SERVICES CENTRE)

What type of information is shown in this floor plan?

General arrangements and dimensions

o Location of furniture, doors, windows

Services

o Fire hydrants, security gates

Main sections and elevations

o Staff office, terrace, corridor, student advisors area, foyer

Type of doors

o Sliding doors and hinged doors

Materials and structures

o Steel, timber veneer column, plywood panels

Notes on action plan

o Eg. Provide ducted skirting to match wall colour

o Eg. Cafe fitout by others

Connections and relationships between new area and existing building (eg

ERC library)

o Eg. Entry wall (also the library wall) to be constructed as a double sided

bookshelf unit.

o Eg. Portion of wall to have cut-outs for book return chutes

Provide an example of the dimensions as they appear on this floor plan?

What units are used for the dimensions?

Units used – millimetres

Is there a grid? What system is used for identifying the grid lines?

Yes, there is a grid and it employs a grid reference systems with alphabets used as

eastings and grid numbers used for northings. Grid lines are shown.


Why are some information found in General Notes?

The General Notes section is included to enhance the coherency of the

reader’s understanding of the floor plan and to ensure key information is

conveyed across.

o For example, ‘figured dimensions take precedence over scaled

dimensions’ and ‘manufacturer shall not commence any works prior to

the return of any shop drawings signed by the relevant consultant’.

Furthermore, the general notes also provides direction to other documents to

refer to depending on the need/process

o For example, ‘all joinery details refer to FF&E plans ‘ and ‘refer to

structural engineers’ drawings for slab size and details’

What is the purpose of the legend?

The legend is provided to explain key symbols used in the plan

Why are some parts of the drawing annotated? Illustrate how the annotations

are associated with the relevant part of the drawing

The annotated parts of the drawing are fairly important as they provide extra

information on the construction processes and methods and/or future activities

associated with the specific area within the plan. The description provided adds an

extra scope of understanding the function of certain structures in the final execution

of the construction process and in the utilisation of the area post-construction.

Arrows are used to link text to relevant part of the drawing. Sometimes the text can

be in a textbox with a thin black border around it.


Illustrate how the locations of sections are identified on the plan. What do

these symbols mean?

Illustrate how references to other drawings are shown on the plan. What do

these symbols mean?

Detail drawing reference

symbol is circular.

Triangle with letters within it

indicate reference to schedule

for all finish details including

paint, glazing, tile finish,

plywood and acoustic

panelling. Letter represents

finish style, number is the

reference number.


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?

DOORS_ Identified as circular icon next to a door

WINDOWS_ Identified as rectangular icon next to a window

The explanation to these symbols were found in the general legend

Illustrate how floor levels are noted on the plan?

The floor level is indicated in the drawing title.

In this case: ‘ERC BUILDING, LEVEL THREE + STUDENT SERVICES CENTRE PLAN

Are some areas of the drawing clouded? Why?

Yes. The areas that are clouded indicate the area that has been changed. As

drawings can be issued several times during the construction process, it is essential

that changed are clearly highlighted as well as directed to the table which has the

information of who authorised the change, the date and description.


3 DRAWING CONTENT – ELEVATIONS

Drawing Number_ A0408 (INTERNAL ELEVATION OF STUDENT SERVICES CENTRE)

What type of information is shown in this elevation? How does it differ from

the information shown on the plan?

Information that differs from the plan:

Heights of walls

Wall features

Cross section of beams

Hatching and Patterned surfaces to show change in material

Shows structural arrangement of timber members

Voids

Frames

Different method of showing how a door opens

Are dimensions shown? If so, how do they differ from the dimensions on the

plan? Provide an example of the dimensions as they relate to the elevation.

Yes dimensions are shown. They differ from the plan as they also show dimensions of

vertical members.


What types of levels are shown on the elevations? Illustrate how levels are

shown in relation to the elevation.

The elevation enables us to see the floor and the ceiling and the different heights of

structural elements in the space.

Elevations can also show gradient of slopes or stairs as seen in Drawing Number_

A0421

Is there a grid? If so, how / where is it shown?

