Project pathway
The quickest route to the right decision.
Explosive ordnance surveying in Lüneburg for planned groundworks
If you are planning groundworks in Lüneburg, ask the city about existing indications of explosive ordnance for your property. FONTANA-EOD discusses this information, earlier investigations and your construction design with you. This helps clarify which areas and depths still need investigation. Necessary official decisions are clarified with the competent authorities.
Clarify existing findings for the property.
Describe planned groundworks on the site plan.
Hand over reports and their associated plans together.
Assess the construction project
Relate the city’s information to your own construction task
For groundworks in Lüneburg, we compare existing information and specialist reports with the specific area affected and the planned depths. Also mark new service connections and working space on the plan. Using the findings for the area, we clarify whether an area with suspected ordnance is affected and which further investigations are needed. Local coordination and the results handover are incorporated into the project sequence.
Project site
Connect the site with the specific construction task
Identify the Lüneburg enquiry route for the property
On its information page, the Hanseatic City identifies its Public Order and Traffic department as the contact for explosive ordnance enquiries. For your project, clearly identify the area concerned and planned groundworks. Existing city information remains available with its appendices. The Hanseatic City belongs to the Lüneburg district of Lower Saxony. For a project outside the city, the competent municipality and respective enquiry route are identified. An enquiry therefore states the actual project address and affected areas.
For regional information relevant to your construction project, the Lüneburg administrative area overview leads to further local information.
Local context
Assess the city’s information and historical evidence in context
Local enquiry route
The Hanseatic City of Lüneburg recommends that property owners obtain information about existing indications of explosive ordnance before ground interventions; this also includes minor alterations not requiring a building permit. Its information page identifies the Public Order and Traffic department as the competent hazard response authority. Information concerning your own area and the associated documents are decisive for project planning. The city history describes the bombing of Lüneburg railway station on 7 April 1945. During investigation, such historical information is related to the specific project location and available maps, files and aerial photographs. For former railway or operational land, or land whose use has otherwise changed, the findings actually available for the planned interventions are checked. Assessment of a property is based on this spatially assigned evidence and the specialist investigation needed.
Compare the information with your own construction design
A response about a property should be assessed together with the site plan, intervention description and existing specialist reports. Check which planned work the available findings cover. Where information is missing or contradictory, a targeted enquiry is needed. The area affected is decisive, rather than merely its location within a district. Therefore provide the complete response rather than only a summary message. If new findings, additional areas or changed depths arise, record which question needs clarification again for the next work section. A report for an older construction project also remains linked to its original commission and associated appendices.
Requirements
Clarify technical requirements and responsibilities within the project
Relate requirements to the specialist task
For the commissioned activities, the relevant technical requirements and questions of permits, competence certification and responsibility are clarified. The actual planned service scope is decisive. A general company designation does not replace checking that the tasks and interfaces are described appropriately for the specific project.
Link occupational safety to the construction sequence
Risk assessment, work areas and communication must suit the proposed activities. Ordnance specialist works are coordinated with the other construction activities. Operational organisation, traffic safety and other specialist technical inspections retain their own responsible parties. Joint coordination brings the information together without equating the different tasks.
Use technical findings correctly
A measurement anomaly first requires specialist assessment; its appearance alone does not identify it as explosive ordnance. If an object is genuinely suspected to be ordnance, the prescribed reporting procedures and the measures set by the responsible authorities apply. Investigation reports specify the work completed and its limitations, so that results are not extended to unexamined areas or later design changes.
For unresolved property questions, use the city’s guidance on enquiries and commissioning a specialist company. The tasks of municipalities, specialist companies and the KBD are coordinated with the respective investigation commission and competent authorities.
For clearance planning the investigation objective and required specialist work are related to the area concerned. The suitability of geophysical methods is checked against actual conditions. Spatial references, results and limitations belong together in the documentation.
The BFR KMR are used as technical guidance; locally applicable requirements and responsibilities must be clarified separately.
