ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN / RESIDENTIAL PLANNING

STAGES OF DESIGN
1. Initial contact with the client
2. Preliminary Design Study
3. Initial Working Drawings
4. Final Design Considerations
5. Completion of Architectural and Engineering Drawings
6. Building Permit Procedure
7. Construction and Job Supervision
8. As- Built Plans
9. Occupancy
INITIAL CONTACT WITH CLIENT
• Determine the Project
• Needs
• Wants
• Design Process
• Data/Information needed from the client are: Site information, TCT, No. of occupants, Daily
Activities, Needs wants, Budget Allocation, Contract Agreement
INSPECTION OF THE SITE: To acquaint the architect with actual conditions of the project site, the owner
should invite and accompany him to inspect it. This will result in further exchange of views on how best
to achieve their common goal before the plans are started. It will also enable the architect to evaluate
the negative and the positive features of the land and take them into consideration in developing the
design and plans. Example sloping ground
PRELIMINARY DESIGN STUDY: Factors Affecting Design and Project
1. Physical and Environmental factor
2. Social Factor – pertains to the social characteristics of the people and its environment
3. Economic Factor – Budget allocation
4. Orientation
Classifications of Building
1. Residential 2. Institutional 3. Commercial 4. Industrial
5. Recreational 6. Religious 7. Educational
Basic Components of Residential Buildings
1. Carport or garage 2. Living Room 3. Dining Room
4. Dining Room 5. Kitchen 6. Toilet and Bath Room
Space Programming – organizes the plan in order to have a smooth flow of traffic in the area. Know the
basic routine of a person
Spatial interrelationship Diagram – is the diagram of spaces in planning represented by a BUBBLE
DIAGRAM or DIAGRAM OF SPACES
PREPARATION OF THE PRELIMINARY STUDIES: The development of the building design and plans
generally comes in two stages. In the first stage, the architect prepares presentation drawings reflecting
his best concept of the project. The plans he produced must conform to the reasonable wishes of the
owner and the building laws and regulation, among other consideration. The initial drawing produced –
commonly called preliminary studies – are presented to the owner for his study and approval. A rough
estimate of the project cost, which may be calculated based on the floor area of the proposed structure
is also shown. The drawings initially submitted to the owner usually consist of the perspective view of
the proposed building that shows how it will look like when finished, the floor plans, site development
plan, elevations or cross sections of the project. If the owner is not satisfied with the preliminary plans
and requests for a changes, the architect will go back to do the drawing. Then he will again present the
new drawings for study and approval.
INITIAL WORKING DRAWINGS: Includes presentation of initial drawings for approval with the client,
Revision, and Preparation of Final Drawings ( Approval of Plans)
FINAL DESIGN CONSIDERATION: includes Finalized Plan and Drawings as per required revision, Drafting
the Final Working Drawings
The second stage involves drafting the complete construction drawings of the project following
the owner’s approval of the preliminary design studies. The Detailed drawings and plans would cover all
the architectural, structural, electrical, plumbing, mechanical and other construction phases – to be
implemented by the contractor, builder, construction project administrator or manager in charge if the
construction.
FINAL WORKING DRAWING: When the plans and companion documents are completed, they are
reproduced in several copies. The reproduced copies are signed by the architect and the engineers who
prepared them. The building owner would also affix his or her signature on the plans and documents to
signify approval of their contents. Copies of the plans and accompanying documents are issued to
contractors desiring to bid for the construction of the structure. The prescribed number of copies will
be submitted to the concerned government offices for approval and granting of the necessary
construction permits and clearances. The architect will also prepare the related construction documents
such as the Bill of Materials and Cost of Estimates, Construction Specifications, Invitation To Bidders, and
draft of proposed Construction Contract. He will also accomplish the application for the building permit
for submission and approval of the proper government office.
COMPLETE A/E DRAWINGS: Signed and sealed by Professional Involved. Building Plans consist of:
a. Architectural plans details and drawings
b. Structural design computations and detail drawings
c. Electrical Plans, load analysis, computations and riser diagrams, specifications
d. Plumbing plans, details of septic vault, diagrams of plumbing lines, specifications
e. Mechanical plans and specification, where required
f. Others: landscaping and interior designs, etc
g. Construction specifications
h. Bill of Materials and Cost Estimates
i. Structural Design Analysis and Computations
j. Application for construction permits and utilities
k. Other supporting papers or clearances required by local government rules and regulations
THE PREPARATION OF THE BUILDING PLANS AND CONTRACTS DOCUMENTS
Briefly defined, construction plans consists of drawings, diagrams and notes showing the layout of
floors and uses; the elevations or views, cross-sections; specified materials, other relevant information
about the structure.
SPECIFICATIONS USED TO DRAW THE BUILDING DRAWING: The specifications of the building
components which are commonly followed in small residential and office building construction are given
below:
MINIMUM SIZES
Description Minimum Sizes
1. Drawing room or living room 16 sqm
2. Bed rooms 12 sqm
3. Kitchen 8 sqm
4. Bath room 2.6 sqm
5. W.C 2 sqm
6. Bath and W.C. 5.50 sqm
7. Lobby, passage etc 1.00m wide
8. Window are 1/10th, floor area excluding doors
9. W.C., bath rooms and 10% of floor area.

