Welcome to the Site Survey Series (2/4)
In this installment, we’re looking at how modern worksites use both aerial and ground surveys. Not one instead of the other.
Drone surveys deliver speed and photorealistic visuals, while ground surveys provide accuracy in tough terrain and fill in gaps where drones can’t fly. Propeller brings both together, so your team can work from a single, shared, measurable map.
Last week, we kicked off a 4-part series on construction site data (and how use it for maximum benefit) with our post on the value of maintaining a central data hub. This week, we’re taking to the skies (and the field) to talk about drone vs. ground surveys.
Drone surveys took the civil construction and earthwork industries by storm when they hit the scene a decade or so ago, and they’ve only gotten better since. They’re fast, efficient, and give you a clear picture of progress with photorealistic 3D maps. (And if you’re using Propeller PPK, they can also achieve up to 1/10ft accuracy!)
But ground surveys are still the gold standard for surveying accuracy in construction, and they’re the only game in town when drones can’t fly. For instance, when weather or airspace make a flight impossible. Or when you don’t have a drone pilot on-site. Or when a utility crew needs survey accuracy down to the millimeter for a utility tie-in. In these situations, aerial photogrammetry alone just can’t deliver.
With Propeller, you don’t have to choose between one or the other. You can combine ground and aerial survey data into a single workflow, giving your team access to everything they need in one place.
Let’s explore how it works.
When to use a ground survey instead of a drone
Drones deliver fast and photorealistic surveys in just a few minutes of flight time, but they’re not always the right tool for every job.
Ground-based surveys are still the best option when:
- Accuracy is key: Millimeter-level precision requires ground-based survey tools like a GPS rover or total station.
- You’re surveying varied terrain: Think heavy vegetation or bodies of water, where aerial cameras struggle to capture reliable surface data.
- You’re grounded: Whether you’re battling adverse weather, airspace restrictions, or pilot availability, a drone flight isn’t always an option. Ground surveys fill in the gap.
- You’re working from an existing topo: Many projects start with a base topo or surface model from the engineer in DXF or LandXML format.
- You need daily updates: As you strip, excavate, and fill, you may need ground surveys to capture daily surface data before further work is done.
How Propeller makes ground data better
Uploading your ground surveys into Propeller doesn’t just keep your file storage neat and tidy. It makes your data easier to use by making it more accessible to your whole team.
- The best of both worlds: Combine high-accuracy ground surveys with realistic drone imagery for 3D site maps that are both precise and photorealistic.
- No more stitching data together offline: Instead of switching between software tools to cross-check data, or adding to a surveyor’s backlog so they can combine your data manually in CAD software, you can merge multiple surveys in a single construction mapping software platform that’s easy enough for anyone to use.
- Use the right tool for the job: Use both drones and ground survey tools where they excel, and view the results in one place to avoid blind spots.
- Easy access to survey insights: Upload topo files into Propeller and let project managers, engineers, and supervisors take their own measurements—no CAD experience required.
- Make collaboration easier: Field crews, PMs, engineers, and surveyors can all verify the same data.
It’s not drone vs ground surveys. It’s drone and ground surveys.
The days of managing aerial and ground-based data in completely separate workflows are over. On today’s jobsite, they work better together. Propeller creates a single map everyone can trust, whether you’re measuring a trench with millimeter-level precision or visualizing progress over time with drone flights.
