Guides and insights for modern survey crews.
Everyone writes something wrong eventually. What you do next determines whether the notes still hold up as a contemporaneous record — and the instinctive fix is the one that does the most damage.
"Found 5/8" rebar" is not a monument record. In a retracement dispute, the note that explains what you found, its condition, and why you held or rejected it is the survey. Here's what belongs in one.
Whether a survey drafts itself in an hour or takes a day of manual cleanup is decided in the field, not the office. Here's how point coding actually works in Civil 3D and Carlson, and the field habits that determine which way it goes.
Roadway and route surveying uses three distinct curve types, each solving a different problem. Here's what horizontal, vertical, and spiral curves actually do, when each one is required, and how to compute all three.
A property deed and a mineral deed can describe the exact same tract of land and still convey two almost entirely different sets of rights. Here's how surface and mineral estates diverge — and why it matters in the field, not just in the title office.
A closed traverse almost never closes exactly. Here's how Bowditch's (Compass) Rule, the Transit Rule, and the Crandall Method each distribute that error differently — and which one actually fits the equipment you're running today.
Field notes have gone through five distinct eras, and each shift in instrumentation changed what actually needed recording. Here's that history — and what modern equipment demands from field notes today.
Metes and bounds and the Public Land Survey System aren't just different ways to write a legal description — they produced measurably different land values, title costs, and litigation rates. Here's why.
Descriptions like "SW¼ of the NE¼ of Section 14" define millions of land parcels. Here's exactly how to read them, calculate acreage, and avoid the most common mistakes.
Old deeds and land records use units most people have never heard of — chains, varas, links, rods, and more. Here's exactly what each one means, where it came from, and how to convert it.
The 2026 ALTA/NSPS Minimum Standard Detail Requirements took effect February 23, 2026. A plain-English breakdown of what changed, which items affect field crews directly, and what your documentation needs to reflect.
A photo captures what written notes can't fully describe — existing conditions, buried monuments, utility conflicts. Here's why field photographs have become an essential part of the survey record.
A check shot takes 30 seconds. Discovering a bad setup after you've moved on takes a day. Here's why experienced crews run them — and when it matters most.
Most survey crews treat the JSA as a box to check before work starts. Here's what a good one actually looks like — and why the documentation matters as much as the hazard identification.
Most crews default to one method without thinking much about it. Understanding the tradeoffs helps you choose the right tool for the job — and defend your work if accuracy ever gets questioned.
These aren't careless errors — they're predictable habits that work fine under ideal conditions and break down under pressure. Here's what to watch for.
Most survey companies don't have a written field note standard — it lives in the heads of experienced crew members. Here's what that costs you, and how to fix it.
Construction survey notes don't just record what you measured — they become the paper trail behind every grade stake a contractor acts on. Here's what complete documentation looks like.
Running more than one crew means field data living in multiple places, inconsistent documentation, and an office team doing triage every morning. Here's what actually fixes it.
A wrong invert elevation doesn't just produce a bad survey — it produces bad pipe and drainage problems discovered after concrete is poured. Here's what complete documentation looks like.
Field notes aren't just a record of what you measured. They're a legal document and your only defense if a job is ever disputed. Here's what every set should include.
Skipping a level run between control points is one of the most common shortcuts survey crews take — and one of the most costly to discover after the fact.
Paper field notes have worked for over a century. Digital is faster and safer. An honest look at both — and what actually matters when you're considering the switch.
Paper field books are costing your crew hours every week. Here's a practical breakdown of where time is lost — and how digital field data collection fixes it.