All four survey disciplines under a single contract and a unified set of reports for expert review.
A brief introduction to building surveys and a guide to the right service.
Describe your site and objective — we will advise which documents you need.
All four survey disciplines under a single contract and a unified set of reports for expert review.
A brief introduction to building surveys and a guide to the right service.
Describe your site and objective — we will advise which documents you need.
We will survey the site and everything on and beneath it: relief, buildings, roads and underground utilities. We will prepare the technical report, agree utilities with operators and pass expert review.
Registration in Moscow GISOGD and Moscow Region GISOGD — handled in-house
Topographic surveys — is a site survey and collection of data on terrain, existing development and underground utilities. The main deliverable is an engineering topographic plan (often referred to in Moscow practice as a geobasis / geopodoshva): a precise 1:500 drawing of the site showing ground elevations at every point, the locations of buildings, trees and roads, and underground pipes and cables.
Based on the topographic plan, the architect positions the building, the site planner determines design elevations and establishes the site grading, and MEP engineers design the utility connections. It is also used to plot the locations of geotechnical boreholes. For design and expert review purposes, we conduct topographic surveys and compile a technical report. The scope of work is defined by the client's brief and project requirements.
Interesting factSurveying
Before satellite methods became widespread, triangulation networks connected vast areas. Surveyors measured angles between neighbouring stations, using towers and pyramids to see above forests. The number of observed neighbours depended on the network layout.
Normal heights in Russia’s Baltic height system are referenced to the zero of the Kronstadt tide gauge: a horizontal line on a copper plate in a bridge abutment. The national levelling network connects heights to this datum.
In standard positioning, a receiver uses signals from at least four satellites to determine its three coordinates. The extra unknown is the receiver’s clock error, which must be calculated along with its position.
Source: NOAA
The Struve Geodetic Arc is a survey chain about 2,820 kilometres long, established in the 19th century to refine measurements of Earth’s size and shape. It now spans ten countries; 34 of its stations are listed by UNESCO.
Source: UNESCO
For design and expert review, we carry out topographic surveys and prepare a technical report. A topographic site plan can also be ordered separately.
from 120,000 ₽
from 30,000 ₽
See a real example — a reconstruction survey report of a non-residential building on Narvskaya Street in Moscow: 1:500 topographic survey of 2.5 ha with underground utility verification against the Consolidated Utility Plan.
We review the technical brief, plot boundaries according to the EGRN extract, and the site location plan. We request records of geodetic control points, previous surveys and underground utilities: in Moscow from GBU Mosgorgeotrest, and in the Moscow Region from the Moscow Region GISOGD, archives and utility owners.
Based on these data, we draw up the programme of works: survey area and scale, coordinate system, working methods and report structure.
Stage outcome: a clear scope, timeline and deliverables before we even mobilise.
We establish temporary survey stations on site and determine their coordinates using GNSS receivers linked to a reference station network. In Moscow, surveys are conducted in the local city coordinate and height datum; in the Moscow Region, in MSK-50 and the Baltic Height System.
The entire plot is then surveyed from these control points — so the accuracy of the control network determines the accuracy of the entire plan.
Stage outcome: control points with coordinates in the local Moscow or Moscow Region system, tied to the state geodetic network.
Land surveyors map the plot using an electronic total station and GNSS receiver: relief, buildings, access roads, fencing, poles, manholes and trees. A single hectare comprises several hundred survey points (spot levels).
We trace underground utilities using a cable and pipe locator, open manholes, and record pipe diameters, materials and depths. Everything not visible from the surface is cross-checked against utility owners' records.
Stage outcome: field measurements and field sketches for every feature on the plot.
| Survey area | 2.5 ha |
| Scale and contour interval | 1:500, 0.5 m |
| Grounds for justification | by satellite method |
| Underground utility survey | 2.5 ha |
| Coordinate system | Moskovskaya |
| Manholes inspected | water supply, foul drainage, district heating, telecommunications |
We adjust the measurements, build a digital terrain model and draft a 1:500 scale plan with 0.5 m contour intervals. We plot all utilities with labels and show urban planning regulation lines and plot boundaries on the plan.
We deliver the plan in DWG and PDF formats — ready for the designer to use immediately.
Stage outcome: 1:500 engineering topographic plan in DWG and PDF.
For design and expert review, plotting utilities from visible manhole covers is not enough: the completeness and accuracy of plotted services must be confirmed by their owners. In Moscow, the plan is verified against the Consolidated Plan of Underground Utilities at Mosgorgeotrest; in the Moscow Region, we obtain sign-offs from the water utility, gas utility, power grid companies and telecoms operators.
In Moscow, verification with Mosgorgeotrest takes from 14 days; in the Moscow Region, approvals from utility owners typically take from 30 days. We obtain all approvals ourselves — the client does not need to visit utility operators.
Stage outcome: a plan with verified utility completeness — ready for designing utility connections.
