Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Introduction to the use of computers in design and drafting: CAD, such as Auto-
CAD.
1.1.1.4 Teaching Methods
Lecturing
Practical Exercises
1.1.1.5 Instruction materials
White board
Drawing Tables
Handouts
LCD/Overhead Projector
1.1.1.6 Course assessment
Written examination shall constitute 50%.
CATs and Assignments shall constitute the remaining 50%
1.1.1.7 Core Reading Materials
1. Tomasz E. Malec (2017). Simple introduction to architecture. Altinbaş
Üniversitesi Yayinlari
2. Cecil H. Jensen, Jay D. Helsel, Dennis Short, (2007). Engineering Drawing
And Design
3. Dhananjay Jolhe, (2007). Engineering Drawing: With An Introduction To Cad.
McGraw-Hill
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4. Cresswell Riol, B. (2007). Standard Method of Detailing Structural Concrete.
London: Institution of Structural Engineers.
5. KS Code (2009) (English): Building Code of the Republic of Kenya (2009
Edition)
1.1.1.8 Further Reading
1. Madsen, D. A, (2006). Engineering Drawing and Design. Delmar Cengage
Learning
2. Goetsch D. E, Chalk W.S, Rickman R.L, Nelson J.A, (2008). Technical
Drawing and Engineering Communication. Delmar Cengage Learning
3. Jude D.V, (1987). Civil Engineering Drawing. Blackwell Science Ltd; 2nd
edition
4. Madsen D. A, Shumaker T. M, David P. Madsen D. P, (2009). Civil Drafting
Technology. Prentice Hall; 7 edition
5. Singh G., (2005), Civil engineering drawing, Standard Publishers Distributors
6. Siddiquee A. N., Khan Z. A., Ahmad M., (2004), Engineering Drawing With
A Primer On Autocad, PHI Learning Pvt Ltd
7. International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology
1.1.1.9 Journals
1. International Journal of Structural Analysis and Design(IRED)
http://journals.theired.org
2. Journal of Structural Engineering https://ascelibrary.org/journal
3. International Journal of Structural Engineering (IJStructE)
https://www.omicsonline.org/ArchiveJSSC/currentissue-steel-structures-
construction.php
4. Journal of Cement and Concrete Research-Elsevier
https://www.journals.elsevier.com/cement-and-concrete-research
5. International Journal of Concrete Structures and Materials
https://ijcsm.springeropen.com/
6. Journal of Construction Steel research-Elsevier
https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-constructional-steel-research
7. Journal of Steel Structures and Construction
https://www.omicsonline.org/ArchiveJSSC/currentissue-steel-structures-
construction.php
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1 INTRODUCTION TO ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
The first idea determines the general aim of the activity, for example: “I will build a
house, in which I am going to live” or “I will build a factory.” In fact, it is not even
a way of thinking. It is only a verbal formulation of our dreams. After this verbal
formulation we take the next step, which is specifying and detailing the main aim of
our actions.
Figure 1-1 The idea of constructing any object is always the first step towards
actualization
And at this point we stop and reflect: “Yes, I am going to build a house or factory,
but how am I going to make it?” The whole creative process of making decisions
aimed at satisfying human needs is what we call “design.” In the case of building a
house, the first step in design of a house is the definition or creation of space. This
makes it necessary to have a professional approach to this creation of space. The
professional designer involved in the creation of space in the case of a house is called
an architect.
Figure 1-2 Architectural design also considers the environment of the structure being
designed
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1.1.1 Interaction of Architecture and Other Disciplines
In order to prepare an architectural design, it is necessary to possess knowledge from
a few branches beyond pure designing; for example, it is not possible to design a
sports hall without knowledge of football, basketball or volleyball rules. It would also
be difficult to design a garden without any knowledge about the needs of the trees
and flowers we want to plant there. Similar problems would occur in any attempt
to design a temple without knowledge of any of the rituals of that particular
religion.
The architect also supervises the realization of the architectural design throughout
the construction process. During construction it is possible – or sometimes necessary
– to make some changes in the design, including detailing of architectural and
technical arrangements of chosen elements of the building.
