Whew, and all that just to move a wall a few feet. If paper copies are to be printed, they are either printed in-house, collated, trimmed and stapled or sent out to a printer. The CAD drawings will need to be converted to pdf format and signed. The cover sheet is updated with each revised sheet’s issue date and then we are almost ready for the printer. A new sheet border with a new issue date is created and added to each new sheet (even though they are electronic) and each change will need to be clouded with a change ‘Delta’. Next, the reissuance of the documents will need to be coordinated across all disciplines. Now the civil engineer may have to do a partial re-design. Moving an exterior wall affects ALL structural items foundation design, column, beam and joist location (remember all of those structural calculations?) and, depending upon the amount of relocation, can involve redesigning the grading of the site. If it is an exterior wall, all bets are off. The finishes and floor finish plan may also need to be reworked. While the engineers are correcting their plan drawings, the architect is revising, at a minimum, four interior elevations (if it was an interior wall only). The fire alarm system will require revision if the wall to be moved has strobes and annunciators – another sheet to be revised. Add in a new flow test if the design is over a year old. The fire sprinkler system will require a re-spacing of heads and calculations will need to be run (again) to verify the head pressure. The fire protection engineer will review and rework his fire alarm and sprinkler plans. The Electrical Engineer will need to re-space/add/subtract light fixtures AND may have to run a photometric study/model again. The mechanical engineer also will need to redesign and re-space his HVAC supply and exhaust grilles and possibly rework his ducting. If there is any electrical or plumbing in the wall, the electrical and mechanical engineers will get involved and change their drawings and designs (notes, dimensions, etc.) This is especially important if there is equipment or plumbing fixtures on this wall. By moving the wall, we lengthen and/or shorten ceiling and floor support members. Even in a wood-framed building or home the wood structure is affected. If the previous wall location contained structure, the structural engineer may need to totally redesign this portion of the structure. If all goes well, the engineers get started. It usually takes a day or two to get all of the required proposals together and create a new proposal for the client’s approval. We then send a revised background to our consultants and ask for a proposal from them to change their drawings. Depending on how much the wall was relocated, the ceiling plan revision will require a revised light fixture spacing, ceiling grid pattern revision and re-dimensioning. You get the picture.īy moving this wall, we have now affected the ceiling plan. And we will need to look at the ADA requirements if the wall starts narrowing a corridor or crowding a door or….
Now we look at the life safety plan and see if the exiting egress needs revising. Will this affect the occupancy of the room by increasing the area? If so, we have more code research to do. Is there a door in this wall? If so, it also has to be moved. If it is a fire wall, all intersections have to be reviewed and brought into the correct fire rating. This will require relocation of the wall, notes, wall type indicators, dimensions and possibly (usually) equipment or millwork. Next, depending upon which CAD platform the drawing database was created in, the architectural plan drawing needs to be opened and revised. Sounds easy enough, doesn’t it? But sometimes, depending on how complete the drawings are, it can be more involved than you might think.įirst and foremost, we need to review the drawings and find all the items that this change will affect. Occasionally, a client will ask us to move a wall on a plan set.