Custom app development with a digital map at the excavation site
Since April 2021, area information for the excavation site must be available digitally. A printout on paper or a PDF on a phone no longer meets that requirement. That turns the map from a document into a tool: the thing the machine operator looks at before the bucket goes into the ground.
What must be available at the excavation site
The groundworker investigates cables and pipes in the area where digging will take place, and that starts with an excavation notification. The data supplied must be available on site during the work in a digital viewer. Paper and PDF don't meet that requirement, because you can't zoom in on your own position on them and the information doesn't update as you move.
In addition, the notification has a validity of twenty working days. On a job that runs longer, the question on the excavation site itself is not only what lies there, but also whether the information you're looking at is still valid.
Where the location is unclear, it should be pinpointed, in practice with a trial trench. What is found there is the most important observation of the whole day, and precisely that often disappears into a group chat or someone's memory. If reality deviates from the drawing, that should be reported to the Kadaster.
An app doesn't solve the administration. Notifications, deadlines and the file belong in the office, in the CROW 500 software. What the app solves is that the map and the record are where the digging happens, even when there is no signal.
How we build this
The app revolves around two actions: seeing what lies here, and recording what you find. Anything that requires more than a few taps doesn't happen in practice.
The machine operator opens the excavation site where he is standing. The app shows the area information for that location, with his own position on it.
Map data and area information are stored on the device whenever there is a connection, so they remain available on a construction site with no signal.
A trial trench, a cable found or a deviation is recorded with photo and position, at the moment it is seen.
What is recorded on site lands in the file for the excavation site, so the site manager and the client have the same picture.
What the app does in practice
The map with your own position carries the whole thing. The rest depends on the type of work and on whether you work with your own crews or with subcontractors.
Map with your own position
The area information with your location on it. Zoom in on the part where the bucket goes in, instead of orienting yourself with a sheet of paper.
Available without coverage
Map data is stored locally on the device. In an excavation pit, behind a noise barrier or in a tunnel, the app works just the same.
Validity shown on the map
The location shows until when the notification runs. Anyone wanting to start on an expired notification sees that before they begin.
Recording trial trenches
Position, depth, what was found and a photo. The observation belongs to the location, not to the person who happened to see it.
Reporting a deviation
If it differs from the drawing, the machine operator records that with an image and position, and it proceeds to the notification to the Kadaster.
One image for the crew
What one person records, the other sees. The second shift does not need to search again for what was already found that morning.
Who we build for
Who uses the app depends on the project. Four situations.
Machine operators and groundworkers
They need the map at the moment itself, with gloves on and in the sun. That places demands on contrast and on the number of steps required.
Site managers and work planners
They want to see what has been recorded on site without having to phone for it, and whether work is still being carried out under a valid notification.
Inspectors and supervisors
They visit at a time when the work is already underway and want to be able to check what was investigated before the ground was opened.
Subcontractors
Those working for several main contractors want to see the right information per location, not the entire project archive.
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Map formats and notification forms change, and the requirements for what must be available on site have been tightened in recent years. Map layers, input fields and alerts should be configurable and not hard-coded into the app.
Why Appfront
A PDF is not a viewer
On site, the information must be digital and usable. Being able to zoom in on your own position is precisely why paper no longer suffices there.
No signal is the norm here
Construction sites, tunnels and rural areas are exactly where you need the map. The app works there without a connection.
The observation belongs to the place
A trial trench without a position is just a story. We record where it was seen, when, and with the image attached.
We don't dig
What is careful in a specific case is determined by your expertise. We ensure the information is there and that what you see is recorded.
Security and privacy
Information about the location of cables and pipes should not circulate widely. We set access by role and by location, give a subcontractor only the area where they work, and log viewing. What is stored locally on the device is encrypted and can be wiped remotely if a phone is lost.
For this subject, the reliability of the moment is the key point. A photo of a trial trench without position and time proves nothing about the place where damage later occurred. We record observations in an unalterable way with time, place and person, even when synchronisation takes place later, and any correction is made as a visible correction. How we handle security ourselves is described in our information security policy.
Frequently asked questions about the map on site
Since April 2021, area information must be available digitally at the excavation location. A paper version or a PDF does not meet that requirement, because you cannot zoom in on your own position on it.
Yes. Map data and area information are loaded onto the device in advance and remain available without coverage. Observations sync as soon as the connection returns.
That depends on the device and the environment. We therefore always show the accuracy alongside a reading, so that an observation never appears more precise than it is. For work where that is not enough, we integrate with external equipment.
It is recorded with position and image and prepared for notification to the Kadaster. The app does not send the notification itself; that remains an action for the organisation.
Yes. The location shows until when the notification runs, with a signal before that limit comes into view. That is the mistake that is easiest to prevent.
We build that side separately. Notifications, deadlines and the site file are covered on our page about CROW 500 software.
Does your machine operator check a map or a sheet of paper?
Walk through a job and ask how someone checks what lies beneath their bucket. If the answer is a printout from the cab, that no longer meets what must be available on site. We build this as a standalone app and as part of a wider custom app development project.