Schematic map with a Munich marker, tablet, white FONTANA-EOD helmet, notebook and pen.

Explosive ordnance surveying in Upper Bavaria

Before a drilling project, ground disturbance often begins with site preparation, access routes and utility connections. FONTANA-EOD helps project owners, planners and site managers in Upper Bavaria coordinate the explosive ordnance assessment needed for these works and the later boreholes. Send site plans, depths of ground disturbance and existing explosive ordnance reports so that specialist investigation needs can be clarified for each construction phase.

Record preliminary work

Mark access routes and utility trenches on the plan too.

Describe borehole locations

State position, depth of ground disturbance and working level.

Coordinate the stages

Clarify investigation needs before each ground disturbance.

Enquire about a projectExplosive ordnance investigation in Bavaria
Assess the construction project

How are site preparation and later boreholes coordinated?

Divide the planned ground disturbance into the actual work stages. Describe soil excavation, utility trenches, preliminary pits and later boreholes individually with position and depth. Explosive ordnance planning is coordinated with them. Findings for the site surface are reused only to the extent that their documented scope also covers the following ground disturbance.

Documented location references

Reference projects in the administrative region of Upper Bavaria

Select a project location on the map or in the location list. The associated entries lead to the protected reference overview.

1 location · 13 associated reference entries

Reference projects in the administrative region of Upper BavariaGeographical outline with confirmed location references from the project records. No precise ordnance find or site coordinates. München – 13 reference entries

The markers indicate locations associated with documented references, rather than exact find or construction site coordinates. Several entries may relate to one project. References without a reliable location assignment are available in the complete reference overview.

Map data: © BKG (2026), VG250 / GN250, Data licence Germany – attribution 2.0. Area outline projected for display. Selection and project assignment: FONTANA-EOD.

Project references

Selected project examples

Project site

Connect the site with the specific construction task

Schematic map with a Munich marker, tablet, white FONTANA-EOD helmet, notebook and pen.

Provide the project location and ground disturbance together

The notice on the drilling site in Kirchanschöring describes an approval stage at that time and separate later procedures. Your own project's sequence is decisive. Record ground disturbance before drilling and define the specialist services needed for it. Current approvals, explosive ordnance documents and technical plans are brought together while their different findings remain distinct.

According to the official overview the administrative region of Upper Bavaria includes twenty districts and the three independent cities of Munich, Ingolstadt and Rosenheim. Further information on explosive ordnance surveying in Freising helps prepare the enquiry. Local hazard prevention depends on the municipality of the actual project site. Identify the address, plot and working areas affected, including for a project crossing municipal boundaries. Documents for a construction project in Ingolstadt are assessed for the specific property just as those for a rural drilling site are. Existing reports retain their reference to area, depth and the stage of work at that time. For projects in the neighbouring administrative region of Swabia the project location, municipal responsibilities and investigation scope are assigned separately for the working areas there.

Bavaria
Local context

Assess earlier uses and current drilling projects in Upper Bavaria

Approval stage for the Kirchanschöring drilling site

On 6 August 2020, the Government of Upper Bavaria announced that the Southern Bavaria Mining Authority had approved preparation of the drilling site for the Rupertiwinkel geothermal project in Kirchanschöring, in the Traunstein district. The application for site preparation had been submitted in December 2019. The land, then used for agriculture, was on the Mühldorf–Freilassing railway beside a commercial area. Groundwater protection was a focus of the procedure at that time. Details of drilling and later thermal water extraction were to be addressed in separate procedures under mining law. The notice assigned building approval for a later power station to the Traunstein district authority. Today's works use the relevant approvals and specialist reports with their respective status. An explosive ordnance assessment must match the ground disturbance actually planned.

Describe the actual earthworks individually

A similarly clear breakdown of the earthworks actually planned is advisable for your project. A general label such as drilling site is insufficient to define the investigation scope. It matters whether soil will first be excavated, a utility installed or a later deep intervention made at an individual point.

Property-specific findings in Bavaria

The Bavarian notice on protection against explosive ordnance hazards distinguishes precautionary property research from addressing specific hazards. It states that Bavaria has no central explosive ordnance register. Existing indications and historical findings must therefore be related to the specific property and planned project. Another approval does not replace this specialist assessment.

