Quality in The Constructed Project
Quality in The Constructed Project
Quality in The Constructed Project
SURVEYING ENGINEERING a
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY on 10/26/14. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
INTRODUCTION
RESPONSIBILITIES
Construction Surveys
Construction surveys are for controlling construction operations, includ-
ing earthwork and placement of elements of the work to line and grade,
checking construction progress, and measuring quantities (e.g., earthwork)
for payment. Only competent survey engineers should make or be in re-
sponsible charge of such surveys.
This category also includes surveys of underground works such as tunnels
and mines. Surveys of these works require surveying mining engineers with
expertise in this specialty.
Peer Review
In case of a dispute between the constructor and surveyor concerning
survey problems, it is recommended that the owner and the design profes-
sional review the issues germane to the dispute.
An independent, reputable survey engineer should be retained to analyze
field notes, design drawings, computations, sketches, and as-built condi-
tions. Safety and quality of ongoing construction will be ensured. Good
record-keeping habits resulting in dated and signed field notes are essential.
SURVEY TASKS
Although surveying and measurements are consistently required through-
out the construction process, individual tasks vary with each phase.
Concept Phase
Every construction site has boundaries, both physical and legal. The
placement of proposed structures depends on the land parcel's geometry
and topography. Access and availability of utilities influence location de-
cisions. Ownership rights, existing easements, zoning requirements, prox-
imity to wetlands or flood hazard areas, harbor lines, air rights, mining
54
Utilities
Researchers must gather information on location and size of existing
underground utility lines from public and private utilities before field sur-
veys. Not every manhole cover or other surface utility structure is readily
visible on the ground. In rural areas they may be overgrown and in urban
areas they may be paved over. Knowledge of what to expect may prevent
overlooking buried facilities, thereby removing a threat to the project's
quality. Knowledge of the location of hazardous elements, e.g., gas mains,
may even save lives.
Record Sources
There are many public and quasi-public agencies at local, state, and
national levels that maintain relevant land-information data. Among them
are municipal engineering departments, tax assessors, conservation com-
missions, building inspectors, zoning departments, planning boards, public-
works departments, metropolitan district commissions, transportation de-
partments, rapid transit authorities, railroads, utilities, airports, county en-
gineers and surveyors, county commissions, water boards, registers of deeds,
state public-works departments, environmental protection agencies, haz-
ardous-waste coordinators, the Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National
Geodetic Survey (NGS) of the National Ocean Service (NOS), the Federal
Highway Administration (FHA), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA),
and many others.
Many sources must be contacted before the engineering survey for design
and construction starts. Awareness of existing codes and conditions can
prevent costly design changes. Timely collection of available data will ul-
timately enhance the quality of construction from concept through comple-
tion.
Data Acquisition
Planning Data. Available U.S.G.S. topographic quadrangle maps and/
or vertical aerial photographs will satisfy the preliminary planning for large
55
field surveys, however, serve the same purpose more economically for small
sites. In addition, they have the advantage of being suitable for final design.
Design Data. Just as the pocket rule and steel tape have not been re-
placed by EDM (electronic distance measuring) equipment, so traditional
ground-survey methods will not totally be replaced by technologically ad-
vanced measurement systems. Ground-survey methods have improved con-
siderably in recent years. Stadia method (using plane table, alidade, and
stadia rod) for topographic surveys is being replaced by electronic data
collectors, commonly known as "total stations." X-, Y-, and Z-coordinates
of accessible physical points are rapidly located and recorded on magnetic
media in the field. The resulting magnetic data are converted by an office
computer into an accurate plot at a desired scale.
For design of larger projects, vertical aerial photogrammetry is recom-
mended. Existing uncontrolled aerial photographs previously flown for pre-
liminary planning purposes can be related to the ground coordinate system
to enable making of engineering measurements. This is done by horizontal
and vertical ground control surveys with analytical methods, with properly
planned aerial photography. Flight lines, altitude, photo scale, and overlap
are photogrammetric engineering elements that must be designed before
photography acquisition.
Photographic reductions of maps to enable presentation of larger areas
at smaller scales will not diminish the map's accuracy; however, enlarging
maps beyond their original designed scale can result in erroneous design
and expensive construction extras.
For many types of projects, a photogrammetric compiled map is important
for planning of a quality construction project. The information portrayed
on the map must not only be presentable and easy to understand, its data
must be reliable. A common mistake in photogrammetric mapping is im-
proper use of ground control; e.g., not enough or improper weighing of
control of variable quality. Inadequate ground control may make for a lower
cost map, but the map may also be useless for quality construction.