Yes, there is a grid. In this drawing however, it is only shown on the eastings axis.


Is there a legend? What does it identify and how is it used?

Similar to the plan, the legend identifies key symbols used in the drawings. The

legend is used by providing explanations for corresponding symbols to which

readers can refer to when analysing the drawing.

It identifies symbols for doors, windows, room names, section and elevation

references, finished floor levels and finished slab levels.

What types of information on the elevations are expressed using words?

Illustrate how this is done.

Words are used to explain other sections that need to be referred to, room/ area

name, details that are omitted (and reason) and properties of wall features of key

structural members.

Illustrate how the doors and windows are identified on the elevations.

DOORS WINDOWS


Are any parts of the elevation clouded? Why?

No.

Illustrate where this elevation is located in relation to the plan?


4 DRAWING CONTENT – SECTIONS

Drawing Number_ A0579 (DETAIL SECTION OF STUDENT SERVICES HUB OFFICES)

What type of information is shown in this section? How does it differ from the

information shown on the plan and elevation?

Information shown in this section:

Placement of furniture

Beam structure and connections

Location of mechanical ducts

Walls dividing individual rooms

The information provided in this section goes into significant detail on individual

elements – location of furniture like speakers and computers, joints and connections

in beams and arrangement of timber battens.

Furthermore, the section also shows elements that extend beyond the ceiling and

floor of the room

Are dimensions shown? If so, how do they differ from the dimensions on the

elevation?

Dimensions are shown for objects located at the ‘cut’ line for the section and are

not shown for elements beyond this boundary (that is, items behind the immediate

section line). This differs from the dimensions of the elevation as in elevations,

dimensions can be shown for all objects regardless of location.

What types of information on the sections are expressed using words?

Illustrate how this is done.

Similar to the plan and elevation, words are used to provide information on key

construction processes associated with the area/element, details on material

properties, labelling of items and room names.

The room name is typed in capitals and

placed ‘floating’ in the centre of the room.

There are no arrows or text boxes present.


Illustrate how the section drawing differentiates between building elements

that are cut through and those that are shown in elevation (beyond).

Bolder lines are shown for elements which have been cut through whilst

lighter/dotted lines are shown for elements in elevation

Timber battens and a chair shown to be beyond the cut line

Provide examples of how different materials are shown on the sections.

Hatching is used to show different materials


Find where this section is located on the plans.

LOCATION OF ELEVATION


5 DRAWING CONTENT – DETAILS

Drawing Number_ S020

What sorts of things are detailed?

Materiality of structures

Dimensions and measurements of materials like slabs and beams

Joints and connections

Existing walls

Specific tools to be used (eg. screws with certain widths and lengths)

Are the details compressed using break lines? Why?

The break lines used in these drawings indicate elements to be removed

Provide examples of how different materials are shown on drawings at this

scale.


Construction Journal Submission Report

Week Five and Six: Structural Concepts

Nicole Tan 641433

CASE STUDY BUILDING: EASTERN RESOURCE CENTRE STUDENT SERVICES CENTRE

Note: We did not have enough time in the Week 5 tutorial to conduct this activity

and so this week’s journal is slightly modified.

DESCRIPTIONS AND CLASSIFICATION OF STRUCTURAL SYSTEMS

Foundations and footings:

The student centre is located on level three of the ERC and so does not have

directly attached footings or foundation system.

The two types of foundation systems can be found on level 1.

o Strip footings which are the continuous spread footings of foundation

walls (Ching 2008)

o Concrete pad footings. According to Ching (2008), the presence of a

concrete slab also indicates that the soil is stable, uniformly dense and

contains no organic matter.

The presence of a base plate allows the concentrated load

imposed by a column to be distributed so the pressure does not

exceed the bearing capacity of the concrete slab (Ching 2008)

The floor level is situated atop a reinforced concrete slab which sits above the

ceiling of level two. As can be seen in Figure 1, there are a series of beams

running across the ceiling which supports the floor of level 3 (student centre).

o There are air-conditioning ducts sitting below the concrete slab of level

3 and thus the floor of the student centre contains air-conditioning

ducts too.

