In the building products world, there’s a specific type of terminology that factory personnel and customers frequently use while communicating with each other.
Below are some definitions of a few of these terms for those unfamiliar with this type of industry “slang”:
Cut Sheets – Cut sheets are sales drawings. Cut sheets provide a way for the customer to visualize what a manufacturer is quoting and what exactly they intend to provide
Submittals – Submittals are anything that needs to be submitted to the customer for approval in advance, such as drawings, specs, finish selection, tabletop samples, etc. These are also commonly referred to as “pre-engineering documents”.
Approvals – Documents that have been signed by the customer, confirming what the manufacturer is designing/manufacturing.
Shop Drawings (a.k.a. “Shops”) – Shop drawings are prepared by the engineering department and provide the shop employees with detailed instructions on how to build the product.
Fabrication – The process of product manufacturing and assembly.
As-Builts – Subsequent to the completion of project (i.e. after it’s turned over to the customer and the punch list items for the entire building are finalized), the manufacturer outlines in drawings and/or specs what product was delivered to the job site and how the product was installed (if applicable). As-built drawings are typically considered to be an additional service, and may not be required on all jobs. As-builts can be hand-written or drawn in a CAD program, and are provided to the architect and/or building owner for future use.
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