While blueprints aren’t as common as they used to be, countless firms, municipalities, and property owners still have archives filled with them. These drawings contain decades of project history, and preserving them is just as important now as it was when they were created.
The problem is, managing these documents is rarely easy. They’re oversized, fragile, and often stored in such a way that makes them hard to access when you need to reference them. Sharing them with others, or figuring out which version is the most current, only adds to the frustration.
Projects today often span multiple locations and involve teams that need quick access to the same information. Paper drawings simply weren’t built for that kind of collaboration. By converting blueprints into digital files, they become easier to find, share, and preserve, without the risk of damaging the originals.
In this article, we’ll tell you why you should scan your blueprints, explain how the process works, and the benefits you gain by digitizing these documents.
Why Blueprint Scanning Matters
The information contained on a blueprint is often valuable long after a project is complete, but relying on paper to preserve it creates more problems than it solves. As the ink slowly fades and the paper becomes more fragile, these documents become harder to work with and less reliable as a main source of truth.
If you have many blueprints in storage, finding the one you need can be just as frustrating. Digging through tubes or flat files is time-consuming, and if a drawing has been misplaced or mislabeled, progress on a project can slow to a crawl.
Sharing them isn’t easy, either. Attempting to make copies yourself and then having to physically transport them is inconvenient at best, and if they contain sensitive or proprietary information, you also run the risk of them being lost, damaged, or viewed by people who shouldn’t have access.
Digitizing these documents eliminates these headaches and ensures that your plans will still be usable decades from now. After scanning, you’re left with clear digital files that are simple to organize, quick to retrieve, and easy to share with anyone who needs access.
What Blueprint Scanning Involves
Scanning blueprints isn’t as simple as scanning a regular sheet of paper on the desktop scanner you might find in your home or office. While it is possible to scan large format documents yourself, these documents are cumbersome, highly detailed, and surprisingly fragile. Creases, fading ink, or brittle paper are par for the course, which is why it is important that the process is carried out by trained technicians who understand how to handle them properly.
Specialized large-format equipment is used to capture every fine line, notation, and measurement at high resolution. These scanners can handle all of the common sizes and formats without folding or creasing the paper, ensuring that the originals aren’t damaged during the process.
Once scanned, each file goes through a manual quality review. A technician checks the digital copy against the original to confirm that text, dimensions, and intricate details are clear and accurate. Because so many critical decisions rely on these drawings, ensuring nothing is lost in the digitization process is mission critical.
The final step is organizing the digital files in a way that makes sense. A consistent naming convention is applied using details pulled directly from the blueprint, such as job ID, client name, or project date, so that the files can be located quickly. Adding this information into the filename provides a simple but powerful form of indexing, allowing text searches on any of these values to bring up the exact set of drawings you need.
The Benefits of Scanning Blueprints
Converting your stored blueprints into digital files makes long-term preservation much simpler. Instead of dealing with tubes or rummaging through drawers, you can retrieve any drawing from your archive on a computer or tablet with just a few keystrokes.
Digitizing blueprints also brings lasting advantages:
- Free Up Space: Storing blueprints takes up a lot of space. Once digitized, you can store thousands of drawings without the physical footprint, freeing space for more productive use.
- Easy Access: By including all the relevant details in the file name itself, you can search by project name, job ID, or date and find the exact drawing you need in seconds, without relying on complex document management software.
- Collaboration: Share plans instantly with contractors, clients, or teammates, no shipping or photocopying required.
- Protect the Originals: Reduce handling of fragile, aging documents and keep them safe from wear, fading, or damage.
- Preserve Records for the Future: Common formats like PDF or TIFF are widely supported and future-proof, ensuring every line and detail remains accessible for years to come.
How to Prepare Your Blueprints for Scanning
Taking a few simple steps before your scanning project starts can make the process much more efficient and greatly improve the final result. Proper preparation also ensures that your digital archive is easy to use once the project is complete.
Organize Your Plans
Start by gathering the drawings you want digitized and determining how they should be grouped in your digital archive. Some firms prefer to organize by project, while others use client name, job number, or project date. Incorporating these details into the file name makes each document searchable and much easier to retrieve later.
This is also a good time to remove any duplicates or outdated drawings so that only the most relevant documents are carried forward into the scanning process.
Assess Condition
Blueprints that have been stored for years often show signs of wear, such as creases, curled edges, or faded ink. While you won’t need to repair or flatten them yourself, it’s helpful to flag any documents that look especially fragile or damaged. Letting the scanning team know ahead of time allows them to apply extra care during handling, which reduces the chance of accidental damage and ensures the best possible results.
Plan Ahead
It’s important to think ahead about how you’ll use your blueprints once they’re digitized. This helps determine the type of scanning and file format that will serve you best. For example, color scanning delivers a complete reproduction of the original, while grayscale provides smaller file sizes without losing detail.
File format matters too. PDFs are easy to view and share, TIFFs are a strong choice for long-term archival, and CAD-compatible files are ideal if the drawings need to be edited or integrated into design software.
Plan for Retrieval
Well-organized digital files are only valuable if they can be found quickly. Applying consistent naming conventions ensures that each file can be located with a simple search. Building this information into the filename provides a straightforward indexing system that makes your digital archive far easier to navigate.
Who Can Benefit From Blueprint Scanning Services
Blueprint scanning can make a meaningful difference for a wide range of professionals and industries, including:
Architects and Engineers
Design firms often have decades worth of drawings that need to be preserved for future reference. Digitizing these makes it much easier to store these infrequently accessed documents, without having to sacrifice valuable office space.
Construction Companies
Contractors often rely on blueprints for maintaining older properties. Once these blueprints have been digitized, they can pull up the one they need, share them with subcontractors, and even double-check critical details in real time, all without leaving the job site.
Government Agencies and Municipalities
Public works departments and planning offices often manage large archives of maps, site plans, and infrastructure drawings. Scanning makes those records easier to store, more secure, and accessible to staff or community members when needed.
Facilities Managers
Whether it’s locating electrical wiring, planning renovations, or keeping up with inspections, facilities teams depend on quick access to accurate information. Digital blueprints make it easier to find the information they need, allowing them to respond faster when maintenance issues come up.
Property Owners and Real Estate Developers
Having a digital archive of building plans is valuable for anyone who owns, buys, or renovates property. Scanned blueprints simplify planning for improvements, help with permitting, and provide clear documentation for future buyers or tenants.
Blueprint Scanning With SecureScan
Your blueprints are far too valuable to take any chances with. At SecureScan, our large format scanning service is built around making these documents easier to access and preserve. With more than 22 years of scanning experience and a team of highly trained specialists, we can handle even the most delicate or rolled drawings with care.
Each blueprint is scanned on professional grade large-format equipment, designed to capture every fine line and small detail. Our technicians then perform a manual review of every file to make sure your documents have been accurately reproduced. From there, we organize your drawings by applying a consistent naming conventions using details you specify, so your new digital files can be located by text search.
We understand that keeping your records secure matters just as much as keeping them organized. That’s why SecureScan offers safe transfer, storage, and retrieval options to fit your needs. Whether you’re archiving decades of plans or preparing for upcoming projects, our blueprint scanning service gives you an accurate, accessible, and secure way to manage your drawings.
Contact us for more information, or get a free quote from one of our scanning technicians today to get started.
