Topographical Surveys

Topographical surveys, ground surveys or Topo Surveys are accurate surveys produced by Land Surveyors to precisely depict the topography of an area of interest or parcel of land and the structures and features upon it.

A topographical survey can be a 3d model, a 2d map or a plan showing physical features. Features could be structures, utility covers, areas of ground cover, trees or vegetation. Levels are shown with break lines to control the shape of the surface model and contours to join points of equal level.

Typically utility service covers and other service markers are identified, sometimes with underground services traced and marked with overhead services, depending on client specifications. Adjacent or overlooking features can be included to assist in assessing the setting of a site in the wider landscape, or street scene or in assessing the proximity of critical features.

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Typical uses for topographical surveys

Add clarity, context and understanding

For many projects, a Topographical survey can be combed with a hydrographic survey, a measured building survey, or an underground utility survey. Add flexibility, understanding and context to a topo survey. As a result, usability can be vastly improved. Our surveyors can add various kinds of spatial data to a topo survey.

• Highway access and visibility assessments:
  Add data beyond a site to include adjacent highways or other rights of way to assess safety.
• Street scene surveys:
  Add elevation of frontages around a site to enable a fuller understanding of how a project sits within adjoining properties.
• Planning applications:
  A Land Surveyor can employ a range of techniques to acquire offsite data in a discrete, non-invasive way. Overlooking can be an important factor. We can use remote survey methods to measure roof and window heights. We can accurately measure offsite trees to indicate the Root Protection Areas of overhanging trees.
• Landscape setting:
  Understanding the wider landscape setting of a site can be important in planning applications. Assessing views into the site from adjacent land or rights of way can be a critical factor.
• Visual line of sight assessments:
  For telecommunications having a clear line of sight can be very important. A survey can help you understand how a new building could impact existing telecoms.
• Utility mapping:
  A service trace survey can help map buried services using radio detection or ground-penetrating radar. Understanding the impact of critical wayleave or safety distances can be a lifesaver.
• Flood impact assessment and prevention:
  Understanding the topography of the land and how water accumulates and runs off the land can be critical
• Asset management:
  A robust inventory of assets could save you time and money. This could be for a local authority logging their street furniture onto their GIS system. An accurate plan of a site showing where and how your assets are located and connected could make your site operation more efficiently.