Production drawings

2. Production drawings

Production drawings are defined as 'drawn (graphic) information, prepared by the design team for use by the construction team, the main purpose of which is to define the size, shape, location and construction of the building and its parts'.

The preparation of production drawings is independent of the form of contract and who employs the various designers involved in the process. Under traditional forms of contract most of the production drawing process will be pre-contract, but with forms that involve design by the constructor much of it will be post-contract.

Production drawings are complementary to production specification, which is defined (in Section 3.1.1) as 'written information prepared by the design team for use by the construction team, the main purpose of which is to define the products to be used, the quality of work, any performance requirements, and the conditions under which the work is to be executed.'

Location schedules of doors, ironmongery, finishes, sanitary fixtures, etc. are often included in sets of production drawings. They represent a 'grey area' between drawings and specification, which is clarified in Sections 3.1.2, 4.1.4 and 5.1.5.

It is recommended that the term 'drawing' be used to refer to a physical sheet of paper with graphics, text and a title block. The equivalent in CAD terms is the drawing definition, which is produced from an assembly of model files and drawing templates with notes and dimensions. Only when the drawing definition is plotted on paper to a particular scale is the traditional production drawing produced.