One area most critiqued by the KBDi Design Awards Judging Panel is technical drafting. Clear, concise and consistent technical drawings communicate your design intent well. Vague or inconsistent plans raise questions that can’t be answered – by judges, your clients, or the people charged with making your concept a physical reality.
As an industry group committed to raising the standard of design documentation, KBDi has established a ‘three C’s approach’ to orthographic plans. We encourage you to consider the following when preparing your next plan set.
Clarity
Technical drawing is, first and foremost, a communication tool – think of it as a language that everyone should be able to understand. By delivering clear and consistent plans, your designs will be better understood, and you won’t need to explain your intentions repeatedly. To keep your drawing set crystal clear:
- Plan your plans: map out your floor plan, elevations, mechanical and structural plans, sections and 3D renderings, and use clearly set out symbols and references to lead the reader fluently from one drawing to another. Make sure your elevation designations are consistent within the plan set. For example, if your symbol references ‘Elevation A’, make sure your elevation is labelled in the same way.
- Plan each individual drawing before getting into the detail; ensure the layout is logical and clear – don’t be afraid of white space. Do not let your orthographic drawing extend over the title block.
- Consider how your plans will be read: will the reader print them out (A4? A3? A0?) or view them on an on-site iPad or in-house big screen monitor? Can your drawings be easily deciphered when reduced or enlarged?
Conciseness
Many designers think their intentions will be more apparent with copious notes, but this is not always the case. Consider the following when aiming for concise documentation:
- Be consistent with layouts, linework, dimensioning, abbreviations and symbols. Avoid long blocks of text and embrace white space.
Include a legend to decipher the meaning of abbreviations and symbols.
- Back up your plan set with a comprehensive specification (in table format) and a visual finishes locater (rendered 3D plan or marked-up elevations, for example), and you’ll ensure everyone is on the same page.
Consistency
Australian Standards are a helpful reference if you’re looking for consistency and clarity in your technical drawings. AS 1100 sets out the basic principles of technical drawing, while AS 1100.301-2008 covers Architectural Drawing specifically. We’ve summarised both of the above sources, contextualising them to suit kitchens and bathrooms specifically, in a dedicated K & B Drafting Guide. The Guide will include:
- common abbreviations
- sizes and layout of drawing sheets
- types and thicknesses of lines to be used (with examples of application)
- recommendations for uniform letters, numerals and symbols
- recommended scales and their applications
- recommendations for dimensioning, including size and geometry tolerances
- protocols used for the representation of components
- and more.
We’ll release this document by the end of October. Ensure you’re an active member of the KBDi Community to be the first to know.