That’s why studying the plan legend is an essential step in reading construction plans.

However, there are possible differences even in their interpretation.

Others are also commonly known to represent elements like walls, doors, and windows. The symbols in a plan legend are mostly standardized and often look like the stylized versions of their real-life counterparts, such as staircases, toilets, bathtubs, stoves, etc. In the case of fittings, the legend gives their wattage, mounting location, and type. Source: researchgateĪlthough there are many more symbols, in an electrical plan, all of them refer to different electrical fittings, sockets, and switches. Of course, legends can be much more complex, depending on what they’re showing. Or, when construction is underway, this information guides the workers’ actions, telling them what they’re building. So, this legend effectively relayed plenty of information that different project stakeholders can use.įor example, this allows contractors to estimate the quantity and cost of building materials and the associated labor costs, enabling them to give a quote. It also tells you what building material will be used for each and their thickness in millimeters. This simple wall legend tells you that the blueprint in front of you shows five types of walls depicted by different line weights and styles. However, these would be hard to understand without plan legends acting as a guide. To do that, they rely on various sets of standardized or customized symbols and abbreviations. Regardless of their type, each plan, drawing, or blueprint needs to show a lot of information in a limited space to be effective. Going over the plan legend is the next logical step in reading construction plans.Ĭonstruction projects are complex by their nature, and the purpose of the plan legend is to guide you through them.Ī set of construction plans will consist of many different types of drawings: They too can appear in many different forms depending on what the designer and other involved professionals consider necessary.Īll in all, reading the title block first will give you baseline information about the project and specific details about that particular drawing and its place within a set of construction plans, thus putting you on the right track.

Lastly, the title block usually includes a revision block, which starts empty and then gets filled out as the drawing changes. In addition to all that information, the bottom right corner will also contain the drawing or print number, which is important for finding other referenced drawings or submitting them to different approval authorities. Here’s what title blocks look like on different paper sizes. However, you’ll never find it on the left side of the sheet because that’s where blueprints are bound after printing. The title block can be placed in the bottom right corner or along the right vertical or lower horizontal edge of the sheet. the name of the architect, designer, or engineer.Still, there are some essential elements that appear in all of them, such as: Source: yourspreadsheetsĪs you can see, the style and order of information in a title card can vary. The title block is indispensable, since it provides critical information about the project in general and that drawing sheet in particular. Regardless of the type of construction drawings you’re reading, you’ll usually find the title block on every sheet you look at. It contains information in the form of dimensions, symbols, abbreviations, and line types. A construction plan is a collection of two-dimensional drawings (blueprints) that show what will be built and what it will look like after a construction project is completed.

Free electrical blueprint symbols