Just wondering if any of you out there have difficulty making architects plans work. We are staking out a house for a client and the builder hands us a set of plans for construction. Foundation plan and floor plan do not match dimensions and neither one of these matches dimensions in the cad drawing. Some architects do a good job, don't get me wrong. I think if they actually had to build some of the houses they come up with, they would hopefully gain insight to what is practical. Sorry end of rant now.
Just about every building stakeout I work on has problems with missing dimensions, or dimensions that don't add up. Even worse, a recent one had an addendum posted on the morning we were meant to stake it out with the revision clouding blotting out about half of the revised dimensions.
It's the one's that design exactly on the "Setback" lines with no wiggle room that make it interesting. ;>)
What I love too is when you call them up to ask about dimensions and they say Oh just make it fit.
> What I love too is when you call them up to ask about dimensions and they say Oh just make it fit.
Ain't that whats E&O insurance is for? :-/
Hey guys....they use Inches...maybe that is the problem....;-)
I've never worked on an architect's drawings that worked properly. Grading was always very poor, dimensions either didn't work or there were some missing, and generally they were mere sketches of what was trying to be accomplished with myself and contractors being forced to figure out how to make it work. I've had a number of occasions where the stuff just wouldn't work and I had to request info. from the architect. Good luck with that, though, and I feel your pain.
I finally realized that the Architectural world is Schematic and Conceptual in nature... design build is a common term.
calc and verify is the name of the game
As mentioned above, pay close attention to set-back lines.
:beer:
As much as we b!tch about engineers, architects are way worse. Every one of them I've dealt with exude all of the professionalism of a 14 year old girl who didn't get her way when you call them on something that doesn't work.
Most of the time, I say you add up your drawing. Then they see and whine that it was the techs fault etc. ad nauseum.
Whiny little girls.
Engineers are more manly. Not much, but definitely more manly.
Architects are artist-wannabe's. The structured world is repressive to their freethinking views. The necessity to work with details drives them insane (a very short trip by the way) as they feel such tedium is beneath their God-like visualization skills.
Architects look at a forested mountain and visualize a majestic creation of their design jutting from it for all the world to see and feel fortunate to have experienced the thrill provided by the architect. Those who must turn that delusionary vision into minute details to adjust for all the intricacies of the real world ask the most important question: WHY????????????????? Followed shortly by thoughts such as: There ain't enough money is the world to turn that sow's ear into a silk purse.
And if he is your paymaster, well I'm so darn sorry. In my 30 some odd years of dealing with them I have found only one architect who paid promptly in a normal business fashion. Talk about whining!
Architects traditionally omit a closing distance or can not compute intersecting angular corners.
Engineers commit the sin of all sins. Alter their data on the plan after initial design without amending coordinate base or cad line dimension(s) thus there are x,y,z point differences!
To trust architect and engineer design plans requires a trust with a guarantee from them that their coordinate base reflects dimensions as you are using their coordinate base for set out!
Experience demands that it is essential that you must always get confirmation that your setting out from their coordinates is approporiate.
RADU
I'd say it would be the Architect's E&O. I don't think I'd ever try to make one fit. Make him fix it on paper. I can see where this might not be practical to the contractor because architect might drag tail and not fix quick enough, but I'd at least get some kind of disclaimer fixed up.
Never had a problem. Many an architect has had a problem but I have never had a problem. I get the plans, I add up the building. It doesn't close, I call the client to tell him that I will not be staking until the architect corrects his plans on paper copy and then the architect and tell him/her the same. Usually after the third time I send them back, and the client has been delayed about three to four days, the architect will add up the building before sending it back to me. My record was sending the same building back to the architect 5 times. The client (big contracting firm) told me after the third one that they had added it up and that it closed. I preceded to add it up with his boss who found out that his employee lied or could not add and then that boss called the architect. Oddly enough the project manager on that job was not there for go around 4/5. Before I could finish adding up 4, said boss called to tell me that it still did not add up right and that round 5 was coming to him personally before the architect could waste more of my time. The plans couriered over later that day by the client worked wonderfully. The building was a hotel and the original dimensions were out half a foot and involved an elevator shaft.
Sometimes it's hard to tell whether it's the engineers or the architects.
I received a set of plans one time where the paper plans showed a required 20 foot setback to the building. Problem is, the CAD drawings measured about 18.5 feet.
Engineer/Architect: "Well, just move it, the paper plans control".
Me: "Ok, but you have a really tight site here with the sidewalk, street, parking area, etc, you don't have enough room somewhere else. You make the decision what gets shorted, not me."
Engineer/Architect: "Oops."