Technical map view of the Tübingen administrative district showing Tübingen as a location for explosive ordnance assessment and surveying by FONTANA-EOD

Explosive ordnance surveying in Ulm

When will the area be accessible for explosive ordnance investigation, and which works follow it? For your project in Ulm, we coordinate the commissioned investigation with the construction sequence. This includes working areas, on-site prerequisites and the results documents needed by site management and subsequent contractors. Project owners, specialist planners and site managers can enquire about an individual ground disturbance or several construction sections. Whether the task involves urban utility works, an excavation or works near the Danube, the site plan, proposed depths and existing state of knowledge form the basis for specialist coordination.

Access

Consider access roads, working spaces and ongoing operations.

Sequence

Coordinate investigation sections with the next construction works.

Information

Identify completed investigations and outstanding areas.

Discuss the investigation and construction sequenceExplosive ordnance assessment in Baden-Württemberg
Assess the construction project

What must be available before the next construction section in Ulm?

The investigation commission must cover the areas and ground disturbance actually needed. Access, suitable working conditions and results handover are coordinated with the construction sequence. Before the following groundworks, it must be clear which area has been investigated and which tasks remain outstanding.

Project site

Connect the site with the specific construction task

Schematic map of Baden-Württemberg with its coat of arms, alongside a tablet, hard hat, notebook and pen.

Read the two Donaustadion announcements together

The official announcement of 16 June 2026 describes preparation and possible measures depending on the investigation results. On 19 June 2026, the results for the suspected points investigated were announced. The same distinction helps with your own planning: preparation, work in progress and documented completion are made clearly distinguishable.

Ulm is an urban district in Baden-Württemberg in the Tübingen administrative district. The enquiry identifies the specific location: for example, the city centre and historical quarters, Weststadt, Oststadt, Söflingen, Wiblingen, Böfingen or Lehr. Industrial and commercial areas along the Danube also receive a precise location reference. For projects in the surrounding area, such as Neu-Ulm, Blaustein or Senden, the actual municipality and responsibilities applying there are clarified. The Donau-Iller region and Alb-Donau district provide geographical orientation; they do not replace identification of the municipality. For projects spanning different areas of responsibility, the respective contacts and documents are assigned separately. The statewide KMBD responsibility at the Stuttgart regional authority remains distinct from the general regional administrative classification.

Baden-Württemberg
Local context

Aerial warfare in Ulm and geographically limited investigation results

The old town, station and industry in the bombing campaign

The Ulm City Archive describes the heavy air raid of 17 December 1944 and further devastating attacks in February and March 1945. Alongside the historical old town, the station as a transport hub and major industrial plants were central targets. For current projects, such historical findings are related to the specific construction area. In city-centre and reconstructed areas, earlier damage, filled areas and later development may form part of the research questions where evidenced by records, maps or other documents. For industrial and commercial properties, former production, storage and logistics uses are connected to the current ground disturbance. Along railway routes, track areas and underpasses, documented changes in use and ground are considered. Specialist assessment of this information prepares the decision on investigations needed and their spatial scope.

Distinguish preparation from results in time

In their announcement of 16 June 2026, the town and regional authority described the planned investigation at Ulm's Donaustadion and precautions for a possible find. The announcement of 19 June 2026 subsequently reported that no explosive ordnance had been found at the suspected points investigated and that the prepared evacuation was cancelled.

Communicate your project's stage of work clearly

These official announcements relate exclusively to the project at the Donaustadion at that time. They provide no conclusion about other areas in Ulm. In your own project, those involved must likewise be able to identify whether measures are only being prepared, investigation is still in progress or a documented result is available.

Working together

Distinguish the tasks of client, designers and specialist contractor

Client and operator

The project owner describes the proposed work and provides the available project documents. The operator adds requirements for use, access and timing. A coordinating contact makes cooperation easier but does not automatically take on every other party's duties. Before commissioning, record clearly which information is missing, who will obtain it and which decision the result is intended to support.

