Cadguide 2

CAD GUIDELINES FOR
ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS
EASTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY

CHARLESTON, ILLINOIS
FACILITIES PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT
THEODORE J. WEIDNER, DIRECTOR
FEBRUARY 2, 1999
EIU Facilities Planning & Management
CAD Standards
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Drawing Name Convention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
CAD Layering Convention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Drawing Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Room Numbering Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Building Areas Definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Legal Language required for CAD Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Delivery of Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Audit and Quality Assurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2 rev5/27/99 cadguide
CAD Standards
PURPOSE
In an effort to develop and maintain accurate CAD files for the campus, Facilities
Planning & Management has established this set of guidelines to be used by the EIU
Planning Groups and consulting Architects/Engineers. It is important to maintain
accurate CAD files to facilitate university wide space analysis, sharing data with vendors,
and assisting maintenance shops in maintaining equipment and systems on the campus.
The existing CAD drawings were produced several years ago and have not had a Quality
Check performed on them. All remodeling projects in the foreseeable future will include
the requirement of the A/E to provide verified base plans until such time that all existing
buildings have received a Quality Check. The following guideline will establish
conventions for naming drawings, establishing layers, and defining space. Because this
guideline is in the development stage, it is expected to receive modifications in the next
several months and a revision date has been placed in the footer to insure that the most
current information is available for the use of architects and engineers.
This document is not intended to dictate the manner in which an architect or engineer
develops construction documents. Rather, its intent is to identify the needs of FP&M for
facilities management purposes. With this knowledge the A/E will be able to structure
the files so that a smooth transition from construction documents to management
documents can be attained. The layering convention is modeled after the American
Institute of Architects (AIA) published recommendations.
Questions regarding this guideline or requests for a copy should be directed to one of the
following people at Eastern Illinois University, Facilities Planning & Management, 600
Lincoln Avenue, Charleston, Illinois 61920.
Debbie Black, Construction Project Coordinator (217) 581-7215

Stephen Shrake, Architect (217) 581-7220
Michael Doerr, Architect (217) 581-5711
cadguide rev5/27/99 3
CAD Standards
DRAWING NAME CONVENTION

Drawings that depict building information will have a seven-character drawing name.
This name is conceptually divided into two parts with the first part consisting of three
characters and the second part consisting of four characters. The first three characters of
the drawing name must begin with the EIU building ID. Facilities Planning &
Management will provide the architect/engineer with the EIU building ID at the
beginning of any project.
The EIU building ID, assigned by Facilities Planning & Management, is normally a two
digit number with an optional alpha-numeric character in the third position. The alpha-
numeric character is used to distinguish between building additions or separate structures
in the same complex. In the event that a building ID is a simple two digit number,
without an alpha-numeric character, the third position should be an under-score character.
The second half of the drawing name consists of four characters. If the drawing depicts a
floor plan then position four and five of the drawing name will indicate the floor and
positions six and seven will depict the drawing type. If the drawing diagrams the building
as a whole, the last four positions of the drawing name will indicate the type of drawing.
Drawing File Name Convention
27_01BP
Drawing Type
Floor (all plan drawings)
Addition/Unit
Building ID
27_NELEV North elevation of building number 27

27_SITE Site plan for building number 27
27_02BP Second floor base plan for building number 27

27A03FP Third floor furniture plan for first addition to building
number 27
54N01CL First floor reflected ceiling plan for north building of 54

building group
CAD Standards
Drawing Type
The following drawing types have been established by FP&M for various building plans
that will be maintained for facilities management use. Other drawing types may be
established at later dates for inclusion in this list.
BP Base Plan: Basic building plan for planning and management use
FP Furniture Plan: Base Plan + furniture information
CL Reflected Ceiling: Base Plan + ceiling grid, lights, HVAC, & sprinkler system
PL Plumbing Plan: Base Plan + plumbing systems
ME Mechanical Plan: Base Plan + HVAC systems
EL Electrical Plan: Base Plan + electrical power & data/phone systems
Other drawing types that may be maintained for building management use are the
following:
SITE Site Plan: Architectural features of site work; parking, walks, etc.
UTIL Utility Site Plan: Site utility information
ELEV Building Elevations: Building Elevations w/ doors, windows, etc.
CAD Standards
CAD LAYERING CONVENTION