Survey Control
Although actual construction may not be imminent, the survey control
network and survey methods should be designed with construction in mind.
Whether the project is an apartment complex, industrial park, bridge, tun-
nel, highway, or utility corridor, a vertical control network should surround
the project. Surveyors should place well-spaced, semipermanent bench-
marks (a minimum of two for a very small site) along the perimeter but
away from proposed or anticipated construction activity. Elevations estab-
lished by vertical control survey should be based on an official datum.
A horizontal survey control network should also surround the construc-
tion site. Permanent monuments should be established for key control points.
Site sketches relating the survey monument to its surrounding physical fea-
tures should be made for future recovery. Despite the type or sophistication
of equipment, survey control points must be incorporated in closed loops
or verified by independent location. Reference to the local state plane
coordinate system (SPCS) (or another local geodetic system), is essential
for major construction projects, and is strongly recommended for all proj-
ects. Environmental concerns and permit requirements can be accommo-
56
Reference Systems
Almost all official local horizontal and vertical systems on the municipal,
county, and state level are related or can be converted to the National
Geodetic Reference System (NGRS), maintained by National Geodetic
Survey (NGS).
The National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD 29) was formerly
known as the Sea Level Datum of 1929. The newest vertical datum is the
North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88). This datum ties all
previous reference systems together in on one coherent unified system for
North America.
Similarly, the official national geodetic network, known as North Amer-
ican Datum of 1927 (NAD 27) has been supplanted by the North American
Datum of 1983 (NAD 83), an improved system of greater accuracy.
Property boundary corners and highway layout lines also provide impor-
tant reference markers for proposed construction projects. In the Public
Land Survey states, county authorities and the Bureau of Land Management
(BLM) can provide valuable data on their recovered existing section corners.
Some counties are relating section corners to the NGRS. Elsewhere, the
BLM will provide corner coordinates, along with estimated reliability, from
the Geographic Coordinate Database (GCDB).
The NGS should be contacted for specific information and advice.
Construction Phase
Volume I stresses the need for team work in construction. The quality
of a project is enhanced when professional specialists are assigned tasks
compatible with their respective skill and knowledge. Surveying the physical
layout of structures is one of those tasks.
Construction Layout
Translating a blueprint to a location on the ground (layout) is an important
survey function. The construction manager must provide the project's survey
engineer with all relevant construction drawings before the surveyor visits
the site to perform the actual layout. Time, money, and work hours can be
saved, if sufficient time is budgeted to review and coordinate the drawings
in advance. Not every design drawing is complete and ready to be used for
layout. Critical measurements may be obscure, difficult to decipher, erro-
neous, hidden in detail sketches, shown on another sheet, or missing. By
allowing adequate time and using proper resources, these problems can be
resolved before the survey party arrives on the site. Managers can save time
and money, and may even prevent a disastrous construction mistake.
Expected accuracy for the location of structural components should be
discussed with the survey engineer before structural components arrive on
site. Not all design tolerances specified are realistic.
Survey engineering procedures incorporated early in the project will per-
mit timely and reliable relocation of vital horizontal and vertical survey
control points. Endangered survey control markers should be referenced
off-site before they are disturbed or covered. A bench mark saved from a
bulldozer may save more than just money. It will retain the vertical integrity
of the entire project by ensuring that constructed work is tied to an accepted
vertical datum.
57
should anticipate these inevitable occurrences and establish offsets and azi-
muth references as early in the project as possible.
An offset control "box" surrounding the structure to be built must be
double-checked and adjusted before using as the control for layout. A
construction control diagram showing and identifying baselines, centerlines,
range lines, targets, offsets, benchmarks, and ties to outside structures,
should be prepared and checked by the survey engineer. The plan should
be provided the construction manager, who in turn should provide other
site engineers and subcontractors with copies. The plans will allow construc-
tion engineers to recover basic control during construction. Supplemental
control points and lines for specific structural elements can be surveyed from
the basic control network and the plans will serve as a helpful guide for
checking and rechecking subsequent survey work.
Property Boundaries
Boundaries, whether they are lines dividing ownership or right-of-way
lines, ultimately determine where a structure may or may not be built.
Physical, legal, and mathematical location of boundaries must be known
before, during, and after construction to ensure compliance with the phys-
ical, legal, and mathematical constraints of the project.
Construction plans for quality projects should clearly depict boundaries
and their precise spatial relationship to the proposed structure. If these legal
lines are not sufficiently monumented so that they can be recovered and
occupied in the field by the surveyor, delays and extra costs are possible.
