Funny thing is this is the kind of thing that I could produce and design for a living but does anyone know of resources where I could get hold of these without actually entering the property??. What I am saying in short is I could enter a building and work out the load path just by standing in the lobby a random floor and taking a look in the basement - but I have always wondered is there a central resource for this kind of thing??. I know you see this kind of thing being available on the net in films but doo such resources exist??.

Thanks in adavance

a town planning office or zoning commission office will have plans for most buildings (atleast public ones). under FOIA, these are available.

I take it this only applies in the US as I actually deal with UK planning departments?? or am I just not looking in the right spot or asking the right questions??.

i do not live in the uk, and do not keep on top of uk law. i am sure one of your local councils will have some information to help you out. i dont know if you have any sort of FOIA laws, so they may not have to give you the information you desire. if they do or if they dont, be preapered to tell them why you need the plans (or atleast be preapared to give them a good excuse)...

i think you'd have to ask for the origanal blueprints of the building

Why do you even want the prints? Are you gonna blow the buildings up or something? Why don't you just go ask the building manager for the prints?

With an engeneering degree, a good eye and a building that has structural elements that are visible, you probably could, but I have a hard time seeing exactly how you would go about destroying a structure like a house, because it is supported at many points. If you're a terrorist, fuck you.

Right just wish to justify this point from here on in - I am NOT a terrorist. I am a post graduate Civil Engineer who has an interest in demolition and I also find that by looking at buidling design drawings you can learn a lot. I have a full set of drawings and schematics at home for the large sikh temple in Western Europe. Yes given the knowledge gained from here in explosives if I wished to and had a large enough support team and adequate funding I do reckon I could destroy it increadibly efficiently. Do I wish to do that? - NO!. Your point is taken you would not be able to raise a buidlings foundations. The World Trade Centre towers foundations are still failry intact it's just that the towers are not. One of the heads of the UK Institute of Structural Engineers gave a presentation on it at my University and it was fascinating to understand the failure mechanism involved. Sorry if you had the worng idea about my motives apologies for nay offence that may have been caused.