Facilities Planning & Management follows the AIA CAD Layer Guidelines with some
modifications and expansion. Copies of the Guidelines are available through the
American Institute of Architects Press, 1735 New York Avenue N.W., Washington, D.C.
20006.
The layer guidelines are organized as a hierarchy. This structure makes the list easier to
use and accommodates future expansion. Layer names are alphanumeric and use easy-to-
remember abbreviations. The layer guidelines are defined in two formats; a long format
using 6-16 characters and a short format using 3-8 characters. FP&M is still evaluating
the two formats to determine which will best satisfy our requirements. For the present,
FP&M will accept either format while we continue to evaluate the two formats. With
either format, the layers are separated into eight major groups and FP&M has added one
additional group for specific layer names used for facilities management needs. The nine
groups are identified by the first character of the layer names:
A Architecture, Interiors, and Facilities Management

S Structural
M Mechanical
P Plumbing
F Fire Protection
E Electrical
C Civil Engineering and Site Work
L Landscape Architecture
U University (used for layer names created for specific university needs)
It is not the intent of Facilities Planning & Management to dictate how an A/E produces
documents within their office. Most A/E’s that have had projects at Eastern Illinois
University recently either now use a modified version of the AIA CAD Layer Guidelines
or, at least, are familiar with the system. When the project is closed out and record CAD
files are presented to FP&M the files should be such that a minimal amount of time will
be required to modify the layers so that they can be used as management tools by FP&M.
See “Delivery of Media” later in these guidelines.
FP&M will require certain features be on separate layers so that modification of layer
name, color, etc. can be made quickly.
The following layer structure will be used by FP&M for facilities management use. The
layer structure for the first eight groups are not repeated in this guideline since they are
well documented in the AIA CAD Layer Guidelines. The listed layers are those included
in the ninth group created specifically for university needs. Layers for hatching, details,
CAD Standards
notes, etc. required for construction drawings will be turned off or deleted for building
management use.
LAYER NAME DESCRIPTION COLOR LINETYPE

U-GRPL Gross Area Boundaries Cyan Continuous
(polyline)
U-GRNOTE Gross Area Text Yellow Continuous
U-GRPAT Gross Area Hatch Cyan Continuous
Pattern
U-FLNUM EIU Room Numbers Yellow Continuous
U-ASPL Assignable Area Boundary Magenta Continuous
(polyline)
U-ASNOTE Assignable Area Text Yellow Continuous
U-ASPAT Assignable Area Hatch Magenta Continuous
Pattern
U-DIM EIU Dimensions Green Continuous
CAD Standards
DRAWING STANDARDS
TYPICAL DRAWING SETTINGS
The following settings have been established and included in the FP&M prototype
drawings. These settings will be used in all facilities management drawings used by
FP&M. If files are not received from A/E’s in the following format, final close out of the
project will be delayed until FP&M has made the modifications to the files.
MENU Acad
VIEWRES 500
BLIPS Off
UCSICON Off
COORDINATES On
GRID Off
SNAP Off
COLOR By Layer
LINETYPE By Layer
UNITS
<ARCHITECTURAL>
<270> Direction for angle 0.00 (12 o’clock)
<Y> Angles measured clockwise
FONTS
All text in submitted CAD documentation should use the font ROMANS. Plotted size of
text for room names, dimensions, and notes should be 1/8” height. Plot size of text for
plan and detail titles should be 1/4” height. The intent is to provide legible text when
documents are reduced 50%.
BLOCKS
Coloring of entities in blocks should be set to BYLAYER. A block and its entities should
all be on the same layer. All attributes for blocks must be documented.
EXTERNAL REFERENCES (XREFS)
It is the preference of FP&M to not use xrefs. If xrefs are included in submitted CAD
files complete documentation, including path established in the original drawing must be
provided. If necessary, the A/E will provide a technician, on site, to de-bug any xref
CAD Standards
insertions that may occur during the initial loading files at FP&M. FP&M will continue
to monitor and evaluate the use of xrefs as a facilities management tool.
SCALE & UNITS
Scale of drawings must be as indicated on the plans. The use of scale factors to increase
or decrease the size of drawing elements is not acceptable. Plans must be directly
scaleable without requiring a scale factor to be applied. If plans are blocked into files
with different scales then the original file must be available along with documentation.
TOLERANCES
Tolerances for acceptable CAD documentation are as defined in the Audit and Quality
Assurance section of this document with regard to completeness of recording features,
accuracy of measurements, and compliance with these standards.
CAD Standards
ROOM NUMBERING STANDARDS

