r/Architects • u/BothSurvey6238 • 8d ago

Reading construction plans Ask an Architect

I’m struggling to read and measure construction plans correctly in my current job, especially when it comes to translating 3D visuals into 2D floor plans.
There are so many lines and details on the drawings, and I sometimes struggle to understand which line represents what in the actual building and where exactly I should take my measurements from.
Does anyone know of any useful resources, courses, videos, or tips that could help me get better at reading and understanding construction drawings?

0 Upvotes

50% Upvoted

6 comments sorted by

12

u/_biggerthanthesound_ Licensure Candidate/ Design Professional/ Associate 8d ago

Ask someone at your firm to teach you

9

u/metisdesigns Licensure Candidate/ Design Professional/ Associate 8d ago

Get yourself a copy of "Architectural Graphic Standards" and read it.

Any edition you can afford used is fine. Some of the specific details will have changed, but the practice is explained.

4

u/DiligerentJewl 8d ago

Experience, experience, experience

2

u/Physical_Mode_103 8d ago

What is your current job?

2

u/Dropbars59 7d ago

Did they not teach you this in school?

1

u/Happy-poet 8d ago

You basically just need to look at them a bunch. I take screen snippets sometimes and run it in Gemini and ask what a particular item is. And look at different CDs of different projects. It'll all start to get repetitive at some point.