The Importance of Accurate Shop Drawings

If you need to produce shop drawings, then you require a set of drawings that is perfectly accurate. Why? Well, these drawings will be requisite for the completion of a project, and they may be utilized throughout the design-build process to communicate between designers, manufacturers, and contractors. As such, these documents are simply essential, and they may actually be required under the terms of a contract between any of the aforementioned parties. So, why is accuracy so crucial? How can you ensure that your drawings are perfectly accurate? And how might shop drawings prove to be a living document, as you navigate through the design build process? We have the answers to all of those questions and more in today’s article, as provided by DrafterMax, your source for accurate shop drawings.

The Importance of Accurate, Legible Documentation

(Or: The Importance of Communication)

As we mentioned, shop drawings are utilized to communicate the design, manufacturing, and installation intentions of a component or system. As such, they need to be accurate and legible, so that all those involved will understand the component or system at hand. Legible shop drawings help to prevent lost time and money, while ensuring accuracy from design to manufacturing to construction. Here’s why…

Prevent Loss

At the end of the day, clarity in your shop drawings will ensure that no time or money is lost in the production and installation of the design at hand. Shop drawings are meant to make transitions smooth between designers, manufacturers, and contractors, ensuring that the drawing conveys how the object or system should be built, and how it should be installed. Without an accurate shop drawing a component may be manufactured incorrectly, or a component may be installed incorrectly, which will require costly repairs, or a complete rebuild. It could also cost the designer time and money in reproducing a design, and they may be liable to pay their client if they violate a contract with poor drawings.

Take a roof truss drawing, for example. If the design shows trusses that are short, and the foundation of the building has already been installed, the manufacturer or contractor may build trusses that don’t extend to the edges of the building. That will be a costly error, and it could bring the construction time to a stop.

Ensure Design Accuracy

Good shop drawings ensure that a component or system is well thought out. When designing components and systems, shop drawings serve as a tool to explore different design configurations and iterations quickly. That can actually lend itself to time savings, better building efficiency, and a lower construction cost.

Architectural engineers, for example, rely on shop drawings to design specific building components, and they can test the design of these components in 3D models, as well as stress-test models, before the component is built by a manufacturer. A good design-build process starts with a strong, accurate design.

Ensure Manufacturing Accuracy

Manufacturing may be the most expensive process that utilizes shop drawings. If you’re machining specific parts and components, it’s crucial that you have perfectly accurate shop drawings, so that you’ll be able to manufacture those components correctly the first time. With a poor shop drawing, you could waste precious materials and time on your manufacturing process.

Take a shop drawing for a staircase support system, for instance. If the support beams are off by an inch every stair, you’ll end up with a final product that is far from workable in the construction of the building at hand. Shop drawings ensure that every detail is accurate, so that manufactured components fit perfectly within the build.

Ensure Construction Accuracy

When it comes time to install a system or component, shop drawings can prove to be valuable. Not only will you know the dimensions necessary for a project installation, you’re shop drawings may include details on how to install a component, including steps to take throughout the process. In this way, your shop drawings could serve as a tool to make sure that a construction phases go off without a hitch.

Take an intricate HVAC system, for instance. Installing a system without encountering obstructions or running into other infrastructure systems can prove to be a nightmare without some foresight. Shop drawings are designed to show how best to configure the HVAC system, without guesswork, wasted time, and costly mistakes.

Count on DrafterMax

For any and all of the shop drawings that you’ll need, you can count on the draftsmen here at DrafterMax. We’ll work with you to ensure that you produce the shop drawings that you need, and we’ll do our utmost to make sure that those drawings are precise and legible. Reach out to us today to get started with a free quote! We also provide 3D modeling, and other drafting services here at our Brooklyn-based drafting studio.