Local history also includes military and industrial land uses. The municipal museum of Ingolstadt's history under National Socialism describes the importance of the garrison and arms industry and severe bombing raids from 15 January 1945. For today's preliminary investigation, such information is brought together with historical aerial photographs, property files and later changes to the ground. What matters is which indications relate to the specific working area and which investigations are already documented there. A historical event in Ingolstadt is assigned to its local context; assessment of other project locations uses their own documents.

Working together

Roles and responsibilities at the location

Client and operator

The client describes the project and provides the available project records. The operator adds requirements for use, access and timing. A coordinating contact brings the parties together; individual tasks remain assigned to the named parties. Before commissioning, it is clearly recorded what information is missing, who will obtain it and what decision the result is intended to prepare.

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 carries out the agreed investigation and documentation work. Requirements and decisions of public authorities are addressed with the responsible bodies. The documents needed for a particular procedure depend on the location and project. The technical report describes the work carried out, including its documented area, depth and scope. Decisions reserved for public authorities are made by those authorities.

In Bavaria, municipalities generally perform local security duties; the police act where urgent intervention is required. The commissioned explosive ordnance disposal service supports responses to specific hazards from found old ordnance. The Munich disposal unit is generally responsible for Upper Bavaria. The Eichstätt district is an exception and falls within the Nuremberg disposal unit's area. Property-specific research and technical investigation are prepared as separate specialist commissions. Activities of the commissioned service on old ordnance that are free of charge under the Bavarian notice are distinct from these private services.

Investigation task

Which specialist task comes next?

Assess the findings achievable under local conditions

Specialist planning selects the investigation according to the specific question and existing findings. Measurement conditions, access and relevant structures are considered. An approach suitable for an open area is not sufficient for every point merely because the project name is the same. The findings needed and remaining limits are described clearly before commissioning.

Compare suitable specialist services

Coordinate other specialist tasks with their own responsible bodies

Drilling projects may involve mining law, water law and geotechnical questions. The competent bodies or commissioned specialist planners address their respective subjects. Shared point labels and plan versions help cooperation. An explosive ordnance investigation does not replace these tasks; equally, another approval does not automatically answer the explosive ordnance question for the planned ground disturbance.

Compare investigation methods
Project types

Coordinate the investigation with successive ground disturbances

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

Organise existing findings before the first earthworks

Historical information and existing reports are assigned to the specific property and planned working areas. Record preliminary ground disturbance intended before the drilling itself too. Specialist planning can then consider the sequence. A general project name is insufficient, as is a location point without information on the ancillary areas needed.

Before awarding the work, compare earlier construction and land-use phases with today's working areas. For a drilling site, earlier buildings, paved operating areas or relocated utilities may be relevant where the documents establish those uses. If important evidence remains unclear, commission the necessary historical research and aerial photograph analysis. Their results help target the subsequent technical investigation at the relevant areas, depths and questions. Identify remaining gaps for further planning.

Arrange specialist assessment of historical evidence
Two people with a tablet beside a marked construction area; plans lie in the foreground.

Determine investigation needs for each work stage

Site preparation, a connection trench and an intervention at an individual point may involve different geometries and depths. Suitable specialist services follow the respective tasks and conditions. Necessary preparatory measures are coordinated too. Restrictions caused by existing infrastructure, terrain or access remain visible rather than being disregarded by applying one method throughout.

Show the individual works on a shared site plan. Alongside later drilling, include excavation, foundations and connecting utilities with their depths. Site management identifies which works take place first and how access and surfaces change afterwards. This defines an investigation commission for each construction phase. If another contractor undertakes the next service, it receives the relevant reports and plans. The handover records outstanding tasks and prerequisites for the ground disturbance concerned.

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

Assign results clearly to the next phase

The handover identifies the area and volume of ground addressed and the resulting findings. Assign the results again for later drilling plans. Changes to position or working level may require additional assessment. Keep the documentation linked to the plan version used and include the investigation's limits.

A results plan must remain clearly understandable after a change in construction sequence too. Pass on the elevation datum used, area investigated and corresponding reports together. If a borehole moves or a deeper connection trench is added, compare the new scope with existing results. Agree necessary additions before the affected works. Investigations already usable remain in the project file and can help define the further specialist commission precisely.

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.

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 reliable programme distinguishes tasks already technically resolved from prerequisites still outstanding. If an area will be only partly accessible, account for this when commissioning work. Results handover and assessment also need time in the construction programme. Agree timing and the work required once scope, access, documents, construction conditions and the date a decision is needed are clarified.

