Surveying is important and most of us depend on it so as to ensure order in the physical world around us. Surveyors play an integral role in land development from the planning and design of land subdivisions through to the final construction of roads utilities and landscaping.

Surveyors update boundary lines and prepare sites for construction so that legal disputes are prevented. Surveyors make precise measurements to determine property boundaries. They provide data relevant to the shape and contour of the Earths surface for engineering mapmaking and construction projects.

The main surveying instruments in use around the world are the theodolite measuring tape total station 3D scanners GPS/GNSS level and rod. Most instruments screw onto a tripod when in use. Tape measures are often used for measurement of smaller distances.

Types of Land Surveys ALTA/ACSM Survey. This type of land survey is often used to fulfill the requirements of a lending institution or a purchaser. ... Boundary Survey. ... Construction Survey. ... Location Survey. ... Site Planning Survey. ... Subdivision Survey. ... Topographic Survey.

Topographic surveys can also include natural objects such as trees large rocks as well as man-made features such as buildings retaining walls streets driveways landscaping and utility poles.

Small residential surveys are usually completed within 1 to 2 weeks. Larger commercial surveys may take from 30 to 60 days depending on the needs of the survey. We are willing to consider expediting land surveys needed on a priority or ""emergency"" basis.

Topographic Surveys. There are many types of land surveys you can have done on your property each of which has its own purposes and uses. Two of these are boundary surveys and topographic surveys. Often one or both of these surveys are necessary if you are looking to purchase sell or develop a parcel of land.

A measured building survey is an accurate representation of your building showing all the structural elements and architectural features. Floor plans are essential to give an accurate representation of the building and this is backed up with elevations and cross sections presented as a scaled survey drawings.

Building surveys are a means of providing a detailed evaluation of a propertys condition and involve an extensive inspection. Whilst not being the only type of survey available to property owners a building survey is the most common particularly for domestic clients. ... Structural survey.

Building height is measured from finished grade located within 2 feet of the foundation wall to the highest point on the building or structure. ... The building height is the vertical distance between finished grade and the highest point on the building provided that the measured elevation does not include fill or berms.

Weather and its effects are the fundamental cause of decay leading to problems such as damp mould woodworm and fungi. Wood brick and stone are the three most common building materials and each of these reacts differently to the effects of weathering.

A schedule of condition (SOC) is a factual record of the condition of a property normally prepared for legal or contractual reasons. Schedules of condition can be prepared for either residential or commercial buildings.

GPS is a highly accurate navigation system using signals from satellites to determine a location on the Earths surface irrespective of weather conditions. It is dependent on GPS satellites high above the Earth which transmit signals containing the time and location of the satellite.

Surveying or land surveying is the technique profession and science of determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. A land surveying professional is called a land surveyor.

The GPS (Global Positioning System) is a ""constellation"" of approximately 30 well-spaced satellites that orbit the Earth and make it possible for people with ground receivers to pinpoint their geographic location. The location accuracy is anywhere from 100 to 10 meters for most equipment.

The GPS receivers used for surveying are generally more complex and expensive than those used in everyday life. They use the two frequencies broadcast by the GPS satellites. ... A GPS baseline uses two survey-quality GPS receivers with one at each end of the line to be measured.

A total station is an electronic/optical instrument used in modern surveying and building construction that uses electronic transit theodolite in conjunction with electronic distance meter (EDM).It is also integrated with microprocessor electronic data collector and storage system.

If the GPS receiver is only able to get signals from 3 satellites you can still get your position but it will be less accurate. As we noted above the GPS receiver needs 4 satellites to work out your position in 3-dimensions.

Use the Go To command on your GPS to navigate to each waypoint marking the corner of your land. Please realize that there are limits to the accuracy of your GPS receiver. This technique should get you within a few feet of a property corner and will help you narrow down where to search to find missing survey monuments.

The surveyor will usually certify that the buildings and other improvements alterations and repairs to your property that exist at the time of the survey are not in violation of laws or other restrictions such as those regarding height bulk dimension frontage building lines set-backs and parking.

How long is a survey good? While most people believe that surveys are good indefinitely that is not necessarily true. By law a surveyor is only liable for their survey for 10 years. Surveys are produced for an individual and a particular transaction.

Construction surveying or building surveying is to set out and level reference points and markers that will guide the construction of new structures such as roads or buildings.

Final Surveying. Communication is an important aspect of a successful job and our clients interact directly with our project surveyors. This type of boundary survey is usually preceded by a foundation survey. The survey is performed after construction on the site is completed.

3D Laser Scanning Survey: 3D Laser Scanning or LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) is the process of shining a reflectorless laser line over a surface in order to collect 3-dimensional data. The surface data is captured by a camera sensor mounted in the laser scanner which records accurate dense 3D points in space.

3D Laser Scanning is a non-contact non-destructive technology that digitally captures the shape of physical objects using a line of laser light. 3D laser scanners create “point clouds” of data from the surface of an object.

Laser scanning also called high definition surveying (HDS) is a method of high-accuracy mapping or reality capture that uses laser beams to quickly capture complete detail of the entire building construction project—much like a camera taking a 360-degree photo but with an accurate position for every pixel.