Recently we completed a few residential and commercial projects in which we were retained near the beginning of the project and contracted through construction. During the approval process, surveying services were required for all of these projects and through a somewhat natural course of events, some surveying tasks became a little more standard procedure.  

This will provide a substantial positive impact to a project in realizing minimized costs and better service to the client. In addition, the consulting engineer can utilize different aspects of surveying at different times in the approval process to help minimize the client's financial risk while awaiting preliminary approvals. 

The types of survey tasks described are not short cuts. Each type of survey task has its use and risk. The intent of each task is to provide the client with the most reliable information about the property during the various stages of the development process. The client can then have some certainties about the property and still maintain control over costs. Information is provided to help estimate approximate costs for some preliminary surveys so that "ball-park" figures can be derived quickly. This can help keep meetings and discussions moving without delays which could jeopardize client relations. 

This guide is divided into two main sections. The first section deals with survey tasks in relationship to the client's deadlines during different phases of a typical development. The second part covers the types of surveys and contains general descriptions about some of the surveys. Examples for items discussed are shown on the left.

The goal of this guide is to help improve communication between the client, the consulting civil engineer and the surveyor, through a better awareness of the timing of the development process and knowledge of land surveying functions.  

Often the land surveyor is dependent on the civil engineer to relay needs and instructions for various tasks. If the engineer and the surveyor have a good understanding of each other's roles and capabilities then  communication will improve and the ability to provide better more concise instructions will be achieved. Conversely the land surveyor will be more attuned to the process and the required services and will be able to provide better service. The ultimate goal of course is to successfully manage the project through great service, cost management and time utilization.  

 The first section is divided into four phases that relate specifically to the client's schedule. It is assumed that the consultant is retained as early as possible in the process.

Section I:   An outline of survey tasks during Design / Development.

Phase I: 

The first phase starts at the point in time when the developer/client starts negotiating with the current property owner. This period usually lasts from seven to thirty days in which time a preliminary yield analysis is prepared and key issues are examined.  

Initial Client/Owner - Consultant Contract

Time period: The first 7 to 30 days and approximately 1.5 % of the anticipated survey fee 

Project Survey Concerns:

           Yield Analysis

            Local Agency Development limits.

            Key Issue (see below)

 Survey Tasks

          Research

                    Existing In-House Data

                    Survey Map Files

                     Flat Files and Project Files

                     Archived Topographic Data

                     Existing Record Data

                     County Assessor Data

                     County Recorder Data

                      Local Agency Record Drawings

                      Title Information

            Proposals

                      ALTA

                      Title Reports

                      Vesting Doc's

                      Topographic Survey

                      Boundary

                      Construction Staking

                       Final Map / Parcel Map

                       Lot Line Adjustment

                       Legal Descriptions

           Key Issues

                      Easements

                      Right-of-Way

                      District Boundaries

                       Zoning

                       Multiple Agency Approvals

                       Impact of Site Conditions

                       Impact of Title Issues

            Site Plan

                        Prepare record boundary from available information

                       Integrate existing archived topographic data

                       Plot approximate locations of existing easements, etc.

Phase II: 

The second phase begins when the developer/client signs a purchase contract with the property owner. This phase marks the beginning of the due diligence portion of the project where yield analysis estimates are confirmed and key issues concerning the site are examined. The time period for this phase is ninety to one hundred twenty days. 

Client / Owner enters into Purchase Contract

Time period: The next 90 to 120 days and approximately 3.5% of anticipated survey fees 

Project Survey Concerns:                               

            Due Diligence

            Confirm Yield Analysis  

Survey Tasks:

           Final Proposals and Budgets

           Topographic Surveys

                     Approval/Design Level Data

                     Existing Conditions

                    Topographic Mapping Fees 

          ALTA / ACSM Land Title Survey 

          Boundary Survey

                    Initial field surveys of existing property comers and street monuments

                     Hardcopy mapping of resolved boundary

                    Accurate locations of all record easements, etc.

 Phase III: 

The third phase begins when the developer/client has placed a non-refundable deposit on the property and the agency approvals take place. This process period can range from six to twelve months.