Room numbering indicated on drawings shall adhere to EIU’s established standards to
insure that record drawings accurately reflect the room numbers that will be used
throughout the life of the building. All departments on campus will use these numbers
for their records.
The room numbers will follow a four-digit format:
FCXX
room numbers 00 - 99
corridor numbers 0 - 9
floor number, the lowest occupiable floor will be 1, if additional

digits are required (for 10 r more stories) this format will become 5
digits.
Room numbers need not be consecutive. Even numbered rooms should appear on the
North and East side of corridors and odd numbered rooms should appear on the South
and West side of corridors. Room numbers should agree vertically, i.e., room 1145
should be beneath room 2145 regardless of the organizational differences between the
two floors. This will allow the addition of numbers between existing rooms as
remodeling occurs over the life of the building. In no case shall a letter suffix be used.
Room numbering should be included at the design development phase of construction

documents. All spaces, offices, mechanical spaces, closets, classrooms, labs, and
corridors shall be numbered.
CAD Standards
BUILDING AREA DEFINITIONS

Certain building area statistics must be reported to the IHBE each year. Since much of
this required information is established during the design process for budgeting and
reporting purposes it is logical to maintain that information as a part of the construction
documentation. The areas listed below are the basic building space classifications that
should be included on the title sheet of building projects. The descriptions of these areas
are taken from the National Center for Education Statistics Postsecondary Education
Facilities Inventory and Manual, 1992.
1. Gross Area
A. Definition
The sum of all areas on all floors of a building included within the outside
faces of its exterior walls, including floor penetration areas, however
insignificant, for circulation and shaft areas that connect one floor to
another.
B. Basis for Measurement
Gross area is computed by physically measuring or scaling measurements

from the outside faces of exterior walls, disregarding cornices, pilasters,
buttresses, etc., which extend beyond the wall faces. Exclude areas having
less than a six-foot, six-inch clear ceiling height unless the criteria of a
separate structure are met.
Measured in terms of gross square feet (GSF).
Gross Area = Net Usable Area + Structural Space
C. Description
In addition to all the internal floored spaces obviously covered above,

gross area should include the following: excavated basement areas;
mezzanines, penthouses, and attics; garages; enclosed porches; inner or
outer balconies whether walled or not, if they are utilized for operational
functions; and corridors, whether walled or not, provided they are within
the outside face lines of the building, to the extent of the roof drip line.
The footprints of stairways, elevator shafts, and ducts (examples of
building infrastructure) are to be counted as gross area on each floor
through which they pass.
CAD Standards
D. Limitations
Exclude open areas such as parking lots, playing fields, courts, and light
wells, or portions of upper floors eliminated by rooms or lobbies that rise
above single-floor ceiling height.
E. Exception
Include top, unroofed floor of parking structures where parking is

available.
2. Assignable Area (Net Assignable Square Feet - NASF)
A. Definition
The sum of all areas on all floors of a building assigned to, or available for
assignment to, an occupant or specific use.
Assignable area is computed by physically measuring or scaling

measurements from the inside faces of surfaces that form the boundaries
of the designated areas. Exclude areas having less than a six-foot, six-inch
clear ceiling height.
Measured in terms of assignable square feet (ASF),
Assignable Area = Sum of Area Designated by the Ten Assignable Major

