When working on most engineering projects, professional surveying is key to ensuring the land is ready for the job. But tons of questions are likely crossing your mind before embarking on your new build or even getting the land surveyed. With the help of Ludlow Engineering and Associates LLC, we’ll answer some of the more common land surveying and civil engineering FAQs and give you insight into what you can expect from our team before, during, and after operations.
We’ll start with one of the questions we come across the most — “why do I need professional surveying?” Professional surveying ensures that you know exactly where your property lies. This can inform individuals of the exact amount of land they’re purchasing, how to divide the land between neighbors or neighboring businesses or give buyers more confidence in their purchase. Additionally, professional surveying is a necessary step in many city and county building codes if you’re looking to begin new construction
Continuing our land surveying and civil engineering FAQs, many property owners wonder what they need to do to begin their surveying project. Fortunately, we make sure our survey process is simple to get started. First, our customers are given verbal information about the time frame and cost according to the specific project. If these terms are agreed upon, both parties create and execute a contract. The client will be asked to sign the contract, give a half-down deposit, and provide us with a deed or tax notice and plat if available. Then, we go to work!
Before beginning any project, it’s essential to know the basics. Having an understanding of what a structural engineer can do for you is an important step and one of the most critical land surveying and civil engineering FAQs to ask.
Structural engineers are a vital part of the construction process — their expertise ensures that buildings and other structures are designed with safety considerations in mind. They collaborate closely with architects, builders, and contractors to meet all codes, regulations, and structural design standards. By skillfully balancing strength & stability requirements against cost-effectiveness considerations during every step, structural engineers play an essential role in ensuring the property is built to last.
What is a structural inspection? They’re conducted by experienced engineers and used to protect the safety and stability of a structure. During an inspection, structural engineers search for adverse movements, wall cracks, foundation damage, storm damage, drainage issues, and heat loss issues that compromise the structure of your property. Measurements will also be taken, along with soil analysis if required for further evaluation. The documentation collected from structural inspections associated with the property is also reviewed, and suggestions are made based on the results. If you have an issue, quality inspectors can identify problems or alert you to any potential issues in the near future.
Have a property project in mind? How do you know what type of land survey you’ll need? With help from a professional land surveyor, you can get expert advice to help you identify which kind of surveying is necessary for your project. Usually, this means determining if you need boundary surveys to locate markers or monuments, topographic surveys that provide an understanding of terrain and elevation, and land surveys for construction on land with various types of elevation.
Another one of the most critical land surveying and civil engineering FAQs, an ALTA survey provides all parties involved with more data regarding the parcel of land. At the client’s request, they fill out a document referred to as Table A. These items are selected: Vicinity maps, utilities, adjoining landowners, flood plain issues, etc. These surveys are requested when properties change hands and become developed pieces of ground.
A boundary survey has similar components as an ALTA survey but deals primarily with boundary lines. These surveys are often referred to as property surveys, land surveys, and, as mentioned above, boundary surveys. They’re usually performed when a buyer has owned the property for a given amount of time and desires to know their boundary lines. Boundary surveys are often associated with smaller transactions and projects.
This type of survey is completed after a development has been finished. It gives the owner, financier, and all those that are part of this project a real-time view of how it was built. Was the project built according to the design drawings? This type of survey provides that information.
Construction surveying is the process of surveying buildings, roads, and utilities at the time of construction. As you visit sites that are being developed, you will notice survey stakes throughout the subject area. This is what those stakes are suggesting to the contractors. They provide details, elevations, and locations of each designed component.
Have more land surveying and civil engineering FAQs that need to be answered? Ludlow Engineering is here to help with answers to some of your more detailed and property-specific questions. Let us lead your land surveying operations today and answer things like how to know what type of land survey you need. Contact a representative today to explore the collection of services our team offers.
We Cover the Following Counties: Juab County, Utah County, Sanpete County, Millard County, Sevier County and Salt Lake County. We also cover all cities within these counties, such as Provo, UT, etc.