Glossary
Measured surveys: the base drawing every London job needs
An accurate dimensional survey of existing conditions. Foundation of all subsequent drawings.
An accurate dimensional survey of existing conditions. Foundation of all subsequent drawings.
A measured building survey records a building as it actually is — every wall, opening, level and service — to a stated accuracy, usually ±3 mm for a domestic survey. It is the foundation every subsequent drawing sits on, and the reason extensions built from assumed dimensions go wrong on site.
Floor plans with wall thicknesses and openings, sections through the building, elevations, floor and ceiling levels, structural features such as chimney breasts and steels, visible services and drainage, and boundary positions where they can be established.
The survey is usually taken with a laser distance meter set out from a control network, or a 3D scanner on larger jobs. Assuming right angles is the classic error: London terraces have settled, and a 40 mm discrepancy across a room becomes a steel that does not fit.
Because they are marketing documents drawn to convey layout, not dimension. They routinely omit wall thicknesses, misplace openings and carry no levels. A planning officer will accept them; a steel fabricator will not.
Scaled drawings at 1:50 or 1:100 in AutoCAD or Revit, dimensioned and annotated, supplied as PDF and as a CAD file. Those existing drawings become the base layer for the planning proposal, the building regulations package and the structural engineer's model.
A worked Ealing example of measured building survey: with 30 conservation areas — the Ealing Broadway Conservation Area and the Pitshanger Conservation Area among the best known — London Borough of Ealing (Ealing Council) sees measured building survey constantly, and an Article 4 direction is in force there, so permitted development cannot be assumed. Where measured building survey pushes a Ealing scheme out of permitted development, the route becomes a £548 application decided in 8 weeks rather than a £249 prior approval in 6 weeks.
| Typical accuracy | ±3 mm |
|---|---|
| Drawing scales | 1:50 and 1:100 |
| Deliverables | PDF plus AutoCAD or Revit file |
| Includes | Plans, sections, elevations, levels |
| Typical duration on site | Half a day to a day for a terraced house |
| Our survey from |
You can, but the risk of a dimensional error transfers to you and to the steel order.
For anything structural, yes. It is cheaper than a mis-sized beam.
No. That records external levels and site features rather than the building fabric.
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