Engineers and Consultants required in preparing building plans

Aside from draftspersons, architectural designers, estimators, specifications writers, the Architect must
also avail of the technical expertise of Engineers and Consultants to assist in producing all drawings and
accompanying documents for a given project.
Professional Electrical Engineer or Master Electrician - prepares, signs and dry seals the electrical
plans, including the application for an electrical permit to be issued by the concern government office
and the utility company to supply electric power for the projects
Sanitary Engineer or Master Plumber - prepares signs, and dry-seals the plumbing plans; including the
application for the plumbing permit from the concerned government office
Civil-Structural Engineer – designs, and computes the correct sizes for structural frames and other
critical parts to achieve economy in the construction, strength, stability and safety of the buildings signs
and dry-seals his work
Mechanical Engineer – prepares plans for mechanical installation; signs and dry-seals the plans
application for permit to place the equipment indicated in the drawings
Geodetic Engineer – draws the lot plan based from the date on the TCT of the project site if not yet
available; or surveys the land, computes boundaries; and locates or relocates concrete lot
monuments, signs and dry seals his work
Other experts, if required by the nature of the project or by the owner are:
Landscape architects
Interior designers
Environmental Planners,
Geo-Technical Engineers
SPECIFICATIONS USED TO DRAW THE BUILDING DRAWING
Stair case
residential buildings
Width of steps = 1.00 m
Width of landing = 1.20 m
Rise = 180 mm
Tread = 250 mm
Public buildings
Width of steps =1.50 m
Width of landing = 1.20 m
Rise = 150 mm
Tread = 300 mm from street level
Light area of staircase = 1.5 sqm per floor height.
Height of Plinth = 450 mm
SIZES OF WINDOWS
Parapet: brick work of 200 mm thick and 600mm
height above the roof slab.
Window: top is in level with doors
W1 900mm X 1200mm
W2 1200mm X 1200mm
Placed at 900mm above floor level.
SIZES of DOORS
Door/Flush door
Main rooms, where function is to be placed = 1200 X 2100mm
Or 1000 X 2100 mm
Kitchen, bath, W.C etc.= 800 X 2100 mm or 900 X 2100 mm
Ventilator
V1 = 900 X 600 mm
V2 = 600 x 600 mm placed at 1500mm above floor level.
METHODS OF MAKING LINE AND DETAILED DRAWING
The placing of different rooms including their sizes is grouped together by drawing a single line plan.
North line is drawn and keeping in view the basic principles, plan is drawn. It may be drawn on graph
paper, tracing paper or drawing paper. Single line plan is proportionally drawn on 1: 100 scale. Draw the
North line, and place the kitchen on the East, North-East or south-East aspect. Then place bed rooms on
North-West or South-West direction. Similarly place other rooms and select the best combination after
preparing two or three combinations. After selecting the line plan with the best combination, a detailed
drawing of a building consisting the following views are prepared.
Detailed Drawings
The major views in detailed drawings are:
i. Plan – scale 1:50
ii. Elevation- scale 1:50
iii. Section – scale 1:50
iv. Detail – scale 1:20 or 1:10
v. Site plan- scale 1:200
vi. Enlarged views of important details
vii. Reference tables, legends showing area covered, sizes of doors and windows etc
Plan: The single line plan is developed in to a double line or solid plan. Length and width of rooms are
shown in the plan. Plan is drawn by assuming the structure to be cut at a height of 1.5m from the
ground level. Thickness of walls, width of doors, windows, sunshades, steps etc. are shown in the plan.
The parts of the structure above the cutting plane are shown by
Elevation: it shows the width and height of a structure. Front and side views are drawn to give frontal
and side look of the structures. The shapes of windows, doors, verandah openings, sunshades and
parapets are shown in true look.
Section: The structure is supposed so be cut by a vertical plane, and the view of the cut-section is
drawn, which is termed as a section. It shows height of rooms and depth of foundations, type of roofs,
floors, thickness of walls and plinth height etc. Section also shows type of materials used for
construction. Use the conventional symbols for different types of building materials.
Perspective:
LOT PLAN: The project owner- aside from giving the guidelines and requirements to be taken into
account in drawing the plans – should also provide the architect with the information about the area,
shape, boundaries and characteristics of the terrain on which the building is to be erected. The architect
needs all the technical information about the lot site to help him determine the ideal size, shape,
orientation, and placement of the proposed structure when he prepares the Site Development Plan
for the project
Vicinity Map: The Lot Plan is prepared by geodetic engineer on a prescribed drawing sheet. Among
other standard drawings to be drawn thereon is the Location or Vicinity Map. The vicinity map is a
representation of the exact location of construction for the purpose of government checking. It includes
known locations of special landmarks such as schools, chapels, hospitals and the like.
Site development Plan: In the Site development Plan the position shape and dimensions of the
proposed project are shown. The improvements proposed to be introduced on the property are also
indicated Lot configuration, dimensions and northing Setbacks, Roof plan , Landscape architecture,
Location of access road
MAKING A ROUGH ESTIMATE OF THE PROJECT COST
A very common practice employed by architects, engineers, builders, and estimators to determine
the probable cost off a project is to first compute the floor area in square meters. The area is multiplied
by an assumed value (or unit cost) and the result would be the estimated cost of the structure to be
built. The assumed value to be multiplied by the area of the building is usually based on the historical
records of the architect or estimator. However, the amount may also come from other reliable sources.
EXAMPLE COST ESTIMATE
For example, an architect was commissioned by one businessman to plan and supervise the construction
of his commercial building with a total enclosed area of 450 square meters. From the records of
construction, the total amount expended to complete the project was 5,400,000.00 ETB
To find the unit cost per square meter, divide the total cost by the area of the building, thus:
5,400,000.00
Unit Cost = ------------------------ = 12,000.00 ETB
450 sq. m.
EXAMPLE COST ESTIMATE
A few months later an architect was again contracted by the same businessman to design another
building to be built on his property just a few blocks away from the recently completed project. The
owner wants the same specifications, same kind of materials, and same architectural styles of the recent
one. The architect came up with the design of the building with an area of 375 square meters.
Problem: What is the estimated cost of the new building if the unit cost per square meter is also
assumed to be 12,000.00 ETB?
Answer: Multiply the assumed cost per square meter by the total area of the building
Estimated cost= 12,000 x 375 = 4,500,000.00

