Basic Chapter INTRODUCTION AND DRAWING STANDARDS

Reinforced
Concrete
Detailing 1

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Objectives

a. The purpose of this manual is for training student to interpret structural

framing plan and to prepare reinforcement details for simple reinforced
concrete structural elements.
b. The student is presumed to have some basic knowledge in structural
mechanics, reinforced concrete design, engineering drawing and usage of
the computer aided drafting software AutoCAD®.

1.2 References

(a) This manual is based on the following references:

BSI, BS8110: 1997: Structural Use Concrete
IStructE & Concrete Society, Standard Method of Detailing of Structural
Concrete
(b) Hong Kong local practices are also included. Some of the materials are
extracted from the following references:
Hong Kong Buildings (Construction) Regulations
Hong Kong Code of Practice on Structural Use of Concrete --- 2013
(c) The students can get more information on drawing presentation and
structural detailing from the following references:
BSI, BS1192: Part 3: 1987: Construction Drawing Practice -
Recommendation for symbols and other graphic conventions
BSI, BS1192: Part 5: 1998: Construction Drawing Practice - Guide for the
structuring and exchange of CAD data
BSI PP7319: Construction Drawing Practice for Universities, Polytechnics
and Colleges
BSI, BS4466: 1989: Scheduling, dimensioning, bending and cutting of
steel reinforcement for concrete
Charles E. Reynolds, James C. Steedman, Reinforced Concrete Designer’s
Handbook, 10ed.

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(d) Regarding the usage of AutoCAD®, the student can refer to the AutoCAD
User Guide or the online help manual.

2. DRAWING MANAGEMENT

A good management of the drawing office of a structural engineering design

department should have:
(a) An effective communication system between the structural designer and
the detailer so that the intention of the design can be effectively translated
into drawing.
(b) A checking and approval system to ensure the accuracy of the drawing
before issuing.
(c) A control system to ensure the uniformity of style and format of the
drawing.
(d) Documentation and filing system to ensure efficiency retrieval of the most
updated drawing and traceable of amendment history.
(e) A resources management system to ensure that there are adequately
trained staff and appropriate facilities and efficient deployment of the
resources to meet the need of the design office.
There are various ways in achieving the above objectives depending on the size
and practice of the drawing office and scale of the project.
This manual concentrates on how to translate design information into detail
drawings; and to establish the convention, standard & style and format in
preparing reinforced concrete drawing.

3. DRAWING STYLE AND FORMAT

In order to facilitate communication, management and editing of the AutoCAD®

drawing, a unified drawing style and format is recommended.

3.1 Drawing sheets

(a) Size
The A-series of drawing sheets are generally used. The
length to width ratio of the A-series drawing sheets is 1:2.
The basic size is A0 sheet which has an area of one square
meter. The area of the drawing sheets is reduced by 1/2
down the series A1, A2, A3 A4 and A5. Diagrammatic

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presentation of the A-series drawing sheets is given on DWG 105.
The dimensions of the ‘A’ series and their usual application in reinforced concrete
structure drawing are given in table 1.1 below:
Table 1.1 – A-Series Drawing Sheets
Size Dimensions Applications
(mm x mm)
A0 841 x 1189 To show large area of layout on one-off drawing, e.g. site
layout plan or framing plan of a very large project.
It is an inconvenience size for handling and storing.
Sometimes, the layout is divided and presented in a set of
A1 size drawing sheets and a Key Plan is given on each
drawing.
A1 594 x 841 Commonly adopted for all types of drawings.
A2 420 x 594 For small-scale project or details drawings.
A3 297 x 420 To show large-scale standard details which cannot be
shown in A4 size drawing sheet.
A4 210 x 297 Standard details for binding into book form.
Sketches used in facsimile communications.
It is advisable to keep the range of drawing sizes to a minimum. For most of the
building structure, all the drawings can be presented in A1 size drawing sheets
with a booklet of A4 size standard drawings.
(b) Borders
A closed borderline of 0.5mm width is drawn within the
drawing sheet to indicate the complete drawing. A drawing
without a closed borderline may only be an extract from a
drawing and its content shall be read in conjunction with
the original drawing. The border margins between the
borderline and the edges of the drawing sheet are:
Table 1.2 - Width of Border Margin (mm)
Size of drawing sheets A0, A1, A2 (to plotter) A3, A4 (to printer)
Left (allow for binding) 25 20
Right, top and bottom 20 10
The above border margins are within the printable/plottable area of most of the
commonly used printers/plotters. It is recommended to check the
printable/plottable area of the printer/plotter before plotting.