Owner goes to Non-Refundable Deposit on property.

Time period: The next 6 to 12 months and the remaining 95% of survey fees 

Project Survey Concerns:

           EIR

          Staff Approvals

          Agency Approvals

          City, County, Parks, District, Approved Design Doc's 

Survey Tasks

          Topographic Survey

                          Design Level Topographic Data

                          Conforms

                          Utilities

             Boundary

                          Final Map / Parcel Map

                                     Check parcelization geometry

                                     Prepare map and submit

                                     Prints of map

                                     Title Doc's

                                     Vesting   Doc's

                                     Closure Calculations

                                    Address comments

           Legal Descriptions

                          Easements

                          Rights-of-Way

                          Lot Line Adjustment

                          District Boundaries

                          Zoning  

            Construction Staking

                           Initial Staking Calculations

                           Property Line Staking

                          Proposed Layout Staking

                           Story Pole Layout

Phase IV: 

The fourth phase starts when escrow closes, the property is transferred and construction begins, which can take from twelve to eighteen months.

Client / Owner takes possession of Property

Time period: The next 12 to 18 months through construction to tenancy

Project Survey Concerns:

          Permits

          Construction Contracts 

Survey Tasks

          Project Management

                     Construction Contracts

                               Owner Contract vs. Contractor Contract

                               Additional Work

                               Restaking

                               Design Change Procedures

                               Scheduling and procedures for staking requests

          Staking Calculation's

                    Digital information

                    Create staking data

                    File Organization

          Construction Staking

                    Staffmg vs. schedule

                    Staking files

                    Field crew procedures (requests, FW A, etc.)

          As-Built Surveys and Certifications

                    Graded Pad's

                    Foundations

                    Foundation Piles and Anchor Bolts

                    Electrical and Utility

          Monumentation

                     Monument staking and Fees

                     Property Comers 

Section II: Types of surveys and related tasks

Topographic Surveys:

 There are several types of topographic surveys that can be required during the development process. Maps for slope calculations, earthwork quantities, conform areas, utility verification to name a few. Standard field techniques will produce design level accuracy topographic maps but this method entails actually field locating all improvements, features and grade differentials then interpreting field notes to produce the finished map. Cost effectiveness compared to aerial mapping begins to dwindle within a few acres and so is not always the preferred method for larger sites. 

Standard topographic maps include the following items:

       Contours

       Spot Elevations

       Permanent Structures

       Streets / Walks

       Surface Utilities (including manhole invert elevations)

       Trees (size and type)

       Natural water courses

       North Arrow

       Scale / Bar Scale

       Legend

       Optional Items upon request:

       Grid ticks or Grid

       Record Utilities

       Record property information

       Tree Dripline sizes

       Merged archived data 

Aerial topographic mapping can be acquired at any scale but design level accuracy is best achieved at a scale no greater than 1 "=20'. For larger sites this can also get to be an expensive alternative. Some sites can be mapped at a larger scale (1"=40') and supplemented by standard field methods to obtain design level mapping.

Aerial topographic mapping can be delivered in a digital format that's compatible with most type of CAD software. Custom or standard layering can also be requested. In addition to digital mapping low cost aerial rectified photographs of the site can be obtained. These photos can also be delivered in a digital format. The photos are scale photos and can be used for all types of planning, design and survey applications.

Although only two dimensional they offer a very clear and accurate depiction of current site conditions. Existing topographic surveys whether in digital form or not can be incorporated into other mapping to complete coverage of areas or to add additional information. The client should be aware that there is a certain amount of risk in doing this and that reliable information from that data cannot be ascertained. 

Caution must be exercised when asked to verify an old topographic survey. Verify is ambiguous and unless clear limits are defined as to what will be verified liability may be incurred. All topographic surveys carry a certain amount of risk. Nothing is without error. But the more current and original the data is the more reliable it is. Clearly some mapping is required simply because of approval requirements. Identifying the proposed use of the topographic data will help the surveyor determine the type and accuracy of the survey. 

Boundary Surveys 

The boundary of any site is critical to every phase of development. The density of the project cannot be determined without knowing the size of the subject property. The exact location of property lines can be determining factors in the feasibility of a project. Encumbrances to the property in the form of easements or encroachments can create negative financial impacts that the project would not be able to withstand. 

