Construction Drawings: Guide to Types & Regulations

By

Nick Zajac

Reviewed by 

Nicholas Dunbar

and Zoe Mullan

Last Updated Jan 30, 2026

By

Nick Zajac

Reviewed By

Nicholas Dunbar

and Zoe Mullan

While architects, urban planners and landscape designers first conceive buildings and public realms in their minds, translating vision into detailed drawings remains the foundation for any project.

Construction drawings translate design intent into reality, ensuring precision, coordination and compliance at every stage.

The Foundation for Every Project

Construction drawings enable and inform each stage of a project, from early design and financing through approvals and tendering to the final delivery of the built asset and handover. These documents serve as legally binding contracts between employers and contractors.

However, inadequate documentation has plagued the construction industry as a persistent quality issue. As industry research has consistently shown, this can have multiple flow-on effects, from increased rework, material waste and cost overruns or project delays through to non-compliance, major defects and reputational risks.

Consequently, understanding best practice requirements for construction drawings and project documentation has become more important than ever.

Recent regulatory changes have recognised this need, particularly through the Building Safety Act 2022 and new requirements from the Building Safety Regulator. For higher-risk buildings, each identified dutyholder – including the project architect, main contractor, engineers, waterproofer, plumber, electrical and civil contractors – must now submit final construction drawings digitally and obtain sign-off from the regulator to maintain a Golden Thread of Information. Dutyholders must also promptly document and digitally lodge any notifiable changes or variations.

Drawing Types in UK Construction

The following overview explains the key drawings used at various stages, detailing their purpose and contribution to both planning permission and project development.

Building Regulations Drawings Explained

Before construction begins, drawings must demonstrate compliance with the Building Regulations. These technical documents detail how the building will meet statutory requirements, covering structure (Part A), fire safety (Part B), conservation of fuel and power (Part L) and access (Part M).

Stage One: From Concept to Planning Permission

In any construction project, conceptual and planning drawings serve as crucial communication tools that translate concepts into detailed visualisations. These drawings are essential for securing Planning Permission (RIBA Stage 3) and engaging in meaningful client discussions. They provide an overview of the design intent while aligning with local regulations, ensuring projects meet planning policies and environmental standards.

"Just as the detail of a design evolves through the project life cycle, so too the sets of drawings for delivering the project evolve in terms of level of detail, specific inclusions and which parties within the delivery team have input into the drawings. At the final stage, all the specific subcontractors will have their own set of drawings specific to their discipline and deliverables."

Nick Zajac

Principal Strategic Product Consultant

Procore

Architectural Drawings

Duryholders use architectural drawings for initial client discussions and for preliminary development and planning permission. These drawings remain zoomed out and typically appear in a 1:50 or 1:100 scale.

They include details such as:

• Street frontages
• Heights
• North Point

Additionally, they may include sunlight direction in winter and summer so the Local Planning Authority (LPA) can assess compliance with basic planning policy requirements, such as passive solar benefits in winter for living areas and minimising heat gain in summer.

Site Plans

This 'eagle's eye' view of the development shows road frontages and site area allocations between built form and hard and sodt landscaping. It may utilise Ordnance Survey (OS) Maps. These construction drawings may also include other key elements:

• Circulation routes for pedestrians and vehicles
• Any existing vegetation that will be retained, such as significant trees

The site plan or aerial view drawing also often shows the building in context on the site and sketches elements of immediate surroundings, including neighbouring buildings, so assessors can understand the potential for overlooking or overshadowing. Scale typically ranges from 1:200 or 1:500 (or 1:1250 for a Location Plan).

Elevations

The elevations show the building's profile, with a separate drawing for each façade. In preliminary drawings, designers include placement of windows, any balconies or terraces, external doors, roofline, façade greening and indicative materiality.

As the project moves closer to tendering and construction, elevations become more fully detailed to include information on exterior finishes, precise window layouts, fixing schedules, any vents or pipework and placement of any air conditioning or electrical/lighting elements.

