A Total Station

Total Station
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Total Station
A Total Station refers to a digital theodolite that is used to integrate the angle-measuring equipment with an electronic distance measurement (EDM). The instrument is vital in the construction industry since it helps in creating building information modeling (BIM) layouts, surveying, measuring slant distances, vertical and horizontal elevations, and geodetic and topographic works. In particular, a Total Station measures horizontal and vertical angles and sloping distance of specific points at the construction site. The data is recorded to a computer and used to perform triangulation calculations. The surveyed points are relative to the position of the Total Station and are calculated using triangulation and trigonometry. The paper focuses on the use of a Total Station and how it helps in developing building layouts.
A Total Station is used to develop a building layout by using discrete points. The instrument increases accuracy and productivity by simplifying the building and construction process. The time spent in creating a construction layout is reduced when survey engineers apply a Total Station. When a contractor or surveyor gathers the correct data from the construction site using the Total Station, the person uses it to create building designs. The data is uploaded from BIM models to help develop a building layout. The use of Total Stations in engineering and surveying began about four decades ago. Currently, the instrument has become very vital in the construction sector. In particular, efficient planning and the creation of a building layout from the construction site is critical to the success of any project. Survey engineers are responsible for guiding builders by creating safe, accurate, cost, and time-efficient building designs after taking accurate measurements using a Total Station (Sestras, 2021). When collecting data from the construction site, surveyors should be careful and take their time to process data to minimize errors that might affect the accuracy of a building layout. A Total Station is the best choice of instrument for construction surveying and developing layout projects. Survey engineers are expected to record horizontal and vertical distances and angles and perform calculations from the Cartesian coordinates of designed buildings and geodetical points. Total Stations can process the above values with high precision to ensure that builders have a perfect building design.
Total Stations are crucial instruments that facilitate the process of creating a BIM or a building layout. They are perceived as the surveyor's right hand, yield precise observations, and provide pinpoint accuracy to enhance the process of creating reliable and efficient building layouts based on the construction site reference points. Indeed, creating a construction layout is one of the most significant objectives of a survey engineer. The primary purpose is to ensure that the design geometries of a specific structure satisfy the project accuracies. Total Stations comprise in-built programs called "Layout" or "Stake-out" (Sestras, 2021). A survey engineer can enter coordinates manually or select them fro...