Interpreting Construction Drawings and Specifications

Description

This 16 hour interactive course will teach the student how to read various types of drawings used in Construction projects. The importance of reading, understanding and using drawings is pivotal in maintaining effective communication that impacts cost, time and overall management of a successful construction project.  Drawings created by different disciplines including architects, engineers, interior designers, technologists all mean different things and must be read in conjunction with one-another for project success.

This course has been accredited with 2 Gold Seal Credits.    

Using an example project, the student can expect the following outcomes:

• Understand the role and responsibility of contributors to the construction document process: Architect, Engineer, Designer, Draftsperson, Sub-Contractor shop documents, Manufacturers and Suppliers.
• Decipher between a complete set of drawings and incomplete for scope requirements
• Read and interpret INTENT versus construction detailing of different drawings and how and where to get further information. 
•  Understand issuances of drawings and obsolete or amended information
• Understand all symbols and abbreviations used by design professionals and what they mean relative to each other navigating a set of drawings
• Introduction to using and navigating a specification and its purpose relative to the responsibility of stakeholders
• Concepts in Law for the use of drawings and specifications in the project 
• Basic understanding of Ontario Building Code, NFPA, and other codes that impact drawing content.
• Basic understanding of requirements of authorities having jurisdiction for planning control and satisfying permit to construct requirements
• Basic take off for preliminary estimating
• Basic introduction to current physical changes happening in the electronic creation of construction documents.

Intended Audience

This course is valuable for new project managers, owner agent project managers and administrators, buyers of construction services, interns in the architectural or engineering disciplines, junior estimators or sub-contractors required to produce shop drawings.

Speaker

Derek Smith, President/Lead Facilitator - Constructionlab

Offering clients  over 25 years of construction industry experience in Canada,  Derek is a trained design professional having practiced for over 15 years of his career collaborating on over $300 million in built or contemplated ICI and residential projects.  As the CEO of the London & District Construction Association (2007-2012) he acted as employer bargaining agent to General Contractors in a successful strike free round (2010).  In 2009 Derek led the development of Canada's first BIM training lab to be housed in an industry association and at the same time founded the Canada BIM Council (CANBIM).   Derek is also a recognized mediator, in construction disputes and holds membership with ADR Institute of Ontario.   His work has led to developing a firm commitment to balancing interests of project stakeholders, leading to improved on-site and organizational productivity.  In 2020, Constructionlab Ltd. founded the Construction and Design Educators Council of Canada, with a mission of connecting educators, storytellers, mentors and affiliates to professional and workforce development opportunities for the industry from coast to coast to coast.