The registered land surveyor responsible for the property lines must be
identified on the site plan.
Construction Monitoring
In urban construction, existing buildings and structures surrounding the
project site are important aspects of the overall project. Obviously, they
must not be disturbed or damaged. Even when all precautions have been
taken, lawsuits for damages alleged to have been caused by construction
activity are possible. Defense against these contingencies will require evi-
dence, since courts are not likely to favor an unsupported case. Evidence
in the form of solid survey engineering data are required.
Settlement levels, crack surveys, alignment studies, and photographs of
surrounding buildings, taken before, during, and after construction, will
provide evidence. Off-site horizontal and vertical control monuments should
be preserved for continuous and reliable reference. Systematic record keep-
ing and preservation of field notes is vital.
Photogrammetric Surveys
Aerial Photogrammetry
Engineers have used photogrammetric techniques to produce maps and
charts for many years. This process uses vertical aerial photographs in an-
alogue and analytical stereoplotters to construct graphical and digital models
of the earth's surface.
Photogrammetrists should make a distinction between mapping, to pro-
duce graphical models; and measuring, to produce coordinates or dimen-
58
The planning process for CRP is critical. Each application is unique and
requires close communication between the project owner and survey en-
gineer. CRP uses photographs taken at predetermined positions. The pro-
cess is much like measurements taken with theodolites in triangulation, in
that the photographs should be in known positions or the distance between
photographic stations needs to be known. CRP incorporates the following
steps.
Planning. The required measurements, their accuracies, and data output
needs must be determined for the project. Measurements can be recorded
as hard copy (maps, charts, profiles) or as digital data for use in computer-
aided-design (CAD) systems. To achieve specified accuracy it is necessary
to determine the type of camera to be used. Where accuracies required are
low, e.g., 1 part in 1,000, 35-mm or 70-mm cameras are adequate. If higher
accuracies are needed, special calibratedj larger-film-format metric cameras
are necessary. A determination of the type of equipment that will be used
to make measurements on the photographs must be made at the planning
phase, since that equipment will have an effect on the positioning of the
camera station locations. Accuracies can be as high as 1 part in 250,000 of
the camera distance from the object being measured.
Control. The control aspect of CRP involves determining the location
of camera stations and their relationships to each other and the surface or
object to be measured. Output quality is directly related to control. Control
for CRP may be provided by known positions in the object space, or by
determining the position and orientation of cameras, or a combination. If
targets (readily identifiable artificial points) with known positions are placed
on the object to be measured, then camera relationships can be computed.
59
Summary
Close range photogrammetry has been used extensively for construction
monitoring and for developing plans for building restoration, especially in
Europe. Its application is especially helpful where conventional field surveys
are difficult or hazardous to conduct. For example, CRP is often the only
reasonable technique for surveying inside contaminated nuclear facilities
and hazardous waste dump areas. Some advantages of CRP over other
survey methods are that it:
Postconstruction Phase
Post construction or as-built surveys are needed to establish an accurate
record of constructed works. The purpose is to determine the three-dimen-
sional position of elements for management, maintenance, and possible
future modification. Results should be displayed on an as-built plan at an
appropriate scale, either in hard or soft copy.
As-built Surveys
Changes to designs virtually always are made during construction. The
nature, extent, and location of these changes must be properly recorded for
future needs. The exact constructed location of surface and especially un-
60
As-built Records
Designers and project managers should include as-built survey require-
ments in their planning, budgeting, and execution plans of engineering
projects. Public-works departments and plant facility engineers should re-
quire as-built surveys and documentation for all new facilities within their
jurisdictions, and should also maintain current files of as-built plans.
Accuracy should be consistent with actual requirements but not less than
state and local statutes. Surveys should be reliably referenced to either
survey monuments or an established geodetic survey network. Monuments
may be property boundary monuments, right-of-way monuments, or marks
specially set for the project.
These surveys should be supervised by registered professionals, and bear
the seal, signature, and certification on final documents. Certification such
as "I hereby certify that all surface structures and underground facilities
shown have been located in the field and this survey reflects their as-built
location" should appear on final hard-copy drawings or plans.
SUMMARY
Reliable surveys are a essential for quality construction, even though
project teams may not understand their importance. The survey plan pro-
vides the basis for many legal, design, finance, and construction decisions.
Quality construction is difficult or impossible to achieve without quality
construction surveys. The surveyor must be a member of the construction
team throughout the project. Early selection of and good communication
with competent survey engineers will contribute to successful completion of
a quality project.
61