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Stake-Out QC

Construction stake-out, generated and verified. VDCSTAKEOUT creates the offset stake COGO points from the design with the crew's own description conventions ( cl/A-3 , 15os/A-3 , 3' os tbc , sws / sss ); VDCSTAKEQC reads every description as a claim and checks it against the design: including the stakes a crew set by hand.

Command VDCSTAKEOUT VDCSTAKEQC · VDC Plans tab › Closeout panel

VDCSTAKEQC is part of Generate Construction Stake-Out; the full section follows.

Construction stake-out, generated and verified. VDCSTAKEOUT creates the offset stake COGO points from the design with the crew's own description conventions (cl/A-3, 15os/A-3, 3' os tbc, sws/sss); VDCSTAKEQC reads every description as a claim and checks it against the design: including the stakes a crew set by hand.
VDCSTAKEOUT, center + perpendicular offset pairs, interval grade stakes, VDCSTAKEQC verifies every claim A-3 cl/A-3 15os/A-3 15os/A-3 back of curb 3' os tbc, 50.35 (design TBC) VDC STAKE QC, FINDINGS ERROR Pt 602, 15os/A-3: measured 12.1' (claims 15') ERROR Pt 2046, 3' os tbc: grade 51.67 vs design 51.92 ERROR Pt 610, cl/B-9: no structure B-9 in the design WARN Structure O-2 has no stake point referencing it WARN Pt 45 outside the stake range 600-999 Double-click zooms; CSV + QC status stamp; funnel prints points in scope / parsed / skipped. DRAFT, field verification and professional review govern. The description IS the claim cl/<name> at the feature · {d}os/<name> at d feet perpendicular · {d}' os tbc/ep along picked lines with the design grade · sws/sss at service blocks. Parser reads the crew's real variants (o/s, case, stray spaces); what it can't parse is skipped + counted, not guessed. Wrong offset also = STALE stake (design moved after staking). Stakes land in a point group; cut-sheet CSV with sta/off + N/E + grade.

VDCSTAKEOUT generates

  • Structures: cl/ center stake + a perpendicular offset pair (default 15') oriented off the connected pipe run; open pipe ends (no structure within 2') get a 15os/end pipe pair.
  • Curb / EOP lines you pick (+ the side): interval grade stakes (default 3' offset, 50' spacing), each carrying the design elevation at the ON-LINE point from the reference surface, a TBC offset file, generated.
  • Waterline / forcemain: run stakes at an interval + cl/ at every fitting, hydrant, and appurtenance; services: sws/sss at every service block matched by editable name patterns (defaults = the VDCSERVICELOTS set + the legacy "Water Service" / "Sewer Service" blocks), in the host AND one level into every xref, staked at the block's geometry, not its insertion: an authored POINT inside the block (Defpoints, never plots) wins outright, VDC-WATR-SERV*/VDC-SEWR-SERV* stake at their insertion (the front-corner service location), else water = lateral end nearest the insertion (the meter end), sewer = the circle cluster nearest the insertion (the cleanout; the wye circle at the main is skipped), zero matches lists the block names present; building corners: exterior-bisector offset stakes.
  • Point group + numbering: everything lands in the stake group (default STAKEOUT); a start number drops the run into the survey ranges (collisions keep the auto number and are reported). Cut-sheet CSV with station/offset vs a reference alignment.

VDCSTAKEQC verifies & caveats

  • Offset distance (± tol, default 0.5'), feature reference (whole-token, R1 never claims R12), grade vs the design surface (± 0.10'), number range, duplicates, and missing stakes, structures/services nothing references.
  • Works on hand-set stakes, scope is the stake point group or every point whose description parses; non-stake points (IPF, trees, radius stakes) are skipped and counted in the funnel.
  • Line stakes need the lines picked after OK, skipped lines warn per stake rather than silently passing.
  • Draft work product, generated/checked against the design drawing and configured offsets/tolerances; not a determination that staking is correct or complete. Field verification and review by a qualified professional (and the surveyor of record where required) govern.
  • Civil 3D only (COGO points). Settings shared by the pair at %APPDATA%\VDC\StakeOut\settings.json (env VDC_STAKEOUT_SETTINGS).

Dialog

Generate Construction Stake-Out dialog
Generate Construction Stake-Out, VDCSTAKEOUT

When to use it

  • Before construction staking: hand the field crew a complete, consistently described stake set instead of building it manually.
  • Re-staking after a design change: re-run and the new set reflects the current design.
  • Cut sheets: the CSV carries point number, description, feature, station/offset, N/E, and design elevation.

How to run it

  1. Run VDCSTAKEOUT - pick the sources, offsets, descriptions/grades options, and the point group; click OK.
  2. If line staking is on, pick each curb/EOP line and the side the stakes go on. Enter to finish.
  3. If building corners are on, pick each closed footprint polyline. Enter to finish.
  4. Review the summary and the cut-sheet CSV. Run VDCSTAKEQC to verify the set.

Options

  • Sources: structures, open pipe ends, curb/EOP lines, waterline/forcemain, service blocks, and building corners are each toggleable.
  • Structure offset: the perpendicular offset pair distance (default 15'); the cl/ center stake and the both-sides pair are toggleable.
  • Line offset / interval: grade-stake offset (default 3') and spacing (default 50') along the picked lines; the code (tbc/ep/boc) is editable.
  • Design surface: supplies the grade stamped on line stakes (the elevation at the ON-LINE point, like a TBC offset file).
  • Reference alignment: adds station/offset to the cut sheet (and optionally to descriptions - off by default, crews keep descriptions terse).
  • Service block patterns: wildcard name lists for the water and sewer service blocks (defaults cover the VDCSERVICELOTS set AND the legacy 'Water Service' / 'Sewer Service' blocks) - matched in the host AND one level into every xref. Zero matches lists the block names that ARE present, so pointing the patterns at your own blocks is a copy-paste fix.
  • Service stake spot: resolved in order: (1) an authored POINT entity inside the block (add one on Defpoints - it never plots - and it IS the stake spot, one per POINT); (2) VDC-WATR-SERV* / VDC-SEWR-SERV* blocks stake at the insertion (the front-corner service location); (3) heuristics, field-verified against the legacy office blocks - water at the lateral end NEAREST the insertion (the meter end; far-end/insertion switchable), sewer at the circle cluster nearest the insertion (the cleanout; the wye circle at the main end is skipped, 'every cluster' available); (4) insertion fallback, counted in the funnel.
  • Point group / start number: everything lands in the stake group (default STAKEOUT); a start number drops the run into the survey ranges (collisions keep the auto number and are reported).

Watch out for

  • Zero service stakes usually means a block-name mismatch or services living in an xref the drawing hasn't loaded - the summary lists the block names it saw; put the right one in the service-block patterns.
  • Grade stakes need the design surface picked - without it, line stakes are location-only (elevation 0).
  • Structure offset stakes orient off the connected pipe run; an isolated structure with no pipe defaults to an east-west orientation - check those by eye.
  • Re-running creates a NEW set of points; erase or renumber the old run first (the point group makes that a one-select job).
  • Draft work product - field verification and review by a qualified professional (and the surveyor of record where required) govern.

Related: Stake QC · Stake Lots · Pipe Names · Service Lots