Room Use Categories.
C. Description
Included should be space subdivisions of the ten major room use

categories for assignable space -- classrooms, laboratories, offices, study
facilities, special use, general use, support, health care, residential and
unclassified --that are used to accomplish the institution’s mission.
D. Limitations
Deductions should not be made for necessary building columns and

projections. Areas defined as building service, circulation, mechanical,
and structural should not be included.
3. Nonassignable Area
CAD Standards
A. Definition
The sum of all areas on all floors of a building not available for
assignment to an occupant or for specific use, but necessary for the general
operation of a building.
Nonassignable Area is computed by physically measuring or scaling

of the designated areas. Excludes areas having less than six-foot, six-inch
clear ceiling height unless the criteria of a separate structure are met.
Measured in terms of area,
Non assignable Area = Sum of the Area Designated by the Three

Nonassignable Room Use Categories.
C. Description
Included should be space subdivisions of the three nonassignable room use

categories (building service, circulation and mechanical) that are used to
support the building’s general operation.
D. Limitations

projections. Areas defined as assignable should not be included.
4. Building Service Area
A. Definition
The sum of all areas on all floors of a building used for custodial supplies,
sink rooms, janitorial closets, and for public rest rooms. Building Service
Area does not include assignable areas.
Building service area is computed by physically measuring or scaling

measurements from the inside faces of surfaces that form boundaries of
the designated areas. Exclude areas having less that a six-foot, six-inch
C. Description
CAD Standards
Included should be janitor closets or similar small cleanup spaces,

maintenance material storage areas, trashrooms exclusively devoted to the
storage of nonhazardous waste created by the building occupants as a
whole, and public toilets.
D. Limitations
Deductions should not be made for necessary building columns and minor
projections. Areas defined as central physical plant shop areas, or special
purpose storage or maintenance rooms, such as linen closets and
housekeeping rooms in residence halls, should not be included. Does not
include private rest rooms.
5. Circulation Area
A. Definition
The sum of all areas on all floors of a building required for physical access
to some subdivision of space, whether physically bounded by partitions or
not.
Circulation area is computed by physically measuring or scaling

of the designated areas. Exclude areas having less than a six-foot, six-inch
C. Description
Included should be, but is not limited to, public corridors, fire towers
elevators, elevator lobbies, tunnels, bridges, and each floor’s footprint of
elevator shafts, escalators and stairways. Receiving areas, such as loading
docks, should be treated as circulation space. Any part of a loading dock
that is not covered is to be excluded from both circulation area and the
gross building area. A loading dock which is also used for central storage
should be regarded as assignable area. Also included are corridors,
whether walled or not, provided they are within the outside facileness of
the buildings to the extent of the roof drip line.
D. Limitations
Deductions should not be made for necessary building columns and minor
projections. When determining corridor areas, only spaces required for
CAD Standards
public access should be included. Restricted access private circulation

aisles used only for circulation within an organizational unit’s suite of
rooms, auditoria, or other working areas should not be included.
6. Mechanical Area
A. Definition
The sum of all areas on all floors of a building designed to house

mechanical equipment, utility services, and shaft areas.
Mechanical area is computed by physically measuring or scaling

of the designated areas. Exclude areas having less that six-foot, six-inch
C. Description
Included should be mechanical areas such as central utility plants, boiler

rooms, mechanical and electrical equipment rooms, fuel rooms, meter and
communications closets, and each floor’s footprint of air ducts, pipe
shafts, mechanical service shafts, service chutes, and stacks.
D. Limitations

projections. Areas designated as private toilets are not included.
7. Net Usable Area
A. Definition
The sum of all areas on all floors of a building either assigned to, or
available for assignment to, an occupant or specific use, or necessary for
the general operation of a building.
Net usable area is computed by summing the assignable area and the
nonassignable area.
Measured in terms of net usable square feet (NUSF),
CAD Standards
Net Usable Area = Assignable Area + Nonassignable Area
C. Description
Included should be space subdivisions of the ten assignable major room