Permits, competence and responsibility for the specific activity are considered under the Explosives Act and the First Ordinance to the Explosives Act. The risk assessment under Section 5 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act relates to the planned activities. The DGUV Information 201-027 covers preventive investigation and clearance of conventional explosive ordnance and defines its scope. Its references to DGUV Rule 113-003 concern particular activities involving explosives; they are not applied indiscriminately to every construction-site investigation.
Working together
Distinguish the tasks of client, designers and specialist contractor
Client and operator
The project owner describes the project and provides existing project documents. The operator adds requirements for use, access and timing. A coordinating contact agrees the tasks assigned to them with those responsible. Before commissioning, the missing information, who obtains it and the decision the result is intended to prepare are recorded clearly.
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 scope. Official requirements and decisions are clarified with the competent authorities concerned. The documents needed for a particular procedure depend on the location and project. The technical report describes the specialist service performed; its conclusions are not presented unchecked as general authorisation for further groundworks or as an authority's decision.
Investigation task
Which specialist task comes next?
Assess existing findings in their specialist context
The city’s information and earlier assessments are brought together with the construction design. The area and question each covers are decisive. Missing appendices are specifically requested. The next step follows from the remaining questions and applicable requirements. A general statement about a district does not replace this assignment to your own intervention area. If the assessment requires further work, the clearance objective and spatial scope of area clearance are agreed with the responsible parties.
Assess historical documentsDefine suitable technical work
Where further investigations are required, they depend on the objective, depth and conditions of the area. Existing installations, paving and access are taken into account. The task is described before selecting the method. The commission records which results are needed and which limitations of the work must be documented traceably for subsequent operations.
Compare investigation methodsProject types
From property information to a defined investigation
Minor alterations involving groundworks
Even a limited project may include new foundations, connections or other interventions. Describe their position and depth before the investigation scope is defined. The city’s information is assessed together with the available specialist reports. The size of the alterations and their status under building law do not, on their own, answer the explosive ordnance question. The specific ground interventions and existing findings for them remain decisive.
Specialist services and investigation tasks
Older information where the design has changed
An unchanged property address does not mean that all work planned later has already been covered. Compare the new construction design with the reference area and subject of the information. The associated investigation reports and appendices are also needed. If information is missing or contradictory, the unresolved question is clarified specifically. The documents retain their value within the scope actually documented.
Document findings and their limitationsA commission involving several companies
Planning, investigation and subsequent construction need the same relevant documents. Define who leads local coordination and which results are handed over to the next participants. The notification requested by the city when commissioning a specialist company is included in the sequence. It is a communication step; specialist conclusions arise from the agreed investigation scope and its documentation.
Coordinate the sequence and tasksPreparation
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.
For a property purchase, existing information and specialist reports are assigned to the precise property and intended use. For tendering, companies submitting quotations need the same plan version and unresolved questions. Mark planned excavations, individual drilling points and service sections with their respective depths. Even limited interventions are described with the findings needed. If buildings or paving are present, identify which parts remain and which work creates new access to the ground. On this basis, the specialist company can explain investigation needs and agree a suitable scope of services with the documents needed to check the results.
Define the specialist taskCoordinate preparatory work with the investigation
Required access and measurement conditions are clarified before the appointment. These may include areas to be kept clear, available service information and coordination with other trades. The preliminary work actually needed depends on the selected method and site. Surface changes or additional ground interventions must not be undertaken independently merely to prepare for a measurement. Their sequence is agreed with the specialist planners and responsible parties. For an occupied site, deliveries, operational areas and access to individual construction sections are discussed with site management. Service plans, known installations and possible interference are assigned spatially. Identify who keeps areas clear and when the agreed areas are accessible. If preliminary work is required, it is scheduled as a separate task with its specialist prerequisites. For investigation during construction, the specialist company and those carrying out the work agree the sequence, investigation sections and handling of new findings before the appointment. Supervision is commissioned for its actual investigation objective; any necessary preliminary exploration or other investigation must still be explicitly considered.