Figure 1. Sketch of foundation

system section

Figure 2. Sketch of floor

penetration/ceiling section


Primary structure:

Many of the structures of this building are tailored specifically to the design and

measurements of the building.

Horizontal members:

o Beams (tapered), Universal beams

o Reinforced concrete slab

o Rectangular hollow section

o Parallel flange channel

Vertical members:

o Walls (of the café and the bluestone wall)

o Universal columns, columns (only present at the doorways of the

building. The foyer of the student centre is column-less).

Figure 3. Sketch depicting a section of the student centre displaying the roof

beam system and the bluestone wall. The glass panels sit above the roof beam.

Figure 4. Sketch of roof beam detail and the pin joint connecting the beam with

the bluestone block.


Secondary structure:

Purlins (on the roof)

Mullions (separates elements of a door or window)

o Louvre mullions

o Mullions

Lintles (above doors)

Fabricated T section glass support beam

Window header

Figure 5. Sketch of the secondary structure present around the air lock door

section.


IDENTIFICATION, DESCRIPTION AND LOCATION OF STRUCTURAL MEMBERS

The student centre only uses two key structural materials:

o Steel

The steel is used for the beams and tapered beams

Steel is much lighter and hence is appropriate for the ceiling

members since the student centre foyer doesn’t contain any

columns and rely on the walls to carry its force.

Steel also has high tensile strength and is resistant to fracture

which enables it to be a good material for the cantilevering

beams which stretch across a wide span without supporting

columns.

o Concrete

A reinforced concrete slab is used for the floor. It would also

contain shrinkage and temperature reinforcement.

The concrete slab is a one way slab. It utilises T-beams which are

suited to longer spans and heavier loads (Ching 2008).

It is clear from the structural drawings that the beams are

evenly spaced which allows loads to be distributed more

uniformly.

Bluestone wall

o The existing bluestone wall can be considered a structural member as

there are beams that simply rest on it and hence the wall carries their

weight

STRUCTURAL JOINTS

Welds and bolts are used to join steel elements like the beams

o Fixed joints are used for the beams which the battens are attached to

(at the entrance of the building)

o Pin joints are used where the beams rest on the bluestone wall to

ensure zero moment.

Pin joints also allow for expansion and shrinkage of materials

SUSTAINABILITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS

Because the majority of structural elements are made from concrete and

steel, the carbon footprint and embodied energy of the student centre is

fairly high

o Many steel elements are fabricated off site as they are ad hoc and

tailored specifically to the building and hence add towards

transportation and extra processing methods carbon and energy costs

o For example, steel on average contains 20.10MJ/kg compared to

timber which is only 4.5MJ/kg (Department of Climate Change 2013).

The concrete slabs are in-situ which somewhat reduces its transportation costs

compared to pre-fabricated concrete.


Note: Instead of building the structural model in Week 6’s studio, we (as a class)

went through each of the drawings for all four buildings.

QUEENS COLLEGE EXTENSION:

FOOTINGS AND FOUNDATIONS

o Presence of strip footings and reinforced concrete footings

o Pad footings are located at columns.

o Bored piers

This indicates that the soil is not stable and of poor bearing

capabilities thus foundations need to be laid deeper into the soil

structure where it is stable (Build Right 2012).

o The ground slab has been constructed in sections and it connects the

footing system.

PRIMARY STRUCTURES:

o Reinforced concrete and metal columns

o Concrete beams

ORMOND THEOLOGY CENTRE RECEPTION:


o Reinforced in-situ concrete foundation

PRIMARY STRUCTURES:

o Concrete and steel columns

o Roof

o Concrete slabs

SECONDARY STRUCTURES:

o Purlins made from cold, bent steel so it is small and light-weight

o Soffits

o Stud walls

o Noggins

MSLE BUILDING:


o Reinforced concrete slab

PRIMARY STRUCTURES:

o Existing load bearing wall

o Universal beams

o Parallel flange channels

A plate is used to connect this to the wall.

