Construction Drawings and Blueprint Reading
Reading a complete construction drawing set: sheet organization, lines, symbols and abbreviations, metric and imperial scales, grids and datums, orthographic views, site and civil, architectural, structural, mechanical, plumbing, fire protection and electrical drawings, the project manual under MasterFormat and the NMS, BIM, revisions, RFIs and as-builts, with CCDC, CSA and NBC practice.
CON-120 Year 1 3 credits 12 lessons · 5 h 25 min
Offered by HSM University · Construction Management
This is the Canadian version of this course. See the American version.
What you'll learn
- Explain the purpose of construction drawings, who produces them, their contractual role and how a drawing set is organized and numbered
- Interpret line weights, line types, hatches, reference symbols, tags, abbreviations and notes on construction drawings
- Convert between metric and imperial drawing scales, measure safely from prints and PDFs, and calculate missing dimensions from dimension strings
- Locate elements using grid lines, project and geodetic datums and spot elevations
- Combine plans, reflected ceiling plans, elevations, sections and details into a three-dimensional understanding of a building
- Read site, grading, servicing and plan-and-profile drawings, including contours, slopes, inverts and stations
- Interpret architectural floor plans, partition types and door, window and room finish schedules
- Read structural general notes, foundation and framing plans, reinforcing callouts and steel and wood member designations
- Read mechanical, plumbing and fire protection drawings, schedules and riser diagrams and identify coordination issues
- Read electrical single-line diagrams, power and lighting plans, panel and luminaire schedules, fire alarm and low-voltage drawings
- Navigate a project manual organized under MasterFormat and SectionFormat and read specifications together with drawings
- Manage revisions, write effective RFIs, use digital drawings and BIM appropriately and produce reliable as-built records
Course content
12 lessons · 5 h 25 min total · final exam
- 1 Why drawings matter and the drawing set 29 min · quiz
- 2 Lines, lettering, symbols and abbreviations 28 min · quiz
- 3 Scales, dimensions and grids 28 min · quiz
- 4 Orthographic projection: plans, elevations, sections and details 25 min · quiz
- 5 Site and civil drawings 27 min · quiz
- 6 Architectural drawings and schedules 28 min · quiz
- 7 Structural drawings: foundations, framing, reinforcing and steel 25 min · quiz
- 8 Mechanical, plumbing and fire protection drawings 27 min · quiz
- 9 Electrical, lighting and low-voltage drawings 26 min · quiz
- 10 Specifications and the project manual 25 min · quiz
- 11 Digital drawings, BIM, markups, revisions and RFIs 28 min · quiz
- 12 As-builts and capstone: reading a full drawing set 29 min · quiz
- E Final exam 20 questions
Description
Reading a complete construction drawing set: sheet organization, lines, symbols and abbreviations, metric and imperial scales, grids and datums, orthographic views, site and civil, architectural, structural, mechanical, plumbing, fire protection and electrical drawings, the project manual under MasterFormat and the NMS, BIM, revisions, RFIs and as-builts, with CCDC, CSA and NBC practice.
Part of the Construction Management stream, typically taken in year 1.