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Introduction to Documentation of Quantities in Roads

Overview

Gemini Terrain has customized functions for quantity calculation of roads. In Gemini Terrain, we distinguish between road design and mass monitoring and documentation in connection with road construction. This is reflected in two methods in the SFI model: road parameters (parametric method) and road parameters (manual method). We use the parametric method when designing roads as described in the design chapter. Roads designed with the parametric method in Gemini Terrain can be converted to the manual method afterward.

The manual method supports the contractor's need to calculate completed quantities to be reported continuously (monthly). A designed road project (VIPS) imported into Gemini Terrain today contains cross-sections with designed terrain layers (soil, rock, etc.) and designed road body, as well as input data (road parameters).

Because contractors always want to calculate masses as accurately as possible, the terrain is re-surveyed by the contractors themselves. Both the road, substructure, and superstructure can change significantly when the terrain changes. Examples of layers and surfaces that change when the terrain is re-surveyed:

  • Cut and fill surfaces
  • Rock shelf surfaces
  • Ditch surfaces
  • Superstructure layers due to different superstructure over rock and soil
  • Deep blasting layer
  • Topsoil, vegetation, and mass replacement layers

In Gemini Terrain, we can rebuild the road body based on the newly measured terrain and the road parameters.

Another issue is that contractors often receive instructions by phone from the client regarding changes to surfaces in the road, for example, surface 1.02 should be extended by 0.5 meters, surface 2.02 should be removed, etc. We solve this in Gemini Terrain by editing the surface descriptions for the relevant profile intervals.

Typical Workflow for Road Projects

  1. Receive VIPS project for the section
  2. Start profiling (surveying) of virgin "surface"
  3. Import VIPS project (incl. VIPS terrain/rock)
  4. Run a rough calculation of different masses based on designed data and VIPS terrain/rock. This serves both as a check of contract quantities and for operational purposes
  5. Import profiled data
  6. Then enter rock profiling as the job progresses, and run continuous calculation of actual quantities

For documentation of masses in road projects, we use the cross-section method. This is described in detail in the section Cross-Section Method.

See also the Examples collection for implementation: Task 5.6 - Document quantities in road