Technical map view of the Kassel administrative district with Kassel marked for explosive ordnance assessment and surveying by FONTANA-EOD

Explosive ordnance surveying for your Fulda construction project

The development plan contains a notice about explosive ordnance. What does it mean for your construction project in Fulda? First establish whether the text applies to the property and relevant plan revision. Existing evidence can then be technically compared with the proposed groundworks.

Plan revision

Read the applicable plan and its appendices.

Property

Compare the area of application with the groundworks.

Documentation

Distinguish completed and outstanding tasks.

Assess the construction project

Assign the relevant planning notice to your own groundworks

For your Fulda project, we compare the applicable plan area with existing technical records and proposed groundworks. Different statements are assessed according to their location, date and purpose. This establishes the technical clarification still needed, without transferring an individual planning notice to other properties.

Project site

Identify Fulda and the actual project location

Schematic map with a coat of arms and state colours, alongside a tablet, safety helmet, pen and notebook.

Read the two Fulda planning notices for their separate areas

Lehnerz and Bronnzell show that local planning texts can contain different findings and tasks. For your project, therefore, the actual area of application is checked against the relevant version. Existing reports are then added. Further technical work follows from this information and the current groundworks on your property.

Fulda is the administrative seat of Fulda district and a town with special status, in the Kassel administrative district in Hesse, Germany. State the specific project address and municipality. For a project in the surrounding area, local responsibility follows that actual project location. The explosive ordnance clearance service at Darmstadt Regional Council is responsible throughout Hesse; other tasks are coordinated with the relevant authorities.

Local context

Assign planning notices to their specific areas in Fulda

Consider Lehnerz and Bronnzell according to their own planning texts

Two plans published by the city show the difference: the first amendment to Development Plan No. 8 for the Lehnerz commercial area, dated 2014, describes its area of application as a former bombing area and requires systematic investigation of the affected areas before construction work that disturbs the ground. Bronnzell Development Plan No. 11 Southwest, dated 2024, instead states that there is no justified suspicion of unexploded bombs; it still contains reporting instructions for an unexpected find.

Clarify the area of application and relevant plan revision

These statements relate to the respective planning records. They do not form a citywide contamination map or replace comparison for a specific project. Even a generally favourable assessment does not promise that every possible object has been ruled out. The city provides its online plans for information and refers users to the planning department for binding information. Therefore also check whether an amendment or supplementary document is relevant.

The Hesse prison service records that the former court prison at the site of today’s Fulda prison was completely destroyed in a bombing raid in 1944 and rebuilt from 1949. This is a specific local connection between wartime damage and later construction. For a present-day property, existing historical findings are brought together with its actual location and known ground alterations. The specific assessment concerns the area affected and proposed groundworks.

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 carries out the agreed investigation and documentation. Official requirements and decisions are clarified with the competent bodies. Documents needed for a specific procedure depend on the site and project. The technical report describes the specialist work completed with its spatial extent and limits. Its applicability to further groundworks is checked against the specific ground disturbance. The competent bodies make official decisions.

The KMRD based at Darmstadt Regional Council is responsible for all of Hesse. Suitable specialist contractors are commissioned for technical investigation or clearance within the respective permit and competence framework. Under Hesse's General Provisions, defusing, blasting and removal are reserved exclusively to the KMRD or a person commissioned by it. Assign the competent authorities and responsible specialists clearly before the task concerned.

Investigation task

Which specialist task comes next?

Determine investigation needs from your own project

The available notices are considered alongside the planned groundworks and site conditions. This establishes which conclusion is still needed. Method selection accounts for suitability and interpretability. An investigation method from another plan area is not transferred to your property merely because it lies in the same city.

Choose investigation methods by task and suitability

Include remaining restrictions in technical planning

If a report does not cover every proposed area, the outstanding task is described spatially. Possible additions are determined from actual needs. Existing results are retained with their limits. Planning avoids both an unsupported extension of the evidence and a blanket repetition without a technical reason.

Compare investigation methods
Project types

Connect planning notices with the evidence actually available

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

First establish the correct plan area

Compare the property location with the plan drawing and read the associated text. Where several versions exist, identify which amendment affects which area. The district name alone is not sufficient. Only this spatial and chronological context allows the significance of a notice for your own groundworks to be assessed.

