Construction Surveying

Construction Surveying provides the precise horizontal and vertical positioning needed to build improvements in accordance with approved plans. Surveyors translate the dimensions, coordinates and elevations shown on engineering and architectural plans into physical points, stakes, offsets and reference marks that contractors can use during construction.

Construction Surveying supports projects from initial site preparation through final completion. Accurate layout helps contractors position improvements correctly, maintain required grades and elevations, coordinate construction activities and identify potential discrepancies before they become costly problems.

Services may be provided for residential, commercial, industrial, municipal, roadway and utility projects.

1. Plan Review and Coordination — Review of approved construction plans, digital design files and project specifications to prepare staking information and identify apparent discrepancies.
2. Construction Control — Establishment or verification of horizontal control points and vertical benchmarks used throughout the project.
3. Site and Building Layout — Staking of building corners, grid lines, foundations, footings, walls, columns and other structural elements.
4. Mass Grading — Layout of clearing limits, site boundaries, slope limits, building pads, ponds and other major grading features.
5. Fine Grading — Staking of finished grades, pavement elevations, sidewalks, landscaped areas and other detailed site improvements.
6. Utility Staking — Layout of water, sanitary sewer, storm sewer and other utility systems, including alignments, structures, offsets and design elevations.
7. Roadway and Parking Improvements — Staking of streets, curb and gutter, sidewalks, driveways, parking areas, medians and related improvements.
8. Drainage Improvements — Layout of storm drains, inlets, manholes, culverts, channels, swales, detention facilities and other drainage features.
9. Property and Easement Limits — Staking of property boundaries, rights-of-way, easements and construction limits when supported by the appropriate boundary survey information.
10. Specialty Construction Layout — Precise positioning of anchor bolts, equipment pads, structural components and other project-specific improvements.
11. Progress and Verification Surveys — Measurements used to confirm the location, elevation or completion status of improvements during construction.
12. As-Built Surveys — Documentation of completed improvements for contractor records, design-team review, utility acceptance, jurisdictional approval or project closeout.
13. Earthwork and Quantity Surveys — Collection of surface information used to evaluate excavation, embankment, stockpile and other material quantities.
14. Digital Construction Support — Preparation of survey data, coordinate files and surface models for construction layout or machine-control applications.

Construction Surveying requires close coordination among the owner, contractor, engineer and surveyor. Current approved plans and digital design files should be provided before staking begins, and any plan revisions should be communicated promptly.

Survey staking provides reference information for construction but does not replace the contractor’s responsibility to review the plans, verify dimensions and elevations, protect survey control and confirm that the work is constructed correctly.