Planning and construction management

The specialist designers describe areas, depths, construction methods and changes. Site management coordinates the planned sequence with the construction contractors and agreed specialist works. Results are assigned to the respective intervention. A technical plan change is communicated early enough for its effect on the survey task to be assessed before construction. Organisational construction stage boundaries remain distinguishable from technical survey boundaries.

Specialist company and competent bodies

The private explosive ordnance specialist contractor addresses the agreed investigation and documentation scope. Official requirements and decisions are clarified with the respective responsible bodies. The documents needed for a specific procedure depend on the location and project. The technical report describes the specialist work carried out; its conclusions are not presented without review as general permission for further groundworks or as an authority's decision. In Baden-Württemberg, the KMBD at the Stuttgart regional authority is responsible statewide. A required official decision and the commissioned technical investigation are included in the project sequence with their distinct tasks. Those involved record what information the specialist contractor needs and what details are passed to the responsible body.

Investigation task

Which specialist task comes next?

Connect the investigation objective with the method

First describe the question that must be answered before the next ground disturbance. Historical findings, earlier results and local conditions are considered together. A particular instrument or a date already reserved does not predetermine the technically suitable approach. The scope and method selection must suit the specific construction task.

Connect the investigation objective with a suitable specialist service

Carry outstanding restricted areas forward

If an area is not sufficiently accessible or assessable, this remains identifiable in the results. The specialist planner determines what preparation or further investigation is needed. The next work stage considers this prerequisite. A result for a neighbouring area cannot resolve the outstanding question without technical evidence.

Compare investigation methods
Project types

Distinguish preparation, investigation and handover

Illustration: two people review plans and documents at a table beside a construction vehicle.

Describe the task before scheduling

Define the groundworks proposed after the investigation. Besides the main construction area, these include additional trenches, working pits and other ground disturbance. Existing documents are assigned to these areas. Only a traceable commission allows agreement on the prerequisites for the work and which services fit within the proposed period.

Coordinate the sequence and tasks
Two people with a tablet beside a marked construction area; plans lie in the foreground.

Clarify the actual investigation conditions

A free period in the construction programme does not mean that an area is accessible and can be sufficiently investigated. Agree access, working space and known installed structures. Method selection considers these conditions. If individual areas cannot initially be addressed, this is recorded as a separate outstanding task and considered in the subsequent construction sequence.

Compare specialist services
Illustration: two people review plans and documents at a table beside a construction vehicle.

Hand over the scope reached clearly

The next construction task needs results appropriate to it. The report identifies areas investigated, supporting information used and remaining limitations. A general message that a scheduled visit is complete is insufficient. Site management receives documents with the actual scope and can have the next ground disturbance compared with them by specialists.

Document findings and their limitations
Preparation

Prepare the scope and commission together

Establish what needs to be known before commissioning the work

First establish which decision the commission needs to support. Is the task an initial assessment of existing documents, an investigation of a specific area or examination of an anomaly that has already been assessed? These tasks require different evidence. A general wish for safety does not define an investigation that can be carried out. The enquiry therefore specifies the groundworks, location, depth and available findings. Suitable specialist work and the required reporting are then agreed on that basis.

State whether the commission concerns civil engineering and utility works along existing supply routes, building construction with foundations and underground car parks, or development of a former commercial site. Municipal road, sewer and utility works may involve several small working areas with differing access. At Danube bridges and along the banks, the project description also records ramps, access routes, shoring and proposed securing works. Construction near water and additional work in the water are defined with the respective specialist planning required and explicitly agreed. Any technically necessary surface or deep investigation, detection during construction, area clearance or further investigation of findings is determined according to available findings and the construction task. For explosive ordnance recovery or further clearance work, the commission needed is described separately.

