The construction trade has a certain reputation for being a harsh atmosphere in which brute force takes precedence over calculated thought; however this impression is far from appropriate. There is a substantial amount of work that happens behind the scenes of the demolition and construction sector which is firmly rooted in the academic arena. Furthermore, this unseen work is critical to the success of the more visible procedures.
One branch of this unnoticed work is site surveying, or more specifically pre-demolition and post-demolition topographical surveying. This kind of work calls for a good balance of specific technical knowledge as well as experience of the industry and a natural intuition for the intricacies of the job. This article explores the ins and outs of this work.
Topographical Surveys
A topographical survey is a report of the physical features of a particular piece of land. The purpose of a topographical survey is to map the naturally occurring and man-made traits of a particular landscape to a high degree of accuracy.
Topographical surveys can be carried out on a very broad range of environments, from open countryside to urban developments and across a variety of elevations and land surfaces. Surveys can be designed to take into account a great number of factors, such as ground variables or vegetation, and as such can be used for a multitude of tasks.
Common Applications for Topographical Surveys
Perhaps the most widely used, and most generally recognised application for topographical surveys is cartography, or map making. Modern day maps include a great deal of detail about the terrain they relate to, including waterways, elevations and ground surface, all of which will have been gathered via a topographical survey. This information is also being made available online.
Topographical surveys also have a key role to play in the construction industry. When individuals or companies are looking to build any kind of structure they will need to perform extensive surveys as part of the design stage of the project. These surveys are often an indispensable part of any application for planning permission as well.
Surveys also play a key safety part in primary industries like mining, or in other industrial sectors that interact with the terrain, such as demolition and infrastructure. Organisations in these fields will use surveys to prepare their projects, but also to be sure that they can guarantee the safety of their staff on site.
On projects where there are structures to get removed, building demolition surveys will help planners throughout the demolition phase of the project.
Types of Survey
The world of topography addresses a large number of physical characteristics so it is beneficial to identify what type of topographical survey is suitable for a particular situation. A few of the more common types of survey required for construction sites are reviewed below.
“Lie of the land” Surveys
These types of topographical surveys are designed to create an overview of the physical properties of any given plot of land. Whilst the data gathered by the survey will be extremely accurate, and may be very extensive, the purpose of these surveys is to provide a site summary.
These surveys will generally include a boundary survey that sets out to determine the extent of the site and highlight any specific restraints that are determined by the geography of the site. They may also include a level survey that will measure the elevation of the terrain and the various gradients that exist.
Building Surveys
Building surveys are more generally concerned with man-made constructions on a site, including the surveying of special equipment and even infrastructure features. This type of survey is more commonly associated with the demolition sector since it can give a detailed plan of the structure to be demolished.
A building survey will probably include a measured survey, which entails creating a comprehensive plan of the exterior and interior dimensions of a building. Depending on the requirements of the project, a measured survey might provide basic building “footprint” dimensions, or might produce a highly detailed plan of the structure. This information can be used to generate interior floor plans and even roof plans.
Content of a Topographical Site Survey
A survey of a demolition site will almost always include the details gathered by the types of boundary and building surveys mentioned above. This information will be needed so the demolition firm can plan a demolition that is both satisfactory and safe.
Surveys will often include information about the utility services that are present on a site before any demolition or construction work happens. This is an important safety aspect since any unmonitored destruction to pipes and cables carrying water, gas and electricity might be very dangerous.
Another aspect of the site survey will often be an inventory of resources on the site. This type of study will be a quantity survey of the various kinds of materials that can be located on site, for example, tiles and masonry, concrete that can be utilised as hardcore or even timber. By getting an accurate audit of site materials the construction firm can more accurately gauge the need to import building materials, or they can re-use the materials on a different job.
Project managers may discover financial savings after topographical demolition surveys collect supplies levels available on-site that may be re-used.
Importance of Site Surveys
Perhaps the most significant reason to undertake a topographical site survey is to ensure the health and safety of the individuals who will be doing work on the site. The industries that most commonly call for site surveys are risky enough as it is without having to worry about the condition of the ground on which they are working. Taking a detailed topographical survey can help to eliminate safety risks of this nature.
Another critical reason to get a proper survey done is to identify any potential problems that may arise because of the physical characteristics of the area. Particular things will not be evident on the surface of the site and will only be uncovered once digging or demolition has started.
The inventory of site materials, as previously mentioned, can be of great value to a demolition or construction enterprise working on a project. Not only are building materials themselves costly, but importing them to the site could be a very expensive task in itself. Any time that material can be reused on site provides an opportunity to save development time and money.
Topographical surveys can also highlight other areas that will be of use to the project planners. For example, if the gradients on a site would be prohibitive to specific vehicles or equipment then a new entry route or alternative equipment will need to be found. Equally, a suitable site will need to be found for the base of management operations for the project. Good site surveying can help out in these less tangible ways.
Positioning of Survey Control
During the surveying and construction phases of a building project, the apparatus required for the physical surveying of the site and control of the survey data will often be kept on-site. This is clearly a problem when it comes to the demolition stage of a project since the machinery is both costly and sensitive.
Once the demolition has occurred and the site has been deemed safe for staff to return to it, the surveying equipment can be restored to its original position on site. This will allow for efficient data collecting to take place for a post-demolition survey, and maintains a single point of contact for anybody who needs the topographical survey information. Most surveying companies will oversee this redeployment.
Experience is often a determining variable when picking a buildings demolition service provider because each job has unique requirements and unique challenges.
Who can Perform Site Surveys?
Because topographical site surveys can play such a crucial role in the success or failure of a construction or demolition project it is vital that they are undertaken thoroughly by the correct people. There are different branches of site surveying and each one will have specific qualifications associated with it. Finding surveyors with these specific skills will certainly be beneficial.
When selecting a company to undertake the surveying work necessary for your project it will be sensible to choose a company with a good reputation and a proven track record. Ask to see reviews of their previous work and try to get feedback about their overall performance on past projects.
Who will use the Survey Information?
When an adequate level of information has been gathered by a site survey it must be handed out to the appropriate people on-site. Who gets what pieces of information will largely depend on the job roles being executed, but can also rely on the stage that a project is at. There will be much less need for materials information half way through construction for example.
Project Planners
Project planners will usually need access to all of the information gathered by a topographical survey, though they will particularly need to use information about the physical relief of a site before the design phase, and a site materials record before they can plan the construction phase. The more information that can be made available to project planners will assist the smooth running of the venture.
Demolition Experts
Demolition companies will want to know about the internal and external characteristics of any building or structures that they are set to take down. Whilst every job will have different requirements, demolition experts will typically need to know about the fundamental framework of a building and the materials it is made out of. They will need this information before demolition can take place.
Site Engineers
Construction engineers on-site will be mainly interested in the survey statistics about the relief and topography of the site. It is usually the case that they will need to assemble on a flat surface, so they will use details about the natural lay of the land to calculate what work will be needed to create a steady foundation for any building.
