[Edit] Overview
The term "Architectural plan" can have multiple related meanings:
Plan for an architectural project
Documentation of written and graphic descriptions of the architectural elements of a building project including sketches, drawings and details. This effort could also includes both the design of new buildings and other structures, as well as the planning for reconstruction of early historic structures.[1]
architectural design
Floor plan
Scale drawing of a structure, for example "the architectural plans for City Hall were on file"[2]
This article will focus on the general meaning of architectural plan as a plan and documentation for a building project.
An architectural plan is a type of plan for architecture to describe a place or object, or to communicate building or fabrication instructions. It can containing technical architectural drawings and documentation, and are drawn or printed on paper, but they can take the form of a digital file. Their purpose in these disciplines is to accurately and unambiguously capture all the geometric features of a site, building, product or component. Plans can also be for presentation or orientation purposes, and as such are often less detailed versions of the former. The end goal of plans is either to portray an existing place or object, or to convey enough information to allow a builder or manufacturer to realize a design.
[edit] Types of architectural plans
[edit] Floor plan
Main article: Floor plan
Floor plan for a single-family home.
A floor plan in architecture and building engineering is a diagram, usually to scale, of the relationships between rooms, spaces and other physical features at one level of a structure. Dimensions are usually drawn between the walls to specify room sizes and wall lengths. Floor plans will also include details of fixtures like sinks, water heaters, furnaces, etc. Floor plans will include notes to specify finishes, construction methods, or symbols for electrical items.
Similar to a map in a floor plan the orientation of the view is downward from above, but unlike a conventional map, a plan is understood to be drawn at a particular vertical position (commonly at about 3 feet above the floor). Objects below this level are seen, objects at this level are shown 'cut' in plan-section, and objects above this vertical position within the structure are omitted or shown dashed. Plan view or "planform" is defined as a vertical orthographic projection of an object on a horizontal plane, like a map.
[Edit] Garden design
Main article: Garden design
Garden design is the art and process of designing and creating plans for layout and planting of gardens and landscapes. Garden design may be done by the garden owner themselves, or by professionals of varying levels of experience and expertise. Most professional garden designers are trained in principles of design and in horticulture, and have an expert knowledge and experience of using plants. Some professional garden designers are also landscape architects, a more formal level of training that usually requires an advanced degree and often a state license. Many amateur gardeners also attain a high level of experience from extensive hours working in their own gardens, through casual study or Master Gardener Programs offered by the American Horticultural Society.