If a planned utility crosses the boundary of a plan’s area of application, assign the affected sections separately. An extract for a neighbouring construction stage answers the question for the new section only where its location and conclusions actually apply. Therefore mark the current construction area on the overview plan and attach the associated text. For an amending by-law, establish which part of the earlier plan it supersedes spatially and substantively.

Document findings and their limitations
Illustration: two people review plans and documents at a table beside a construction vehicle.

Add later investigations to the planning records

An older planning notice may be supplemented by technical reports produced later. Check which task was actually commissioned and documented. Include the associated site plans in full. A partial commission completed in the meantime does not automatically remove the original notice for every area or later intervention.

A report can address several technical questions. For the explosive ordnance question, use its specific investigation commission, work carried out and associated results plans. A statement about ground characteristics or another discipline is considered with its own question. For staged work, completed and outstanding parts are marked on the shared site plan. A document produced later also needs this spatial reference to be assessed for the new project.

Document findings and their limitations
Illustration: two people with a tablet beside a drawing table and a survey trolley on a construction site.

Describe the outstanding need in the commission

State the question that remains after comparing the plan, report and new groundworks. The specialist service receives a specific spatial scope and a traceable investigation objective. A general statement alone is not sufficient. The documentation expected is connected to the task actually requiring an answer.

Where possible, describe the addition needed through a specific difference: a missing results appendix, an area previously excluded or a newly proposed depth. Include which groundworks are to take place next. The client, technical planners and specialist contractor can then agree the review or investigation actually required. The agreed results documents must show which unresolved question was addressed and which task, if any, remains for a later stage.

Compare specialist services
Preparation

Prepare the scope and commission together

Establish what needs to be known before commissioning the work

Before commissioning, first determine which conclusion is needed for the Fulda project: assigning a planning notice to the site, reviewing later investigation records or carrying out an investigation still required. Identify the ground volume concerned and the next construction decision. The quotation describes the associated technical task and expected results documents. Existing findings and outstanding tasks remain distinguishable; any additional services required are agreed specifically.

Define the specialist task

Coordinate preparatory work with the investigation

For the investigation area identified on the plan, actual access and surveying conditions are clarified on site. Sealed surfaces, installations or areas still in use can affect execution. State which conditions have already been established and who will carry out further preparatory work. Necessary investigations and protective measures are clarified before the preparatory groundworks they concern. A requirement in a development plan explains the reason for the work; the investigation also needs a practicable technical commission.

Clarify preparatory work in the programme

Agree a clear scope and schedule

The schedule separates review of the available plan and report versions from the fieldwork subsequently needed. If one construction stage becomes accessible before another, investigation scope and handover are agreed by stage. Missing appendices, access and coordination still required are identified as outstanding requirements. The client and specialist contractor record which documents are needed before each groundwork activity. Even with separate procurement contracts, this keeps clear which task is complete and which service is still to follow.

Discuss the scope and schedule
Tasks at the site

Find the correct notice for your own project

01

Read the plan drawing and text together

A document heading or district name is not sufficient to establish applicability. Compare the marked area of application with the property and read the associated written notices. If several versions exist, it should be clear which amendment affects which area. A passage copied out of context cannot replace this review.

02

Add existing reports to the planning records

A planning notice does not establish which investigations were actually carried out later. Look for official statements, technical reports and their appendices. Do the investigation area and proposed groundworks match? Are depths, results and restrictions documented? Only considering the records together shows which question remains unresolved for further planning.

Where filling, excavation or changed ground levels are known, compare the old report’s elevation reference with the current plans. A depth figure has meaning only with its stated reference level and the work completed at that time. Attach existing sections or elevation information and identify uncertain assumptions. If comparison shows that additional investigation is needed, define its ground volume before execution and then document it together with the earlier results.

03

Describe the proposed groundworks

State the activities to be prepared, such as an excavation or utility installation. Mark their positions and known depths on the plan. The technical review needs this information because a report for an earlier intervention with different limits does not automatically support the same conclusion for the new plans. Changes should be submitted in good time.

The construction task may also include shoring, ancillary pits, connections and preparatory interventions outside the later building footprint. Mark these work volumes with their positions and planned depths. When changes occur, identify the areas affected on the current plan; previously investigated volumes remain clear with their original limits. For necessary preparatory work, the investigations and protective measures required are clarified before its groundworks. Different parts of the same property may be at different stages of investigation.

04

Submit apparent contradictions for clarification

If one document states a need for investigation and another describes completed work, they do not necessarily contradict each other. They may concern different areas, dates or tasks. Have these relationships checked before preferring one statement. Request a missing plan appendix explicitly, rather than assuming its contents from the summary.