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Sometimes, the following additional information may be provided along the
border: (i) centering marks for microfilming, (ii) grid reference, (iii) scale bar, (iv)
orientation mark, (v) folding marks, (vi) Snap mark for plottable area, etc.
(c) Title box
Title box is usually placed at the bottom left hand corner of
the drawing.
It includes the following essential information:
 Name of the design office
 Title and reference of the project
 Drawing title
 Drawing number and revision
 Date of issue
 Drawn by
 Checked by
 Scale
The following additional information may also be included:
 Name of the developer
 Approved by and date
 Amendment records
 AutoCAD file name
An example of drawing title box for A4 size drawing sheet is shown in DWG 105.
Space may also be allowed for the approval chop of the Authority.

3.2 Line properties

Drawing entities are basically presented in lines.

Halftoned/greyscaled and coloured drawings cannot be
easily reproduced print reproduction, and therefore drawing
in monochrome (black and white only) is recommended.
Lines of various weights (widths) and types are used to
make the drawing easier to interpret.
(a) Weight
For the sake of simplicity and ease of editing, no more than three line weights are
used for one drawing. The recommended line weights are given in table 1.3 below:

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Table 1.3 – Line Weightings Proportion
Weight Width Line width (mm)
proportion W = 0.35 W = 0.5 W = 0.70
Heavy W 0.35 0.50 0.70
Medium 0.5W 0.18 0.25 0.35
Light 0.35W 0.13 0.18 0.25
The value of W depends on the scale and complexity of the drawing. It is
recommended that one W be adopted for one drawing or detail. W = 0.5mm is
most frequently adopted. When the drawing is to be microfilmed, W = 0.7mm is
preferred.
However, line-weights are usually not activated on the screen display. Different
colors are used to distinguish line-weights for on-screen display. The color codes
and line-weights assignment is suggested in table 1.4 below:
Table 1.4 – Color Code and Pen Width
Color code 10-49 50-89 90-129 130-169 170-209 210-249

Pen width (mm) 0.13 0.18 0.25 0.35 0.50 0.70

Check the pen assignment before plotting.
(b) Types
The common types of lines used on reinforced concrete structure drawing are
given in table 1.5 below:

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Table 1.5 – Line Types and Application
Type Weight Application
Continuous Heavy Visible outline of columns, walls and other
vertical supports on the framing plan.
Reinforcement bars.
Visible outlines requires emphasis.
Medium Visible outlines and edges.
Light Dimension and leader lines, hatching, projection
lines.
Hidden Heavy Hidden outline of columns, wall and other vertical
supports on the framing plan.
Hidden reinforcement bars.
Hidden outline requires emphasis.
Medium Hidden outlines and edges.
Light Hidden outlines and edges of minor details.
Centre Light Gridlines, centrelines, lines of symmetry,
reference lines, etc.
Zigzag Light Limits of partial or interrupted views and
sections, if the limit is not an axis.
The names of the line types in the above table refer to the AutoCAD® linetype
files “ACADISO.LIN”. (Note: appropriate linetype scale has to be set to make the
line type can be visualized on scaled drawing.)

3.3 Lettering

To ensure good quality legible print reproduction and

microfilming, simple lettering style is used for annotations
and notes. The font style ROMANS.SHX of the
AutoCAD® is recommended. ROMAND.SHX may be used
ABC

for titles. ABC

The recommended usage and sizes of lettering are given in
table 1.6 below:

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Table 1.6 – Lettering Sizes and Application
Height (mm) Applications
7.0 Titles for A1 and above drawing sheets.
5.0 Titles
3.5 Sub-titles, notes, annotations and major dimensions
2.5 General dimensions and annotations of details
1.8 Detail dimensions and annotations of complex details
The orientation of the letters should be readable from either the base or the right-
hand side of the drawing.
The letter height should be set according to the final plot scale. For example, if the
drawing is to be plotted in 1:100, the text height in the model space should be set
to 500mm to reflect the plotted size of 5mm.