Each property has its own history of being created and sold one or more times. Records that date back to the mid-nineteenth century still help determine property line locations. Rights of previous owners, adjacent owners, agencies and districts all combine to describe the locations of parcels of land. Certainly boundary surveys are important. In the legal aspect it's paramount to locate accurately any property surveyed.  At some point during the Design / Development process a boundary survey and a boundary resolution will ultimately be required. Interim property analysis will however need to be prepared in exhibits and other forms. This is achieved in a number of ways. 

When preparing a boundary survey of a property it is important to have current title information and to have conducted a thorough record search. Copies of all vesting deed and easement information will be required as well as a current title report. Costs for title reports vary but can be as high as $3,500.00. Existing record maps (Record of Survey, Tract Maps, Parcel Maps) must be researched and incorporated into the survey. The location of other rights and encumbrances can be obtained from researching existing local agency record improvement and utility drawings.

A field survey will in most cases need to be performed. All existing monuments, including street monuments, iron pipe property comers, chiseled marks of record will need to be field located and considered in the final boundary resolution. If asked to resolve a boundary, a map (record of survey), will need to be filed within the local jurisdiction. 

In most cases the boundary for a proposed development will require a parcel map or final map which will be the record of the boundary survey as well as the record of the subdivision of the subject parcel. Semi-permanent markers such as iron pipe are required to be set on the perimeter of the subject parcel as a condition of the filed map. If street rights of way are to be dedicated on the final map then street monuments will be required at specific locations. 

A typical boundary resolution starts with researching and acquiring copies of all related documents. A compiled record boundary is then produced which utilizes all of the record data available. Monuments shown in the record data are also included in the map from which "search-ties" are generated. Search-ties are calculated positions of all record monuments relative to each other per the record data. This information is given to the field crews to use to search for the record monuments. Utilizing this information all record monuments are found and their positions surveyed. 

This information may disclose anomalies in the subject property boundary or may disclose a location of a property line that does not correspond to the record location. The field locations of the monuments are then compared to record data and a resolution of the final location of the subject property lines are made. The boundary resolution is typically prepared and shown on a document referred to as a "hard-copy". This map essentially shows all of the information concerning the resolution of the property as well as easements and other title related data. This map serves as the basis for the ALTA survey, the final map, record of survey or parcel map. 

A compiled or resolved boundary included with the topographic survey will generally be used for the basis of all approval drawings. Rough boundary and topographic data can and is used for tentative map preparation and is adequate for a wide range of projects. However in some cases the developer / client has moved into the non-refundable phase of the project and because of other reasons has more than likely acquired at least a compiled record boundary. A boundary resolution will have to be done before the project can reach final approval. Some parcel maps under certain circumstances can be prepared without doing a field survey but most times the project surveyor will have to resolve the boundary and prepare a map to be filed.

ALTA / ACSM Land Title Survey

Whenever commercial properties sell or refinance, title companies and lenders will require a survey of the property in order to identify any defect and be able to insure the property. This survey will typically show topographical features as well as property lines and easements. The survey is often called a "disclosure survey" in that defects in the property will be identified and shown on the map. In addition, encroachments inside or outside the property will be shown and identified.

Every owner's title policy contains 5 standard exemptions, also referred to as general exceptions. These include (a) rights or claims of parties in possession not shown by the public records; (b) encroachments, overlaps, boundary line disputes, or other matters; (c) easements, or claims of easements, not shown by the public record; (d) any lien, or right to a lien, for labor, services, or materials; and (e) taxes or special assessments that are not shown as existing liens by the public records. 

If the title company is furnished with the necessary documentation, and this documentation reveals not additional matters or adverse impacts, it can waive these five standard exemptions from the owner's title policy. However, when insuring large and expensive commercial, industrial, and even vacant and multi-family properties, title companies will usually require a land title survey when asked to issue extended coverage. A current title commitment is required before an ALTA Survey can be completed. The surveyor will refer to the title commitment for the legal description of the property and for the legal description of any encumbrances (exceptions).

