The modern city is a maze of streets and alleys, buildings and barriers. As complicated as cities are at first glance, however, the situation below ground could be even more confusing: power, telephone and fibre optic cables compete for space with water and gas mains, wastewater drains and sewer pipes. Complicating the problem further, new utilities are constantly being installed and existing services relocated, with layers of utilities both in and out of use dating back so far as the 19th century.
For https://surveyingserviceslondon.co.uk/best-utility-surveyors-london/ , encountering buried utilities during excavation can result, at best, in costly delays and financial or other penalties where services are disrupted; at worst, this scenario carries the risk of the problems for workers or even death.
Before contractors commence excavation on a niche site, it is therefore vital that they make every effort to detect and locate all buried utilities apt to be suffering from planned excavation or construction activities. In the first instance, this is likely to involve contacting a "before you dig" service. These services collate information from utility companies regarding the location of buried utilities and pass these data on - usually for a fee - to excavating contractors.
While utility tracking services offer an essential first filter for contractors, they are not infallible: maps may be incomplete or inaccurate; utilities may have been added, removed or relocated without that information being passed on. For this reason, it is best for excavating contractors to activate the services of suitably qualified, experienced and equipped utility surveyors and a utility mapping service.
Using modern methods and technology such as electromagnetic detectors, radiodetection and ground penetrating radar systems (GPRS), it is possible to locate accurately an array of buried utilities including both metallic and non-metallic pipes and cables. These utilities may then be mapped using a combination of traditional survey techniques, GPS and geographical information systems (GIS) software.