3.4 Layers

In AutoCAD, objects are drawn on layers. The display of

the layers can be switched on and off. Layers can be locked
to prevent it from editing. Objects with common attributes
are usually grouped and drawn on one layer. Example, the
outline of the structural members is drawn on one layer and
the reinforcement bars are drawn on another layer. When
both layers are switched on, the complete drawing showing
the outline of the structural elements together with the
reinforcement details are shown. If the layer of reinforcement details is switched
off, only the outline of the structural element is shown.
Some information which are shared among different disciplines of profession is
drawn on a specific layer. Example, the gridline system and the setting out of the
building which are drawn by the Architect but shared by all the parties in the
project would be drawn on a specific layer in the building plan so that the other
parties can extract this information from the building plan easily.
Layering is an important tool in information sharing among different parties of a
project. The number of layers should be kept to a minimum for ease of
management, and a unified nomenclature of layers should be agreed at the
beginning of a project. The nomenclature should reflect the following essential
information:
 The professional discipline originates and be responsible for the information
in the layer
 The type of entities of elements shown in the layer

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There are various systems of layer naming. Most of them use alphanumeric
coding system. For example, the one recommended in BS1192: Part 5: 1998 uses
Cl/SfB coding system. They are not intuitive and not easy to interpret. A well-
documented manual is required.
In AutoCAD®, a layer name can contain up to 31 number of characters. In this
manual only one professional discipline is concerned. A more intuitive layer
naming system using full text description is adopted. Tables 1.7 and 1.8 provided
the recommended layers for use in structural plans.
Table 1.7 – Layers for Framing Plan or General Arrangement Plan
Layer names Line weight Linetype Remarks
Gridlines Light Centre It is usually prepared by the Architect.
It includes the gridline label and setting out.
If two or more sets of gridline systems or
sub-systems are used, it can be subdivided
into ‘Gridline_tower’, ‘Gridline_podium”,
etc.
Outline_visible Medium Continuous It is usually brought from the relevant layer
in the general building plan prepared by the
Architect.
Outline_hidden Medium Hidden It includes all the downstand beams,
column/wall below the floor plans, etc.
Outline_heavy Heavy Continuous Vertical members including columns, walls,
etc.
Labels Light Continuous General labels, annotations, etc.
Label_element Light Continuous It includes beam marks and sizes, column
marks and sizes, slab mark and thickness,
etc.
Hatch Light Continuous Hatching requires large amount of memory
and a lot of calculation. Too many hatching
may slow down the operation of the
computer. It is advisable to freeze the
‘Hatch’ layer when it is not used.
Notes Light Continuous Title, notes, etc.
Dim Light Continuous It can be subdivided into:
Dim: for general dimensions
Dim_gridline: for setting out of gridlines
Construction_line Light Continuous

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Table 1.8 – Layers for Re-bar Details

Layer names Line weight Linetype Remarks
Gridlines Light Centre
Outline_visible Medium Continuous
Outline_hidden Medium Hidden
Bars Heavy Continuous It can be subdivided into:
Bar_T1, Bar_T2, Bar_B2, Bar_B1
Bar_long, Bar_links
etc.
Sometimes Hidden line may be used for
bottom bars or bars refer to other drawings.
Labels Light Continuous
Label_bar Light Continuous It can be subdivided into:
Label_bar_T1, Label_bar_T2, etc.
Notes Light Continuous
Dim Light Continuous It can be subdivided into:-
Dim: for general dimensions
Dim_bar: for bar curtailment
Construction_line Light Continuous

3.5 Symbols

BS1192: Part 3 provides a complete list of symbols to be used in construction

drawing. If the symbols recommended in BS1192: Part 3 are used, a statement
should be included in the drawing to that effect. However, some engineers prefer
to use their own conventions. It is recommended that legends should be provided
in the drawing to define the symbols. The symbols used should be consistent
throughout the whole set of drawing. The symbols commonly used for reinforced
concrete drawing are given in DWG 101 to 104.

4. PLOTTING SCALE

4.1 Scales

The drawing object is input by AutoCAD® using real life scale, i.e. 1:1 or one
drawing unit = 1mm. The drawing object is than plotted using reduced scale on

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drawing sheet. Although the drawing object can be input to the exact precision
and plotted accurately to scale, do not measure the dimensions from the drawing.
Read figured dimensions. In case of doubt, ask the designer.
The common plotting scales are:
1:1, 1:2, 1:5, 1:10, 1:20, 1:25, 1:50, 1:100, 1:200, 1:500, 1:1000, etc.
Although it is not necessary to bother about the scale when inputting the drawing
entity, you still have to pre-determine the plotting scale when setting the size of
the text and inserting the drawing border for the drawing. There are two methods
to insert the drawing border and plot the scaled drawing on the drawing sheet.