A full engineering drawing depicting the property boundaries as well as any encumbrances, easements, improvements, and encroachments will be depicted on an ALTA survey of a property. Areas of ownership, improvements and encumbrances will be shown graphically on the ALTA survey. If the survey discovers any encroachments, they will be shown graphically, and a note indicating the nature of the encroachment may also be added. 

The certification language of the ALTA Survey will include the names of the affected parties, including as appropriate the buyer, seller, title company, and lender. The surveyor must work in close association with the title insurance company, as the surveyor and the title company are relying on each others work to show the matters affecting the ownership of the land and improvements in a comprehensive manner. 

Plats and Legal Descriptions 

Preparation of private and public easements, approval exhibits, reservations, dedications, abandonment, vacations, property deeds, riparian corridors, open space preserves and habitat boundaries are some of the many items that may require a legal description and plat or map during the course of a project.

Most agencies have their own format that needs to be followed and many require review and comment before approval. The project surveyor and project engineer should both be aware on complicated projects which agencies they will be working with and try to determine as early as possible what easements and rights will need to be granted separate from the map. These documents should be prepared as early as possible (after the boundary has been resolved) to avoid needless delay during the approval process. 

Determinations of some rights and easements may require additional fieldwork before preparation. Reserves and habitats boundaries could depend on drip lines of trees or particular contours. Utility easements may depend on accurate locations of existing lines. The project surveyor should inquire with every agency concerning the proper format and obtain if possible a sample of an accepted plat and legal description. Sometimes the process could include a first submittal of a topographic map showing the proposed site.After approval, the plat and legal description to be recorded is prepared, which also will be subject to review.

The form of most legal descriptions is description by metes and bounds. References to existing recorded documents are included within the description as well as a mathematical description of the boundary of the subject site. A licensed land surveyor is required to prepare and stamp legal descriptions acceptable for recordation. A plat or map may or may not be required but most of the time is required and is to be recorded together with the description.  

The subdividing of real property into parcels is not allowed by the use of a legal description and grant deed, unless granted by or to an agency such as the local city government or the state government (Caltrans). In this case a portion of a property can be "split off' to dedicate right-of-ways and street widening. 

The surveyor should be aware that this process can be subject to a review process and should try to submit this as early as possible in the approval process to avoid delays. 

Grant deeds include the legal description and plat. The deed contains initial language that states the names of the parties and what is being granted. There are often other conditions that are shown in the grant deeds that may make reference to use or cost. Signatures and notary statements also appear in the deed. Typically the deeds are prepared by the title company or the project attorney with the legal descriptions attached as exhibits. The project surveyor or engineer may prepare the grant deeds if asked but a review by a title person or attorney is recommended to minimize chance of error. 

Construction Staking

Construction staking is the first step in the implementation of the consulting engineer's design to the subject property. The intent, of course, is to provide guide points to contractors to enable them to construct the improvements shown in the design drawings. 

There are two main objectives in construction surveying. The first is to accurately position the design improvements within the boundary of the site and the second is to accurately position all design improvements in correct relationship to each other. Traditional methods would find the surveyor calculating these positions directly from the printed plans. With the advent of Design / Survey software it is possible to calculate the desired positions from the digital files prepared by the design consultant. The accuracy of the designer's digital information will have a direct impact on the costs to the developer for staking as well as the costs for construction of the project. Accurate line work and symbols will enable the surveyor to position markers that will help minimize potential errors. 

Types of construction staking are too numerous to be covered in this guide so the focus here is what the project manager will encounter during this phase of the project.  

Surveying for this phase of the project usually requires quick response to the developers needs. Once construction begins a strict schedule is implemented and, to ensure success, must be adhered to. The designer and surveyor must work closely and have established a clear method for communication. There are errors in even the best design drawings which are typically related to data (i .e. grades, horizontal locations, etc.) or interpretive items (i.e. conforms, cross-slopes, minimum or maximum slopes, etc.).

Efficient and economical resolution of conflicts and other problems encountered when interpreting design documents can save thousands of dollars in redesign or (worse) reconstruction. Before construction begins managers should have procedures established to address design changes, schedule changes and additional tasks. This will help to keep the project on track and on budget. 

