A machine control model is only as good as the information it is built from. Most delays happen before modelling starts: a superseded drawing, a missing level, or nobody sure which controller is in the machine. This checklist covers what to send so that the first reply you get is a scope, not a list of questions.
1. The current issued drawings
- The latest issued-for-construction set for the work area, with the revision shown on each sheet.
- Any revisions, markups or responses to queries issued since.
- CAD files as well as PDFs, if the designer will release them. PDFs alone can sometimes work. Send what you have and we will confirm at review.
- Tell us which drawing wins if two disagree. If you do not know, say so and we will raise it as a query.
2. Levels and surfaces
- Design levels: finished surface levels, contours, long sections and cross sections, pavement and subgrade depths.
- Existing levels, if cut and fill or staging depends on them: a feature and level survey or a digital surface.
- The layer you want the machine to work to. Finished surface, subgrade and bulk earthworks level are three different models.
3. The limits of the work
- A marked-up plan showing the area to be modelled, and anything inside it to leave out.
- Stages, if the job will be built in parts and you want the model issued the same way.
- Tie-ins: where the new work meets existing kerb, pavement or structures.
4. Coordinates and site control
- The coordinate system and height datum the drawings are in.
- The site control or survey marks the machine or rover will be set up from, with their coordinates.
- Whether a site calibration (localisation) has been done and by whom, and the calibration file if there is one.
5. The machine and its system
- The machine type: excavator, dozer, grader or other.
- The machine control platform: Trimble or Topcon.
- The controller and software version, read off the screen in the cab if you can.
- Any export requirement your hirer or surveyor has given you. If you are not sure what file type the machine needs, send the three details above and we will confirm it with you before building.
6. How and when it will be used
- What the machine is doing with it: bulk earthworks, trimming, trenching, pavement layers.
- Who loads the file on site and who to contact with queries.
- The date you need it on site. Timing is agreed once the information has been reviewed.
What comes back
After reviewing what you send, we confirm the scope: what will be modelled, the outputs, and any queries. The issued package covers surfaces and linework for the defined area, the agreed export files, and a note of the source drawings, assumptions and open queries.
If something is missing
Send what you have. A gap found at review costs an email. The same gap found with the machine on grade costs a shift. We list what is missing and what we would assume, and you decide before any modelling starts.
Ready to send a job? Use the quote form and attach the drawings, or read more about our machine control models. For drainage, sewer and road-boxing work, see what a GPS data package can show your site crew.