Technical map of the Minette region in southern Luxembourg marking Esch-sur-Alzette for FONTANA-EOD explosive ordnance assessment and surveying

Explosive ordnance assessment in Dudelange

A utility trench may extend deeper than earlier soil remediation. Site management then needs to know which layers were investigated and which questions remain unresolved. FONTANA-EOD helps coordinate this for your project in Dudelange before the affected ground works begin.

Remediation depth

Know which part of the ground was treated.

New trench

Identify the base level and working area.

Technical reports

Distinguish investigation objectives.

Discuss the project's technical requirementsExplosive ordnance assessment in Luxembourg
Assess the construction project

How are deeper chambers prepared after soil remediation?

Identify the proposed bases of trenches and chambers with an unambiguous vertical reference. Compare them with the documented remediation boundaries and existing explosive ordnance reports. A contamination report answers a different technical question. For deeper ground works, the assessment establishes which applicable findings already exist and what investigation is still needed before construction.

Project site

Connect the site with the specific construction task

Schematic map of Luxembourg with a crowned lion coat of arms, beside a tablet, white hard hat, pen and notebook.

Keeping NeiSchmelz information within its spatial and historical scope

The local construction specification addresses a particular remediation and infrastructure plan. For your project, your own current plans and results actually available are used. The stated depths are not a general requirement for Dudelange. What matters is which ground volume the new work will affect and what technical findings about it are already documented clearly.

For the regional context of your construction project, the Minette and southern Luxembourg overview provides further local information.

Luxembourg
Local context

NeiSchmelz: interpreting remediation depths and former uses

Remediation planning and deeper infrastructure at NeiSchmelz

The 2025 construction specification for the NeiSchmelz project’s PAP Centre distinguishes proposed soil remediation from later infrastructure work. It describes an area generally to be remediated to two metres below final ground level, with an exception at the historic basins. For deeper utility trenches, it also considers layers not previously treated. The document additionally addresses existing underground galleries whose water flow must be considered for new foundations.

Distinguishing historical uses from today’s technical questions

A construction project therefore needs separate answers to several questions: which contaminants were treated, which underground structures are known and which explosive ordnance assessment is available? The neighbourhood description provides no evidence of freedom from explosive ordnance. Nor can the stated remediation depths be applied to other properties in Dudelange. The actual work and its associated reports are decisive.

During the German occupation, in Dudelange two forced-labour camps were established after compulsory conscription began in autumn 1942. Historical assessment relates local land-use history to the available site-specific records. This history alone does not establish explosive ordnance contamination of today’s construction site. Nor does subsequent redevelopment of an industrial area replace the assignment of existing findings to the ground works actually proposed.

Working together

Distinguish the tasks of client, designers and specialist contractor

Client and operator

The project owner describes the project and provides existing records. Operators add information on use, access and timing requirements. A coordinating contact brings the information together. The parties agree their respective tasks and decision responsibilities. Before commissioning, the records identify missing information, 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 work within the permitted framework clarified for Luxembourg. The technical report identifies the task, areas actually covered and limitations of the findings. Required notifications and evidence relate to the activity and personnel deployment. The responsible Luxembourg bodies make the decisions assigned to them. The state SEDAL service carries out its responsibilities for found ammunition. The specialist contractor and project participants agree the necessary handovers with the responsible bodies.

Investigation task

Which specialist task comes next?

Comparing the area and depth covered by existing findings

A report is read together with the elevation references it used. The proposed trench base must be expressed relative to the same reference so that the technical scope remains clear. Outstanding areas or those assessed only with limitations are recorded. Only then is it possible to establish whether additional records, supplementary assessment or further technical services are needed before the new ground works.

Compare the existing investigation scope

Coordinating investigation with the other specialist work

Clarify the prerequisites that must be met before opening a trench and which other specialists are involved. The investigation is prepared using its suitable method. A necessary preliminary service is not replaced solely by later observation of the work. If the construction sequence changes, the affected technical prerequisites are checked again with those responsible.

Compare investigation methods
Project types

Comparing remediation boundaries with later ground works professionally

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

Assessing historical findings about the industrial site

Existing aerial photograph analyses and other historical assessments are related to the area actually affected. Former industrial use forms part of the site’s history. It does not establish a particular explosive ordnance contamination on its own. Available technical reports and their maps are included so that further needs can be defined from the specific findings and proposed ground works.

For your own project, historical findings are brought together with the land-use and ground boundaries at the time. A former site name may refer to a different extent from today’s parcel or the next utility section. Identify which plan an existing assessment concerns. Where only extracts or summaries are available, the missing spatial reference remains a specific question to clarify.