We compile the technical report: methodology, accuracy, coordinate catalogues, control network diagrams and the plan. We register the report in the state information system: in Moscow — in the city's GISOGD; in the region — in the GISOGD of the Moscow Region, archives and with utility owners.
Without official registration, the report will not be accepted for expert review.
Stage outcome: registered technical report for design and expert review.
The report is the primary deliverable of the surveys: it forms the basis for design and is checked during expert review. Browse our report for a non-residential building on Narvskaya Street in Moscow. It includes:
Survey deliverables: technical report and plan in electronic format, registered in the Moscow GISOGD or Moscow Region GISOGD.
55 sheets of this report. Client details, signatures and stamps have been redacted.
If the expert reviewer raises questions about the topographic survey, forward them to us — we will respond and revise the report if necessary.
Contract prices for topographic surveys on completed projects. Projects with photos feature a detailed breakdown of the work on a dedicated page.
Kartmazovo, Moscow
1:500 topographic plan — 1.3 ha, registration in the GISOGD of Moscow
More about the project →
Podolsk, M-2 Crimea Highway, km 31
1:500 topographic plan — 17.2 ha and 5.1 ha along the route
More about the project →
Ramensky District, Khripan
1:500 topographic plan — site and line approach corridors, 6 ha
More about the project →
Moscow, 2 Bibirevskaya Street, Bldg. 4
1:500 topographic plan — 2.5 ha
More about the project →
Noginsk, 5 Soedinitelnaya Street
1:500 topographic plan — 1.6 ha
More about the project →
Istra, Oktyabrskoy Fabriki, 17
1:500 topographic plan — 1.2 ha
More about the project →
Moskovsky, Solnechnaya Street area
1:500 topographic plan — 0.94 ha
More about the project →
Podolsk, 31 Pravdy Street
1:500 topographic plan — 0.8 ha
More about the project →
Odintsovo District, Busharino Estate
1:500 topographic plan — 0.5 ha, registration in the GISOGD of the Moscow Region
More about the project →
Moscow, 21 Narvskaya Street, Building 11
1:500 topographic plan — 2.5 ha, utility verification against the Consolidated Plan of Underground Utilities
More about the project →
Pavlovsky Posad District, M-12
1.98 km route, 40 m corridor — 11.3 ha
More about the project →
Vladimir, Frunze Square — Ladoga–Lunevo
13-station control network, utilities along a 3.5 km route
More about the project →
Beshpeltir, Tsentralnaya Street
1:500 topographic plan — 0.65 ha
More about the project →
Bugrino, Kolguyev Island
1:500 topographic plan — two plots, 1.25 ha
More about the project →
Moscow, 2nd Yuzhnoportovy Proyezd, 26A
1:500 topographic plan — 1.38 ha
More about the project →These are just some of our projects — we carry out work on 40–50 sites every year.
Enter the survey parameters — the calculator will show an indicative the cost according to our rates. We will confirm the final price in our quotation once we have reviewed the site boundaries and technical brief.
A topographic survey provides the site plan itself. Topographic surveys as an engineering discipline comprise the plan plus utility approvals from underground network owners, a technical report and registration in the state information system. A project subject to expert review requires full topographic surveys; for a private house or landscaping, a topographic plan is usually sufficient.
In Moscow practice, a 1:500 engineering topographic plan for design is commonly called a 'geopodosnova' (topographic base plan). We carry out the survey, agree utility records with asset owners and register the plan in the GISOGD of Moscow or the Moscow Region.
For building and site design — 1:500 with 0.5 m contour intervals. This is the standard for expert review. For large sites and linear routes, 1:1000 or 1:2000 is sometimes used — the scale is specified in the technical brief.
To ensure the design does not clash with live pipes and cables. Utility owners confirm that all their services are plotted on the plan and plotted accurately. Without this, the plan will not be accepted for utility design or expert review.
This is the submission of survey results to the State Information System for Urban Development (GISOGD) — the city GISOGD in Moscow, and the regional GISOGD MO in the Moscow Region. Once registered, the report can be used for expert review and for obtaining an excavation permit.
Yes, we work all year round. In deep snow, ground elevations are surveyed by probing down to the ground surface, and manholes are dug out.
Cadastral number or survey boundary plan, purpose of works and technical brief, if available. If there is no technical brief, we will prepare it ourselves.
Under SP 47.13330.2016 (Cl. 5.1.20), the validity period of an engineering topographic plan is generally no more than 2 years, subject to confirmation that the information shown remains current. If the terrain has changed, the plan is updated; if changes to features and relief exceed 35%, the survey is repeated from scratch. Plans surveyed with snow cover exceeding 20 cm must be updated during a favourable season. Send us your old plan — we will check whether it can be updated or if a new survey is required.
If you do not have a technical brief, describe the project: site location, planned construction, and whether a design exists. We will reply with a scope of work and cost.
