The term “building survey” can mean different things to different people within the AEC industry. I do building surveys for New York City architects. In this blog post I will define the term, and I will also share one of my building survey projects, which is pictured below.
What Is a Building Survey?
Below is how three different groups of professionals would answer the question, “What is a building survey?”
As Defined by Architects, Drafters, and Engineers
Def.: The act of field measuring an existing building, in order to create existing conditions survey drawings of it.
This type of building survey is typically simple and created from measurements taken with a handheld laser distance measuring device and handheld tape measure.
Building surveying of this type is a trade, learned through hands-on experience. Therefore, it can be performed by someone who has the understanding of what would need to be documented, and who has the skill to accomplish it.
This is sometimes also known as an “architectural building survey.”
As Defined by Historic Preservationists
Def.: The process of documenting the nation’s historic architectural, engineering and landscape features.
The preservation program Historic American Building Survey (HABS) uses the term in the manner above.
As Defined by Land Surveyors
Def.: The act of field measuring a building in relation to its position on a parcel of land. The measuring is done by employing the techniques and standards of a licensed Land Surveyor, in order to create a signed and sealed survey drawing of it.
A building survey of this type would require the use of surveying equipment such as a level, theodolite, total station, and tripod.
The measuring would be done in reference to a global coordinate system. And the drawing created from the field measuring is legally stamped by a licensed Land Surveyor.
When Is an Architectural Building Survey Required?
Often times an architectural building survey is required on a building repair, retrofit, or upgrade project, when no plans for the building can be found. A typical scenario would be something like this:
A building owner would like to gut and remodel his six story building, and so he hires an Architect to design the interior renovation. At the start of the project, the Architect cannot find the original design drawings for the building. Therefore, the first step to remodeling the building would be to perform a building survey (i.e. measure and draw the building how I describe above) in order to recreate the missing design drawings.
My Brooklyn, NY Building Survey Project
The video below is of a building survey I completed for a 2,700 sf, 20 feet wide by 45 feet deep, 3 bedroom, 3 full bath, townhouse located in the Bedford-Stuyvesant (often shortened to Bed-Stuy) neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY.
I did this project for an architect. She needed as-built drawings for an interior renovation she would design for the townhouse. For this building survey project I created as-built: floor plans, reflected ceiling plans, electrical plans, and a roof plan. I also documented the window sill and head heights.
Click the image above to launch the drawings in PDF format.
Do You Need Building Survey Services?
My name is Brian. I’m the owner of DraftingServices.com LLC. I do building surveys for architects. Contact me today at 718.441.3968, text me today at 646.504.5230, or email me today at brian@draftingservices.com.