Surveying and Geomatics Engineering
Under the surveying and geomatics engineering subsector, we offer a comprehensive suite of services, including but not limited to;
- Bathymetric surveying,
- Hydrographic surveying,
- Hydroacoustic surveying,
- Cadastral and land surveying,
- Marine surveying,
- Topographical surveying,
- Hydrological and meteorological surveying,
- Surveying tools and equipment.
Bathymetric Surveying.
Bathymetric surveying is the measurement of depth of water bodies, used for purposes as;
- Pre dredge and dredge monitoring,
- Navigation,
- Pipe laying,
- Mapping sediment thickness,
- Seabed mapping.
We offer bathymetric surveying to clients, providing the following benefits;
- Port and harbour management: Bathymetry surveys help facilitate safe navigation and efficient port operations by mapping underwater channels to detect submerged objects and ensure optimal water depth for vessel passage,
- Pipeline and cable routing: Bathymetric surveying aids in the planning and installation of underwater pipelines and cables by providing accurate mapping of seabed conditions, identifying suitable routes and ensuring the protection of existing infrastructure.
Through high-precision bathymetric surveys, we amass data in all water environments, using techniques that provide highly detailed models for shoreline erosion monitoring, mapping of deposits on seabeds, rocky outcrops identification, volume calculations, and for dredging and underwater construction monitoring and surveillance work, and much more.
Hydrographic Surveying
Hydrography is the science that deals with all measurements and descriptions of the physical features of bodies of water and their littoral land areas. Hydrographic surveys support a variety of activities such as port and harbour maintenance (dredging), coastal engineering (beach erosion and replenishment studies), coastal zone management, and offshore resource development. Hydrographic surveys are generally aimed at planning and development of landing sites and docking bays, aimed at establishing depth of water source, and presence or absence of any submerged obstacles.
In broad terms hydrographic surveys would include all underwater surveys encompassing all navigational, pipeline routing and sub marine cable installation and dredging surveys. Our experts use the latest advanced technologies to offer hydrographic surveying services for projects in sediment mapping, pipeline inspection, post dredge surveying, and development of jetties.
Hydroacoustic Surveying
Hydroacoustic surveying is generally undertaken on water bodies as fresh water lakes for purposes of fish stock assessment. Hydroacoustics can rapidly survey extensive lengths of rivers or lakes, enabling stock assessment of fish at the community level. The surveys are conducted at night, since fish are more evenly distributed throughout the water column during hours of darkness, therefore more easily surveyed when compared to daytime surveys.
We undertake hydroacoustic surveys, enabling the determination and explaining quantities and distribution of various fish groups in a water body of interest.
Cadastral and Land Surveying
Our cadastral surveying package includes services such as general land administration, land titling, boundary opening, area verification (acreage), land subdivision, transfer of titles, title processing, and real estate development.
Our land surveyors and GIS experts leverage advanced technologies and time-tested methods to collect, analyze, and interpret survey data for unparalleled accuracy, completeness, and reliability.
Marine Surveying
Marine surveying includes inspections, surveys or examinations of marine vessels to assess, monitor, and report on their condition and the products on them, as well as inspections of damage caused to both vessels and cargo. A marine survey is essential for determining what repairs or upgrades are required so a vessel might operate under safe conditions at sea. Marine surveys ensure that all systems onboard vessels run smoothly, so there are no accidents, loss of life or property at sea. They also help to know the actual value of a boat or vessel.
It covers different types of marine survey and marine consultancy assignments, including hull damage, explosions, fire, pollution, sinkings, salvage and bunker disputes. Collisions, cargo disputes, crew injury, and machinery failure are also covered. It is required that marine surveys be conducted throughout the ship’s life (building new ship, annual survey, interim survey, special survey) to ensure standards are maintained. It is also a requirement by domestic statutes and international conventions by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), that regular ship inspections are undertaken.