Project documents

Documents that establish the next step

Preserve the origin of each statement

The results distinguish information from a plan, official statement or technical investigation. Dates and spatial references help with comparison. The combined summary refers to the complete records. Different tasks are not merged into an undefined general note for the whole project address.

For the project file, bring together the document title, version, associated area and appendices. An official file reference helps assign a statement and later correspondence to the same task. With several reports, it remains clear which appendix belongs to which result. The responsible designers and site management receive the complete records so that questions before each construction phase can be resolved using the same information. Survey data, survey results and assessment of findings belonging to the commission remain connected to the complete report and plans. After clearance work has been carried out, the clearance record, stating the clearance scope, results and remaining limits, supplements the records for the area actually covered.

Clarify apparent contradictions using the underlying records

Check whether the documents actually concern the same area, depth and question. A later investigation may have addressed a previously outstanding task. Different statements must therefore be read in context. Identify missing appendices or unclear plan revisions before an individual phrase becomes the basis for further work.

Construction sequence

Coordinate investigation and construction sections

Collect the relevant records before commissioning

Compile the plan drawing, written sections, relevant amendments and existing technical reports with appendices. Mark the current groundworks unambiguously. Identify missing information explicitly. This shared basis allows the service required to address the actual question and the scope of later evidence to be agreed in advance.

Compare the results with the next work step

Check which planned groundworks the documented results cover. Additional interventions or different depths receive technical consideration. Site management receives the report with its underlying plans. Outstanding tasks remain visible and receive targeted further work before the step they concern.

Method selection

Select methods according to the task and survey conditions

Historical records and aerial photographs

Historical records and aerial photographs help locate indications of former use and wartime effects. For the Fulda property, first establish which evaluation already exists and which historical question remains unresolved. Any necessary addition is commissioned and carried out to address that question. Its results are brought together with the current groundworks plan. A planning notice about a former bombing area and a later investigation report remain different kinds of evidence.

Understand aerial photograph assessment

Magnetometric survey

Magnetometry measures the magnetic field passively. Detection depends on the magnetic effect of the object sought; electrical conductivity alone does not establish that this method can detect it. For the areas defined on the plan, interfering installations and accessible survey volumes are considered. A magnetic anomaly receives technical assessment. Which ground volumes can be investigated, and which conclusions can be reached, depends on the investigation objective and actual conditions; a development plan’s wording alone does not determine the suitable surveying method.

Understand the scope of magnetometry

Electromagnetic methods

Transient electromagnetic methods, or TDEM, evaluate the time-dependent electromagnetic response of conductive objects. The method is selected according to the investigation objective and actual surveying conditions. In the Fulda commission, its use is assigned to the proposed groundworks area. Existing utilities, metal installations and other interference affect interpretation. Recorded signals are assessed with their spatial location and identifiable restrictions so that the technical conclusion remains traceable for the commissioned area and depth.

Understand electromagnetic surveying

Ground-penetrating radar

Under suitable conditions, ground-penetrating radar can provide information about the subsurface and anomalies. Propagation conditions in the ground, installations and the investigation objective determine its technically suitable use. For a later excavation, the assessment establishes which question it is intended to answer and how the survey area relates to the current plan. A detected structure or anomaly needs technical interpretation. Results are documented with their limits; a display showing no anomalies is used only within the scope actually investigated.

GPR and limitations

Deep-ground and downhole surveys

For deeper groundworks, the assessment checks whether a surface investigation can provide the conclusion needed or whether deep surveying or borehole surveying is required. Points, depths and elevation references are technically planned and compared with the proposed structure. A foundation deepened later may affect a different ground volume from the earlier commission. The results documents identify the volume actually investigated and its limits. A neighbouring point’s position or depth is not transferred to the new location without review.

Prepare deep interventions

Survey during construction

If a necessary preliminary investigation cannot be completed in full, the next steps are technically planned. An explosive ordnance investigation alongside construction may require an agreed sequence of investigation, removal in layers where necessary, specialist exposure of objects and further surveys. Conditions follow from the task and findings. The supervised work area and remaining limits are documented. General excavation observation is not treated as an equivalent replacement for a required investigation; the specific sequence is clarified before the groundworks concerned.

