Some tasks are just better off being completed by technology instead of people.

When it comes to checking and "crunching" numbers, technology has proven to be a boon to the professional disciplines involved in the land development process.

As much as some people would like to ignore this truth, the greatest software technology in the world still requires knowledgeable design and operation by people who understand both the technology and the intent of the tasks being performed.


The Typical Process - Over Simplified
Mr. Developer has a parcel that he wants to develop. One of his first moves is to consult a surveyor. Among other areas of expertise, the surveyor provides the developer with precise boundaries and property characteristics. These locations are represented by a variety of numbers.

The surveyor, in turn, delivers these numbers via an electronic file or hard copy to the developer, engineer, planner, or architect to create a designed layout of the parcel. Oftentimes, the surveyor is entrusted to once again validate the design and collect additional numbers. Even new surveying technology, whether it is GPS or laser mapping, is based upon mathematical equations and numerical relationships.

The next step is usually a personal review by the surveyor and/or engineer to make sure everything "looks good." The surveyor stamps the survey with his seal, assuming virtually all liability, and then the design phase is almost immediately transitioned into the construction phase.


Smooth Seamless Process
For those who have been through that scenario more than a few dozen times, how often does that process happen and everything fits together perfectly - with no changes between the original survey, design, and the initiation of construction? From what I have seen and heard, virtually never.

In most development projects, numerous changes are made to various iterations either on paper, in the field, or in an office - before, during, and after the survey and design!

So, in a real situation, who is at fault?

Usually everyone involved has a finger pointing in his/her direction.

First, let's look at why the changes are made in the first place. In the majority of instances, changes are made because something does not fit, does not meet a certain requirement, or can be altered for a more advantageous design.

Similar to Newton's Third Law of Motion: for every action there is a reaction. When one change is made in a design, at least two are actually made. If one lot is increased, another is decreased. If the width of a street or utility right-of-way is increased just one foot, there is a ripple effect along the entire path, including a multiple effect on that corner lot that has now been reduced below the minimum lot size.

The popular surveying and drafting tools, when operated by a competent professional, are excellent at determining and representing the exact points on a drawing or plat design. However, the task of reviewing and deciphering all of the ramifications of the thousands of numerical data has often fallen to one or two individuals.


A New Player
Licensed surveyor David Lucas has been calculating subdivisions for decades. But now, instead of validating his own work, his company, Automated Platting, is validating over 30,000 lots each year.

Started in 1998, Automated Platting (AP) utilizes software products that it has been developing and perfecting over the past seven years to help developers, home builders, engineers, surveyors, and planners to proceed faster on their projects with the knowledge and secure feeling that their plats are numerically correct and will meet all required standards.

"When AutoCAD came along," explains Nick Warinner, vice president with AP, "the ability to manipulate and alter the base file ruined the security and perpetual accuracy of the design." Mike Young, vice president of land development with Wood Patel and Associates (WPA) in Mesa, AZ, has been partnering with AP for six years.

"We are a 150-employee general engineering firm with a main focus on planned communities," explains Young, "and we quickly realized that we weren't going to waste billable hours on something that can be done more efficiently and accurately - it is a bottom-line issue for us."

WPA, which designs communities ranging from 3,000 to 30,000 acres in Arizona, appreciates the security of knowing that the lot analysis and math components all fit within the wide variety of variables that are present on each project.

"What is really nice is that - as a licensed surveyor - Dave and his staff know the  issues that we deal with. In fact," relates Young, "AP conducts an extensive 'constraints review' at the onset of every project. They have a standardized form that they work through with us to discuss and identify easements, retention, road widths, zoning, setbacks, etc - all of the variables that make a plat design very complicated and difficult to reconcile."

"AP is an integrated team partner with us on our projects," concluded Young. "We've had rush jobs and standard jobs. They have always met or exceeded expectations. They are proactive on scheduling, which in our business is as valuable as anything else."

Currently, Automated Platting offers base file creation and validation services, all files include geometrical analysis of lot depths, widths, and areas; centerline and right-ofway validation; multiple annotation sets; automated polylines; automated error of closures; area reports; and, fast turnaround.

"The subdivision base file is so important to the engineering process that firms are not openly seeking or generally willing to outsource the cornerstone of their efforts and liability," reveals Warinner.

"Therefore, it takes either the confident freethinker of a firm to explore the benefits of Automated Platting or someone who is feeling the wrath of internal mistakes and unmanageable quality controls. The initiating person is different from firm to firm and might be a surveyor concerned with recording good plats, a land planner who has come to appreciate our lot yields and reporting features, or an engineering project manager who is looking for a competitive edge in scheduling and budget."

"Sometimes it is the developer who has come to appreciate an accelerated schedule, increased design flexibility, lot yields, and lack of surprises when working with Automated Platting. Automated Platting addresses the many facets and needs of any firm that utilizes our services while being a relatively new concept for the habits of most firms' approach to land development," concludes Warinner.

CMX, which is headquartered in Phoenix and employs 240 professionals out of three offices, provides civil engineering, construction management, land planning, survey, and sports facility consultation with a land development emphasis on master-planned residential communities.

"Initially, we tested the service," admits Troy Peterson, a principal with CMX. "In an effort to check the accuracy, we pulled a sample and checked it internally using our people like we always had done and also sent the file to Automated Platting. We quickly got to that level of confidence and realized we needed to utilize this service."

In addition, it is a painless process.

"We send our AutoCAD files, they apply their software tools and then we receive an AutoCAD file back - complete with highlights and marks. Then, we make changes based upon what they found and we often send them back to AP for final review," continues Peterson.

"Before we started using Automated Platting, we had the ability to check all of the lots in a subdivision for errors and correctness internally. But, with the software they created it is much quicker," explains Peterson. "On average, our land development projects include 1,000-2,000 lots. As busy as we are, tasks were already waiting so relieving our people of this task was not only faster and more efficient, it allowed us to accomplish work on more projects."

Time and efficiency are important, but accuracy is the real benefit.

"They provide us with absolutely correct math closure, zoning requirements, and street geometry," relates Peterson. "We can begin the construction phase with absolute confidence in the design."

Automated Platting services vary as widely as the type of projects that are out there says Warinner. "Basically, we can provide assistance to anyone as long as they have a closed boundary in either AutoCAD or MicroStation (version 8 or above)." SLDT