Our marine surveyors conduct inspections of vessels of all types, including commercial vessels, cargo vessels, passenger vessels, barges, tugboats, warships, ferries and pleasure yachts that are under 20 metres, all the way up to tankers measuring over 200 metres. They also inspect marine cargo and facilities like drydocks, canals, docks and oil rigs for pre-purchase evaluation, insurance claim resolution, regulation compliance and marking insurance eligibility. The different types of surveys undertaken by our marine surveyors include marine warranty surveys, charter surveys, offshore structural surveys, cargo surveys, and hull and equipment surveys.
We possess a unique combination of expertise in specialized marine equipment and surveying with marine science disciplines. Our team of dedicated professionals strives to provide exceptional innovative solutions and latest technology to the marine surveying industry. From concept to delivery and every stage in between, we provide clients with reliable, efficient, and cost-effective survey solutions.
Topographical Surveying
Topographical surveys are used to survey underground and top of land, obtain general details of built environment (i.e. underground and on top), determine the terrain/landscape of area under study, contouring, and generation of profiles, all aimed at understanding the general terrain of the area. We as well undertake drone topographic surveys, lidar drone surveys, and aerial surveys.
Engineering surveying.
Engineering surveying does apply in planning and development of engineering projects, such as road construction, building construction, etc. It involves earthwork surveys, aimed at guiding subsequent activities such as grading, bush clearing, laying road sub base, and levelling.
In building construction, engineering surveys are key to guide levelling of building foundations, obtaining levels of columns, and guiding the levelling and laying of struts and ties.
Powerline surveying.
Powerline surveys can be topographical surveys, aimed at mapping out pipeline routes during electrification i.e. power transmission and distribution. They include surveying of the powerline corridors, preliminary surveys, boundary opening, and levelling.
Hydrological and Meteorological Surveying
Hydrological surveying, mainly surface water hydrological surveys are undertaken for projects that involve abstraction of water from surface water sources as rivers as well as groundwater. It is aimed at documenting the inflow, route, and outflow of rivers. The objectives of hydrological surveys may include defining flood magnitudes for given return periods. On the other hand, meteorological surveying mainly relates to studies in weather conditions and changes to the earth’s atmosphere.
Our work around hydrology and meteorology studies borders on the installation of weather and hydrological instrumentation, to aid in real time data capture of weather events, and other parameters.
This includes installation of systems and equipment as;
- Automatic weather stations (AWS),
- Weather radars,
- Dry deposition monitoring stations,
- Hydrometric networks,
- River flood forecasting systems,
- Flash flood alert systems,
- River gauge stations,
- Piezometric monitoring wells,
- Telemetric water level monitoring stations.
Data obtained from hydrometric networks is used for;
- Preparation of surface water hydrological assessments,
- Drought monitoring and forecasting,
- Design and optimization of dykes, polders, aqueducts, and flood structures,
- River basin planning and watershed management,
- Environmental flow studies,
- Preparation of surface water management plans.
Surveying Tools and Equipment
- Underwater remotely operated vehicles (ROV),
- Side scan sonars,
- Single beam echosounders,
- Multibeam echosounders,
- Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV),
- Surveying drones,
- Mobile lidars and UAV lidars,
- Real time kinematic survey equipment (RTK),
- Optical total stations,
- Theodolites,
- Dumpy levels,
- Differential global positioning systems (GPS handsets),
- Acoustic Doppler profiling systems (ADCP),
- Submersible cameras,
- Unmanned surface vehicles (USV),
- Laser scanners,
- Global navigation satellite (GNSS),
- Digital auto levels,
- Survey boats,
- Terrestrial scanners,
- Tide gauges,
- Sound velocity profilers,
- Sub bottom profilers,
- Relocation strobes,
- Gyro compasses,
- Current meters,
- Underwater cameras,
- Hydrophones,
- Profiling floats,
- Acoustic pingers,
- Autonomous underwater vehicles (AUV),
- Laser distance meters,
- Diver held sonars.