Installation drawings
Installation drawings are developed from co-ordinated detail drawings and present the information needed by trades to install part of the works. This may be particularly important for complex installations such as plant rooms, data centres, ventilation systems, underfloor heating, and so on.
They may be prepared by the consultant team, or may be prepared by contractors, sub-contractors or suppliers and submitted for approval.
They may comprise plans, sections and elevations, but increasingly building information modelling (BIM) is being used to create detailed 3 dimensional representations of buildings and their components which may include installation information.
Installation drawings may include information about:
- Precise positioning.
- Supports and fixings.
- Information from manufacturers shop drawings.
- Space allowances for installation.
- Builders work in connection, such as; cutting and sealing holes, chasing block and brickwork for conduits or pipes, lifting and replacing floors, constructing plinths and so on.
- Plant or equipment requirements.
- Requirements for service connections.
- Requirement to leave access space for operation and maintenance.
- Other maintenance access requirements such as access panels, decking, platforms, ladders and handrails.
It is important that the information presented is carefully co-ordinated so that clashes are avoided.
Installation drawings may include specification information, or this may be provided in a separate specification, but information should not be duplicated as this can become contradictory and may cause confusion.
Design Framework for Building Services 5th Edition (BG 6/2018), written by David Churcher, John Sands & Martin Ronceray, and published by BSRIA in June 2018 suggests that installation drawings are:
|
Drawings based on the Technical Design drawings or coordinated working drawings with the primary purpose of defining that information needed by the tradesmen on site to install the works. The main features of installation drawings should be as per coordinated working drawings, plus:
|
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
- As-built drawings and record drawings.
- Assembly drawing.
- Concept drawing.
- Design drawings.
- Detail drawing.
- Elevations.
- Engineering drawing.
- General arrangement drawing.
- Projections.
- Scale drawing.
- Section drawing.
- Shop drawing.
- Technical drawing.
- Types of drawing.
- Working drawing.
- Component drawings
Featured articles and news
Futurebuild and UK Construction Week London Unite
Creating the UK’s Built Environment Super Event and over 25 other key partnerships.
Welsh and Scottish 2026 elections
Manifestos for the built environment for upcoming same May day elections.
Advancing BIM education with a competency framework
“We don’t need people who can just draw in 3D. We need people who can think in data.”
Guidance notes to prepare for April ERA changes
From the Electrical Contractors' Association Employee Relations team.
Significant changes to be seen from the new ERA in 2026 and 2027, starting on 6 April 2026.
First aid in the modern workplace with St John Ambulance.
Ireland's National Residential Retrofit Plan
Staged initiatives introduced step by step.
Solar panels, pitched roofs and risk of fire spread
60% increase in solar panel fires prompts tests and installation warnings.
Modernising heat networks with Heat interface unit
Why HIUs hold the key to efficiency upgrades.
Reflecting on the work of the CIOB Academy
Looking back on 2025 and where it's going next.
Procurement in construction: Knowledge hub
Brief, overview, key articles and over 1000 more covering procurement.
Sir John Betjeman’s love of Victorian church architecture.
Exchange for Change for UK deposit return scheme
The UK Deposit Management Organisation established to deliver Deposit Return Scheme unveils trading name.
A guide to integrating heat pumps
As the Future Homes Standard approaches Future Homes Hub publishes hints and tips for Architects and Architectural Technologists.
BSR as a standalone body; statements, key roles, context
Statements from key figures in key and changing roles.
Resident engagement as the key to successful retrofits
Retrofit is about people, not just buildings, from early starts to beyond handover.






















