Measured Building Surveys

Measured Building Surveys

Verified Views

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Measured Building Surveys

Measured building surveys are an accurate representation of the building’s layout, structural elements and architectural features A typical survey would show all structural features including windows, doors, walls, beams, floor and ceiling heights. Onto this we can then add fixtures and fittings such as electric points, light switches and fittings, radiators and furniture. They are used for conversion and renovation projects, spatial management analysis and lease/land registry compliant plans.

Floor Plans

At Castle Surveys we are very proud of the high quality and diverse array of floor plans we produce for our wide range of clients. Some of our previous work comprises of schools, commercial and agricultural buildings, offices, portal framed structures, healthcare centres, listed buildings, domestic dwellings, heritage sites, churches, castles and many more.

We carry out all of our measured building surveys using Leica disto laser measurers coupled with site laptops running MBS Floor Plan software. The software shows the misclosure on site, in real-time, enabling our surveyors to immediately see where control measurements are needed to meet the accuracy requirements of the project. A wide variety of measurement methods can be chosen, depending on the particular building being surveyed. Intelligent data is collected at the same time as the measurements and attached in the form of attributes to allow for detailed analysis back in the office. In addition, we utilise our Leica total stations internally to traverse through the building, ensuring our surveys are measured to the highest level of accuracy.

Elevations

External elevations refers to an orthographic projection of the exterior (or sometimes the interior) of faces of a building or structure. This is a two-dimensional drawing of the building’s façades. As not all buildings are simple rectangular shapes in plan, an elevation drawing is a first angle projection that shows all parts of the building as seen from a particular direction. Generally, elevations are produced for four directional views for example: north, south, east and west. These can then be imported into software such as SketchUp and Revit to create complex and accurate 3D models and visualisations. Castle Surveys captures this data utilising our 3D laser scanners to ensure the best quality deliverables for our clients.

Typical features to be shown on an elevation drawing are:

  • The outline of a buildings structure or outline
  • Openings such as windows and doors
  • Roof detail, angles and finishes
  • Projections such as eaves, soil & rain water pipes
  • Level datums such as external floor levels
  • Key dimensions such as wall lengths and heights

Sections

Castle Surveys can produce detailed cross sections of both measured building and topographic land survey. A section drawing shows the accurate representation of the structure as if it had been sliced vertically along a known plane. This plane would be indicated on the measured floor planes as a section line. For buildings and structures, sections can give a greater understanding of its construction and the relationships between components such as stairs, walls, floor thicknesses, window and door openings.

Roof Plans

A roof plan is an accurate representation of the roof. It shows the ridge lines, valleys, slopes, ventilation and more. A roof plan can be a vital part of the planning stage for any new roof construction, renovation, repair and extension work being performed on an existing roof. using traditional survey methods in conjunction with 3D laser scanning and now drones technology and photogrammetry. Castle Surveys can provide detailed and accurate roof plans for your project.

Reflective Ceiling Plans

A reflective ceiling plan (RCP) is a drawing that details the features that are located on the ceiling of a room or space. Fox example, this type of plan will show the detail of a grid of suspended ceiling tiles, which can then be overlaid onto the measured floor plan. The level of detail would show beams, lighting, ceiling tiles, vents, air-conditioning units, to name a few.

Internal Elevations

As well as 2D floor plans we can provide both internal and external elevations. Internal elevations are used to gain an understanding of how the proposed rooms will look under the scheme and can aid with making decisions such as the locations of windows, doors, cupboards and even electrical sockets. We gather this data by utilising our 3D laser scanners to ensure the data is captured accurately and nothing is missed.

Street Scene Elevations

A street scene elevation is an elevation drawing showing more than a typical elevation. Features that would be included are neighbouring elevations, street furniture, wall, hedges, other building and structures within the site plan. Due to the level of detail and time it takes to produce these Castle Surveys utilises laser scanning technology and techniques to collect detail data sets in a fraction of the time compared to traditional methods. This data will then be imported into specific survey software to create project point clouds which we can extract what information we need to produce accurate elevational drawings.

Area Surveys & Reports

GROSS EXTERNAL AREA

Gross External Area in broad terms means the whole are of the building taking each floor into account. This will include:

  • Perimeter wall thickness and external projections
  • Areas occupied by internal walls (whether structural or not) and partitions
  • Columns, piers, chimney breasts, stairwells, lift wells etc
  • Lift rooms, plant rooms, tank rooms, fuel stores, whether or not above roof level
  • Open-sided covered areas (should be stated separately)

GEA will exclude:

  • Open balconies
  • Open fire escapes
  • Open sided covered ways
  • Open vehicle parking areas, terraces and the like
  • Minor canopies
  • Any area with a headroom of less than 1.5m (except under stairways)
  • Any area under the control of service or other external authorities

Note that:

  • Party walls are to be measured to their centre lines.
  • The areas of items excluded from GEA should be calculated and shown separately.