One of the aims of architectural design may also be research if we are able to locate
a new building(s) on a certain plot of land – we call this architectural activity
“analysis of the land capacity.” Evaluation of the proper functioning of a building(s)
on a plot in relation to its surroundings, on the other hand, we call “functional site
analysis” (Fig. 1.3.). An example of functional site analysis may be verification of
whether, on a plot of land, in some district and with certain surroundings, it is
reasonable to build a new building(s)
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Figure 1-3 Analysis of land capacity and functional site analysis allow any risk
connected with unpredictable situations that may arise during the investment process
to be avoided or at least reduced.
The most well-known and commonly analysed groups of factors that have an impact
on architectural design are:
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potential threats; the building will also have an impact on its surroundings,
often in a negative way: through the use of energy, exhaust fumes from the
chimney, toxic materials, etc.; Fig. 1.4.).
https://www.architecturalrecord.com/
https://www.architecturaldigest.com/
https://www.dezeen.com/
Building codes specify minimum standards for the construction of buildings. The codes
themselves are not legally binding. They serve, rather, as "models" for legal
jurisdictions to utilize when developing statutes and regulations. The main purpose of
building codes are to protect public health, safety and general welfare as they relate
to the construction and occupancy of buildings and structures.
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The building code becomes law of a particular jurisdiction when formally enacted by
the appropriate governmental or private authority.
http://www.kpda.or.ke/documents/Policies/Building%20Code%202006.pdf Kenya
Building code
Every architectural design should begin with survey drawings. These are measured
drawings of existing land, structures and buildings. Architects need an accurate set of
survey drawings as a basis for their working drawings, to establish exact dimensions
for the construction work. Surveys are usually measured and drawn up by specialist
land surveyors.
i. Presentation drawings
Drawings intended to explain a scheme and to promote its merits. Basic presentation
drawings typically include people, vehicles and trees, taken from a library of such
images, and are otherwise very similar in style to working drawings. Rendering is the
art of adding surface textures and shadows to show the visual qualities of a building
more realistically.
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Record drawings are also used in construction projects, where "as-built" conditions of
the completed building are documented to take account of all the variations made
during the course of construction.
Location drawings, also called general arrangement drawings, include floor plans,
sections and elevations: they show where the construction elements are
located.
Assembly drawings show how the different parts are put together. For
example, a wall detail will show the layers that make up the construction,
how they are fixed to structural elements, how to finish the edges of
openings, and how prefabricated components are to be fitted.
Component drawings enable self-contained elements e.g. windows and doorsets,
to be fabricated in a workshop, and delivered to site complete and ready for
installation. Larger components may include roof trusses, cladding panels,
cupboards and kitchens. Complete rooms, especially hotel bedrooms and
bathrooms, may be made as prefabricated pods complete with internal
decorations and fittings.
1.2.1 Drafting
i. Manual Drafting
Until the latter part of the 20th century, all architectural drawings were manually
produced. The traditional tools of the architect were the drawing board or drafting
table, T-square and set squares, protractor, compasses, pencil, and drawing pens of
different types. Drawings were made on vellum, coated linen, and tracing paper.
Lettering would either be done by hand, mechanically using a stencil, or a
combination of the two.
Developments in the 20th century included the parallel motion drawing board, as
well as more complex improvements on the basic T-square. The development of
reliable technical drawing pens allowed for faster drafting and stencilled lettering.
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records equivalent information electronically. There are many advantages to this
system: repetition is reduced because complex elements can be copied, duplicated and
stored for re-use. Errors can be deleted, and the speed of drafting allows many
permutations to be tried before the design is finalised.
An architectural animation is a short film showing how a proposed building will look:
the moving image makes three-dimensional forms much easier to understand. An
animation is generated from a series of hundreds or even thousands of still images,
each made in the same way as an architectural visualisation.
Distance from the observer to the object is infinite projection lines are
parallel – object is positioned at infinity.
The projection is called orthographic if the rays are perpendicular (orthogonal) to the
image plane, and oblique or skew if they are not.
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Figure 1-5 A schematic representation of a Parallel projection
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Figure 1-7 Oblique projection
Distance from the observer to the object is finite and the object is viewed
from a single point – projectors are not parallel.
