SEAS personnel have performed topographic surveys of large acreage wooded parcels, government installations, commercial shopping centers, hotels, condominiums, hospitals and industrial office parks. These projects varied in scope and scale. Many of these projects required the location of all utilities and improvements. Topographic surveys performed for engineering design of parking lots, roadways, shopping centers, condominiums, etc. require detailed mapping at large scales (ex. 1”=20’). Topographic surveys adjoining state highways may require Department of Transportation connection permits. These surveys require cross sections of the highway and detailed locations of all improvements up and down the highway from the site. Very accurate locations and elevations are critical and can be very costly if mistakes are made. SEAS survey crews are accustomed to stringent topographic mapping requirements.
A typical topographic survey performed by SEAS may require state plane coordinates to be brought to the site. The survey crew will also make static baseline observations to published or known NSRS control stations near the site or collect static data to be processed using the online positioning user service (OPUS) to produce a good geodetic position at the base station location.
Depending on the site, the survey crew can collect RTK survey topographic data in all the open areas and set control for use with the Robotic Total Station. Data collection on features such as building corners, bridge piers, etc. and wooded areas are generally collected using the Robotic Total Station. For large sites, where terrain and satellite visibility permit, the RTK rover unit can be mounted on a truck or all- terrain vehicle (ATV) to expedite the data collection.