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Project planning resources
You can begin planning without pretending an old drawing is accurate. Build a record of what is known, how it was established and what remains concealed or unverified. The purpose is a dependable background for design and pricing, with the limits of each investigation clearly identified.
For owners, operators and project teams preparing a decision or handoff. Apply the checklist to the actual property, route, agreement and reviewing authority.
Request a project reviewEach drawing should identify its source and verification limits.
Measure the current arrangement and reconcile contradictory dimensions. Compare additions and prior alterations with the available approval records. Label inaccessible or assumed conditions so they are not silently converted into design facts.
Have qualified professionals investigate the role of walls, roof capacity and slab suitability for lifts or equipment. Measurements and photographs do not by themselves establish structural capacity or anchorage design.
Investigate ceiling-space conflicts and verify critical sewer or utility locations. Understand what a locating service did and did not establish; obtain additional verification where the route or design needs greater certainty.
Existing equipment labels are useful inputs, not a complete assessment.
Gather panel schedules, equipment nameplate data and service information for the electrical designer and provider. A panel label alone does not establish spare capacity for the new operation.
Compare installed models, connections and settings with approved documents. Have the appropriate specialists assess a hood serving different appliances or pool equipment that differs from the design; record the resulting corrections.
Investigate the source of moisture before covering the damage. Check equipment delivery paths, installation clearances and maintenance access as part of the background, not after purchasing a unit that only fits its final room.
Keep the initial inquiry brief. Detailed or confidential records can be exchanged through an appropriate channel after the assignment is defined.
Collect available plans and permit records, dated photographs, prior alterations, equipment data and known defects. Identify rooms or systems that cannot yet be accessed and decisions that depend on hidden conditions.
A coordinated existing-condition background, a list of discrepancies and an investigation plan assigning each unresolved condition to the appropriate qualified party.
Do not remove a wall, load a roof or slab, connect major equipment or excavate based solely on a sketch. Have the responsible professional establish the relevant condition and design response; agree on access and investigation methods before intrusive work.
Before you begin
Collect available plans and permit records, dated photographs, prior alterations, equipment data and known defects. Identify rooms or systems that cannot yet be accessed and decisions that depend on hidden conditions.
A coordinated existing-condition background, a list of discrepancies and an investigation plan assigning each unresolved condition to the appropriate qualified party.
No. It helps organize the project questions and responsibilities. The actual scope, qualified professionals, property and asset owners, and reviewing authorities determine the applicable requirements and approval sequence. Confirm current instructions before submitting.
Source check ·
Use the linked authority’s current instructions for your actual property, use and work. Agency procedures can change; a source check is not a project approval.
Find the relevant licensing-board lookup when selecting an architect for the project's jurisdiction.
Find the responsible engineering or surveying board; investigate the appropriate scope and current credentials with that board.
Your next step
Start with what you know. We’ll help define the path ahead.