Describing Spatial Conflicts in Design Coordination
Key Points
When elements on a plan don’t meet code requirements or interfere with required clearances, you need to describe these problems clearly to your team. Understanding how to talk about spatial conflicts helps you coordinate changes efficiently.
“POWER WORDS” you can use when coordinating requirements include:
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Impact (verb)
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Conflict (verb) ** pronounced conFLICT
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Conflict (noun) ** pronounced CONflict
Watch the video lesson below to learn how you can use these tools more accurately on your projects.
Lesson Clip
This video is a short sample of a longer lesson video from the course Floor Plans 2: Dimensions and Requirements
Practice Activity
Use your keyboard to type the words in the correct order to complete the dialogue.
Example:
Summary
Three Ways to Describe Spatial Conflicts
1. Impact (affects a space or layout)
Use impact when something affects or influences a required clearance or space.
Pattern: [Element] impacts [the clearance/space/layout]
“The location of EP1 impacts the clearance in front of the door”
“The column location impacts the corridor width”
2. Conflict (verb) with a requirement
Use conflicts with when an element violates or doesn’t meet a requirement. This emphasizes that there’s a problem that needs fixing.
Pattern: [Element] conflicts with [the required + noun]
“EP1 conflicts with the required door clearance”
“The beam depth conflicts with the ceiling height requirement”
** Pronunciation note: As a verb, stress the second syllable: con-FLICT
3. Conflict (noun) between two things
Use conflict as a noun when you want to state that a problem exists between two elements or requirements.
Pattern: There’s a conflict between [element] and [requirement]
“There’s a conflict between EP1 and the required door clearance”
“There’s a conflict between the duct size and the ceiling height”
** Pronunciation note: As a noun, stress the first syllable: CON–flict
More expressions
Here are some related expressions professionals use when discussing spatial conflicts:
Encroach on/upon:
When something extends into a required space or clearance zone:
“The column encroaches on the accessible route”
“The ductwork encroaches upon the required ceiling height”
Overlap with:
When two clearances or spaces occupy the same area (sometimes acceptable, sometimes not):
“The door swing overlaps with the required wheelchair clearance”
“These two clearance zones can overlap without issues”
Reduce:
When something makes a dimension smaller than required:
“The wall offset reduces the corridor width”
“This change reduces the clearance to less than minimum”
Describing severity:
“This is a minor conflict” (small adjustment needed)
“This is a significant conflict” (major redesign needed)
“This violates the building code” (must be fixed)
Problem + solution language:
“The panel placement conflicts with door clearance, so we need to relocate it”
“There’s a conflict between the beam and the ceiling, but we can raise the slab”
