As builders, we know there is a disproportionate amount of risk associated with the earthwork and foundation phases of a project. When things go sideways before going vertical, the whole project is at risk, and your team has a tiger by the tail. As seasoned construction professionals, Aerial Ethos recognizes these challenges and has developed powerful deliverables to support construction teams through these critical early phases. By documenting and building digital twins of existing conditions, modeled excavations, and as-built conditions, we are your superpower for taming that tiger from the get-go.
Designed vs Reality
Having a good set up plans goes a long way, but architects are not tasked with modeling an excavation from an earthwork contractors point of view. In practice an architect can tell you how much earth is displaced by the form of the building and associated exterior elements. In reality, we have to consider multiple scenarios which impact how a foundation and sitework is actually excavated such as:
Soil types
Geotech recommendations
Sub-grade depths
Specified soil amendments
Utility placements
Footer widths
Over-excavation for working space
Retaining walls heights and associated engineering implications
OSHA requirements for bench cuts and sloping.
Site constraints, sequencing, and logistics
All of these will have a bearing on the work and can have significant implications to time and cost.
Quantifying Excavation with Early Modeling
As a contractor, accurate estimation of these quantiles is your first step to assuring viability of a project and protecting your margins once underway. Before putting a single shovel in the ground, Aerial Ethos will coordinate with the surveyor, if applicable, to create an accurate surface depicting reality with our advanced drone technology. With this, we work with the design documents, site conditions, and known constraints to create 2D and 3D models of the actual excavation with all of the considerations mentioned above.
This not only gives you a visual representation of how the excavation will impact site conditions and logistics, but will give you accurate cut/fill quantities, both of which are critical for accurate estimates.
Validating Subgrades, Formwork, and Foundation Placement
With the project underway and your excavation subgrades set, Aerial Ethos can again map the site conditions to document and validate proper elevations prior to starting formwork. This is critical to rule out any rework due to improper prep or help quantify differences for change order evaluation.
Similarly with concrete formwork and an updated scan of the site, we overlay design plans to validate proper placement, squareness, and elevations prior to pouring concrete. In some cases we can even document rebar, post-tension tendons and other critical elements before pouring.
This can be particularly helpful on complicated or hillside foundations which can be difficult to properly square.
The last step in this sequence is to scan the as-built foundation prior to any backfill to fully document the foundation and any adjacent utilities for the permanent record. You will be surprised to find how many times you refer to this 2D and 3D information for coordination or to measure and validate conditions. This can often save a trip to the site and keep you focused on your busy day.
The Digital Record
Beyond the benefits of these tools during estimating and construction, measurable 2D and 3D data documents a rich and actionable digital record, which has long lasting implications from troubleshooting issue, to creating efficiencies with future modifications or remodels. The thing about accurate and quality data is, the more you have, the more valuable it becomes!
Ready to tame the tiger on your next construction project? Contact Aerial Ethos to harness the power of advanced drone mapping and take control from the ground up.
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