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Bettesworth Construction
blueprints

What Does a Cloud on a Blueprint Mean?

A scalloped cloud on a blueprint usually marks an area changed or called out for revision. Find the nearby revision identifier and match it to the sheet schedule before relying on the mark.

By Bettesworth Construction Team 2 min read
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A scalloped outline drawn around part of a blueprint is usually a revision cloud: it flags an area that changed or is being called out for revision. To find out which change it marks, look for a nearby revision tag or delta, then match it to the sheet’s revision schedule or title block. The cloud alone does not explain the change or tell you whether the drawing is approved for construction.

How to identify a revision cloud

A revision cloud is a cloud-shaped, scalloped annotation enclosing or drawing attention to an area of a drawing. Autodesk describes Revit revision clouds as a way to indicate design areas that have changed, while its AutoCAD Architecture documentation describes revision-cloud annotations as marking areas to be revised. Autodesk Revit help and Autodesk AutoCAD Architecture help document these annotation workflows.

In a blueprint context, the cloud shape is a visual markup, not a cloud-computing symbol. Still, drawing conventions can be project-specific, so check the legend if the mark’s purpose is uncertain.

How to find what changed

  1. Check that it encloses drawing content. Confirm that the scalloped outline is being used as a revision annotation rather than another project-specific symbol.
  2. Look for an adjacent revision identifier. This may be a number, letter, delta, or tag. Do not infer the change’s date or scope from the cloud alone.
  3. Match the identifier to the sheet information. Check the revision schedule and title-block revision notes on that sheet.
  4. Confirm the governing issue. Compare the sheet with the current issued drawing set and read the project legend and revision notes before relying on the mark.
  5. Ask if the record is incomplete. If the cloud has no tag, the schedule is missing, or the issue status is unclear, ask the drawing issuer or design professional which revision governs.

Revit supports assigning revisions to clouds and using tags and revision schedules, which is why the identifier and sheet record matter as much as the outline itself. Autodesk’s Revit revision-cloud documentation describes those workflows.

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What revision clouds do—and do not—tell you

A cloud calls attention to a location on the drawing; it is not a complete description of the revision, an approval, or an instruction to build. Use the revision identifier, schedule, notes, and issue status to establish what changed and which drawing governs. SOLIDWORKS similarly describes revision clouds as annotations used to call attention to geometry changes. SOLIDWORKS Design Help

Do old clouds always stay on the drawing?

No single history convention should be assumed for every project. The U.S. Department of Energy’s 1993 handbook, DOE Fundamentals Handbook: Engineering Symbology, Prints, and Drawings, describes a cloud method that indicates changes from the most recent revision and contrasts it with a circle method in which earlier revision circles remain. That is the handbook’s description of those methods, not a universal rule for architectural drawings.

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Method described in the DOE handbook How changes are marked Revision history indicated
Cloud method A cloud encloses each change. Changes from the most recent revision only, according to the handbook.
Revision circles Circles mark changes. Earlier circles can remain, indicating all revisions, according to the handbook.

These are the handbook’s descriptions, not a guarantee of how a particular project manages historical marks. DOE-HDBK-1016/1-93

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