Buildings and models: the basics

• A building has a base, a frame, walls, a roof, openings and services.
• Each part has a job: carry load, keep weather out, let people and light in.
• Services are power, water, air, data and safety systems.

Worked example. Look at the campus module: four posts, two frames, a floor, walls, a door and a window. That is eight parts.

Activity. List the parts of a room you know and say the job of each.

Standard. Eight parts named with a job each.

• A drawing is a picture. A model is a set of objects that know their size and type.
• When one object changes, the plan, the list and the section change together.
• A model is only as good as the facts stored in it.

Worked example. Move a wall in a model and the room area and the paint quantity update at once. In a drawing you must redo both.

Activity. Draw a room on paper, then list what would have to be redone if the wall moved.

Standard. Two things that would need redoing named.

• Mistakes cost far less on screen than on site.
• A model lets many people see the same thing: owner, designer, builder and operator.
• A model keeps the story of the building for its whole life.

Worked example. A stair that does not fit is found on screen in minutes. On site it costs days.

Activity. Write one sentence on how each of the four groups uses the same model.

Standard. Four uses written, one per group.

• Hard hats, safe edges and clear routes protect people on site.
• A record is only useful if it is true, dated and signed by the person who made it.
• Never put a brand name or private detail into a shared model.

Worked example. A photo with a date and a name is a record. A photo with no date is just a picture.

Activity. Name three safety rules from your own site or school.

Standard. Three rules named.