The Essential Document Package
At a minimum, a steel detailer needs structural drawings issued for construction (IFC) — not a preliminary or permit-set-only package. IFC drawings carry the engineer's stamp and represent the design the fabricator will build. Any drawing issued prior to IFC status may change, and changes mid-model are expensive.
- Structural drawings stamped for construction (IFC)
- Current addenda — all of them, numbered and dated
- Project specifications — Division 05 at minimum
- Architectural drawings showing openings, clearances, and attachment points
- Soils or foundation report if base plates and embeds are in scope
Connection and Engineering Information
Detailing cannot progress on any connection until the detailer knows who designed it and what the governing loads are. The most productive projects provide a connection load table or connection design criteria at kickoff. Without it, every non-standard connection generates an RFI.
- Connection responsibility matrix — EOR-designed vs. delegated
- Governing structural specification (AISC 360, AISC 341 for seismic)
- Design loads for delegated connections
- Seismic design category if applicable
- Weld procedure specification or reference to AWS D1.1
Schedule and Shop Standards
A detailing schedule without the fabrication end-date in view is not a real schedule. Provide the fabrication start date, the required steel-on-site date, and any phasing requirements — anchor bolts first, certain bays prioritized, etc. If your shop has standard connection details, drawing templates, or CNC equipment requirements, providing them at kickoff eliminates a second round of revisions later.
- Fabrication start date and steel-on-site date
- Priority sequences — which bays, floors, or pieces must be released first
- Shop connection standards and preferred details
- CNC equipment type and required NC file format
- Drawing template or title block if shop-furnished