Detail and contour surveys: what to ask for before design

A designer needs reliable information about the site before developing a proposal. A detail survey records agreed existing site features, while contour information describes the shape and levels of the ground. You may hear the terms detail survey, contour survey, feature survey or topographical survey when discussing this work. The name alone does not tell you exactly what is included.

Before booking, ask your architect or project adviser what information they need. Share that brief with the surveyor so the quote covers the intended design task. Our detail survey service is the starting point for discussing detail and contour survey work.

Start with the drawing's purpose

A survey commissioned for a concept design may have a different brief from information required for a particular planning application. Tell the surveyor whether you are exploring a renovation, designing a new building or responding to a specific request from your project team.

Include the property location, a short description of the proposal and any existing plans. If the designer has supplied a written survey checklist, send the complete document rather than a summary. This helps identify items that need to be included, clarified or separately quoted.

Agree which features and levels are needed

Ask the designer and surveyor to confirm the survey extent and the features to record. Depending on the project, questions may concern existing buildings, visible structures, trees, surface levels and adjoining information. These are scope questions, not a promise that every item is automatically included.

Also ask whether the project needs additional investigation of boundaries or underground services. A drawing of visible site features should not be assumed to resolve every boundary or utility question. Explain the decision you need to make so the appropriate work can be identified.

Check the receiving team's requirements

Ask who will use the drawing and what file format, level reference and detail they require. Do this before the survey is commissioned, especially if several consultants will rely on the information. Confirm the agreed deliverables in the quote.

Local requirements also matter. For example, the City of Sydney publishes survey-plan specifications for planning applications. Treat those as requirements for that council's applications, rather than a checklist that automatically applies throughout NSW. Share the current requirements for your actual project.

Prepare for the site visit

Tell the surveyor about restricted access, locked areas, vegetation, pets and construction activity. Identify who can arrange entry and whether any part of the site is inaccessible. Ask whether those constraints affect the proposed scope or timing.

If an older survey exists, send it for review. Your project team should decide whether it is suitable for the present purpose and whether changes on site mean an update is needed. The existence of an old plan does not establish that it meets a new design brief.

Your detail-survey enquiry checklist

• What are you proposing, and what stage has the design reached?
• Who will use the survey and what have they requested?
• What existing drawings and written requirements can you share?
• Are boundaries, adjoining information or utilities part of the question?
• What access constraints and requested dates should be considered?
• Which deliverables need to be confirmed in the quote?

If you are unsure whether you need detail information or boundary work, read our boundary survey versus detail survey comparison. For a scoped enquiry, send SurveyWorx your project information.