Documents for your ordnance enquiry

State the place, street and, where available, cadastral district and land parcel. Mark the actual construction area on the attached plan. Distinguish property boundaries, excavation, utility trench and other working areas so that the enquiry does not inadvertently concern the wrong area. For several parcels, also state whether work concerns a continuous area or separate sub-areas. One address may describe several buildings, yards or access routes. A single map point therefore does not unambiguously define the investigation area. Draw the boundaries of each working area and use the same identifiers in the accompanying message. If neighbouring areas are needed for access or site facilities, separately identify whether ground interventions are also intended there. Ownership boundaries and work boundaries serve different functions.

Describe the work clearly and include existing sections. Always state the reference for depths, such as existing ground level or a specified elevation. Distinguish normal excavation areas and separate deeper points. For an excavation, include intended shoring and anchor work. For utility work, launch, reception or jointing pits may have different depths and dimensions from the connecting trench. For foundations, individual starting points and the intended method are more informative than the future building footprint. Describe the actual groundworks, not only the finished structure. Identify settled methods and options still to be decided separately; they may create different investigation tasks.

Include official statements, historical assessments and earlier investigation reports in full, including maps and appendices. Identify the issuer and date. Mark documents that concern only a sub-area or an earlier construction proposal that has since changed.

Provide available utility plans and information about buildings, paved areas and usable access routes. Photographs may supplement the overview. Identify whether information is verified or still requires coordination with owners, operators or site management. For utility documents, issuer, date and spatial coverage are helpful. A plan information response for part of the area must not inadvertently appear as a complete inventory of the whole project. Also identify known decommissioned utilities and other metal structures. Photographs should show where and when they were taken. An overview of the access route and working area is often more informative than a single detail. Describe current differences from the plan in the enquiry.

State the intended start and sequence as a planning position, not an already confirmed execution date. Identify who can answer design-change questions and coordinate site access. Queries can then be directed to the right contact.

Describe the decision you wish to prepare through the enquiry. Do you need an initial specialist assessment, an already defined investigation method or a review of existing documents? Include available specifications and desired handover formats without assuming services that remain unresolved. Also identify the subsequent recipient of results. Site management may need section-specific plans while a combined report with appendices is to be agreed for the project file. Communicate special data formats or additional report versions before the cost calculation. Include any existing client requirements. Naming a service alone does not define every deliverable. For an unambiguous commission, investigation scope, result documents needed and deployment prerequisites must match.