Shop drawing

Examples of these include: elevators, structural steel, trusses, pre-cast concrete, windows, appliances, cabinets, air handling units, and millwork.

Also critical are the installation and coordination shop drawings of the MEP trades such as sheet metal ductwork, piping, plumbing, fire protection, and electrical.

Notes concerning changes or differences from the original documents should be made on the shop drawing for the architect’s and engineer’s approval.

Some fabricators, such as cabinet and casework suppliers, prefer not to rely on the contractor’s verification and will verify the dimensions with their own personnel.

[2] millwork and casework, find application in projects including commercial offices, retail stores, parks, hotels, shopping malls, restaurants, upholstery for furniture items, lightings, display counters, racks and shelves, mantelpieces etc.

An example of this would be a commercial chiller which would be furnished by the mechanical contractor, but would require electrical connections, plumbing, rigging, insulation and commissioning.

Various third parties will need to review the installation information and confirm they are furnishing compatible equipment and proper layout of services.

[2] Some fabrications will require a sample submittal with the shop drawing, primarily for color and texture selection of finishes.

[2] Problems with design coordination, such as time consumption and ineffectiveness related to the current 2D paper-based process, are some of the top concerns of a general contractor, since late conflict correction increases the potential for errors in the field.

[4] When the supplier and designer have compatible CAD software or when universal file formats such as IFC, PDF or DWG are utilized, the review can be made from a CD, email or FTP transfer.

Popular CAD platforms used for generating shop drawings are Advance Steel, AutoCAD, Revit, CATIA, Creo Elements/Pro, Inventor, Solidworks and Tekla Structures.

The shop drawing and the accompanying “cut sheet” lists the quantity, sizes, lengths, and shapes of the reinforcing bar.

[5] This information is provided for review by the structural engineer to ensure that sufficient reinforcing is being supplied; fabrication of the bar by the supplier’s shop; an inventory list for the contractor, upon delivery the typical project has thousands of pieces of reinforcing steel that need to be organized for storage and installation; and placement by the ironworker.

[5] Each fabricator, has particular style for shop drawings and cut sheets, depending on the drafts people and Computer-aided design systems.