use categories and the three nonassignable space categories.
D. Limitations

projections. Areas defined as structural should not be included.
8. Structural Area
A. Definition
The sum of all areas on all floors of a building that cannot be occupied or
put to use because of structural building features.
Precise computation by direct measurement is not possible under these

definitions. It is determined by calculating the difference between the
measured gross area and the measured net usable area.
Measured in terms of area,
Structural Area = Gross Area - Net Usable Area.
C. Description
Examples of building features normally classified as structural areas

include exterior walls, fire walls, permanent partitions, unusable areas in
attics or basements, or comparable portions of a building with ceiling
height restrictions.
CAD Standards
LEGAL LANGUAGE REQUIRED FOR CAD

DOCUMENTATION
The need for CAD documents for facilities management purposes is ever increasing. It is
the goal of Facilities Planning and Management to eventually have all of the campus
building systems in CAD files. In order to increase the number of drawings in CAD
format, we have developed language that requires CAD drawings from architects and
engineers as part of the Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Architect.
The following are suggested modifications or additions to the Standard Form of

Agreement Between Owner and Architect (AIA document B141).
12.2.1
Add the bold text below to paragraph 6.1.1:
Except as provided below, the Drawings, Specifications, and other two-dimensional

documents prepared by the Architect for this Project are instruments of the Architect’s
service for use solely with respect to this Project and, unless otherwise provided, the
Architect shall be deemed the author of these documents and shall retain all common law,
statutory and other reserved rights, including the copyright. The Owner shall be
permitted to retain copies, including reproducible copies, of the Architect’s Drawings,
Specifications, other two-dimensional documents, and CAD drawings for information
and reference in connection with the Owner’s use and occupancy of the Project. The
Owner’s use of the Project shall include, but not be limited to comprehensive
campus-wide mapping endeavors. Such two-dimensional documents shall not be used
by the Owner on other projects or extensions to the Project except by agreement in
writing and with appropriate compensation to the Architect.
12.2.2
Add the following two paragraphs:
1. Two sets of 3.5” high density disks or CD ROM, properly labeled and formatted
with MS_DOS version 3.3 or later, containing CAD drawing files of the record
drawings. These files shall include all record drawings for which the architect
possesses corresponding CAD drawings and shall at least include the following
architectural record drawings: floor plans, exterior elevations, building sections,
plumbing systems, HVAC systems, electrical systems, and site plans. Files must
be in either AutoCAD Release 14 DWG format or in AutoCAD DXF format.
Any individual file on a “floppy disk” shall not exceed 1MB of data. If this is
unavoidable in isolated incidents, condensing software may be used, and all
executables of said software will be provided to the Owner. The AIA CAD Layer
CAD Standards
Guidelines as amended in the EIU Guidelines for CAD Projects shall dictate the
layer naming conventions unless otherwise stated in individual project programs.
It shall be understood that the CAD drawings themselves are not record drawings.
2. One set of mylar plots of the CAD drawings. These plots shall be regarded as
record drawings.
CAD Standards
DELIVERY OF MEDIA
All drawing information should be submitted to EIU Facilities Planning & Maintenance
as described below. All drawing information submitted should be in accordance with the
Drawing Standards section of this document and must comprise stamped and signed
record drawings.
Electronic files shall be delivered on either a 3 1/2” disks or CD_ROM formatted using
Windows 3.3. The disks must be labeled with the following information:
EIU building number
EIU or CDB project number
Submittal date
Set label (i.e.; disk 1 of 3 )
A readme file shall be included on disk number 1 that contains the above information
along with an index of drawings that include drawing file name, drawing name, drawing
number within the set, scale, drawing date, and xref listing and their paths. A hard copy
of this readme file shall be delivered with the disks.
One Quality Control/Quality Assurance Checklist done in accordance with the Audit and
Quality Assurance section of this document.
CAD Standards
AUDIT AND QUALITY ASSURANCE