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

Describing deeper ground works as a separate investigation task

Show trenches, chambers and connection pits with their bases and working areas. Specialist planners compare these volumes with existing results. A deeper individual point may need different findings from the rest of the utility route. Access, known galleries and technical installations are taken into account. The suitable service follows from this task, rather than solely the description of earlier remediation.

For utility construction in stages, a continuous trench, deeper chamber and lateral connection may affect different ground volumes. Show these parts distinctly in the enquiry before considering them together. Specialist planners can then assess which existing finding applies to which part. Changes to a chamber base or connection location are related to the point actually affected. An investigation of another section is not extended solely because it concerns the same named utility. Earlier exploratory work for other specialist tasks also belongs in preparation with its location and timing.

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

Passing on reports with their different purposes

Site management needs the soil remediation and explosive ordnance investigation results with their respective limitations. A shared file makes access easier without merging their findings. Identify which report answers which question. Associated plans and vertical references are also handed over so that later ground works do not rely on an unclear shorthand description of an area as already investigated.

When handing over a section, make clear which construction conditions each result concerns. If ground was excavated, moved or added after an investigation, report that change. Planners bring this information together with the new bases and working areas. Whether the existing assessment remains usable depends on its actual scope and the change. Site management and contractors receive the assigned reports so that later ground works rely on traceable results and outstanding specialist tasks can be clarified beforehand.

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 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

What needs clarification before deeper utility works

01

Reading the remediation’s vertical reference

Depth information is usable only when its reference elevation is known. Does it refer to the original ground, an intermediate working surface or the finished condition? Pass this reference on with the proposed trench base. Otherwise, equal depths in metres may describe different ground layers.

At a staged construction handover, site management also needs the boundary between ground with documented remediation and ground not yet treated. The plan’s ‘finished ground’ must be distinguished from the actual working surface handed over. For the proposed chamber, both are shown with its intended base in the same section drawing. State who provides the respective elevations and which plan version is to apply to the next service. Unclear elevation references are clarified before assessment.

02

Recording the trench and chambers together

A utility often includes chambers, connections and working areas extending further or deeper into the ground than the main route. Mark these areas on the plan. Even a short connection may affect an area not previously assessed; its limited length says nothing about the investigation scope required.

03

Distinguishing contaminants from explosive ordnance

A remediation report may demonstrate how soil contamination was addressed. Any findings it provides about explosive ordnance must be explicit in its scope of services. Avoid a general handover description such as ‘cleared site’ if only contaminant remediation is meant. Site management needs the respective applicable results and limitations.

In French-language records, ‘assainissement’ may refer to different tasks. The NeiSchmelz description lists both soil remediation and ‘réseaux d’assainissement’, meaning drainage networks. The reports register must therefore identify each document’s specific subject. A network plan describes utilities and their functions; a remediation report describes the soil contamination investigated or treated there. Findings about explosive ordnance must follow from the relevant brief and results. Headings and similar terms are not treated as interchangeable evidence. For unclear records, clarify with the author which findings can apply to the proposed ground works.

04

Accounting for known underground structures

Existing channels, galleries or foundations belong in investigation preparation. They may affect access and survey conditions. Their locations are checked against the available existing-site records. Do not enter unknown voids or open them on your own initiative to obtain missing information.

Project documents

Documents that establish the next step

Distinguishing planned remediation from completed work

A concept describes a proposed approach. Additional construction and completion reports may be needed to establish the condition actually achieved. Identify which records are available. Preparation of the next ground works relies on documented findings. A planned depth range must not be treated as a fully completed investigation or treatment without further evidence.

For clearance work completed, a clearance record documents the brief, areas actually covered, methods, location and depth references, findings, limitations and outstanding tasks. The associated plans are handed over together. The spatial reference remains clear even where remediation and infrastructure works take place in separate sections. Subsequent site management can identify the findings relevant to its ground works and the further coordination required.

Recording known galleries as separate existing-site information

Provide available site plans for underground structures and identify their known functions. These details may matter for access, survey conditions and the work sequence. The associated technical assessments remain distinct. An as-built plan establishes neither safe access nor explosive ordnance findings for the construction area proposed above or beside the structure.

In the NeiSchmelz example, the 2025 plans distinguish retention of historic galleries from new foundations and infrastructure routes. For another project, these tasks are clarified using its own existing-site and construction records. If the plans and documented conditions do not match, the discrepancy is identified and assigned to the responsible specialist planners. Water flow, structural preservation and explosive ordnance assessment remain separate technical questions. An investigation is agreed for the prerequisites clarified for it; a void’s existence establishes neither a suitable investigation method nor permission to enter it for exploratory work.

Construction sequence

Coordinate investigation and construction sections

Organising the enquiry by technical question and construction stage

Send remediation records, existing explosive ordnance reports and current utility plans. Identify the sections to be constructed first and deeper individual structures. Mark unclear details as outstanding. The initial discussion can then use existing results specifically and determine additional needs rather than inferring complete coverage from a general site name.

