Masonry Magazine March 2003 Page. 39
Surveying
include layout and checking positions from the building axis, alignment along a building line, 90-degree layout from anywhere on the job site, as-built checking, checking plumb, and measuring distances.
Delano adds, "The total station is a raw measuring device. It measures horizontal and vertical angles and distances. In other words, from any known point that you place the instrument on, you can measure and get a three dimensional position on another point. The rest of it is all intelligence on the instrument. If I know where the wall corner is supposed to be, I can take a measurement to someplace close to that and it will tell me how close I am. It can compare the measured point with the theoretical point and tell me where I need to go to get to the theoretical point."
Bob Bailey, manager of the Surveying Department at Nikon, notes, "These instruments use a digital display and, basically, the only requirement is that you have to be able to read. The old transits were difficult to read and required a special education. The new technology-especially with the advent of computers has made all of this a lot easier to use and because of that, we have many more contractors getting involved with surveying"
Half a century ago, when I was doing job-site layout with a level and transit, to read a horizontal angle you needed a magnifying glass and the ability to read a vernier scale. Even to turn a 90-degree angle, you had to be able to work with that type of instrument. Today, you turn on an instrument and the numbers just appear on the display.
"It's gone way beyond the ability to digitally read angles and distances," explains Delano. "Now, rather than worrying about what the angle or distance is, all you need to worry about is what point you want to lay-out and it will tell you where to go. It will tell you as soon as you start taking check shots-it will tell you where you are now, where you're supposed to be and how to get there. It's pretty straight forward."
With the older surveying instruments, you needed someone to hold the rod-sometimes called a stick-that was used as the target for the instrument. Today, there are some instruments that enable you to do non-prism measurement whereby you can take a measurement to any object without having to have a "rod man" but it's still a good idea to have a two-person team doing the work.
The Voice of the Mason Contractor
With the older surveying instruments, you needed someone to hold the rod-sometimes called a stick-that was used as the target for the instrument.
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