GEA is used for Town Planning, rating of residential property, council tax and building cost estimation including insurance.

GROSS INTERNAL AREA

Broadly speaking it’s the whole enclosed area of a building within the external walls taking each floor into account and excluding the thickness of the external walls. GIA is used for building cost estimation, estate agency and valuation, rating industrial buildings, warehouses, retail warehouses, department stores and many specialised buildings, property management for service charges, new homes valuation and marketing new residential developments.

GIA will include:

  • Areas occupied by internal walls (whether structural or not) and partitions.
  • Service accommodation such as WCs, showers, changing rooms and the like.
  • Columns, piers, whether free standing or projecting inwards from an external wall, chimney breasts, lift wells, stairwells etc.
  • Lift rooms, plant rooms, tank rooms, fuel stores, whether or not above roof level.
  • Open-sided covered areas (should be stated separately)

GIA will exclude:

  • Open balconies
  • Open fire escapes
  • Open-sided covered ways
  • Open vehicle parking areas, terraces and the like
  • Minor canopies
  • Any area with ceiling height of less than 1.5m (except under stairways)
  • Any area under the control of service or other external authorities

Note that the areas excluded from GIA should be calculated and shown separately.

NET INTERNAL AREA

Broadly speaking, the usable area within a building measured to the face of the internal finish of perimeter or party walls, ignoring skirting boards and taking each floor into account. NIA is used for estate agency and valuation, rating of shops, shop rents, supermarkets, offices, etc, property management service charge.

NIA will include:

  • Perimeter skirting, moulding, or trunking
  • Kitchens
  • Any built-in units or cupboards occupying useable areas (subject to height exclusion below)
  • Partition walls or similar dividing elements
  • Open circulation areas and entrance halls, corridors and atria

NIA will exclude:

  • Toilets and associated lobbies (but extra measurements may be required for shops where they are either in excess of normal staff requirements, considering the type and size of shop) or it is apparent additional toilets have been installed
  • Cleaners’ cupboards
  • Lift rooms, boiler rooms, tank rooms, fuel stores and plant rooms other than those of a trade process nature
  • Stairwells, lift wells, those parts of entrance halls, atria, landings and balconies used in common or for the purpose of essential access
  • Corridors and other circulation areas where used in common with other occupiers or of a permanent essential nature
  • Areas under the control of service or other external authorities
  • Internal structural walls, walls (whether structural or not) enclosing excluded areas, columns, piers, chimney breasts, other projections, vertical ducts etc
  • The space occupied by permanent air conditioning, heating or cooling apparatus and ducting which renders the space substantially unusable having regard to the purpose for which it is intended
  • Areas with headroom of less than 1.5m (this area should be shown separately but excluded)
  • Car parking areas (this area should be shown separately and the number of spaces noted)

IPMS

There are three levels of IPMS which stands for International Property Measurement Standards: Office Buildings

IPMS1

Used for measuring the area of a building including the external walls. This will calculate the sum of areas of each floor of a building, measured to the outer perimeter of eternal construction features and reported on a floor by floor basis.

IPMS2

Used for measuring the internal area and categorising the use of space in an office building. It can be used by asset managers, facility managers, valuers and cost consultants to provide data on the effective use of space by the tenant.

IPMS3

Used for measuring the occupation of floor areas in exclusive use, but excluding standard facilities and shared circulation areas. This is calculated on an occupier by occupier or floor by floor basis for each building.

Further Information can be found here on the RICS website.

ITZA (ZONING)

Zoning is a standard method of measuring retail premises to calculate and compare their value. It is used by both public and private sector surveyors and has been a method that has been applied in the UK to the analysis of shop rents and properties for rating purposes since the 1950s.

Shop or retail premises are divided into a number of zones each of a depth of 6.1 metres – or 20 feet.

Zone A closest to the window is most valuable, with the value decreasing with distance from the frontage: Zone B is the next 6.1 metres, then Zone C, until the entire depth of the retail area is allocated to a zone – anything after Zone C is usually defined as the remainder.

Lease Plan Surveys

A lease plan includes a basic, scaled floor plan of the building, including any shared common areas which affect the property and the access to it. These plans should not be confused with a measured survey which displays a far higher level of detail, but they are an affordable option when Land Registry Compliance Plans are required.

The building is then clearly outlined in red with any shared areas outlined in green. Castle Surveys lease plans, it will also include an ordnance survey plan, which will detail the position of the building in relation to the surrounding area and rotated to north.

All our surveys are supplied in PDF & DWG formats and hard copies can be issued on request.

Heritage Surveys

Here at Castle Surveys we appreciate the importance of recording and capturing our historic sites and are specialists in heritage laser scanning and the production on detailed and accurate plans to aid with the preservation & potential of our heritage buildings.

