TACTICAL DIAGRAMMING Why it works

TACTICAL DIAGRAMMINGWhy it works

Three components of Tactical Diagramming • Skill • Building practices andtactical diagramming practice • Art • Personal intuition, imaginationand ingenuity • A technique—not a tactic! • Procedures for performingspecific tasks or functions • Science • Planning and building codes • Terrain Analysis

BuildingCodes • National Building Code of Canada • Adopted in 1941 • Originally instituted for fireprevention and escape • Model code rather thanregulatory but usuallyadopted locallyas requirements • Local zoning ordinances

Reverse Engineering • Mentally disassembling a house to visualize the interior • Knowledge of building code requirements helpful but not essential • Familiarization with building practices is largely already available • Personal experiences and observations • Especially useful for police and military • All buildings are built for a purpose and many are altered to suit particular uses

Building Practices • Driven by economicand aesthetic factors • Size and shape of houseand organization of rooms • Expense of installationand cost of materials • Cultural conventions • Enables mass produced goods and components • Examples include window coverings, hardware, cabinets, furniture, plumbing fixtures, and so forth • Some have been incorporated into local ordinances • Just as influential as regulations • Tend to be universal rather than regional

Building Principles • Four elements that must be controlled • Fire, Wind, Water, Gravity • Use of building will strongly influence construction • Buildings are hollow • Limitations on span by materials and expense • Nearly all residences in America are "stick framing" • Interior walls are used for intermediate support • Bearing walls are more predictable than partitions

Coup d'oiel • French—"The vision behind the eye" • English translation—perceptive insight • An ability to "see" on the other side of the hill or inside a house • Part artandpart science

Helpful Hints • Work from large to small • Start with orientation • Next go to building outline • Diagram floor plan last • Work from confidence to ambiguity • Sketch in as many features that can be reliably placed and sized first • Compare • What you know or believe to what you see • Be suspicious—explain incongruities • Don't be afraid of "I don't know!"

Residential Trivia • Size of house ~2,450 square feet (median) • Typical three-bedroom in Southwest USA is about 1,400 sq. ft. • 80% built since 1920 • About 2/3 will have an attached garage or carport • Almost half will have a separate dining room • More than 2/3 are occupied by the owner • More than 3/4 are single-family structures • Approximately 90 million homes in USA • Each has more in common with the others than differences

Frequently Asked Questions • Why focus on residences? • Most common target for warrants • Public buildings provide far easier access to gain info • How long does it take? • Varies with amount of desired detail and complexity of building • Generally, figure 60-90 minutes for most applications • How accurate can a diagram be? • Depending on resource photos, as close as six inches for a room and a foot for a building • Features can be precise! • Many features, like doors and windows, can be estimated within one inch

Useful Tools • ¼ʺ graph paper • Good scale for nearly all diagrams • Mechanical pencil with HB lead • Soft lead with dark lines but easily erased • Compass or dividers • Easy and accurate transfers of scale • Gum eraser, especially pen style • Computer software • By far, the easiest and simplest method for diagramming • Some are automatically defaulted for sizes and codes • Provide instant 3D versions, including walk-throughs • Sketchup—free version from Google • Chief Architect—Better Homes and Gardens • Punch Pro—Punch Software, less than $100

Useful Books • Look for illustrations aswell as narrative • Comprehensive overview is better than detailed information • You don’t need to read them, you’ll use them for reference and precision

Tactical Diagramming Book • Used as text for this course • Written from a tactical perspective rather thana builder’s • Heavily illustrated withexamples, graphics,photographs, etc. • Focused entirely on tacticaldiagramming

Questions?

TACTICAL DIAGRAMMING Why it works