COMPLETE WORKING DRAWINGS DETAILS

COMPONENTS OF ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS

A-1 Perspective, Site Development Plan, Vicinity Map, Location Plan
A-2 Ground Floor Plan, Second Floor Plan, Elevations, Roof Plan
A-3 Longitudinal Section, Cross Section, Schedule of Doors and Windows
A-4 Floor Framing Plan Stair Details Miscellaneous Details

COMPONENTS OF STRCUTURAL DRAWINGS

S-1 General Structural Notes, Column/Footing Details, Details of Wall Footings, Typical Slab Details
S-2 Foundation Plan, Floor Framing Plan, Roof Framing Plan, Truss Diagram
S-3 Typical Beam Elevation

COMPONENTS OF SANITARY/PLUMBING LAYOUT

P-1 General Plumbing notes, Abbreviations, legend, Signs and Symbols, Vicinity Map, Details of
Septic Tank, Detail of Area Drain Catch Basin
P-2 Ground and Second Floor Drainage layout, Ground and Second Floor Sewer Layout
P-3 Water Distribution Layout and Isometric View

COMPONENTS OF ELECTRICAL DRAWINGS

E-1 General Electric Notes, Legend and Symbols, Vicinity map, Detail of Panel Board, Single Line
Diagram and Load Schedule
E-2 Power Layout
Lighting Layout