Define the specialist task

Coordinate preparatory work with the investigation

Required access and survey conditions are clarified before the site visit. This may include keeping areas clear, obtaining service information and coordinating with other trades. The method and site determine which preparations are actually needed. Changes to the surface or additional groundworks are not undertaken unilaterally simply to prepare for a survey. Their sequence is agreed with the specialist designers and responsible parties.

Clarify preparatory work in the programme

Agree a clear scope and schedule

A sound workflow distinguishes work already clarified technically from outstanding prerequisites. If an area will be accessible only in part, commissioning must take this into account. Handover and assessment of results also need time in the construction sequence. An enquiry therefore does not imply a blanket commitment on dates or cost. Specific coordination connects the described scope with access, documents, execution conditions and the date by which a decision is needed.

Discuss the scope and schedule
Tasks at the site

Working areas, additional ground disturbance and handovers

01

Access and usable working areas

Describe the areas proposed for investigation and actual access options. If operations, traffic or other construction works are affected, the coordination needed should be clear early. Even if a period is free in the programme, the area must actually be accessible and prepared for investigation.

02

Utilities, working pits and shoring points

Besides the main structure, temporary utilities, working pits or shoring points may be proposed. Provide locations and depths for these works too. An investigation result for the main construction area does not automatically apply to other working areas.

03

Hand reports to site management and subsequent trades

Define who receives the documented status and on what basis the next construction task is prepared. A specialist contractor's presence on site does not itself establish which service it completed. Site management must be able to identify which part of the commission was carried out and what limitations apply.

04

Changed working areas and new ground disturbance

If working areas move or new ground disturbance becomes necessary, communicate these changes to the specialists involved. Check which earlier results remain usable for the changed project. Outstanding questions must be clarified before the works affected.

Project documents

Documents that establish the next step

Include preparatory works

A temporary access road or diversion of a utility may also involve its own ground disturbance. Describe these works with their locations and depths. They belong in coordination before the actual investigation or later construction task begins. Taking place earlier does not make their technical prerequisites unnecessary.

The report and plan appendices bring together methods, measurement conditions, specialist assessment and the scope actually addressed. For commissioned clearance works, the clearance record with associated location and results information belongs in the evidence file. Each section handed over identifies the volumes of ground and depths covered by the conclusion. Outstanding areas and limitations are assigned to the respective plan revision. Site management passes these documents to subsequent contractors and has specialists compare differing ground disturbance with them. When construction resumes or contractors change, it thus remains traceable which tasks have been addressed and which steps are still required before the next groundworks.

For tendering and later work preparation, a clearly identified report version is used. Changes are communicated to those involved with the date, affected section and associated plan appendix. The relevant appendices are handed over together so that individual report sections are not accidentally connected to older plans.

Define handovers between contractors

Identify who receives the results and who prepares the next works. If those involved change, the previous investigation scope must remain traceable. Keep outstanding tasks together with their associated plan version. A completed part of the service is then not confused with preparation for all future groundworks.

Construction sequence

Coordinate investigation and construction sections

Show the construction sequence before investigation

Send the site plan, ground disturbance and proposed work sequence. Add access, available working spaces and known limitations. Include existing assessments and reports in full. Together, the parties can define which tasks are to be addressed and which prerequisites still need clarification before the investigation date.

Divide the proposed construction sequence into the work sections actually needed. For each section, state the location, target depth, desired scope of conclusions and next construction task. Include temporary working pits, shoring points, temporary utilities and access roads where they involve their own ground disturbance. Identify which areas remain occupied by ongoing operations or traffic during the investigation. The specialist planner can determine outstanding preparation steps and suitable investigation sections from this. Scheduling then considers execution, analysis and handover of results. If sections are reordered or working areas change, the specialist contractor receives the updated plan before the affected activity. Prerequisites still unresolved are assigned to a responsible contact. Site management and the contractors involved can then coordinate their next steps with the actual stage of work.