Coordinate the construction phase with us

Scheduling the results handover before the next ground works

Planners and site management receive the reports needed for each task with their complete appendices. Assignment to trenches and chambers remains clear. If a base level or connection point changes, it is compared with the documented scope. Applicable results are retained while necessary additions are agreed in good time before the affected ground works.

Coordinate the construction phase with us
Method selection

Select methods according to the task and survey conditions

Historical records and aerial photographs

Magnetometry records disturbances in the Earth’s magnetic field that may arise from ferromagnetic objects, among other sources. On former industrial sites, metal installations and fill can affect the survey. Contaminant remediation does not necessarily remove this interference. Whether the proposed trench’s required findings can be obtained is assessed according to the investigation objective and actual survey conditions.

Understand aerial photograph assessment

Magnetometric survey

Electromagnetic methods may respond to metal objects. The investigation is tailored to the areas and depths concerned and the existing ground and interference conditions. A chemically treated layer is neither automatically suitable for surveying nor already investigated for explosive ordnance. Recorded signals require professional interpretation; remaining limitations belong in the results documentation.

Understand the scope of magnetometry

Electromagnetic methods

Ground-penetrating radar uses electromagnetic reflections to investigate subsurface structures. Whether it can contribute to the specific investigation depends, among other factors, on ground composition, moisture and conductivity. Known galleries and foundations are considered as existing-site information. The radar survey replaces neither their structural assessment nor a separate contamination investigation. Its possible contribution to explosive ordnance assessment is established for the project.

Understand electromagnetic surveying

Ground-penetrating radar

Borehole methods may be considered for deeper investigation tasks. Positions and the volumes for which findings are needed are related to the proposed ground works with their vertical reference. Known underground structures belong in preparation. Creating investigation access also disturbs the ground, and its prerequisites must be clarified before work begins. A report on an upper soil layer does not establish findings extending to arbitrary depths.

GPR and limitations

Deep-ground and downhole surveys

A professionally prepared investigation during construction is linked to a suitable investigation task and actual construction conditions. Observation alone does not replace an investigation required beforehand. For staged remediation and infrastructure work, completed sections and remaining tasks must remain traceable. Protective measures and the handling of anomalies are agreed with those responsible before work begins.

Prepare deep interventions

Survey during construction

Professional interpretation relates measurement data and findings to the investigation objective, location and actual conditions. An assessment concerning explosive ordnance remains distinct from findings about contaminant treatment. The areas covered, vertical and depth references, interference and limitations are documented. Site management can then relate the result to the next trench section or individual structure.

Agree the approach during construction
Technical assessment

Selecting the next specialist service for the outstanding question

Assess former use

The historical aerial photograph analysis can help assess the site’s starting conditions alongside other records. A former industrial site is not classified as contaminated by explosive ordnance solely because of its use. Conversely, completed redevelopment does not replace assessment of the existing historical findings. Usable preparatory work is included in the assessment.

Define accessible areas and depths

The surveying must fit the investigation objective and local conditions. For deeper ground works, it must be clarified what can be established under the existing interference conditions. Where sections cannot be assessed adequately, this must remain identifiable. A method must not be assumed suitable solely because of its name.

Agree a firm sequence for the work

A clearance plan can assign necessary investigations to the construction programme. This includes the technical prerequisites to be met before a trench is opened. Later observation of earthworks does not replace an investigation required beforehand. Planning must take Luxembourg requirements and the responsibilities of the bodies involved into account.

Next steps

From remediation records to investigation and handover

01

Provide complete remediation records

Send site plans, section drawings and the results of earlier measures. Identify whether work was only proposed or actually completed and documented. A remediation concept describes a planned approach; further construction and completion records may be needed for the current conditions. The initial discussion clarifies the project location and technical findings required. Existing plans, statements and investigation reports are checked for currency, spatial reference, completeness and gaps.

02

Address outstanding historical questions

Where historical questions remain unresolved, the source research and aerial photograph analyses required are actually carried out within the agreed commission. Results are assigned to today’s parcels and ground works areas. Existing assessments retain their identifiable scope; new findings inform investigation planning.

03

Define the next construction stage

The City of Dudelange publishes NeiSchmelz project records from different years and construction stages. Your enquiry concerns the specific forthcoming ground works. Identify the section and plan version used. An older overall presentation should not silently replace the current construction plan.

04

Add earlier explosive ordnance reports

Where investigations already exist, their complete results and appendices are needed. Show where the new route coincides with the earlier investigation area and where it differs. Identify missing documents or unclear depths in the initial discussion. The suitable method is selected according to the investigation objective, proposed ground works and actual ground and survey conditions. Access, protective measures and coordination of the work are agreed with the responsible parties.

