While most of the time allocated for construction projects is dedicated to project execution, contractors know that their projects can only proceed once surveys and investigations have concluded. These things are crucial in these projects as they help contractors identify elements and issues that may later affect their overall operations.
One specific survey that contractors often carry out is the topographic survey. A topographic survey, also known as a land survey or ground survey, identifies and locates natural and manmade features on a specific property site. It measures the elevation of the land’s surface by using electronic distance metering or EDM and global positioning systems or GPS. Any elevation on a site can be identified on a survey map through contour lines and spot elevations.
Many features can be identified by this survey. Some of them include retaining walls, gas lines, buildings, utility poles, and trees. All information gathered by this survey can be maximised by engineers, architects, and even government agencies.
The Essence of Volumetric Surveys
Topographic surveys are important to contractors since they can plan their project operations around features that can be found on their respective project sites. These surveys can also confirm if the project sites are suitable for their intended use.
But to further help contractors plan construction projects better, they can maximise volumetric surveys. A volumetric survey is a topographical survey that quantifies the volume of removed material from a specific site location as well as the volume of materials placed at a location. It is a comparison of the results from two or more topographical surveys that have been conducted on separate occasions or at different points in time.
Volumetric Surveys’ Key Objectives
One of the objectives of this survey is to identify the volume of material stockpiles. It also determines the required fill and calculates the amount of material eradicated from quarries, excavations, mines, and contaminated sites. A volumetric survey likewise determines the measurements of asphalt, stone, rock salt, and industrial solid waste, the airspace volume in landfills, the volume of topsoil removed from a project, the calculation of recently placed asphalt, the capacity of dams and lakes, and the calculation of structural fill placed on a site.
Main Benefits of Volumetric Surveys
Volumetric surveys’ key objectives have helped many construction companies carry out their projects without any issues. And with all the information from the surveys, contractors can effectively compare earthworks quantities and plans, calculate project costs accurately, calculate the volume of backfilled areas, open excavations, and stockpiles to effectively balance cut or fill quantities, and evaluate the needed resources and skills for cost-effective import or removal of materials from the project sites.
These surveys can also calculate the dam’s water capacity, work out a landfill’s remaining airspace, and identify the number of materials removed from a quarry.
Volumetric surveys can be effective if they have been conducted by professionals. If you need help with these surveys, you can contact us at Shillong Design. We are a leading provider and pioneer of Dimensional Control Surveying and Laser Scan Surveys in Australia.