Floor Plans

This floor-by-floor set of drawings shows the layout of each floor, including key details such as:

• The placement of bathrooms
• Means of escape
• Emergency exits
• Fire stairs
• Voids
• Vertical transportation
• Doors
• Windows
• Storage areas

These floor plan drawings also show the allocation of space to different activities. For example, in a multi-residential project, they indicate kitchen areas, living areas, bedrooms, en-suites, pantries, walk-in wardrobes and so forth. In a commercial or retail building, they include amenities, conference rooms, breakout areas, specific types of tenant areas and circulation zones.

"As the project moves into detailed design, the drawings will also incorporate finishes, plans including flooring, wall finishes, types of windows and doors, ceiling finishes and lighting placement."

Nick Zajac

Principal Strategic Product Consultant

Procore

Stage Two: Detailing Drawings for Delivery

Once authorities approve the project for construction and it moves into preparation for delivery, the architect or building designer, in collaboration with the main contractor and key consultants and trades, prepares the detailed drawings.

These drawings appear in a 1:20 scale so designers can include the necessary level of precise detail. They focus on a small portion of a specific element of the final building, such as the roof plant area, an external wall section, an individual flat or the amenities area on an office floor.

They give the relevant trades and consultants a clear picture of how practitioners will assemble elements, including connections between materials or fixtures, specific tolerances and dimensions. This information is essential for higher-risk project deliverables in terms of defects, such as how designers locate glazing systems in the façade system or directives for waterproofing applications.

Sections

Drawings of sections resemble a slice through the building and show important details. These include the thickness of walls, components of wall systems and any penetrations for windows, doors, ductwork or services.

Structural Drawings

Structural drawings form a specific part of the detail design drawings that carry critical requirements around accuracy and completeness, as they provide the schematic for how the building maintains structural integrity (Part A).

They incorporate:

• Details of the foundations and slab
• Beams and columns
• Structural walls
• Lift cores
• Floor slabs or flooring cassettes

Designers map all of this detail in consultation with Structural Engineers to ensure the final drawings result in a building that meets all relevant standards for robustness, safety and buildability. Standard technical documentation should adhere to BS 8888.

Building Services Drawings

Consulting engineers create building services drawings that include the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) solution with details of individual system elements such as:

• Ductwork
• Air handling units
• Boilers or heat pumps
• Ventilation outlets
• Location of any required structural penetrations

Because HVAC also interacts with electrical, public health, fire and the project energy modelling and thermal performance, coordination between disciplines on the detail drawings is essential.

Electrical and plumbing/public health drawings require a similar level of detail to the mechanical services set and, again, ensure the final detail meets relevant standards, including British Standards (BS) and ISO standards specific to both electrical and all matters relating to plumbing.

Fire Safety Drawings

Fire Strategy & Detection

This incorporates elements such as escape pathways, emergency exits, alarm systems, modelling of smoke movement, smoke or fire curtain location, compartment separation and the location of smoke detection devices. The design includes detailed specifications that align with Approved Document B'sfire safety requirements.

Active Fire Suppression

These include details such as sprinklers, fire pumps, fire water storage, hoses and points of access for emergency services. Again, designers consider Building Regulations requirements for a final, compliant, detailed design.

Land Use, Landscaping & Civil Drawings

Civil drawings and landscape drawings include information such as:

• Drainage lines
• Flood risk areas
• Attenuation ponds
• Trenching

In addition, hard landscaping drawings feature paths and hardstanding, seating, water features and raised planters, while soft landscaping drawings include relative heights and vegetation types for plantings, deep soil areas and watering points or irrigation systems.

Main Contractor Drawings

Main contractor drawings include details necessary for managing the construction process, including the location of cranes and hoists, laydown and materials storage areas, access ways through the site, vehicle entry and exit, location of site cabins and amenities and information about temporary water and power supplies, site fencing and security.

As-Built Drawings

"These final drawings, the as-built drawings (or record drawings), are critical as they form the final documentation handed over to the client, the building owners and the building managers. They should include all the information on materials and equipment that is needed for future repairs and maintenance, and also form the basis of claims during the defects liability period."

Nick Zajac

Principal Strategic Product Consultant

Procore

As-built drawings represent a project's final set of drawings. They include all the changes made throughout the construction process and can help compare what designers intended with what contractors built. They provide an accurate record of what the final construction actually produced.