Clarify preparatory work in the programmeAgree a clear scope and schedule
A reliable sequence distinguishes work whose specialist requirements have already been clarified from prerequisites still unresolved. If an area will be only partly accessible, this must be considered when commissioning. Handover and assessment of results also need time within the construction sequence. Specific coordination links the described scope with access, documents, execution conditions and the date by which a decision is needed. Cost and timing depend particularly on the size and geometry of the areas to be investigated, intervention depths, required methods and possible interference. Historical research, additional access and clarification of findings may also be needed. Clearly identify the required reports, plan appendices and coordination steps in the quotation and commission. If an area becomes accessible later or the design changes, discuss the effects on the agreed sequence with the client. For project management, record clearly which prerequisites are already in place and which tasks other parties still need to complete.
Discuss the scope and scheduleTasks at the site
Information needed for the investigation commission
01
Ground areas affected
Describe the ground areas actually affected. Alongside an excavation, these may include connections or preliminary work where planned. The property address helps establish the location but does not replace a plan showing the relevant intervention areas.
02
Reports with their appendices
A summary of results must be assessed together with its appendices and limitations. It must be clear which area was investigated and what conclusion could be reached. Compare this scope with the groundworks now planned.
03
Missing information and new ground interventions
Missing location details must be supplied. By contrast, for areas not investigated or changed depths, clarify whether further investigations are necessary. Identify the unresolved question so that any supplementary commission can be limited to it.
04
Coordination with those carrying out the work
Those responsible for planning need the same relevant documents. The commissioned scope and prerequisites for subsequent work should be known before work starts. Record in writing which areas and tasks the results apply to.
Project documents
Documents that establish the next step
File information with its spatial reference
Keep the information received together with the enquiry, site plan and associated appendices. Its date and area concerned should remain identifiable. Add later specialist reports without silently removing earlier records from the register. This makes traceable which conclusions are available for the current design and which question may still need to be put to the competent authority. Assign the records to the land parcel and respective area concerned. Where there are several responses, check whether they address the same area and question or different construction sections. Identify earlier aerial photograph assessments with the limitations of the findings at that time. Mark missing location plans and unresolved assignments. The specialist company can use this to determine which existing conclusions are usable for the current design and where a supplement is needed. The documented commission and current plan remain available together for this comparison.
Agree a specific results handover
Identify who needs the complete report before the next ground intervention. This includes the areas investigated, methods used and limitations. Unresolved areas remain visible. If new work is added after the investigation, its scope is compared again with the documented conclusions. Joint handover thus links specialist planning with the actual construction sequence.
For handover, the commission, report and relevant plans are provided together. If clearance work was carried out, its clearance record, identifying the areas covered, actual clearance scope and results, is also assigned to the corresponding plan version. A map showing investigated areas is assigned to the associated results status. Where several companies are carrying out work, define who receives these documents before the next affected ground intervention. Outstanding work is handed over with its location, findings needed and responsible contacts. When work resumes after a longer break or site management changes, design changes and findings received in the meantime are compared with this status. The further specialist task can then be described for the area actually remaining to be investigated.
Construction sequence
Coordinate investigation and construction sections
Before the first commission
Bring together your own construction task and existing findings. Clarify unresolved questions about the reference area, missing appendices and next groundworks. Include local coordination in the sequence in good time. An investigation commission can then be based on a traceable plan version and provide the findings needed before the affected intervention.
Between investigation and changed execution
Site management receives the complete report with its associated plan version. New connections, larger working volumes or different depths must not subsequently be treated as implicitly covered. Communicate changes before execution. The specialist comparison shows which existing results remain applicable and whether additional clarification is needed for the changed area.
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 assessmentMagnetometric 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 magnetometryElectromagnetic 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 surveyingGround-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 limitationsDeep-ground and downhole surveys
For deeper interventions, it may be necessary to assess whether investigation from the surface can provide the required findings or another approach is needed. Position, depth, drilling point arrangement and existing services then form part of preparation. Creating investigation access must also be planned in a technically suitable way. A general depth in metres or standard grid does not replace this task. The results remain tied to the areas actually investigated and the method used. Coordinate the surveying with the findings it needs to provide and the planned interventions.