Ideal for both external and internal modelling, our fleet of laser scanning instruments provides surveys of unprecedented detail and precision with fieldwork completed quickly and with the minimum of inconvenience.

Listed Buildings come in three categories:

  • Grade 1 listed buildings of the highest significance
  • Grade 2 * listed buildings with extra merit such as outstanding interior
  • Grade 2 listed builds are of special interest and the majority fall under this category

For owners, this means there will be extra control over what changes can be made to the building interior and exterior. Owners will need to apply for Listed Building Consent for most types of work that can affect the special architectural or historical interest of their home. Due to this, the owner/occupier would need a detailed set of floor plans, elevations, sections and topographic land surveys. These surveys fall under the RICS Survey Detail Accuracy Band C/D.

To find out if your building is listed, then Historic England would be your first point of contact.

BIM (Building Information Modelling), Scan2BIM

WHAT IS BIM?

Building Information Modelling (BIM) continues to revolutionise the way architecture, engineering and construction firms work together to communicate, solve problems and build better projects. BIM is an intelligent 3D model-based process that gives architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) professionals the insight and tools to more efficiently plan, design, construct, and manage buildings and infrastructure in a collaborative way.

Fundamentally, the purpose of BIM is to ensure that appropriate information is created in a suitable format at the right time, so that better decisions can be made throughout the design, construction and operation of built assets. It is not about creating a 3D model for its own sake and it is not an add-on process. BIM is fundamental to the way a project is set up and run.

Our collaborative approach and 3D laser scanning expertise has allowed us to develop a process which delivers fast and accurate survey information in a BIM-ready model.

Castle Surveys Ltd vast experience in utilising 3D Laser Scanning technology, our workflow processes and technological enhancements allows us to provide detailed and accurate BIM Models to start your project of allowing you and your employees to focus on other aspects of the scheme rather than spending hours modelling the 2D data.

The rapid emergence of Building Information Modelling (BIM) continues to revolutionise the way architecture, engineering and construction firms work together to communicate, solve problems and build better projects.

As many firms have now seen their construction work switch to retrofit, refurbishment and renovation projects, Murphy Surveys have developed an exclusive 3D surveying and CAD/Revit modelling department to encompass these projects and support the BIM process from project outset.

Delivering the highest level of expertise, we have been providing advanced 3D BIM Services for many years and we are proud to have achieved the prestigious Kitemark for BIM Level 2. Our bespoke data processing software and tailored workflows will extract value and precision from your BIM investment.

What is BIM Level of Detail (LOD)?

LOD has been referred to as Level of Development or Level of Detail, either acronym is acceptable. Here are the different LOD definitions:

LOD 100 (Conceptual) –

The Model Element may be graphically represented in the Model with a symbol or other generic representation, but does not satisfy the requirements for LOD 200. Information related to the Model Element (i.e. cost per square foot, tonnage of HVAC, etc.) can be derived from other Model Elements.

LOD 200 (Generic Placeholders) –

The Model Element is graphically represented within the Model as a generic system, object, or assembly with approximate quantities, size, shape, location, and orientation. Non-graphic information may also be attached to the Model Element.

LOD 300 (Specific Assemblies) –

The Model Element is graphically represented within the Model as a specific system, object or assembly accurate in terms of quantity, size, shape, location, and orientation. Non-graphic information may also be attached to the Model Element.

LOD 400 (Detailed Assemblies) –

The Model Element is graphically represented within the Model as a specific system, object or assembly that is accurate in terms of size, shape, location, quantity, and orientation with detailing, fabrication, assembly, and installation information. Non-graphic information may also be attached to the Model Element.

LOD 500 (As-Built) –

The Model Element is a field-verified representation in terms of size, shape, location, quantity, and orientation. Non-graphic information may also be attached to the Model Elements.

Rights Of Light

Castle Surveys have been providing Rights of Light and Daylight/ Sunlight surveys & reports to specialists, developers and architects since the beginning. Generally, these are in the form of 2D surveys and 3D CAD models that support our clients projects during the planning application stage.

Even once Planning Permission has been gained, if a legal right of light exists to neighbouring properties windows under common law, then potentially the neighbour could be entitled to an injunction, or compensation, or both. Most developers therefore assess this risk early and instruct us to undertake and rights of light survey. This allows them to consider such risks and make informed decisions before proceeding with the planning process, potentially saving thousands of pounds in the future.

The advantages of assessing risk early include being able to consider making amendments to the scheme before the planning process has run its course, thus preventing you from gaining planning permission, only to later find that you have a right of light case on your hands which requires redesign, and subsequent re-submission for planning.

Castle Surveys have found that the most efficient and accurate method of producing the 3D model is by 3D Laser scanning the buildings façades and surrounding areas.