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MEP Shop Drawings
Whether you’re designing a construction project, or you’re coordinating between construction professionals, you may rely on mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) drawings to ensure that your project runs smoothly. Without these drawings, you could waste thousands in the build phase of your project, and you could end up destroying your project completion projection. However, with clear, concise MEP drawings, you’ll have a clear path to complete your build, and you’ll save time and money along the way. In addition, your MEP drawings can serve to aid in the manufacturing of materials for the mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems of your build, providing you with further savings and an even more efficient build process.
With DrafterMax, you can entrust us to complete your shop drawings so that your project is completed without a hitch. We specialize in drafting MEP drawings in addition to all other types of shop drawings, and we’d be ecstatic to help you meet your project demands. If you’re curious about what we can do for you or if you’re ready to get started, then reach out to us — we’d be happy to walk you through our drafting process. You can also continue reading to learn more about our MEP drawing services. We have additional information about MEP drawings, various types of MEP drawings that we can draft, frequently asked questions that we have answered, and the benefits of working with a professional drafting firm — all listed below.
The Purpose Of MEP Drawing
MEP drawings are coordinating drawings that proactively solve spatial issues between mechanical, electrical, and plumbing components that will be installed in a building. Without these drawings, contractors may be fighting for space in the cavities of your building, which may lead to mistakes, wasted time, and a loss of money. In addition, MEP drawings ensure that your systems don’t interfere with the structure of your building itself. For example, a poorly designed HVAC system may accidentally be routed through structural beams. MEP drawings are intended to keep your building structurally sound while building in space for MEP systems.
Instead of “winging it,” you can draft MEP drawings to coordinate all of the systems to be installed, so that your contractors have information on when, where, and how to install these complex systems so that they don’t interfere with one another. Here’s a breakdown of each of the components that may be included in an MEP drawing:
Mechanical Components
For the most part, the mechanical component of an MEP drawing set surrounds HVAC design. These drawings will show how ventilation systems will link to their heating and cooling units, without interfering with other infrastructure of the building. A well-planned mechanical drawing will ensure that your HVAC system doesn’t obstruct your electrical and plumbing plans, while also ensuring that the system itself is efficient. With MEP drawings you can map out the most efficient duct routes to ensure that the zones of your building are heated and cooled efficiently, making climate control a snap once your building is complete.
Electrical
The electrical portion of an MEP drawing set will display the best routes from power sources to fixtures and outlets throughout a building. In these drawings, it should be clear where conduit should be routed during a build, and where the conduit should penetrate various building components to ensure that the structure remains sound.
Plumbing
Plumbing drawings should outline pipe layouts for warm and cold feed pipes, as well as waste water pipes. Like the aforementioned drawings, plumbing drawings should also display where pipes penetrate various building components, and how these pipes are routed without causing interference with the HVAC and electrical systems of the building. Detailed information may also include dimensions, parts, and manufacturing or installation instructions.
Types of MEP Drawings
There are numerous types of MEP drawings that may be necessary or helpful for a given build project. We can draft any and all of the following drawings:
Detail Shop Drawings
Detail drawings are crucial for various MEP components, especially when dimensions are precise. For MEP drawings that require intricate details, including manufacturing dimensions, installation instructions, and other variables, you can count on DrafterMax to provide the detailed shop drawings that you need. We strive to make detailed drawings that are precise and easily legible, showing the best angles to display dimensions and instructions.
Penetration Drawings
Your MEP systems will penetrate various wall and floor spaces throughout your building. When you need to allow for these penetrations, penetration drawings will ensure that these openings are precisely where they need to be, and their dimensions are proper. In addition, penetration drawings are intended to account for the structural integrity of your building, so you can trust that cuts made throughout the structure of your building won’t create problems in the future.
Sleeve & Block-Out Drawings
Like penetration drawings, our sleeve and block-out drawings will help you coordinate with concrete and steel contractors. These drawings display spaces that will allow for penetrations between spaces, through which MEP systems will eventually be fed. Accurate sleeve and block-out drawings will ensure that your pipes and ductwork fit perfectly through the structure of your building.
Coordination Drawings
Coordination drawings are intended to keep your MEP systems from colliding in a build. Oftentimes, unforeseen collisions occur when coordinating drawings aren’t completed. These drawings will uncover obstructions that can be caused by interacting MEP systems, such as when a duct is in the way of a wastewater pipe. Detecting these collisions before building will cut down on mistakes, manufacturing costs, and time waste.
As-Built MEP Drawings
If you’re updating a current MEP system, renovating a portion of your building, or require MEP drawings for documentation purposes, we can render as-built MEP drawings. We’ll take measurements on site, and create drawings which capture the current systems in your building. Our as-built drawings may also prove useful if you’ve lost existing MEP drawings. As-built drawings will also account for any changes that were made to initial MEP plans throughout the construction process.
Pipe Spool Drawings
For certain commercial and industrial plumbing projects, you may need to install pipe spools throughout the building, which will have to be manufactured off site, and assembled at the build. These drawings may be necessary in order to manufacture these specialized pipe spools, since they rely on precise dimensions and planning. We can create spool drawings that will make plumbing installations headache-free.
Answers To Frequently Asked Questions
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