Coordinate the construction phase with us

Match the report before subsequent work

Check with the specialist planner whether the result covers the forthcoming ground disturbance. Different areas, additional depths and new preparatory works are shown separately. The further commission is adjusted accordingly. Original results are retained with their scope and continue to provide a traceable basis.

Coordinate the construction phase with us
Method selection

Select methods according to the task and survey conditions

Historical records and aerial photographs

Historical aerial photograph assessment and other old records help place the basis for suspicion in its spatial context. The available images, their evidential value and the limits of the area considered matter. The absence of an identifiable indication must be distinguished from a technically surveyed ground area. The assessment is considered together with the planned intervention and other available findings. It can support the choice of a survey, but is not a measurement of the present-day subsurface or confirmation for all future works.

Understand aerial photograph assessment

Magnetometric survey

Magnetometric methods detect magnetic anomalies. Whether they can address the specific survey task depends, among other things, on the expected objects, ground conditions, interference and required survey area. Fences, utilities or existing structures may affect interpretation. A measurement signal is therefore not described as ordnance solely because of its strength. Method, interpretation and any further investigation are planned as a connected specialist task.

Understand the scope of magnetometry

Electromagnetic methods

Electromagnetic investigations can be suitable for particular metallic targets and site conditions. Their suitability must be explained for the task, rather than inferred simply from the availability of equipment. Interfering installations, accessible areas and the findings required must also be considered. Results are documented with their location and survey conditions. The specialist assessment determines whether a supplementary method is needed; this remains a project-specific decision.

Understand electromagnetic surveying

Ground-penetrating radar

Under suitable conditions, ground-penetrating radar can provide information about subsurface structures and reflections. Ground conditions, moisture, installations and the particular survey task affect interpretability. An anomaly is not automatically ordnance, and an area with no apparent anomalies is not general evidence for arbitrary depths. The specialist interpretation and its limits are documented with the instruction. A survey for another purpose is not adopted without checking as ordnance evidence.

GPR and limitations

Deep-ground and downhole surveys

For deeper groundworks, it may be necessary to establish whether a surface investigation can provide the required findings or another approach is needed. Preparation includes the location, depth, borehole layout and existing services. Creating access for the investigation must also be properly planned by specialists. A general depth figure or standard grid cannot replace that work. Findings remain limited to the areas actually investigated and the method used.

Prepare deep interventions

Survey during construction

If a necessary preliminary investigation cannot be completed, the specialists assess whether a planned approach during construction is suitable. This includes coordinated investigation, interpretation and communication of findings within the intended work sequence. Visual observation of excavated material is not an interchangeable substitute for a necessary survey. Site management needs a clear description of when specialist work will take place, how new findings will be handled and which areas remain unresolved.

Agree the approach during construction
Technical assessment

Documents and investigation scope before construction begins

Reports available and still outstanding

The Historical aerial photograph analysis and earlier investigation reports belong in preparation of the specific commission. An announced report is not yet an available basis for a decision. Identify which results are already available and which specialist contributions remain outstanding in the sequence.

Accessible and assessable areas

For the Surface survey, local conditions and the investigation objective are decisive. If areas are inaccessible or cannot be sufficiently assessed, these limitations must remain visible in further planning. Meeting a date in the programme does not establish an investigation result for every area.

Deep ground disturbance and phased work

Whether a Downhole survey, phased clearance or a task during construction is suitable depends on the specific ground disturbance and conditions. Such services are agreed together with their scope. Visual inspection of excavated material alone does not replace proper specialist explosive ordnance detection.

Next steps

Prepare the next construction works

01

Define the construction section and project enquiry

Describe areas, ground disturbance and the conclusion expected. For initial contact, provide the project address in Ulm or the actual surrounding municipality, the current site plan and the next planned construction task. Specialist planners and site management describe which conclusion is needed before this step. The main construction area, preparatory ground disturbance and areas scheduled later receive distinct spatial references.

