WHAT IS ENGINEERING SURVEYING?

Engineering surveying (geomatics) involves:

Investigating land, using computer-based measuring instruments and geographical knowledge, to work out the best position to construct bridges, tunnels and roads Producing up-to-date plans which form the basis for the design of a project Setting out a site, so that a structure is built in the correct location and to the correct size Monitoring the construction process to make sure that the structure remains in the right position and recording the final as-built position Providing control points by which the future movement of structures such as dams and bridges can be monitored

Other types of survey that might be used on civil engineering projects as the following.

Hydrographic surveying. This is surveying in a marine environment where the traditional role for centuries was to map the coastlines and sea bed to produce navigational charts. More recently, a lot of hydrographic surveys have been carried out for offshore oil and gas exploration and production. Hydrographic surveys are also used in the design, construction and maintenance of harbours, inland water routes, river and sea defences, in control of pollution and in scientific studies of the ocean. Photogrammetry. This is the technique of acquiring measurements from photographic images. The use of this in topographic mapping for engineering is well established and is carried out today using digital aerial photography and computers with a high-resolution display in a soft copy workstation similar to that shown in Figure 1.5. The photographs are taken with special cameras mounted in fixed wing aircraft or helicopters. Because it is a noncontact technique, photogrammetry is particularly useful in hazardous situations; another of its advantages is that it produces data in a digital format, which makes it ideal for use in GIS and CAD.

Remote sensing. This technique is closely allied to photogrammetry because it also uses imagery to collect information. In this case, information is gathered about the ground surface without coming into contact with it. Remote sensing can be carried out for engineering projects using satellite imagery, spectral imaging (in which different colour images are analysed) and more recently with airborne platforms such as LIDAR and IFSAR.

Geographic Information Systems (GISs). These are computer-based systems which allow spatial information to be stored and integrated with many other different types of data. As far as geospatial engineering is concerned, they involve obtaining, compiling, input and manipulation of geographic and related data and the presentation of this in ways and formats specifically required by a user.

Cartography and visualisation. This is the art and technique of making maps, plans and charts accurately and representing three dimensions on a variety of media. Cartography and map making can be considered to be the traditional role of the surveyor and anyone who uses a map to find their way round town or countryside is using information gathered and presented by surveyors. Compared to this, visualisaton is a new technology that uses spatial data to show computer-generated views of landscapes, as shown in Figure 1.6. These could be used for undertaking environmental impact assessments. As can be seen, engineering surveying involves a number of specialist areas, all of which overlap

from time to time. engineering surveys carried out?

HOW ARE ENGINEERING SURVEYS CARRIED OUT? Plane surveying, geodetic surveying and setting out Engineering surveys are usually based on horizontal and vertical control, which consist of series of fixed points located throughout a site whose positions must be on some coordinate system. For most construction work, horizontal control defines points on a two-dimensional horizontal plane which covers the site, whereas vertical control is the third dimension added to the chosen horizontal datum. The measurements for a control survey can be taken with a variety of equipment. For a small building site, theodolites and tapes could be used to observe horizontal control in the form of a traverse with levelling providing the vertical control. As the site gets larger, total stations and digital levels may be used. In all of these surveys, horizontal angles and distances are measured for horizontal control and vertical angles and distances for vertical control. What has been described so far is known as plane surveying, in which a flat horizontal surface is used to define the local shape of the Earth, with the vertical always taken to be perpendicular to this. The reason for adopting a flat rather than curved surface for surveying is to simplify the calculation of horizontal position by plane trigonometry. Heights are easily defined to be vertically above (or below) the chosen horizontal datum. Another advantage of plane surveying is that all dimensions obtained from drawings and other design data will be the same as those on the ground. Of course, as a site gets bigger, there comes a point when the assumptions made in plane surveying are no longer valid and the curvature of the Earth has to be accounted for. This limit occurs when a site is greater than 10-15 km in extent in any direction. The type of surveying that accounts for the true shape of the Earth is known as geodetic surveying. This can be carried out over very large areas, but can be quite complicated because measurements are often taken over long distances and computations are based on a curved surface instead of a flat one. Fortunately, GPS is capable of performing geodetic surveys for even the biggest sites with relative ease compared to previous methods. Consequently, GPS is the predominant method in use today for providing three-dimensional survey control over large areas. Unlike total station and other terrestrial systems, GPS equipment determines position using data transmitted from orbiting satellites. Even though position is fixed on a regional or global datum and is based on an assumed shape of the Earth in satellite surveying systems, the coordinates obtained are usually

transformed to another coordinate system for use on site. Although satellite surveying systems have provided a practical solution to the problem of surveying over large areas on curved surfaces, they are also often the preferred method for taking measurements in plane surveys. In practice, nearly all engineering surveys are carried out by plane surveying methods. The positions of control points are usually established at the start of a project for a topographic or detail survey. This is carried out to produce maps or plans of the site. Without a topographic survey of some sort, the construction project could not proceed. For large projects, photogrammetry will be used for producing the plans, but for smaller projects, ground methods using total stations and GPS are more cost-effective. Whatever method is used for data capture in a topographic survey, it is all processed by computer to produce a digital map of some sort which can then be exported to a CAD system for use by the design team. Figure 1.7 shows a detail survey being carried out with a total station and subsequent data processing in the office. As well as producing maps, a Digital Terrain Model (DTM), which is a three-dimensional representation of the natural ground surface stored as spatial data in a computer, is also produced for most construction projects. This is used to generate a design surface, and with most instruments now relying on electronic data this is probably used more than drawings or any other media as it can be downloaded or transmitted to a total station or GPS receiver ready for use on site. Although the emphasis in engineering surveying is changing towards the management and processing of data, a lot of time on site is devoted to setting out. Sometimes called dimensional control, this is the surveying carried out to establish all the marks, lines and levels needed for construction purposes. It can vary from the measurement of angles and distances by theodolite and tape to the most sophisticated machine control systems using GPS and computer visualisation as shown in Figure 1.8. One of the responsibilities of surveyors and engineers involved in setting out is to choose the right equipment for the job from the array of instruments and systems currently available. For some sites, theodolites, levels and tapes are quite sufficient, but as the work gets larger and more complex, total stations, GPS and lasers may be more appropriate. When accuracy is important, the choice of equipment and methods used for setting out is crucial. All of this requires anyone engaged in setting out to have an understanding of the precision of the equipment and methods they use and the way in which errors can propagate through a survey. This is reinforced by the greater emphasis now placed on quality control and specifications for building and construction. When setting out, it is essential that good practice is always followed. This requires a systematic approach to be developed in which equipment is regularly checked and established procedures are followed in order that mistakes can be detected at an early stage.