Agree the approach during construction
Technical assessment

What may be needed after the document review

Add to the historical evidence

The Aerial-photo analysis can provide information about the property’s earlier condition. It answers a different question from the plan drawing showing its proposed use. If an evaluation already exists, account for its area, underlying information and results. A new commission is not required merely because the report comes from an earlier planning procedure.

Define a justified surveying task

If a technical investigation is needed, Surveying must suit the expected task and local conditions. Technical planning also considers interference and possible limits of interpretation. A method name in a quotation alone does not explain which conclusion it is intended to provide about the proposed areas and depths.

Treat areas that cannot be interpreted separately

If parts of the area or depths remain unresolved, a technical assessment must determine which further measures are needed and whether a Clearance plan is required. Simply switching to excavation observation does not solve the problem. Professional explosive ordnance clearance alongside construction requires reasoned planning; it is not an automatic alternative for every unfavourable surveying condition or difficult-to-access location.

Next steps

From the planning notice to investigation and handover of results

01

Record the reason for the assessment

Note which document forms the starting point and which project is to be assessed. Include the plan date or version and the specific area affected. This makes it possible later to trace whether results were produced for the same task or taken from another context. The initial contact identifies the project location and conclusion needed. Existing plans, official statements and reports are checked for currency, spatial reference, completeness and gaps.

02

Address outstanding historical questions

Where historical questions remain unresolved, the necessary research and aerial photograph evaluations are actually carried out under a technically agreed commission. The KMRD statement is taken into account. Additional findings are assigned to the current groundworks area and used for investigation planning.

03

Commission the required services specifically

Describe the technical clarification needed, including the evidence expected. The scope of investigation, interpretation and any further measures should be identifiable. A general phrase such as “check for explosive ordnance” leaves the task undefined. Include official requirements in full when agreeing the work. The suitable method is selected from the investigation objective, groundworks depth, ground composition, installations and actual surveying conditions. Access and the requirements to be met are clarified with those responsible.

04

Perform the agreed investigation

The agreed survey or appropriate investigation during construction is carried out on the defined areas and points. Measurement data and observations receive clear position and elevation references. Uninvestigated areas, restricted access and relevant interference are recorded.

05

Assess and document findings

The collected data and findings are assessed against the investigation objective and actual measurement conditions. The assessment takes account of interference and limitations. The report and plan appendices document the technical assessment, areas addressed and their position, elevation and depth references. Required further tasks follow from this.

06

Compare the results with the plans

After completion, check which activities the documented results cover. Untreated areas must not be silently included in the investigated area. If construction plans change, the technical planners need the revised version. The previous report should be retained with its original limits.

07

Pass records to later project participants

Results should not remain only in one person’s email inbox. Give subsequent designers and site management the reports with site plans and stated restrictions. Distinguish outstanding tasks from services already completed. Later decisions can then build on the documented position, rather than being inferred afresh from an abbreviated planning notice.

Documentation

Preserve responsibilities and limits of conclusions in the report

Findings and their scope

In Hesse, the explosive ordnance clearance service at Darmstadt Regional Council is the responsible state authority. An enquiry about possible contamination needs a precise plan marking the property; an online application for aerial photograph evaluation is also available. The information provided there and a privately commissioned investigation report must be read according to their respective purposes. FONTANA-EOD delivers the agreed specialist services within the agreed investigation and documentation scope. The responsible authorities make the official decisions.

The General Provisions for Hesse specify site plans at a scale of 1:1,000 and submission of results to the explosive ordnance clearance service. The technical commission, actual progress and relevant plan version remain available together in the project file. Later additions receive their own area and date references.

Project responsibilities

Completion includes traceable information about the area investigated, underlying records used, results and remaining restrictions. This does not delete a development plan notice from the document; the report records which task was addressed for the specific project. Outside their direct scope for federal properties, the BFR KMR provide technical guidance.

Working approach

How FONTANA-EOD works

Document the agreed specialist service clearly

FONTANA-EOD relates the agreed specialist service to the specific project and identified records. For Fulda, the planning notice, later findings and current groundworks are considered together. The report makes clear which area and ground volume were actually covered. A general notice in a development plan is thereby connected to a traceable technical task and its results; the documented scope limits its use for subsequent work.

Discuss the investigation task

The task before the equipment

The investigation question determines method selection. If an existing report is to be reviewed, its commission and appendices are needed first. An additional ground investigation, by contrast, depends on the position, depth and surveying conditions of the new intervention. FONTANA-EOD agrees the suitable approach and expected form of results with the participants. Merely naming a device or planning notice does not fully describe this task.