It is clear that the drawing conventions, abbreviations and symbols are consistent

across all buildings. Furthermore, most of these buildings also contain similar

elements, materials and systems albeit in different configurations. This links to the

concept of ‘following traditions’ in construction as many builders and designers

choose to incorporate tried and tested methods of construction.


STRUCTURAL MODEL FOR THE ERC STUDENT SERVICES CENTRE

Figure 6. Structural system present at the entry of the student centre (Tan 2013).

ROOF BEAM

EXISTING

FOUNDATION

WALL OF THE

DOUG

MCDONNEL

BUILDING

SLOPING BEAM

MULLIONS

WHICH

SUPPORT GLASS

PANELS

CONCRETE

SLAB

COLUMNS

EXISTING

BLUESTONE

WALL OF THE

ERC LIBRARY

Figure 7. Structural system present at the Western end of the student centre foyer (Tan

2013)

ROOF BEAM

MULLIONS

WHICH

SUPPORT GLASS

PANELS

WINDOW

HEADER

BEAM

COLUMNS

THIS COLUMN

SUPPORTS THE ROOF

BEAM AS WELL AS THE

WALLS FOR THE

STUDENT CENTRE

AREA


Figure 7. Structural system present at the Western end of the student centre foyer

(Tan 2013).

ROOF

BEAMS

GLASS

HEADER

GLASS

SUPPORT

BEAMS

LINTEL

Figure 8. Structural system present from the interior of the student centre (Tan 2013).

THE CEILING OF THE

STUDENT SERVICES DESK

IS SUSPENDED FROM THIS

BEAM

THESE COLUMNS

SUPPORT THE STUDENT

SERVICES AREA

THE ROOF BEAMS

HAVE TO BE MADE

FROM LIGHT-

WEIGHT STEEL AS IT

CENTILEVERS

ACROSS A FAIRLY

LARGE SPAN


LOAD PATHS

At the foundation:

BASEPLATE TO

DISTRIBUTE AN

OTHERWISE VERY

CONCENTRATED LOAD

FROM THE COLUMN

THE LOAD FROM THE

CONCRETE SLAB IS

MORE EVENLY

DISTRIBUTED

From the roof:

THE EXISTING

WALL ASSISTS IN

LOAD

TRANSFER

FROM THE

ROOF BEAMS

TO THE

FOUNDATION

THE ROOF BEAMS

ASSIST IN

TRANSFERRING

LOADS FROM THE

GLASS PANELS TO

THE COLUMNS

AND

CONSEQUENTLY

TO THE

FOUNDATION OF

THE BUILDING

THE GLASS WINDOWS ADD TOWARDS THE

LOAD WHICH THE BEAM CARRIES

Irwin Consult Pty. Ltd. 2013


At a doorway:

The load imposed by

the wall is transferred

to the lintel which

transfers it to the

adjacent walls around

the opening

LINTEL


REFERENCES:

Build Right, 2012, Department of Industry Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary

Education, Australia, accessed 12th September 2013,

<http://toolboxes.flexiblelearning.net.au/demosites/series10/10_01/content/bcgbc4010a/09_footi

ng_systems/07_pier_beam/page_004.htm>

Ching, F. 2008, Building Construction Illustrated, John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken, New

Jersey.

Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency 2010, Commonwealth of

Australia, Australia, accessed 9th September 2013,

<http://www.yourhome.gov.au/technical/fs52.html>

Irwin Consult 2013, Eastern Learning Hub ERC Construction and Structural Drawings,

Southbank.

Tan, N. 2013, Photographs from Constructing Environments Studio, Melbourne.

http://toolboxes.flexiblelearning.net.au/demosites/series10/10_01/content/bcgbc4010a/09_footing_systems/07_pier_beam/page_004.htm

http://toolboxes.flexiblelearning.net.au/demosites/series10/10_01/content/bcgbc4010a/09_footing_systems/07_pier_beam/page_004.htm

http://www.yourhome.gov.au/technical/fs52.html

interim submission 2

Documents