Perspective projections mimic what the human eyes see, however, they are
difficult to draw.
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Figure 1-9 Common Projections
1.4 Scales
Scale is important because it enables us to recognize the relationship between a
drawing or physical model and the reality of its real world size. Due to the general
size of architecture projects, it is only on very rare occasions that an architectural
drawing is not shown and drawn in an architectural scale. Producing accurate scaled
drawings at varied scales, is one of the most important aspects of architectural
drawing and spatial design.
Scale drawings are defined as a document that contains and represents a scaled
object and/or subject. It can be produced on any paper format and size, with the
scale clearly annotated and often accompanied by a scale bar.
When reading a scaled drawing, the scale is shown as the length in the drawing, then
a colon (":"), and then the matching length on the real object. For example, a floor
plan of a building drawn using a metric scale of 1:100 (pronounced “one to a one
hundred”), means that for each unit that is measured on the drawing (the 1), the
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real world size of it is 100 times larger (the 100) than it appears. So if a
measurement taken from the drawing is 10mm, then at real world scale would be
1000mm when built.
With this in mind, a 1:1 (“one to one”) scale is the real world scale of everything,
and the scale that we draw and 3D model in when using CAD and 3D programmes
The choice of scale is determined by the type of drawing, the size of the subject
and the size of paper or document that you wish to present it on. For example, a
construction detail of a wall junction needs to be a much larger scale than a general
section of the whole building. The wall detail might have a scale of 1:10 or 1:5,
whereas the general section is likely to be 1:50 (in metric units)
This is firstly because as they are communicating different aspects and situations of
the building; the detail needs to show only one small part of the building, but in a
great amount of detail. And the section needs to show the general arrangement of
whole building, which requires a much larger part of the building but in much less
detail.
It’s very unusual for a scaled drawing to deviate away from using one of these set
scales, and you should always aim use these standards. Custom scales tend to show
inexperience, and must be accompanied by a scale bar, which is both unsightly and
adds an unnecessary layer of complication to presentation drawings.
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1.4.3 The architects scale ruler
There are several versions of the scale rule; the most commonly used is triangular
with 11 different scales, one being a full-size ruler.
1.5 Assignment I
Task 1
Hut Maisonette
Cottage Penthouse
Task 2
Look for your dream house from the internet and download a 3D image.
Submission
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2 Architectural Plans for a Simple Residential House
The sophistication and detail in a set of construction plans may vary based on
building design, owner’s need, and the architect. In any case, enough detail is
required to help minimize mistakes and facilitate coordination within the various
trades, subcontractors, and materials suppliers. In drawing construction plans,
architects, drafters, or builders will illustrate many details in only one place to
eliminate confusion and redundant information.
Other sheets in the plan set will use a title block. The title block organizes some of
the same information from the title page for quick reference on each page. Page
numbers will be part of a title block to help keep drawings organized.
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Figure 2-1 Sample Title Sheet
All planning applications need a site location plan (also known as a location plan)
which shows the proposal in its surrounding context and a block plan (also known as
a site plan) which shows the development in more detail. These plans enable the
local planning authority to identify the land to which the application refers to and
should be based on an up-to-date Ordnance Survey map.
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Vol 1 Clause AA12
A site plan, also known as a block plan, (Figure 2.7) contains information verified by
a surveyor, engineer, and others. It illustrates important features such as utility
easements, topography, property lines, setbacks, and elevations. Site plans usually
include the building footprint, driveways, auxiliary buildings, and other constructed
features on site as references. A plot plan, very similar to a site plan, is specifically
for recording a piece of land and shows much of the information on the site plan
without a house on the lot. Some of the important aspects include the following:
Each site plan has an elevation called the benchmark. The benchmark represents a
starting elevation that may be an actual elevation above sea level or, for ease of
use, an arbitrary number like 100.00′. In either case, all points of elevation
throughout the site plan reference against the benchmark elevation. Contractors will
use these elevations as starting points to calculate foundations and finished floor
heights.
