Structural drafts are drafts of buildings before any contractor begins to build. They are a necessary part of the building process, especially if a building has a more unusual design. An architect may make more than one structural draft before any construction gets underway, and a structural engineer has to examine these drafts to ensure that the construction of such a building is possible. Here are three reasons why you need structural drafts to build your office building. 

A Draft Helps Recognize Potential Building Issues

Consider this: the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia had more than one structural draft. Why? Because of its very unique and iconic shape and the desire to build something that would deliver amazing acoustics, it required draft after draft to get it all just right. Potential building problems with its many partial domes and peaks had to be tweaked, and that could only be done through drafts of the building plans. If your office building has some unique structural features, you will need several drafts as well to recognize potential building issues and challenges. 

Drafts Look Great on Paper but Need to Be Run Past Structural Engineers

Any architect can create an amazing draft of a building. A lot of talent and imagination goes into creating buildings, but it takes a structural engineer's skills to make sure that these buildings are even remotely possible. Without the drafts, there would be no way for the engineer to plug the drawing and the specs into his or her CAD computer to see if there are any structural issues. When the engineer finds an issue, he or she attempts to find a solution that will help support the outward design of the building while maintaining the structural soundness. If a solution cannot be found, the draft is returned to the architect and they go back to the drawing board. 

The Final Structural Draft Has to Be Approved by Building Commissions

The zoning and building commissions office within your city has to approve all final drafts of a new building. They need to not only see what the final building will look like, but they need to also see that it will be structurally sound when complete. If the architect and engineer have made that possible, then your company gets the green light to start construction. The whole drafting, drawing, and approval process could take up to three years, possibly longer if you have a really unique office building design. 

Contact a company like Structural Ink for more information.