Understanding how to interpret lighting and electrical plans can be essential for a variety of larger projects. This article provides a detailed walkthrough of a lighting drawing, explaining the different elements and their significance.
Key Insights
- The article discusses how in smaller projects, electrical and lighting details are often combined on the same plan, while larger projects require separate plans for each.
- Various elements of a lighting plan are dissected, including the importance of lighting notes, keynote legends, and the nature of light fixtures. The article also explains how these fixtures are typically not dimensioned on the lighting plan, as this is usually detailed in the millwork drawing or reflected ceiling plans.
- The article emphasizes that while room names are normally included in the plan, they are surprisingly missing in the given example. Nonetheless, the plan showcases feature lighting in different areas such as the trellis, egress hall, and bathrooms.
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Let's review a lighting drawing. On smaller projects, electrical and lighting are shown on the same plan. For larger projects, lighting and electrical are separate plans.
This is the lobby area again. Let's zoom in here. You can see that we have lighting notes and a keynote legend.
I’ll start in this area. Once again, you can see the type of light fixture. This references the specific type of light, which is included in a matrix and the electrical and lighting schedules.
You can see how the components are connected. You’ll need to refer to the symbols legend to identify the fixture type. The revision number is visible here.
This also includes the meeting rooms and corridor spaces. I am somewhat surprised that the names of the rooms were not included. It is standard to include these.
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You can see all the feature lighting at the trellis. There is lighting in the egress hall. Again, there are different types of fixtures.
Hopefully, you’ve noticed that these fixtures are not dimensioned. This is the bar area. Many of these lights were dimensioned in the millwork drawing, but electrical engineers typically do not dimension lighting fixtures.
In the bathrooms, remember the dimensions for the lighting fixtures in the bathroom reflected ceiling plans? And here we are. This is the lighting plan, which differs from the electrical plan.
Dimensions are not usually shown on plans at this level. They are typically shown in enlarged plans or, in the case of reflected ceiling plans, they are shown there. Let’s move on to our next electrical drawing.