Design changes due to whatever reason, are probably the hardest to track and control during construction. The design engineer should provide new information to the project surveyor in a fashion that will enable the surveyor to integrate the information efficiently and seamlessly into the on-going staking process. This can be accomplished by providing the surveyor with hard-copy plan's and the correct altered digital files.  

In addition, the construction surveyor should be added to the list of personnel that will automatically get revised plan sets from all the disciplines involved. This will keep the surveyor updated at the same time that all construction personnel are updated. And, a procedure should be established that provides a "backcheck" to see if the changes have been implemented.

After the design changes have been staked (but before being built) the designer should be provided with field notes or some other form of confirmation that the item has been staked per the revision. It would be prudent for the survey project managers and project engineer to have a checklist that flags plan revisions and when implemented. This will provide a means for insuring the revision has been addressed as well as an accurate record of when changes were staked.

Schedule changes can be critical to the success of the project. Typically the lead designer is required to attend weekly scheduled meetings at the site during construction. The developer and general contractor should be made aware of the importance of having the project surveyor either included in these meetings or provided with information related to the surveyors tasks that comes out of the meetings. As a part of the designer's construction administration scope of service, an item could be included for short weekly meetings with the surveyor to discuss schedule changes that might be occurring on the project. For the surveyor to be able to respond to changing site conditions most efficiently requires as much advance notice as possible.

Many times the surveyor will need to have multiple crews on the project to meet schedule demands. In order to provide that service, and insure that personnel are available, advance scheduling is a necessity. The overall project schedule should be discussed with the project surveyor so that personnel projections can be done well in advance. This will enable the surveyor to estimate the number of field crews that will be needed at certain times of the year as well in the current future.

Additional tasks inevitably happen on most construction projects. These range from staking miscellaneous items to acquisition of topographic data. Here again, clear lines of communication and timeliness play an important role.

Additional tasks involving topographic mapping to supplement design changes or revisions are often required. The project manager should have a procedure for getting precise instructions from the designer, so that the data can be acquired accurately and delivered in a timely fashion. Instructions should be provided in hard-copy form utilizing checklists, diagrams and written instructions. The completed checklist along with the field data and digital data should accompany the final topographic map when delivered to the designer.

Both project managers should keep a record of the requests and data so that cross confirmation can occur if the data is incorrect or misplaced. Miscellaneous staking items include items that are usually not part of the civil set of drawings. This can include items from landscape plans, architectural plans or electrical plans.

Staking these items requires special consideration in that their positions are often approximate in nature. Coordination with other disciplines may be necessary to accurately stake these items. The project manager should maintain separate files for these items and should allow time for cross checking with other plans.

The last part of this section deals with staking calculations and other related office functions during construction. The automated field stakeout routines that we utilize depend on certain types of data prepared in a specific fashion. Horizontal and vertical alignments as well as point data are used to help the field technician set stakes accurately and efficiently. The office technicians utilize the digital plan data in conjunction with the plans to prepare the field stakeout files.

Project managers should utilize drawing matrices and checklists to develop staking files needed by field crews. The design engineer should provide the digital files and design drawings to the surveyor at the earliest possible time. In most cases the plans reach a point in which there are only minimal changes required before achieving approval. At this time the files may be given to the project surveyor so that staking calculations can begin. 

In order to provide better service it is better to have the calculations prepared way in advance of actually being needed. Utilization of field techniques that can instantly calculate variable offsets means that most of staking can meet the particular needs of the contractor even though the initial preparation was done way in advance.  

In order to meet fast-track construction schedules it is imperative to receive the digital design and a set of plans as early as possible. This advance planning will allow for additional cross checking to take place that would have otherwise been difficult to do if trying to prepare the field files the day the request is received.  

In summary, clear and concise communication is one of the most important keys to implementing a design in construction. The project surveyor can perform at peak efficiency, by pre-planning and cross checking, if direct communication is established and maintained with the project designer during the course of the project. The project designer should rely on the surveyor as a conduit, for providing and .obtaining design information critical to the successful construction of the project. In addition, a procedure should be in place to accurately document communications and information between the designer and the surveyor.

