RTK surveying. Straight to the office. No import step.
Propeller’s RTK surveying tool gives foremen and supervisors centimeter-level GNSS positioning for grade checks, stakeout, and point capture—using RTK survey equipment that costs a fraction of a traditional survey rover and connects directly to the same platform as your survey data.
Your team can answer questions in the field instead of waiting for a survey crew. The point your foreman captures at 7am is on the office map before the morning meeting—no CSV, no email, no wait.
Field and office, working from the same map
Previous survey workflows create a handoff: collect the data, export it, send it, import it, then wait for everyone to catch up.
Propeller RTK removes that handoff. Captured points and stakeout records sync directly to your Propeller site, so people in the field and office can see the same work as it happens.
No import step
Field data lands on the Propeller site map automatically—not in a separate file someone has to move later.
Real-time collaboration
The office can see shots as they’re captured, and field teams can work from current site data instead of waiting 30–60 minutes for a traditional transfer.
One connected record
Survey surfaces, designs, field checks, and captured points live together, giving everyone one place to review what happened and when.
Built for the people on site
Foremen, supervisors, and operators get a straightforward workflow without having to become surveyors or learn a separate system.
Survey-grade accuracy without survey-grade overhead
Your team shouldn’t have to wait on a survey visit to answer a question they’re standing on top of. Propeller RTK gives the people already walking the site accurate tools for routine grade checks, stakeout, and point capture.
A full DirtMate RTK setup runs about $4,400, compared with $8,000–$15,000 for many traditional base-and-rover setups. That makes it practical to put centimeter-level positioning in more hands—not just the survey department.
0.02ft
Validated against a Trimble rover
at Prince Construction
0.03ft
Validated against a Topcon rover
at Huwa Enterprises
I tried to prove the system wrong, but it was within three-hundredths of my expensive rover. We are also moving toward using DirtMate rovers. They are significantly cheaper than Leica or Topcon heads but just as accurate.”
Kasen Huwa, Director of Analytics and Technology, Huwa Enterprises
Common RTK surveying applications on construction sites
Check grade without waiting
Check grade against a design surface while standing on the pad. Supervisors and foremen get the answer immediately instead of waiting for a survey crew to travel between sites.
Save them hours of going between sites for grade checking.”
Prince Construction survey crew
Stake out designs in minutes
Stake out points, lines, offsets, and road centerlines with live cut/fill and horizontal guidance. Mark limits, set pins, and record exactly what was placed.
At Ames Central, a foreman staked out a relocated road centerline in about five minutes. The superintendent immediately asked for three more units.
Ames Central team
Capture as-builts as work happens
Record completed work, utilities, boundaries, and verification points before they disappear. Each shot carries a timestamp and location and syncs to the office map.
Guide operators in the cab
Give operators live elevation and horizontal guidance through Propeller Mobile, including on machines that never had grade guidance before.
How RTK surveying works with DirtMate
Connect your DirtMate
Pair over Bluetooth in the mobile app. Corrections load automatically from your base or NTRIP source.
Pick the job
Stake out a design, check grade against a surface, or capture points for the record.
Work in the field
Live RTK fix on your screen, with cut/fill and stakeout deltas as you move.
Sync to Propeller
Points and records appear on the site map straight away, so field and office are looking at the same thing.
Proven on live sites
“During our In-Cab beta, we found we could move more dirt with less equipment. Because the scrapers had the data on an iPad, they didn’t need a dozer sitting there to mark out the area or check grade. We saved two to three dozers per job site.”
Kasen Huwa, Director of Analytics and Technology, Huwa Enterprises
- Idle time cut from 40–50% down to 10% at Heidelberg Leeds
- Crews up and running inside a single site visit, across multiple customers
- Fewer machines parked as grade markers, because the grade is on the screen
How accurate is DirtMate RTK surveying?
“I tried to prove the system wrong, but it was within three-hundredths of my expensive rover. We are also moving toward using DirtMate rovers. They are significantly cheaper than Leica or Topcon heads but just as accurate.”
Kasen Huwa, Huwa Enterprises
DirtMate RTK uses the same correction infrastructure as high-precision survey rovers. It works with your existing NTRIP or VRS network, a CORS station, or a DirtMate running as a base. The corrections are the same. The hardware costs a lot less.
It also sits alongside what you already own. Teams typically start with one unit, check it against their existing rover, and scale from there.
Manage every device from one place
As your fleet grows, the DirtMate Management App gives your team visibility across every unit: firmware versions, correction source status, and device health in one dashboard. One person can keep 20 units current without walking to each machine.
RTK survey equipment you need to get started
- DirtMate unit (FPN10026, $1,400)
- Rover pole and bracket for field work
- A tablet or phone: Samsung Galaxy Tab Active5 5G (the 5G version is required), or iPhone 12 or newer for the Bluetooth connection
- A correction source: your existing NTRIP or VRS network, a CORS station, or a DirtMate set up as a base
Give the people on site the answers to keep work moving
Put accurate grade checks, stakeout, and point capture in the hands of the people already walking the job—and put every result on the office map automatically.
See how Propeller RTK can help your team answer more questions in the field, reduce survey wait time, and keep field and office connected.
FAQs
It’s designed for foremen, supervisors, operators, and field teams who need accurate answers throughout the day without waiting for a survey crew. Survey teams can also use it to extend access to routine grade checks, stakeout, and point capture while keeping all work visible in Propeller.
Cost and where the data goes. A DirtMate RTK setup runs about $4,400 against $8,000 to $15,000 for a traditional base and rover, and it’s been validated within 0.02ft of a Trimble rover and 0.03ft of a Topcon. The bigger difference is that everything captured lands on your Propeller site map, so there’s no export step between the field and the office. Most teams see payback inside 18 to 24 months.
Yes. It runs off the same NTRIP and VRS corrections your current gear uses, so nothing gets ripped out. Start with one unit, check it against your rover, and scale when you’re satisfied.
Use RTK for decisions you’re making right now: staking out a design, checking grade, capturing a point you need on record today. Use PPK when you’re capturing a whole site surface for volumes, progress, and as-builts. Most sites run both, because they answer different questions.
A DirtMate, a rover pole, a Galaxy Tab Active5 5G or an iPhone 12 or newer, and a correction source. The learning curve is close to zero for anyone who already uses DirtMate, because it’s the same interface. Crews are generally working within a single site visit.
Points and stakeout records sync in real time, and queue offline if you lose connection. You can export to CSV, PDF, or a Propeller report, and every record carries a timestamp and location for the audit trail.
You get an alert, the unit re-acquires, and you pick up where you left off. Coverage depends on your NTRIP or VRS network or base station range, and the Bluetooth connection to your device works offline. Battery runs 8-plus hours, or 10-plus paired with a charger.
RTK surveying uses real-time GNSS corrections to improve positioning accuracy while work is happening in the field. A rover receives correction data from a base station or correction network, allowing crews to perform tasks such as stakeout, grade checking, and point capture with centimeter-level accuracy. DirtMate RTK brings that workflow into the Propeller platform.
An RTK rover is the field receiver used to determine an accurate position using live GNSS corrections. DirtMate can operate as an RTK rover for tasks such as stakeout, grade checking, and point capture.
RTK requires a correction source, but that does not always have to be a local base station. DirtMate RTK can use an NTRIP or VRS network, a CORS station, or another DirtMate configured as a base.