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Figure 2-3 Sample Site Plan
For plan views, a cutting plane is a horizontal line “cutting” the object for a better
view. For example, with typical floor plans, the horizontal cutting plane is typically
at a height that cuts through doors and windows on exterior walls so they are in
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the final view. Removing the area above the cutting plane creates a bird’s-eye view
looking down into the structure like the example in Figure 2.7
Floor plans like the example in Figure 2.9 are usually the most information-packed of
all plan sheets. The floor plan cutting plane should be at a height that includes all
window and door openings. This sheet defines the size and layout of all rooms and
may include electrical, HVAC, and plumbing information. If the home design is more
complex, however, electrical, HVAC, and plumbing may be on separate sheets to
simplify the view and help eliminate mistakes and oversights during estimating and
construction.
Room size and layout: As with any dimension, be sure of the reference point
so the actual work will match the floor plan. In rooms with appliances,
bathroom fixtures, or other equipment, the point of reference for dimensions
is critical to design. For example, the kitchen cabinets are often pre ordered
based on floor plan dimensions. A mistake in reference point here during rough
framing means the cabinets may not fit in the finished wall space.
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Plumbing fixtures: Toilet, Bath and Shower Spaces, specifies minimum spacing
requirements for these fixtures. Reading the floor plans correctly while laying
out the walls is critical to assure code-compliant spacing in all areas.
Electrical and HVAC: Floor plans are used by trades workers to position
outlets, switches, home integration systems, HVAC supply and return
registers, and many other components of the home design.
Exterior features: Floor plans dimensionalize the placement of decks, porches,
garages, and other attached, exterior features. Depending on design, exterior
features like decks may have details specified and illustrated on other plan
sheets.
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2.1.5 Architectural Drawing Symbols
Architectural drawing symbols form an important role in any architecture drawing
and help to define elements such as floor levels, lighting types and service locations.
Electrical layouts in particular, require many different items and abbreviations, and
accompanied by a key, symbols provide a clear and tidy method of identifying their
placement, type and use.
The below architectural symbols, are broken down into the following categories:
i. Services symbols
ii. Lighting symbols
iii. Electrical symbols
iv. Plan, elevation and section symbols
v. Object symbols
vi. Doors and windows symbols
vii. Material symbols
2.1.5.1 Service symbols
Service symbols represent the mechanics of a building, and help to identify such
elements as mechanical ventilation, soil pipes, and incoming power for example. They
should show the locations and directions in which they are travelling, and highlight
where new and old infrastructures are combined or replaced.
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2.1.5.2 Lighting symbols
Architectural lighting is a huge subject with many variations, lighting symbols provide
a simple and clear means of identifying positions, types, amounts and power outputs
without the need to litter a drawing with labels.
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2.1.5.3 Electrical symbols
Similar to lighting symbols, electrical symbols show the location and type of power
switches and outputs.
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2.1.5.6 Doors & Windows Symbols
Used to show size and type of doors and windows
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2.1.5.7 Material Symbols
Material symbols are used to represent materials or contents on floor plans,
elevations, and detail drawings. Different symbols may be used to represent the
same item on these drawings. The outline of the drawing may be filled in with a
material symbol to show what the object is made of.
2.2 Assignment 2:
See separate file
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Number of bathrooms/toilets: 3
Ground floor: Entrance porch, entrance lobby, staircase, lounge, kitchen, Guest
bedroom (bedroom 1), Kitchen store, kitchen yard
Upper Floor: Master bedroom 4 (ensuite), bedroom 2, bedroom 3, balcony,
staircase, lobby, common bathroom
2.3.2 Step 1
a. Define the following terms as used in architecture:
i. Building line (Ref: Kenya Building Code)
ii. Plot coverage (show formula) (Ref: Kenya Building Code)
iii. Plot ratio (show formula) (Ref: Kenya Building Code)
iv. Lobby
v. Lounge
vi. Ensuite bathroom
vii. Bubble diagram
b. Site Plan
i. Draw a site plan for a 100x100ft plot of land (Convert dimensions to
m/mm)
ii. Indicate the building lines as defined by the KBC
iii. Define the house plinth with plot coverage not more than 40%
iv. Leave minimum 4m frontage and minimum 1.5m all round
c. Bubble & Schematic floor sketches
a) Draw a bubble diagram for each of the above floors
b) Draw schematic floor plans next to each respective bubble diagram
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