As-Built and Certification Surveys 

Often during construction there are points at which some items being constructed require verification that they are within the tolerances specified for the project. These items include roadway sub grade checking, pad certification, foundation certification, setback verification, structural pile verification, anchor bolt verification, finish floor certification and utility verification. These items depend on having accurate design data as well as accurate field data.  

For roadway subgrade checks the surveyor will shoot "sections" of the roadbed and compare this data to the finished surface provided on the plans excluding the typical section. Since grades are not always provided some calculations are required to determine this grade. This generally can be and is done by the surveyor without much help from the designer.  

Pad certification is performed when the finished surface of the pad is completed and thought to be vertically accurate by the contractor. The surveyor will take a certain number of random shots across the pad and average the vertical data. This is then compared to the design data. In most cases the surveyor should state that the survey meets the accuracy for that type of survey and show a comparison of the design and field data.  

Foundation and setback verifications are horizontal location surveys that are performed when there is a requirement to verify the location with relationship to a setback or property line. The surveyor should state that the location as surveyed is within the tolerances specified in the plans.  

Structural pile verification (horizontal and vertical location) for high-rise and steel frame buildings are typically required because they are technically hard to install in the right location and once installed not easily moved or relocated. In this case the surveyor is asked to provide a comparison of the design data to the located positions. This information facilitates minor design changes made to accommodate the actual locations of the piles. Interpretation of the structural plans and details is required to determine the location of each pile. Anchor bolt locations although only horizontally located require a higher precision type of survey to locate since tolerances are higher.  

The design data is compared to the field locations and supplied to the contractor. The locations help in fabrication of the steel plates that fasten the columns to footings of the structure. The data is usually provided in a plan view drawing of each individual footing.  

Finish floor verification may be required for some steel frame buildings. This survey requires either a benchmark to be set at each level or a survey of the finished surface after the floor is poured or both. This is primarily a field exercise but the project surveyor may be required to state that the floor matches the design.  

Utility verifications deal primarily with electrical vaults and boxes. Often the project surveyor will be asked to verify P.G.and E. vaults and boxes. The horizontal locations are shown on the electrical plans in a schematic form only and a close examination of the civil plans and standard details is required to determine the correct locations. The project surveyor will at times ask the project engineer to review the locations as determined by the surveyor. The vertical grade of vaults and boxes are not directly given in the electrical or civil plan sets. The surveyor may be asked to provide a letter stating that the boxes are at the right grade. Field locations and elevations are obtained and compared to design data if any. The surveyor should provide for the assistance of the project designer to help determine final grades. Since electrical vaults, transformer pads and other boxes are often placed in high visibility areas obtaining accurate design data will help maintain the integrity of the design.

Property Corners and Street Monuments

This item is given in a section to itself because it actually occurs in two parts of the design / development process. While the map is being prepared during the approval process the street monument locations are determined and the locations of the property comers are shown. Boundary surveys and final/parcel map recordation require placement of durable property comers and street monuments.

Monumentation of a proposed subdivision is now very common. This involves placing durable disks in street intersection monument wells and setting iron pipes or other durable markers on property comers.

Street monuments are generally required along the center lines of right-of-ways, at intersections, beginning and ending points of curves and angle points. The monument locations are shown on the final map and generally do not get set for up to two years

Only minimal amounts of points are required for approval of the final map. This allows for exterior comers and monuments to be set after construction. Large subdivisions usually only require that the streets and the exterior of the tract is monumented. Individual lots in a large subdivision generally do not have monuments set at the property comers.

At the end of construction the project surveyor will need to perform a survey to set the monuments shown on the final map. This involves setting the actual comers and marking points where street monuments will be installed. After the street monuments are installed, the surveyor returns to place a punch mark in the disk designating that location as shown on the map. This survey can become lengthy because of the accuracy required and depending on how many points need to be set. The fees for this survey are sometimes determined and made part of the final map fees during the approval process but the actual funds generally are allocated as part of the construction phase of the project. If the project surveyor is also providing staking services the fees should be included in the construction staking budget.