A Quality Assurance checklist must be submitted with the CAD documentation at the
project close-out. This checklist is to confirm that the A/E has verified that the submitted
CAD drawings meet the standards previously established in this manual. The checklist
must verify the following:
Layering that complies with the layering guidelines

All files are saved with the standard ACAD.MNU menu
All plans are submitted with ARCHITECTURAL units and direction for angle
0.00 is <270>
All entities are assigned color BYLAYER
Any custom fonts or blocks used in files are accompanied by a licensed copy
of the software issued to EIU
All XREF’s are accompanied by the current search path
Assurance that no plans have been enlarged or reduced by the SCALE
command
Associative dimensions are used for all dimensions
All polylines for spaces are closed
At the close of the project, FP&M’s project manager will conduct an audit that will
include comparing the CAD documents with the built project. A visual examination of
the CAD drawings will be conducted to ensure the presence, location, and approximate
dimensional accuracy of all significant features including, doors, windows, walls,
columns, stairs, ramps, and other general floor-plan layout items. Obvious errors or
omissions will be noted on a review sheet.
Depending on the results of the visual audit, the Project Manager may conduct field
verification of actual dimensions by measuring 10% - 15% of the useable rooms to
compare with the CAD drawings.

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CAD GUIDELINES FOR

ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS

EASTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY

FACILITIES PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT

THEODORE J. WEIDNER, DIRECTOR

Drawing Name Convention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

CAD Layering Convention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Room Numbering Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Building Areas Definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Legal Language required for CAD Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Audit and Quality Assurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Debbie Black, Construction Project Coordinator (217) 581-7215

DRAWING NAME CONVENTION

Drawing File Name Convention

Floor (all plan drawings)

27_NELEV North elevation of building number 27

27_02BP Second floor base plan for building number 27

54N01CL First floor reflected ceiling plan for north building of 54

CAD LAYERING CONVENTION

A Architecture, Interiors, and Facilities Management

LAYER NAME DESCRIPTION COLOR LINETYPE

EXTERNAL REFERENCES (XREFS)

SCALE & UNITS

ROOM NUMBERING STANDARDS

The room numbers will follow a four-digit format:

floor number, the lowest occupiable floor will be 1, if additional

Room numbering should be included at the design development phase of construction

BUILDING AREA DEFINITIONS

B. Basis for Measurement

Gross area is computed by physically measuring or scaling measurements

Measured in terms of gross square feet (GSF).

Gross Area = Net Usable Area + Structural Space

In addition to all the internal floored spaces obviously covered above,

Include top, unroofed floor of parking structures where parking is

2. Assignable Area (Net Assignable Square Feet - NASF)

B. Basis for Measurement

Assignable area is computed by physically measuring or scaling

Measured in terms of assignable square feet (ASF),

Assignable Area = Sum of Area Designated by the Ten Assignable Major

Included should be space subdivisions of the ten major room use

Deductions should not be made for necessary building columns and

B. Basis for Measurement

Nonassignable Area is computed by physically measuring or scaling

Measured in terms of area,

Non assignable Area = Sum of the Area Designated by the Three

Included should be space subdivisions of the three nonassignable room use

Deductions should not be made for necessary building columns and

4. Building Service Area

B. Basis for Measurement

Building service area is computed by physically measuring or scaling

Included should be janitor closets or similar small cleanup spaces,

B. Basis for Measurement

Circulation area is computed by physically measuring or scaling

public access should be included. Restricted access private circulation

The sum of all areas on all floors of a building designed to house

B. Basis for Measurement

Mechanical area is computed by physically measuring or scaling

Included should be mechanical areas such as central utility plants, boiler

Deductions should not be made for necessary building columns and

7. Net Usable Area

Measured in terms of net usable square feet (NUSF),

Net Usable Area = Assignable Area + Nonassignable Area

Included should be space subdivisions of the ten assignable major room