Prepare deep interventionsSurvey during construction
If a necessary preliminary investigation cannot be completed in full, it is assessed whether a specialist-planned approach during construction is suitable. This includes coordinated investigation, evaluation and communication of findings within the planned sequence. Visual observation during excavation is not an interchangeable substitute for necessary surveying. Site management needs a clear description of when specialist work takes place, how new findings are handled and which areas remain unresolved. Describe the task of excavation supervision with the investigation and work stages actually planned.
Agree the approach during constructionTechnical assessment
Coordinate the investigation with the city and construction planners
Inform the city that a company has been commissioned
The Hanseatic City states that property owners can commission a suitable specialist company and then requests brief notification by telephone. For the project process you should also take this notification and local coordination into account. Official powers remain with the competent authorities.
Check the suitability of surface surveying
The surface survey is one possible form of technical investigation. Whether it is suitable for the specific task depends, among other things, on the investigation objective and site conditions. Location in Lüneburg or previous property use alone is insufficient for selecting a method.
Investigation and official responsibilities
An agreed clearance plan describes the necessary steps within the project. It records which results are available, which areas remain unresolved and which further measures are needed. Rendering safe and the KBD’s other state tasks do not become responsibilities of the commissioned company merely through a private surveying commission.
Next steps
Before the next groundworks
Describe the next tasks
Identify which task will next disturb the ground and the plan version on which it is based. Minor alterations and a larger excavation may create different tasks. Describe the specific intervention and its depth. This information is used to discuss the initial project enquiry. Existing explosive ordnance information and investigation reports are checked for plan version, spatial coverage, investigated depths and unresolved questions relating to the present construction task.
Compile information and reports
Bring the information received, earlier assessments and technical reports together with the plans. Record the date and area concerned for each document. A more recent letter does not automatically replace an older investigation; the respective contents remain decisive. If the existing evidence is insufficient for an unresolved historical question, the necessary research or aerial photograph assessment is carried out. The findings are related to the present construction area and assigned to further investigation planning.
Agree the investigation scope
Agree which questions the investigation should answer, which prerequisites are needed and who needs the results. Take account of responses from the competent authorities. Clarify unresolved matters before the affected work section. On this basis, the specialist company selects an approach suitable for the investigation objective, depth, ground conditions and interference. For different areas, it explains whether surface investigation, deep surveying or specialist-planned supervision can provide the required findings.
Carry out the agreed investigation
The commissioned specialists investigate the accessible agreed areas using the defined method. They record the necessary measurement or investigation data, spatial references, execution conditions and areas not investigated. Agreed investigation during construction is coordinated with the actual work sequence. Changes from the design are clarified before the affected work continues.
Assess data and findings in their specialist context
The data and findings are evaluated against the investigation objective, method and actual conditions. Anomalies, interference and limitations are assigned to the area investigated. A measurement anomaly is assessed by specialists rather than simply treated as identified explosive ordnance. If a finding requires further clarification, the necessary work and responsible parties are identified.
Pass on the results
Hand over the complete results to those responsible for further work. These include the plan appendices and documented limitations. If the design changes afterwards, the new intervention must be compared again with the previous conclusion. The specialist company documents the investigations carried out and its assessment in a report with spatial references and necessary plan appendices. The client and responsible project parties compare the documented scope with the next intervention and agree the further work still needed.
Documentation
Hand over complete reports to site management
Findings and their scope
The results report identifies the commission, areas investigated, methods used and specialist limitations. Areas not investigated or still requiring clarification are explicitly marked. This enables site management and specialist planners to identify which particular work area each finding covers and where further coordination is needed.
Project responsibilities
The BFR Kampfmittelräumung addresses these planning and documentation tasks within its federal scope. For another project, its principles replace neither clarification of local responsibilities nor the individual task description. A specialist company’s report applies to the documented investigation scope. It does not replace any necessary official decision.