05

Perform the agreed investigation

The agreed survey or professional investigation during construction is carried out in the defined areas and at the defined points. Measurement data and observations are assigned to the location and vertical reference used. Departures from the planned investigation areas, sections not covered and relevant interference are recorded.

06

Assess and document findings

The measurement data and findings collected are assessed professionally against the investigation objective and actual conditions. The report and associated plans document the areas covered, location, elevation and depth references, interference and limitations. Outstanding tasks are assigned spatially so that the next decision can relate to the work step concerned.

07

Prepare the handover to site management

Record which work each technical finding covers. This includes remaining limitations and how later plan changes are to be addressed. A summary may help orientation, but must refer to the complete report and must not narrow its stated limitations. The report and associated plans are handed over with the areas covered, limitations and outstanding tasks. The necessary next-step decision for the following ground works is agreed with the responsible parties.

Documentation

Treat project coordination separately from an ammunition find

Findings and their scope

FONTANA-EOD agrees with you the investigation needs for proposed ground works in Dudelange. Whether services can be undertaken, and to what extent, is clarified according to the project and required local coordination. A private investigation is not general official permission for all work on a property.

Project responsibilities

In Luxembourg, handling found ammunition falls within the responsibilities of SEDAL, the state demining service. The army identifies, among other tasks, identification, neutralisation and destruction of ammunition. A suspicious object must be reported; an ongoing project enquiry is not a substitute.

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

Read depth information with its starting surface

The original ground surface, a working surface and finished ground may have different elevations. Note the reference used by each report. This makes comparison with a new base level technically traceable. An isolated depth in metres is insufficient where it leaves unclear which ground volume was actually investigated, treated or proposed for later ground works.

Understand investigation reports and their limitations

Bringing different types of results together clearly

Keep an organised register of available reports with their subject, plan version and appendices. Site management can use it to find the appropriate evidence for its work. A summary records the main assignments without omitting limitations. If participants change later, the complete results and technical questions still requiring clarification remain available.

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 remediation depth and later earthworks

Does remediated ground also mean freedom from explosive ordnance?

That does not follow simply from the description ‘remediated’. What matters is which risks and ground volumes were investigated or treated. A contamination report does not replace a required explosive ordnance assessment. Read the specific scope of services and results.

What additional checks are needed for a deeper trench?

Compare the trench base and working areas with the spatial limits of existing investigations. Their vertical reference must match. Only this comparison shows which questions have already been answered and where further specialist clarification is needed.

Does the two-metre figure at NeiSchmelz apply throughout Dudelange?

No. It forms part of the remediation planning described for a specific project area and already includes an exception there. It establishes neither a general local remediation depth nor findings about explosive ordnance on other properties.

Can an investigation be carried out later, during excavation?

An investigation required beforehand must not simply be replaced by observation of ongoing earthworks. The technically suitable approach must be defined before the affected ground works. The services needed depend on the existing findings and construction task.

What should I do if I find a suspicious item of ammunition?

Stop the affected work. Do not touch, move or relocate the suspicious object, or expose it further. Leave the danger area and keep others away. From a safe distance, notify the Luxembourg police on 113 or SEDAL. Do not take the object to a police station or other official premises, or to a recycling centre. Follow the instructions of the responsible authorities.

How are different types of results organised for site management?

Keep a register of existing reports with their subject, plan version and associated appendices. The individual results and their limitations remain available in full. Site management can then find the appropriate basis for each task without treating, for example, remediation records as explosive ordnance evidence.

What affects the cost of explosive ordnance assessment?

The work involved depends on the specific question, existing findings and agreed investigation scope. Areas and points, required depths, access and interference may affect execution. Complete earlier reports and current plans allow the necessary research, field investigation, interpretation and documentation to be assigned clearly in the offer. Additional tasks resulting from plan changes or areas initially inaccessible for investigation are agreed separately.

What information helps with underground galleries?

Available site plans, known functions and existing specialist assessments. These are considered as existing-site information separately from explosive ordnance reports.

Project enquiry

Prepare the first technical discussion

State depths clearly

Send the site plan for your project in Dudelange showing the proposed trenches, chambers and connection pits. State base levels, working areas and the vertical reference used. Identify the section to be constructed first and its proposed start. Existing remediation and explosive ordnance reports are included with their respective appendices. This allows discussion of which results already cover the ground works and which question still needs clarification before the next step.

Distinguish technical reports

Organise the records by remediation, ground investigation, existing conditions and explosive ordnance investigation. Note whether a finding describes planning, an intermediate stage or documented execution. Missing maps or unclear depth references are identified as outstanding. Include known galleries and their available as-built plans; do not enter or open unknown voids for the enquiry. When commissioning, agree scope of services, results documentation and handovers with the respective responsible parties.

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.

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