02

Check documents and investigation conditions

Clarify access, working spaces and existing information. Existing information, aerial photograph assessments and investigation reports are reviewed with their appendices for revision status, area and depth coverage, and outstanding questions. The specialist contractor compares this with available working spaces and known installations. On this basis, the investigation objective, suitable method and preparation required for each section are defined.

03

Carry out the historical assessment needed

Where historical information is missing, the research or aerial photograph analysis needed is carried out for the named construction section. Available wartime aerial photographs, maps and records are connected to today's location and planned ground disturbance. Evidenced damage, former uses and later ground changes are located spatially. The results inform investigation planning. If existing information already answers the question sufficiently, it can continue to be used.

04

Carry out the investigation and report progress

Identify the service carried out and outstanding tasks clearly. Specialist personnel carry out the agreed investigation using the defined method. Data and findings are recorded with their locations, scope of work and conditions actually achieved. If areas are inaccessible or interpretation is restricted by interference, the stage reached is recorded for assessment. Changes to the proposed work are agreed with those responsible.

05

Assess data and findings for the section

The specialist contractor assesses recorded data and findings according to the investigation question, chosen method and actual conditions. Anomalous signals are interpreted by specialists; a measurement signal alone does not identify a particular object. The assessment distinguishes volumes addressed, remaining limitations and findings needing further clarification. This determines the additions and results documents needed for the next construction section.

06

Hand over the report and clarify changes with specialists

Compare new ground disturbance with existing results. The report and location appendices document the assessed result, volumes addressed and limits of conclusions. Before subsequent work, additional depths, relocated working pits or new utility sections are compared with this status. Any technically necessary additions and further official coordination are clarified before the groundworks affected.

Documentation

Which areas were investigated and what remains outstanding

Findings and their scope

Documentation connects investigations carried out to the associated plan revision. It should identify which areas were addressed, what result was reached and which questions remain outstanding. Interim updates may support coordination but do not replace complete evidence where this is needed for the next step.

Project responsibilities

Official measures for an explosive ordnance find remain separate from private project coordination. The state service supports the responsible authorities and undertakes the duties described for Baden-Württemberg: rendering ordnance safe, transport and destruction. Private planning cannot pre-empt official decisions on danger areas or necessary measures.

Working approach

How FONTANA-EOD works

Document the agreed specialist service clearly

We assess the planned groundworks against the available documents and their design revision. Before attending site, we agree with you what needs to be investigated, which areas are accessible and what findings are required. If the design or site conditions change, we check whether the agreed scope remains appropriate. The report states what was actually investigated and the limits of the findings. This allows designers and site management to see which findings they can use and where questions remain.

Discuss the investigation task

The task before the equipment

We first establish the investigation objective: which question must it answer? We then select a technically suitable method. The availability of a particular device or experience on a similar neighbouring site is not enough to justify the choice of method on its own.

Keep limitations visible

Inaccessible areas and limited conclusions are identified. They do not disappear into a total area figure. Designers and site management can then decide specifically which areas still need attention and when a suitable survey becomes possible.

Clarify changes before intervening in the ground

A new location, additional depth or different construction method is compared with previous results. A familiar project name does not replace this comparison. Feedback is provided before the affected work so that an outstanding question can be included in the sequence.

Hand over the report and plan together

The technical conclusion remains connected to its location references and appendices. A brief summary helps orientation but does not replace the documented survey scope. This basis is retained even if site management or contractors change.

Understand the results

Use technical statements for the next decision

Preparation is not yet a result

Planned measures may be necessary before the investigation is complete. Their announcement alone does not establish the actual finding. Assign interim information to its date and purpose. The later results report describes the scope actually addressed and remains the basis for specialist comparison of the next works.

Understand investigation reports and their limitations

Identify a completed part of the service precisely

Identify the completed section with its spatial reference. Record the task carried out and remaining limitations. These details help site management hand over to subsequent contractors. General terms such as completed leave unclear which groundworks the existing status actually prepares for.