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 taskThe 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
Distinguish information, commission and results
The response describes the information available in the respective case. The investigation commission defines the additional task to be addressed. The results report documents the work actually carried out and the limitations of its conclusions. These documents belong together but serve different functions. Their clear assignment helps site management decide which specialist prerequisites are in place for the next intervention.
Understand investigation reports and their limitationsFormulate an unresolved question as specifically as possible
Rather than asking generally for a property assessment, identify the proposed ground intervention and existing documents. Is the reference area unclear, is an appendix missing or does a new work area lie outside the previous scope? A specific question helps agree a suitable next step. Specialists assess whether this requires supplementary documents or a technical investigation.
Understand the service scopeDesign and findings
Documents for the next construction decision
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 assessmentSpecialist 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
Further technical topics
Further technical information for your project
Determine the specialist service from the planned groundworks
Historical assessment, technical investigation and further work answer different questions. In your enquiry, identify the existing evidence and the findings needed for the next ground intervention.
Compare servicesCoordinate the project sequence with everyone involved
Preparation connects the commission, site work and handover of findings. Changes to the project can then be incorporated into technical coordination in good time.
Process and documentationQuestions from planning
Questions about coordinating construction projects in Lüneburg
Where can I obtain information about my property?
The Hanseatic City of Lüneburg directs these enquiries to its Public Order and Traffic department. Use the current contact details on the linked city information page. For further planning, keep the information received available together with the site plan and proposed ground interventions.
Do I need to clarify the explosive ordnance question for alterations that do not require a building permit?
Alterations that do not require a building permit may still involve ground interventions. The city recommends obtaining information beforehand. Further measures needed depend on the planned work and existing findings for the property.
Is an earlier survey sufficient for a new construction project?
This can only be assessed using the complete report and new design. The area, depth, methods and limitations investigated must suit the planned work. A different intervention area may require additional clarification, even if the address remains the same.
Who decides on measures following a confirmed find?
Lower Saxony’s allocation of responsibilities applies to statutory measures and the KBD’s state tasks. A private specialist company does not assume these merely through its investigation commission. The necessary steps are initiated through the competent authorities and the KBD.
What should I do if a suspicious object is found?
Stop the affected work, leave the object where it is without altering it and move away. Warn other people and notify the police immediately on 110. Follow official instructions and do not investigate or transport it yourself.
What information helps with an enquiry about information already provided?
Identify the case by its date and area concerned. Add the current site plan, planned groundworks and specific point requiring clarification. Complete appendices help establish the relationship. The enquiry can then specifically address a missing spatial reference, a contradiction or a new question.
Does notifying the city that a company has been commissioned establish an investigation result?
No. The notification requested by the city organises communication within the project. What was actually investigated and the resulting conclusions are documented in the specialist report with its associated plans and limitations. Commissioning and results therefore remain separately traceable.
What affects the cost and timing of an investigation still needed?
The investigation objective, area, depth and local conditions matter just as much as the findings already available. Missing documents or changed interventions may require additional coordination. Also describe access, construction phases and the date by which the results handover is needed. The required method, interference, necessary preliminary work and supplementary research also affect cost and timing. The specific scope is agreed with the results documentation needed and the prerequisites for execution.
Project enquiry
Explosive ordnance assessment for your construction project in Lüneburg
Provide the information received and construction design together
Send existing city information and specialist reports with their appendices. Add the site plan and a description of the next groundworks, including depths. Mark changes from earlier records and identify unresolved questions about the area or scope.
Organise coordination and handovers
State who communicates with the city and which companies are involved in planning and execution. Identify the first planned ground intervention and the specialist findings needed. Known limitations of the work area are taken into account during preparation.
Assess historical findings
Assess historical findingsTechnology and investigation conditions
Technology and investigation conditionsUnderstand regional responsibilities
Understand regional responsibilitiesPrepare the technical investigation
Prepare the technical investigationClarify further investigation of findings
Clarify further investigation of findingsDefine the construction task and application
Define the construction task and application
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.
