What challenges can arise during a construction site survey?
posted 23rd September 2024
Surveying equipment plays a vital role in a host of industries, including the construction industry. These tools are used by surveyors to gain insights that are important for the planning and execution of a successful project. At times, the equipment can present some challenges that can arise during the site survey. Backed by more than twenty five years of combined experience, the MB Survey Solutions team have the knowledge and expertise to overcome these challenges when providing you with a construction site survey.
In the surveying world, accuracy and precision are paramount. Any inaccuracies or errors can have a significantly negative impact on your construction project, resulting in a flawed design, unwelcome project delays, and even structural failures.
Types of Surveying Equipment
We have a selection of professional and specialised equipment at our disposal to carry out accurate and precise construction site surveys. These pieces of kit includes:
- Total stations – electronic instruments used to measure angles, elevations, and distances with high precision
- Theodolites – older and still an important tool. Precise instruments used to measure angles, commonly used in construction site surveys
- Levelling instruments – determine height differences, important for flat surfaces in building construction
- GNSS Receivers – satellite signals are used to determine geographic locations
- 3D laser scanners – use laser to measure distances
- Drones – drones equipped with cameras are used to create high resolution videos and images of the land surface, helping create detailed topographical maps
Common Challenges During Construction Site Surveys
While the equipment we use is specialised, there are times where it poses some challenges when carrying out construction site surveys. At MB Survey Solutions, our team have extensive training on using our equipment, ensuring that they can overcome challenges with ease and confidence, providing you with an accurate survey.
Calibration Problems
Calibration is important when it comes to our surveying equipment. It requires us setting or correcting the instrument, ensuring any readings are accurate and can be relied on. Environmental conditions and prolonged use can cause challenges. We carry out regular calibration checks on our equipment, following the manufacturer's guidelines on calibration frequency, ensuring that we continue to provide precise and accurate surveys when you need them the most.
Understanding and Interpreting Data Collected
The equipment we use must be interpreted correctly in order to be useful to your construction project. Understanding the data can be challenging when using complex equipment. We undergo training when receiving new equipment, along with holding regular training sessions with our team to constantly improve our data interpretation skills.
Equipment Maintenance
Our surveying equipment is constantly being used, therefore it is exposed to constant wear and tear. We ensure our equipment has regular maintenance, extending its lifespan and ensuring the best performance at all times.
Weather Conditions
Construction site surveys take place outdoors, that means our specialist equipment is exposed to various environmental conditions from moisture to dust to extreme temperatures. We have invested in protective covers that protect our specialist equipment from the elements. We have also selected our equipment based on our location, ensuring that they can withstand moisture.
Conclusion
As construction site surveyors we are often posed with challenges relating to our equipment, that we manage using proactive preventative measures. This ensures our equipment is always working at optimum, providing accurate measurements and data that can be used to ensure your project goes ahead as planned.
In addition to this, our surveyors are often faced with other challenges, such as measuring hard to reach areas of a home, having to access a plot of land that is almost impossible to get to, and other challenges. The specialist equipment we use help us overcome these challenges, such as using 3D laser scanners to measure hard to reach places or drones to access land that is inaccessible. Call us today to find out more.