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A good as-built survey has the potential to be a very beneficial added value for the owner and operator of infrastructure facilities and all parties involved in the infrastructure project in general. For example, an as-built survey can:
Documenting the location of underground utilities and other “hidden” assets such as active pipes and ducts under floors or behind walls. If this information is accurate and published effectively, it can save a lot of time and money during maintenance, repairs and/or upgrades.
Served as a GIS foundation. It can be part of a system used on-site for functions such as work order issuance or inventory management, or transferred to a government agency for use in their system. The combination of digital maps and a good database has been proven time and again to add value to its owners.
By serving as a base map and providing a place to capture knowledge gained during the construction of a facility, an as-built survey helps owners plan and design the next project or the next phase of an existing facility.
Provides assurance to the owner and designer that design agreement has been reached, and that the completed project meets the owner’s objectives. In other words, the completion of the as-built survey goes hand in hand with the contract to increase clarity and utility for all project stakeholders.
As - Built Survey, Whose Responsibility?
These are just a few of the many benefits that can be gained from a good as-built survey. Simply put, accurate and well-organized information will always be a valuable asset to progressive facility owners and operators.
However, achieving good quality as-built surveys is not always easy, especially under the current system, where survey contractors often work alone to fulfill contractual obligations. The reason is simple: clear conflict of interest.
How to Avoid Conflict
Contractors should not be involved in or subcontract as-built surveys for a number of reasons. For one thing, since as-built surveys are always one of the last items on the “punch list,” they tend to be rushed because they are usually mentally on to another project. Also, one of the primary purposes of as-builts is to control the contractor’s work and verify contract compliance; when as-builts are a form of inspection, none of that should be done by the party whose work is being inspected.
Ideally, as-built subjects should be carefully addressed in the contract. They should be completed by a third-party specialist, usually a surveying firm, and ideally they should incorporate an interim survey that looks for and verifies features such as underground pipes that are typically covered up during construction. The owner should work directly with the as-built surveyor to avoid conflicts with the contractor and subcontractors.
Future Directions
These are exciting times for the infrastructure industry; as exciting new technologies like laser scanning, building information modeling (BIM), and mobile computing become the norm and impact all phases of the infrastructure lifecycle.
As-built has the potential to be a critical part of this infrastructure revolution. Just consider the implications of one new technology: Laser scanning. If laser scanning is used before, during and after construction, then published as-builts in 3D, multiple stakeholders will have new insights into project impact and optimization. Contractors will be able to create incredible precision in earthwork quantities and projections, heavy equipment will be easily operated with machine control methods, underground assets will be precisely located and make collision detection routine, owners will virtually repair and reconfigure large machinery before installation, designers will perform more sophisticated analysis of factors such as sunlight and wind shear... the list goes on.
The bottom line is that many results can be expected from the application of the new, organized technology provided by as-built surveys.
All of the above benefits depend on effective, accurate surveys carried out by professionals who know what they are doing. So once again, by embracing their role as expert surveyors, surveyors have another opportunity to act as generators, aggregators and brokers of critical infrastructure project information.
In today's infrastructure world, information is the most valuable commodity for everything. This may be true, but in the digital reality, fast, accurate, organized information is the lifeblood of complex projects, and the rewards for significant information experts.