Large format printing
Give your campaign room to be seen.
Large format printing
Architectural plan printing
An architect's drawing has to communicate both accurate dimensions and design intent. Architectural plan printing covers everything from a marked-up A1 set for site to polished boards for a client or public consultation, and each needs a slightly different approach.
Exporting from CAD so the plot behaves
Most problems with architectural plan printing begin at export. Plot to PDF at the true sheet size, so that a 1:100 drawing stays 1:100, and make sure nobody ticks "fit to page" further down the line. Embed fonts, and check that pen weights have come through as intended, because hairlines that look fine on screen may vanish on paper. Rendered images dropped into a layout should be a sensible resolution for the sheet. Before issuing, open the PDF and measure a known dimension with the viewer's tools.
Working set or presentation board?
A drawing bound for a site hut needs different treatment to one heading to a client meeting. Working drawings are usually plain paper, rolled or folded, with sets and revision numbers kept in order, and they may be needed in several copies. Presentation pieces benefit from heavier stock and richer colour for CGIs. For a public consultation, boards that stand up by themselves will hold up better, and foamex panels or mounted and laminated prints survive being carried between venues.
Avoiding mix-ups across a drawing set
- Name each file with its drawing number and revision
- Say whether superseded sheets should be left out
- Note sizes per sheet if the set is mixed
- State how many copies of each and whether they are to be collated
Regular project printing across several offices or consultants can get messy, and our print management page explains how that could be simplified. Planning authorities set their own requirements for submissions, so check theirs before printing anything for an application.
Related topics
Useful to know
Your questions.
Will my architectural plan print exactly to scale?
If the PDF is at true sheet size and is printed at 100%, it should be very close. Paper can shift slightly with humidity, so scaled prints are a guide and written dimensions should always take priority.
Can you print from DWG files?
A PDF is much safer, as it fixes fonts, line weights and layers exactly as you set them. If you only have a CAD file, ask us first, or plot it to PDF from your own software.
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Keep a multi-part print project organised from brief to delivery.