Discuss the scope and schedule
Prepare the construction project

Bring together the individual ground disturbances before enquiring

01

Mark site preparation on the plan

Mark the area where soil is to be excavated or replaced. Add the planned depth and elevation of the finished formation. Explicitly identify details still open so that preliminary plans are not inadvertently treated as a fixed investigation commission.

02

Add access routes and connections

State whether new access routes, cable trenches, drainage or connection pits are planned. These works may lie outside the later equipment area. The enquiry needs to show where they actually disturb the ground; a driving route without earthworks is described differently.

03

Identify borehole locations clearly

Use an understandable label for each point. Provide its position, planned ground disturbance and reference to the working level. If a point moves, this should be clear against the earlier plan. Only then can existing investigation results be checked for coverage of the new position.

04

Include existing reports

Send earlier investigation reports with plans, depth details and restrictions. The surface conditions at the time of investigation also matter. A later change in ground levels does not automatically require a new survey, but it does require comparison with the documented investigation scope.

Project documents

Documents that establish the next step

Record all preparatory earthworks

A drilling site may need further ground disturbance beyond the borehole starting point itself. Identify planned topsoil removal, trenches, shafts and other pits. Distinguish these works from an area only used by vehicles. If site construction or paving also disturbs the ground, include its planned scope and timing in the shared ground disturbance overview.

State working levels and elevation data clearly

A depth becomes unambiguous only with its reference point. State whether it relates to existing ground or a working level to be created later. If ground is excavated or filled, take the change into account in planning. The parties should describe the same volume of ground when comparing investigations and later works. A clearance record for completed clearance works is handed over with these position and elevation references. Areas addressed, methods, findings and outstanding tasks can then be compared with the planned drilling site works.

Construction sequence

Coordinate investigation and construction sections

Show all preparation in the enquiry

Include the site plan and proposed sequence of earthworks. Identify boreholes, ancillary areas and different working levels. Hand over existing reports with their maps. The initial discussion then clarifies which findings are already usable, what information is missing and which stages still need a specific specialist service.

Coordinate the construction phase with us

Compare the scope before moving to the next construction phase

Compare the next ground disturbance with the corresponding documentation. Explicitly consider new starting points, additional depths or changed site boundaries. Site management receives the current version. If a question remains unanswered, clarify it before the relevant ground disturbance; a general reference to preparation in the preceding phase is insufficient.

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

Select the investigation for the specific task

Assess existing findings first

Historical documents and existing reports provide a basis for further specialist review. The Historical aerial photograph analysis can contribute. Which sources can be analysed and which findings they support are assessed for the specific area; the value of individual image dates is considered alongside other sources and the gaps identified.

If the evidence is incomplete, the necessary Historical aerial photograph analysis is brought together with records of earlier uses and existing investigations. Distinguish identifiable wartime effects from later changes to the ground. A report on a neighbouring area retains its actual scope. For your own working area, determine which findings can be used and which questions still need investigation. The investigation question follows the planned depth and type of ground disturbance.

Investigate the prepared area

For accessible areas, a Surface survey may be suitable. The choice depends on the investigation objective, measurement conditions and possible interference, among other factors. Paving, existing utilities or metal structures are therefore considered in preparation rather than applying the same investigation everywhere.

The Surveying depends on target objects, ground composition, metal interference and the investigation depth needed. A near-surface result is assigned to the volume of ground actually covered. For deeper interventions at individual points, assess whether deep surveying or borehole clearance is suitable for the specific task. Access, existing structures and necessary preparation are considered in the scope of services. Project owners and specialist planners clarify these conditions with the competent parties before execution.

Assess deep ground disturbance separately

For deep work at individual points, the suitability of the deep or borehole survey needs assessment. The method and its scope are designed by specialists for the ground disturbance. A general standard depth or investigation radius cannot be inferred from the label drilling project.

Suitable Excavation supervision is coordinated with the planned ground disturbance and the technically necessary prerequisites. Required investigations, any necessary area clearance and Ordnance recovery receive their respective defined scope and necessary protective measures. If a suspicious object is found, stop the affected works and inform the police immediately. Work completed, findings and remaining limits are included in the documentation. Further specialist needs for the next construction phase are derived from them.

Next steps

From the first plan to an agreed commission

01

Identify the work stages

Describe which preliminary work takes place first and when later ground disturbance is planned. The initial discussion records the project location, construction task, working areas and the date a decision is needed.

02

Bring plans together

Assign the site, connections and boreholes to a shared position and elevation reference. Document review includes complete explosive ordnance reports and their appendices. If the evidence is incomplete, the necessary historical research and aerial photograph analysis are carried out.

