Construction detailing for landscape and garden designers

- there is delight in the detail !

February 5, 13, 18, March 12, 17

Paul Hensey aims to demystify construction drawings; to give attendees an appreciation of the principles that underpin them and understanding of why and how they are created. Attendees should finish the course with the confidence to decide what details might be needed for a project and how to create simple construction details.

This course will explore what construction drawings are, and the principles that underpin them. Topics covered:

What are construction drawings and why we need them

The relationship between drawings and the specification

How to decide what drawings are needed for any give project

The jargon and principles associated with drawing sheets

What are elevations, projections and how they are created

Laying out a drawing adding dimensions and labels

The principles of general landscape construction that should be communicated

Developing common construction details

The principles of construction and the associated detailing needed to communicate it are universal. While local building codes and material sizes will differ, the course will be useful for practitioners outside the UK.

Every area and topic discussed will include examples of construction drawings and details.

Paul Hensey is Head of Design at the Society of Garden Designers and a member of the Chartered Institute of Horticulture. He is passionate about construction detailing and writes technical books for fun!

Session 1: Overview Show typical construction drawings for: Pergola, Steps, Paving, Water feature, What they are, Why we need them, The legal perspective, How a drawing ties in with a spec, How to decide what drawings are required (how many/ sheet size).

Session 2: Anatomy of a drawing Views: elevations, plans, sections. Projections: 1st, 3rd angle, axon, iso-metric. Drawings sheet contents and layout. Creating a drawing sheet (demo) why it’s important. Laying out a drawing (use a simple household object). Notes, labels, dimensions.

Session 3: Principles of construction Research (know what and how), Excavate to subgrade, Multiple ways to achieve something, Parallel layers, Understand water, Fundamentals of materials (sizes/ classifications), Using material units of measurement, Tolerances

Session 4: Developing common construction details Steps (long and short), Paving/ edges, Water feature, Wall - live demo creating a construction detail of a wall start to finish.

Session 5: Q&A Answer questions on people’s construction/ projects, Heap website walkthrough

All examples/ demos/ drawings will be created using SketchUp, the principles are suitable for hand drawings/ other software.

Each session will be recorded and issued to participants along with slides and notes.

Five sessions for £90 - book here