Site Grading
ARCG112 - Surveying in Architecture
2019/20
Dr. João Pinelo Silva & Ms. Sónia Lamela
University of Bahrain | College of Engineering | Department of Architecture and Interior Design
BSc. In Architecture Program 2016/2017 | Semester I | ARCG 112 | Surveying in Architecture
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Summary
Introduction to Course Syllabus
- Course Goals and Objectives
- Text books and references
- Site Grading
- What is site grading
- Purpose of site grading
- What you need to know about site grading
- Site Grading in the Design process
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Course Objectives
1. To impart a general understanding of site grading within the
design process.
2. To impart a general understanding of site grading and
surveying as an essential pre-design activity to generate
measured information of sites and buildings.
3. To introduce the concepts of different types of surveying
particularly Land Surveying and Building Surveying
4. To equip the students with the ability to read and interpret
contour maps, including measuring slope.
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Course Objectives
5. To equip the student with the ability to alter contour maps as a
way to design the terrain around buildings – site grading.
6. To impart the ability to produce terrain profiles.
7. To impart the ability to create watershed basins for buildings
and courtyards.
8. To impart the ability of pre-calculating drainage needs based
on watershed areas.
9. To impart the ability to use the placement of vegetation as
wind and noise barrier.
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Text Books
• Sharky, Bruce G., Landscape Site Grading Principles, Grading with
design in mind, Wiley, New Jersey, 2015.
• William Irvine. Surveying for Construction, Mc-Graw Hill.
References
• Beer, Anne R., Higgins, Catherine, Environmental Planning for Site
Design, Second Edition, Taylor and Francis, 1998, New York.
• Lan Van Sickle, GPS for Land Surveyors, CRC.
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Site Grading
What is site grading? What is its purpose?
1. Grading is a process for reshaping the topography of
an existing site to accommodate program uses (such
as a sports field or parking lot) and built structures
(such as a residence, a school building, trails, or
roads).
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Site Grading
What is site grading? What is its purpose?
2. Grading is necessary to redirect surface water flow
away from areas where the water is not desirable.
Surface water can also be collected for some purposes,
such as irrigation; allowed to infiltrate into the
underground aquifer; or, as is more common, directed
to a stormwater system.
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Site Grading
What is site grading? What is its purpose?
3. Grading and the creation of landforms can be
employed to achieve an aesthetic goal and to help
shape and create outdoor spaces as part of a complete
design scheme. Such design might include plantings,
walls, water features, and hardscape.
Grading on sloping topography has
provided visually attractive and informal
seating for an outdoor amphitheater.
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Site Grading
What is site grading? What is its purpose?
4. Grading and the creating of landforms can achieve
specific purposes such as water conservation and
management or access control and site security.
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Site Grading
What do you need to know about site grading?
1. Be familiar with drafting conventions and the use of
architectural and engineering scales.
2. Be able to read topographic maps and be able to
identify landform features such as hills, valleys steep
and not-to-steep terrain, and drainage patterns.
3. Be able to visualize three-dimensional landscape from
contours given on a topographic map or map prepared
Aerial view of a Southern California
by a land surveyor. outlining watershed and sub-
watersheds units
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Site Grading
What do you need to know about site grading?
4. Be able to create a land surface, path, or built program
feature that has a prescribed or intentional slope.
5. Be able to manipulate (change or modify) contours to
create desired landforms and sloping surfaces. Also,
be able to shape contours so as to direct the flow of
surface water in the direction you want, such as away
from the entrance of a building.
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Site Grading
What do you need to know about site grading?
6. Be able to assign spot elevations in plan and on
sections.
7. Be able to calculate the volume of earth moved within a
project site and determine the amount of earth or other
soil or rock material that needs to be transported to or
off the project site.
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Site Grading
What do you need to know about site grading?
8. Be able to prepare (draw) grading plans following
graphic conventions so that the contractor knows what
to build. The grading plans must be of sufficient detail,
and of course accuracy, that the contractor can prepare
with confidence a cost estimate for doing the required
work as depicted in the drawings and other contract
documents.
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Site Grading
What do you need to know about site grading?
9. Be knowledgeable about and understand various and
pertinent design standards and legal requirements
associated with grading. This knowledge base may
include functional design requirements of minimum and
maximum slope for different program elements such as
recreation fields, parking and circulation, and handicap
access (standards for persons with ambulatory and
other physical disabilities).
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Site Grading
What do you need to know about site grading?
10. Be able to develop grading designs that fall within
project budget constraints, while meeting client
program and functional requirements.
11. Be able to prepare grading plans that meet standards
of care related to meeting public health, safety, and
welfare design standards — that is, grading plans that
limit and reduce the chance of public harm such as
physical injury.
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Site grading | Problems that could be avoided
Figure 1 - Pounding of storm Figure 2 - Pounding
water. This is the result of occurred as a result of
either ground settlement or either inadequate
an increase of storm water grading or subsequent
runoff with the installation of ground settlement.
new pavement on adjacent
areas.
Figure 3 - Inadequate design Figure 4 - This steep and
of the water diversion channel poorly maintained
was exacerbated by lack of planted slope has
ground cover maintenance resulted in soil erosion
with highly erosive soil. from the concentration of
water runoff from the
adjacent parking area.
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Site grading | Problems that could be avoided
Figure 5 - Poor sub base Figure 6 - Erosion is seen
installation has resulted in on slope where
paving failure. unplanned foot traffic has
occurred.
Figure 7 - A parking lot in this Figure 8 - With a well-
location should probably designed and executed
have been avoided and grading plan, runoff water
instead placed on higher goes where it was
ground or outside the natural designed to go: towards
flow of surface water. an area catch basin.
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Site Planning and Grading Process
The Design Process
The design process begins with the
client selecting a design firm, such as
an architecture/landscape architecture
firm, and then entering into a
professional service contract with the
company.
The professional services contract
outlines responsibilities, schedule,
deliverables and services, and
compensation.
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Steps of the Design Process
1. Background research
2. Site Analysis
3. Program Analysis
4. Land Use Zones
5. Preliminary Site Design
6. Preliminary Site Grading
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