Keep limitations visible

Inaccessible areas and limited conclusions are identified in the results. If only part of a plan area has been covered, the outstanding part remains spatially identifiable. An access road that becomes available later or an additional foundation is compared with the existing position and receives supplementary work if needed. Designers and site management can then use the report within the scope actually evidenced and clarify outstanding tasks before the next groundworks concerned.

Clarify changes before intervening in the ground

If an excavation is widened, a utility installed or a groundworks depth changed, the technical planners receive the revised plan before the activity concerned. FONTANA-EOD compares the change with the previous investigation scope and defines any addition required. The earlier conclusion remains assigned to its original area. New results are added with dates and spatial references so that the next decision builds on the associated records.

Hand over the report and plan together

The report and plans are handed over together with their spatial reference and restrictions. For the Fulda planning notice, this allows the later technical work addressing it to be traced. Name the recipients among the project owner, designers and site management. If the contractor changes, pass on complete records and outstanding tasks. An abbreviated note or individual plan extract is supplemented by the associated conclusions and appendices.

Understand the results

Use technical statements for the next decision

A plan amendment affects a specific context

Check which area and statements the amendment covers. For other parts, the older version may remain part of the history. Identify the relevant version transparently for the technical enquiry. A newer document date alone does not explain whether the specific explosive ordnance statement has changed.

Understand investigation reports and their limitations

A favourable assessment remains tied to its underlying information

A statement of no justified suspicion is read with its described spatial reference and state of knowledge. It is not extended into a guarantee for other properties. For new groundworks, comparison with your own plans matters. Unexpected suspicious objects continue to be handled through the applicable safe reporting procedures.

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 development plans and explosive ordnance notices

Does a Lehnerz explosive ordnance notice also apply to my other property in Fulda?

Not without spatial and technical review. The planning text cited applies to its own area of application. For another property, use the records relevant there and the planned interventions.

Does “no justified suspicion” mean a guarantee?

No. Such an assessment must be read in the context of its underlying information and spatial reference. It must not be expanded into a comprehensive guarantee for other areas or every possible object. The authorities’ reporting and conduct guidance still applies to an unexpected find.

Do I need a new investigation despite having an existing report?

This can be established only after comparison. The documented task, area and depth, restrictions and your new plans are decisive. Supplementary work may be necessary; this does not automatically mean complete repetition.

What do I need for an enquiry to FONTANA-EOD?

The site plan showing the proposed groundworks, relevant planning notice and existing official statements or investigation reports are helpful. Attach the appendices and identify missing information and the next planned construction stage.

What should I do if a suspicious object appears during the work?

Stop work in the area concerned, do not touch or move the object and keep your distance. Warn others and call the police on 110 from a safe distance. Follow the responsible authorities’ instructions; do not try to investigate it yourself. Do not expose the object further or take it to a police station or other official premises. Leave the danger area and keep others away.

Why should the plan drawing and written section be available together?

The drawing shows the spatial reference, while the text explains the relevant statement. Only together do they allow notices to be assigned to the property.

Does the newest filename automatically identify the relevant plan revision?

No. The actual content, area affected and status of the document are decisive. These details need technical clarification.

Which cost factors matter for an investigation in Fulda?

The work involved depends on usable planning and investigation records, the information still needed, area size or number and depth of investigation points, access and preparatory work required, suitable method, surveying conditions, interpretation and documentation. Additional ground volumes and supplementary tasks are quoted with their actual prerequisites. Private specialist services, official duties and other preparatory services remain distinguishable within the service scope.

Project enquiry

Prepare the first technical discussion

Attach the relevant plan

Send the drawing, written sections and relevant amendments.

Add the exact project address, parcel numbers, a marked current site plan and proposed groundworks with their depths. Identify the plan, its version and applicable area. Attach existing official statements and complete investigation reports with appendices. Describe construction progress, existing utilities and known ground alterations. Missing information remains identifiable as outstanding points; this allows the technical task required to be defined before commissioning.

Add existing results

Include complete technical reports and the current groundworks plan.

Identify the client, designers, site management and coordinating contact. State the preferred schedule, construction stages needed first and access available later. A construction area may also include alignments, borehole locations and additional working volumes. Provide existing official conditions, utility plans, aerial photograph evaluations and current project status. Also state the decision required, such as preparation of a specific construction phase. For successive trades, handover of the respective results is agreed.

GPR on a construction site
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.