Building Construction (Part 1)
When any person wishes to construct a house, office, or any new building the first step is to have a set of building plans drawn up. Building plans are a set of scale drawings that show the size and shape of the building. It outlines the usage of each room, and shows their dimensions.
This section is generally referred to as the “floor plans”. For house plans, this will show the number and locations of the bedrooms, bathrooms, lounge, dining room, kitchen, pantry, and other rooms. It will show where the windows will be, as well as, the doors.
The building plans should also show photos or drawings of what the complete house will look like, often rendered in 3D. They should include a map of the entire property, showing the precise location of the house, cottage, garage, staff quarters, and any other structures. This is called the “site map”. The building plans will include the “bills of quantities”, also called the “BoQ’s”. The BoQ’s is a list of all the various materials needed to complete the construction and the quantities. For example, it may specify that the house will be built out of ceramic face brick and that 20 000 bricks will be required. A good
BoQ will also include the material costs and construction costs. Building plans are often printed on A2, A1 or A0 sheets of paper.
Building plans are used by your contractor as strict guidelines on how to build. But before that can happen, all building plans must be approved. First, the development where you are constructing may have their own “Homeowner’s Association” (HOA). The HOA constitution may have architectural guidelines that you will have to follow. In that case, you will need to get approval from the development. Once you have received the development’s approval you will need to submit your plans to your local authority for approval. In Bulawayo, this will be either Bulawayo City Council or Umguza Rural Council, depending on the address of where you will be building. The plans will need to be vetted by the Health Department and by the Engineer’s Department. Each of these approvals with come with the requisite fees.
Building plans have their own colour coded system. New brickwork is coloured red, new concrete is marked in green, you use blue for new iron or steel, and sewers are shaded brown. Building plans will need to take strength, forces, and pressures into consideration, to have a safe structure.
Because there are so many technical aspects to a building plan, it is strongly suggested that you hire professionals for this important job. A registered architect can assist you with all of this. They can also guide you on the aesthetics, or the look and style of your new home. A complicated structure may require a structural engineer to ensure the strength and safety of the supporting features. It is advised to use local professionals, who will understand the rules and guidelines laid out in “The Model Building By-Laws”. “The Model Building By-Laws” are the laws of Zimbabwe in reference to building and construction.
Building your own home can be one of the most exciting things that you will ever do. You can watch your dreams and visions come to life in front of your very eyes. But it also needs to begin with a good start, your building plans.
Jonathan Thompson is a Registered Real Estate Agent who works in Bulawayo. He has nine years of experience in Real Estate in the USA, and another 11 years experience in Bulawayo. He is the founder and the Managing Director of Thompson Properties (Pvt) Ltd.