4.2 Single scale drawing

To plot a drawing on an A1 size drawing sheet using a scale of 1:100:

Method A
a. Magnify the geometry (text height, arrow sizes, etc.)
of the text and dimension styles with a
magnification factor of 100.
b. Insert the A1 size border and title box as a block or
external reference into the model space of the
drawing using a magnification factor of 100.
c. Move the drawing objects inside the drawing
border or move the border to enclose the drawing objects.
d. In the plot menu, use the ‘window’ option to pick the border and the object
within it and set the plotting scale to 1 mm = 100 drawing units.
Method B
a. No need to magnify the geometry of the text and
dimension styles, but the linear scale of the
dimensions is set to 100. (Note: draw the texts and
dimensions on the layout.)
b. Insert the A1 size border and title box as a block or
external reference onto the layout (or paper space)
of the drawing using a magnification factor of 1.
c. Open a viewport inside the drawing border and set the scale of the view
port to 1:100 by the typing 0.01xp in the ZOOM command.
d. Pan the object into the viewport and draw the texts and dimensions on the
layout.
e. Plot the layout using a scale to 1mm = 1 drawing unit.

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4.3 Multi-scale drawing

As far as possible, single scale drawing is to be drawn. If multi-scale drawing has

to be plotted, it can be done in the following manner:-
If a detail of an enlarged scale of 1:50 is to be plotted in the above drawing:
Method A
a. Draw the detail with a magnification factor of 2 within the border. The
magnification factor of the geometry of the text and annotation remains
unchanged.
b. Set the linear scale of the dimension styles to 0.5. The overall scale
remains unchanged, i.e. 100.
c. Plot the drawing as above.
Method B
a. Draw the detail using real life scale, i.e. 1:1 in the model space.
b. Open another viewport on the layout for the detail and zoom to a scale of
1:50.
c. Draw the text and dimensions for the detail on the layout. The
magnification factor for the geometry remains unchanged but the linear
scale of the dimensions shall be set to 50.
c. Then plot the drawing as above.

5. DRAWING NUMBERING SYSTEM

5.1 Drawing number/file name system

One of most important aspect in document control of drawing is to provide a good

drawing number/file name system. There are various ways to do so. The
following are two typical examples:

System A
Drawing number: T NN R
File name: TNNR.DWG
Where
T = An alphabet to denote the type of structural drawing
P – Preliminary plans, e.g. general notes, typical details, block plans, etc.
G – Framing plans or general arrangement plan

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S – Slab re-bars details
B – Beam re-bars details
C – Column Schedule
W – Wall re-bars details
S – Staircase
F – Foundation plans
NN = A serial number, 01, 02, 03 to 99.
R = A small capital alphabet to denote the revision of the drawing
For example, S05b means the second revision of the fifth drawing of slab re-bars
details.

System B
Drawing number: YY AAA / B FF D T S NNN R
File name: YYAAA_ BFFDSNNNR.DWG
Where
YY = The year when the project commissioned, e.g. 98, 99
AAA = The job reference number of the project
B = The building code, e.g. K stand for block K.
FF = Floor level, e.g.
00 – not applicable
01 – 1st floor
L1 – Level 1
GF – Ground floor
B1 – 1st level of basement
D = Discipline, e.g. A – Architecture, S – Structural, E – Electrical, etc.
S = Status of the plan, e.g. 0 – not applicable, P – Preliminary, T – Tendering,
A – Approval plan, R – As-built record, etc.
NNN = Serial number, 001, 002, …, 999, A01, A02, …, Z99.
R = Small capital alphabet to denote revision of the drawing
For example, Dwg no. 98031/D03SP012d: Job number 31 in 1998, Block D, 3rd
floor, structural plan, approval plan, sheet number 12, the fourth revision.

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5.2 Drawing Schedule/Register

F or a large building project, the

number of drawings may be up
to hundreds or even thousands. The
Project Designers
Manager Resident
drawings are kept on amending and
updating. Some of the drawings are Engineer
draft for comment. Some of the
drawings are for tendering purposes.
Some of the drawings are for User
construction. Some are sketches of
amendment proposals. Some are
as-built records.
Drawings are prepared by different
professionals, e.g. Architect, Quantity
Structural Engineer, Piling Contractor Surveyor
Contractor, Building Services Authorities
Engineer, Interior Designer, etc.
During the design stage, drawings are used as a means of communication
between different professionals of the design team. During the construction
stage, drawings are used as a means of communication between the design
team and the construction team.
Drawings are also used as contract document. Drawings are used for measuring
the cost of the works during budget estimating and tendering stage. Drawings
serve the purpose of recording the variation to the original contract during the
progress of the works and the amount of works completed.
The duties of the project engineer is to ensure efficient communication of design
information between all the parties of the project team and to ensure the
drawings are updated regularly and issued to the right parties at the right moment.
The most important of all is to ensure the works is constructed according to the
latest issue of the plans.
In order to keep track of the amendment history and distribution of the drawings,
a file of Drawing Schedule/Register should be kept. Discuss what information
should be kept in this file and suggest a format of the Drawing Schedule/Register.

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