Civil design, survey and mapping.

I have been a civil designer, drafter, drafting manager and survey tech/crew since 1972. I’ve been using AutoCAD since 1986 with several years as a software developer specializing in civil/survey applications for AutoCAD. I passed my LSIT (Land Surveyor in Training) exam in 2006. I have also been building web sites since 1998. I am currently employed by MVE Civil Solutions at their Carson, CA office as the Survey CAD Tech.

AutoLISP

I've had a request for a tool to draw profiles. I wrote some quite a while ago and I'm in the process of isolating the functions into a stand-alone set of commands. It is in progress so check back later. As of 3/01/2010 I have not posted it for download but should have it done by next weekend.

New AutoLISP set available (12/26/09). CMTA is a revised and updated Line and Curve drawing and annotating set of commands, complete with menu and PDF description/help file. 

If you are having problems downloading the files (usually with Internet Explorer), send me an email and I'll reply with the files attached.

 

Drafting & Design

  • Residential and Commercial Precise Grading Plans, Street, Water and Sewer Improvement Plans
  • Water utility improvement plans and specs.
  • Tract Maps & Parcel Maps
  • Construction Staking Calculations
  • Topographic Maps from Field Survey Data
  • Residential Subdivisions
  • Lot Line Adjustments
  • ALTA Drawings
  • Wetland Mitigation Exhibits
  • Record of Survey
  • Boundary Maps
  • Exhibits for Corp of Engineers and Department of Fish and Game permits
  • Earthwork quantities

Topographic Maps from Field Survey: I typically get a drawing that contains a boundary and points, along with a copy of the field notes. On average the files contain 500 - 1500 topo points and take from 2.5 to 5 hours to produce a finished map with symbols, linework and contours.

Tract/Parcel Maps and civil design drawings typically take 6 - 8 hours per sheet for drafting, more for design work. I have worked on commercial and residential projects ranging from 3 lots to 150+ lots.

Custom Programming

Chances are that AutoCAD Land Development Desktop does not do everything you want it to, or the way you want it done. Over the years I've written hundreds of custom macros that allow you to fine tune your drawings' appearance or to perform necessary calculations. All of them can be customized to your specifications.

One of the macros I frequently use is one the takes point data for staking and exports it to an Excel cut/fill spreadsheet for the field crews. It has the option to export alignment stationing. After the field crew has written in the existing ground elevations I enter their data into the spreadsheet and it is sent to the construction crew.

Click on the AutoLisp menu to see (and download) some examples. Click on the Blog menu to see current info.