REFLECTED CEILING PLANS
A reflected ceiling plan is a drawing that shows the ceiling material finishes, ceiling heights, bulkheads, and all visible ceiling services located on the ceiling of a room or space. A reflected ceiling plan is often referred to as an RCP and is an architectural drawing used to display a view of the ceiling, making it possible to assess existing features and identify what must be moved or worked around when planning property renovations or refurbishments.
Understand all the items on a ceiling area with a reflected ceiling plan.
Our detailed Reflected Ceiling Plans are measured and give full visualisation of the interaction between ceiling finishes and ceiling services. These drawings incorporate the dominant features of lighting, air conditioning and extraction, fire/evacuation fixtures and more. Accurate Reflected Ceiling Plans can be tailored to detail specific services such as HVAC ducting, to give you complete peace of mind in your refurbishment project by identifying any potential design limitations.
What is a reflected ceiling plan?
A Reflected Ceiling Plan (or RCP) is an architectural drawing, drawn to scale, that shows visible objects located on the ceiling of a room or space. A RCP can include;
- Ceiling heights
- Ceiling materials – for example, set plaster or ceiling tiles
- Bulkheads – decorative and structural ceiling height changes.
- Lighting locations and types identified on a legend.
- Audio speakers.
- Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) supply and return air vents
- Duct locations and heights where visible.
- Emergency exit signs and lighting or fixtures.
- Fire protection services and sprinkler systems including main fire pipe and sprinkler locations..
- Security systems including alarms, sensors, security camera locations and security monitors.
Each item on a plan will be represented by a symbol on the plan and included in the drawing legend for ease of reading and interpretation.
An RCP will help you visualise all the objects to help with your planning. A reflected ceiling plan can be used alongside other survey plans to accurately understand a space and are best reviewed along side photos, which Realserve can provide in the form of standard digital photos or a 360 virtual tour.

Our typical process
We utilise the latest surveying technology to capture our data then produce our reflected ceiling plans. Using the latest CAD software programs everything is captured and processed accurately to start producing our reflected ceiling plans. The equipment we use is state of the art, ranging from traditional total stations to 3D laser scanning or RPA (drone). We only use the latest software tools including AutoCAD & Revit.
Once our plans are drafted they go through an intensive QA process via an independent audit to ensure that what we have captured is delivered to the highest levels of accuracy possible.
In summary;
- Initial consultation to ensure we can meet your needs.
- Agree on a scope of work – in some instances an above ceiling survey may be required. Realserve can work with you to determine a scope and process that will get you the information you require.
- A site visit is organised with one of our qualified technicians with the necessary data collection equipment.
- All data is then processed via our team located in one of our offices around the Country.
- All plans or drawings are then independently reviewed via our QA process.
- All deliverables are then created for viewing in PDF, AutoCAD or Revit.
- We also have the ability to create a 3D scan or virtual tour of your property to create a fully interactive view of a site.
Reflected ceiling plan samples
See some of our case studies

3D Building Scanning to upgrade supermarket loading docks
A national supermarket brand needed to upgrade their loading docks with multiple sites around Australia. See how we used 3D building scanning to help achieve this

Point cloud created by a surveyor for a national hotel refurbishment program
In today’s modern era, the practice of relying on paper-based drawings and floor plans for a hotel refurbishment has become obsolete, with architects increasingly turning to modern workflows to maximise on the benefits that 3D scanning and modelling can offer

3D scanning of shopping centre amenities in Noarlunga, SA
To assist with the planning of a refurbishment program aimed at enhancing visitors’ experience at a shopping centre, Realserve survey technicians provided 3D building scanning services in Adelaide’s south.
DID YOU KNOW WE ALSO DO 3D LASER SCANNING OF BUILDINGS & LETTABLE AREAS?
Realserve has a team of 3D Laser Scanning surveyors in each capital city of Australia that can use the latest cutting-edge equipment to produce a wide array of survey plans, point cloud data, Revit or Digital Twin 3D models. 3D laser scanning allows surveyors to provide as-built surveys that are incredibly accurate for internal or external spaces. Our qualified surveyors can play a pivotal role in any project with the use of laser scanning technologies to improve the plan, design, construction, management, renovation or refurbishment processes for any building type.