What is an As-Built?

As-built drawings (also referred to as red-line drawings or as-builts) are revised sets of drawings submitted by a contractor upon the completion of a project. They reflect all the changes made during the construction process and provide an exact rendering of the finished product.

As-Builts can also be done as a preliminary process to a project. Which is our focus in this section.

There are several benefits to As-Builting an existing home or a Building. As an owner, it’s good to know what services are in the building, and where they are. It can also be good practice to indicate where service valves are located. Such as plumbing, heating, or sprinkler shutoffs. It may be crucial to know where these valves are in case of an emergency, or in a renovation scenario. 

One of the most important things to know when beginning a renovation or retrofit project is, what do I already have? This can open up a series of questions such as:

• What services already exist in the house, building, or space?
• How far away are these services?
• Are they accessible?
• What size are they?
• Would they be able to support the newly added services or additions?

Before we can accurately come up with a plan or set of drawings for a renovation or retrofit project, these questions should be answered. Sometimes we can get a good portion of this information from previous as-built records. However, sometimes this method has been proven to be inaccurate at times.

We have found that the most accurate way to collect information needed for a renovation or retrofit project is to go onsite and as-built the surrounding environment and services. 

This includes:

• Ensuring floor plans are accurate
• Compare and proof existing as-built records with onsite conditions 
• Confirm location, size, and type of services present
• As-built (Red Line) exact locations of existing and/or abandoned services 
• Locate pathways and options for new services 
• See how the new scope of work will fit into the existing layout

Pair this with a Valve Identification Systems and Mechanical Identification and you’ll have the full package. 

If you are an Engineer needing information in certain areas, a Contractor, or a Building/Homeowner looking at starting a project, As-Builting the existing space may be an ideal place to start. 

Give us a call today to get started!