Technology Drives Accuracy & Quality

With reputations, finance and occupant safety all riding on the final result, accuracy in drawings is absolutely critical. This includes both accuracy within a specific set of drawings and accuracy in terms of which set of drawings a trade or consultant has used to inform their work on the final project. Technology improves how teams manage drawing documentation, enhancing accuracy, quality and reducing risks.

Ensuring Accuracy with Current Drawings

With construction drawings evolving over the project life cycle, ensuring teams use the latest versions is fundamental to project success. Digital tools, like project management platforms, streamline the distribution of drawings. When teams make updates, the latest drawings become instantly available to stakeholders, with push notifications alerting affected teams to changes. This reduces the chance of errors caused by outdated information.

For example, a Design Manager may oversee drawing distribution, ensuring that trades such as plumbers or electricians have the correct versions. Although contractors often print drawings for on site use, these printed copies must reflect the most recent updates from the digital master set to prevent miscommunication and rework.

Multiple sets of drawings also change over time, so ensuring teams use the latest set remains essential.

Enhancing Coordination Across Teams

Digital drawings also enable real-time collaboration across disciplines. The UK BIM Framework/ISO 19650 allows architects, engineers and contractors to see how their work fits together. When one team makes a change – such as adjusting structural elements – those updates reflect across the model, reducing the risk of clashes between systems like electrical containment and HVAC ducts. 

This precision improves project efficiency and ensures each team works from a single source of truth, reducing delays and miscommunication. It also delivers dividends in terms of reducing common risks associated with incomplete, outdated or inaccurate drawings, including early clash detection, precision of tolerances and reductions in rework or non-compliance.

Standardising On Site Work with Digital Access

Technology ensures that even on site teams stay aligned. Digital drawings, accessible via tablets or smartphones, reduce reliance on paper copies, ensuring contractors always have the latest information. Project managers can remotely update and annotate drawings, which site workers can mark up with as-built conditions or additional notes. This real-time feedback loop ensures accurate installations and minimises errors.

On some projects, the main contractor maintains printed copies of the latest drawings in the site office for quick reference. Contractors transfer any changes marked on these printed sets back to the digital platform, ensuring all stakeholders remain up to date. Standard paper sizes include A0, A1, A2 and A3.

"As the delivery team works on its specific package of the works, the drawings will continue to evolve with variations, additional details and verification of completion signed off by a Building Control Officer (BCO) or Registered Building Control Approver."

Nick Zajac

Principal Strategic Product Consultant

Procore

Mitigating Risks with Better Documentation Management

Accurate, up-to-date documentation is important for reducing legal and contractual risks. Cloud-based platforms provide a centralised repository for all project drawings, tracking when each version is accessed or modified. This ensures transparency and accountability, supporting dispute resolution if necessary.

Key Takeaways

Construction drawings translate design intent into reality, ensuring precision, coordination and compliance at every stage of a project.

Ultimately, construction drawings help deliver successful projects, serving as both a communication tool and a detailed guide for all stakeholders. With the integration of technology, managing these documents becomes more efficient, reducing the risks associated with outdated information, miscommunication and rework. Digital tools such as BIM and cloud platforms mean every team works from the latest plans, improving accuracy, coordination and compliance.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do construction drawings cost? 

Fees typically range from £700–£2,500 for Building Regulations drawings, depending on the project’s complexity.

Written by

Nick Zajac

Principal Strategic Product Consultant | Procore

Nick is a Strategic Product Consultant at Procore, he leverages his industry experience to guide clients in optimising Procore, for streamlined project management and enhanced productivity. He has a background in construction and property development, predominately as a Project Manager. Nick has successfully overseen numerous projects within different sectors including high-density residential, mixed-use, commercial and healthcare, demonstrating keen attention to detail and project efficiency.

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Reviewed by

Nicholas Dunbar

Content Manager | Procore

65 articles

Nick Dunbar oversees the creation and management of UK and Ireland educational content at Procore. Previously, he worked as a sustainability writer at the Building Research Establishment and served as a sustainability consultant within the built environment sector. Nick holds degrees in industrial sustainability and environmental sciences and lives in Camden, London.

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Zoe Mullan

27 articles

Zoe Mullan is an experienced content writer and editor with a background in marketing and communications in the e-learning sector. Zoe holds an MA in English Literature and History from the University of Glasgow and a PGDip in Journalism from the University of Strathclyde and lives in Northern Ireland.

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