Understand the service scope
Design and findings

Documents for the next construction decision

Illustration: aerial photographs and maps on two screens and printed on a desk.

Historical evidence and the current design

Aerial photograph interpretation is related to the actual groundworks. Its purpose and geographical scope remain distinct from a technical investigation of the ground as it is today.

Understand aerial photograph assessment
Illustration: two people review plans and documents at a table beside a construction vehicle.

Specialist reports for site management

The findings, their locations and limitations are handed over together. This makes clear to those carrying out the work which area has been investigated and which task remains outstanding.

Assess investigation reports
Person wearing an orange high-visibility vest on a marked construction area with small piles of soil
Person wearing an orange high-visibility vest with a MALÅ survey cart on grass
Questions from planning

Questions about investigation and construction organisation in Ulm

Does the Donaustadion result also apply to other areas in Ulm?

No. The official announcements of June 2026 exclusively describe preparation and investigation at the Donaustadion. They establish neither a general conclusion about explosive ordnance contamination in Ulm nor how an investigation on another property will proceed.

Can an investigation take place in several sections?

Phased work may form part of specialist planning. Clearly defined areas, suitable prerequisites and traceable interim or final documents are decisive. Whether a phased approach is suitable must be clarified for the specific project.

Is a verbal message that the specialist contractor has finished sufficient?

Further planning requires clarity about which service has been completed and which areas its conclusion covers. The evidence needed should be agreed beforehand and handed to those responsible. An imprecise completion message does not adequately identify investigation boundaries and outstanding tasks.

Who determines measures for an actual explosive ordnance find?

The responsible authorities and explosive ordnance disposal service assess the find and arrange necessary measures. Private scheduling or site planning does not replace these decisions. Pass the technical results and necessary information to those responsible for your project.

How should employees respond to an unexpected find?

Stop work in the affected area immediately, keep your distance and keep others away. Do not touch, move, further expose or transport the object. Notify the police, calling 110 in an emergency, and follow their instructions. Do not report it through an ordinary project form.

Is a free period in the construction programme enough for an investigation?

No. The area must actually be accessible and suitably prepared for the agreed task. Outstanding conditions are agreed before the work.

Do temporary utilities belong in the enquiry?

Yes, where they require their own ground disturbance. Their locations, depths and timing should be described together with the other works.

What is handed over when the construction contractor changes, and what determines costs?

The associated reports, location appendices and plan revisions, together with clear limitations and outstanding tasks for the next groundworks. The work required depends on area size or number of points, depth of ground disturbance, documents available, access, interference and the defined method. Preparatory works, phased deployments and results documents needed are also agreed. Scheduling identifies which construction section is needed first and which prerequisites remain outstanding.

Project enquiry

Discuss working areas and the next construction task

Send the work sequence and areas

Describe planned ground disturbance, access and the next construction task together. To prepare your project in Ulm, we need the current site plan, proposed ground disturbance and existing investigation results. Add information on access, contractors involved and the next planned construction task. FONTANA-EOD agrees the investigation scope and results documents needed with you.

Include the results status

Identify existing reports and specialist contributions still outstanding. Also state which earthworks are to begin first and which areas are not yet accessible. Necessary preparatory works and results handover can then be coordinated in good time.

Project enquiry

Have your project assessed

Whether historical aerial photograph analysis, explosive ordnance surveying, surface surveying using GPR, magnetometry or TDEM, deep-ground surveys, downhole surveys, excavation supervision, area clearance or ordnance recovery is needed depends on the location, ground disturbance, depth, ground and existing documents. An early ordnance assessment provides clarity for tendering, programming, occupational safety and construction.

FONTANA-EOD combines its Section 7 SprengG licence, specialists holding Section 20 SprengG certificates of competence, suitable survey and clearance methods, and traceable documentation. Send the site plan, depth of ground disturbance, construction phase and existing documents for an initial technical assessment.

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