03

Discuss the investigation needed

We compare the planned works with existing explosive ordnance documents and clarify missing information. Method selection considers target objects, ground, interference and required depth. The agreed surveying or suitable supervision addresses the defined scope; findings and measurement limits are assessed by specialists.

04

Pass on the results

Pass on the relevant reports and restrictions to those responsible for each construction section. The report and results plans document the services completed and their spatial reference. The follow-up decision determines further specialist needs before the affected subsequent ground disturbance.

Documentation

Results must match the next ground disturbance

Findings and their scope

A completed investigation of the site area does not automatically answer every question about a later borehole. The documented area, depth investigated and conditions of the findings are decisive. Where changes arise, have the existing results checked for continued applicability and any additional clarification needed.

At the transition between construction phases, the actual results are compared with the next task. The Clearance documentation identifies the area, depth and scope of services addressed. A clearance record documents clearance works completed; the site plan establishes their spatial reference. If surfaces change, retain the original elevation data. Site management and contractors receive the complete documents with appendices. Before additional ground disturbance, clarify which results cover it and which specialist work is still needed.

Project responsibilities

Responsibilities for other specialist tasks remain separately applicable. An explosive ordnance investigation does not also resolve mining law, water law or geotechnical questions. Cooperation benefits when the parties use the same points and working levels while clearly identifying their respective results.

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

Show a borehole and its ancillary areas

The starting point may require working areas and preliminary ground disturbance. Describe what work is actually to take place in the ground in each case. Specialist planning can assess these tasks separately and then coordinate them sensibly. The size of a fenced area or the position of a single symbol does not fully show this scope.

Understand investigation reports and their limitations

Communicate plan changes clearly to the parties involved

If a point is moved or a working level changes, mark the change on the new plan version. Give the same version to the specialist planners involved and site management. Check existing results against the change. This keeps clear which findings continue to be used and where a supplementary task may arise.

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
Four people in orange high-visibility vests in front of two excavators on a construction site.
Person with a yellow survey cart on a footpath in front of a hedge.
Questions from planning

Questions about preliminary work and boreholes

Should the explosive ordnance question be clarified only immediately before drilling?

Earlier ground disturbance also belongs in preparation. State in the enquiry whether site areas, utility trenches or connection pits, for example, will be constructed beforehand. Investigation needs are assessed from the respective works and existing findings. The sequence connects document review, necessary historical research and method selection with investigation or suitable supervision, assessment and documentation.

Does approval of a drilling site establish an explosive ordnance investigation?

Not by its name alone. The explosive ordnance findings available follow from the relevant documents and their scope. Approval in another specialist area is not equivalent to a documented technical investigation.

Can an already investigated borehole be moved afterwards?

The new position must be compared with existing results, considering position, depth and investigation limits. The need for further investigation cannot be inferred solely from the distance between the old and new positions.

Does the same investigation depth apply to all drilling projects?

No. The investigation objective and suitable approach follow the planned ground disturbance and local conditions. The actual drilling plans and elevation datum used therefore matter for the enquiry. Interfering objects and existing structures may limit measurements or interpretation; the findings achievable are explained for the actual conditions.

What should I do if a suspicious object is found during preliminary work?

Stop work in the affected area immediately. Do not touch or move the object. Leave the danger area, keep your distance and keep others away. Inform the police immediately on 110. Follow police instructions. The municipality, police and commissioned explosive ordnance disposal service perform their respective hazard prevention duties.

Which factors determine the cost of explosive ordnance assessment?

Research needs, area and depth, access, existing structures and interfering metal objects affect the work required. Other factors include the suitable method, interpretation and documentation, and investigation of findings where necessary. Usable earlier reports help limit supplementary work to outstanding questions. The specialist services needed are coordinated with site preparation, connection works and later boreholes.

Why does a borehole's elevation datum matter?

The depth must be assigned to a clearly defined working level. Excavation or fill can change the volume of ground being compared.

Which documents help the initial discussion?

A site plan with points, preliminary ground disturbance, depths and working levels, together with existing findings and complete investigation reports.

Project enquiry

Coordinate preliminary work and boreholes with us

Show the work stages

Show site preparation, trenches and boreholes with position and depth. Add the plot, plan version and known gaps in as-built documents.

Send a shared plan version

Assign the elevation reference and existing reports clearly for all parties. Relate the reports to the proposed working locations and state when a decision is needed for the next construction phase.

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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