TechnicalNotes

Terramodel Software
for Construction
I N T E G R AT E D S O F T WA R E F O R I M P R O V E D C O N S T R U C T I O N P R O C E S S E S

Today’s construction industry demands high accuracy and maximum efficiency

throughout the construction process. In this tough, competitive industry, where
mistakes can be time-consuming and costly, Trimble’s Terramodel® software
provides you with a complete and comprehensive system to meet all of your
construction needs.

Terramodel automates construction calculating and reporting tasks–saving you

time and money–while also producing reliable stakeout data, 3D machine
control data and quality control information. Reliable data minimizes rework
on site.

Push construction tolerances to their limits and reward your organization with
added profits from material and rework savings. At the same time you have the
confidence that your work will stand the test of time.
T E R R A M O D E L D E L I V E R S S I G N I F I C A N T T I M E S AV I N G S by providing solutions for all
construction projects. It provides tools for the essential tasks of bid estimating, volume analysis, and data preparation for
stakeout and machine control. Data flows seamlessly from the original survey to the design and then to construction
stakeout or machine control—without the need for data exchange or the reformatting of information. This streamlined
process eliminates errors and improves the quality of your work. The software’s modular approach allows you to utilize
only the components you require at a given time, while giving you the flexibility to expand to meet new needs as they
arise. Terramodel is the ideal package for all survey, design, and construction work. These Technical Notes focus on how
Terramodel can be used for construction applications.

CONSTRUCTION
Terramodel uses a single-file project-model database that supports construction activities. It provides
you with one tool that can be used for surveying and engineering tasks, as well as construction tasks
such as calculating cut/fill volumes, creating stakeout data and reports, calculating mass haul and
construction phasing, preparing data for machine controlled construction, and producing as-built
survey records during the construction phase. Projects created in Terramodel are straightforward to
construct on site because they come from a model and not just a drawing.

Terramodel provides the following features for construction:

• Data import and export, verification, and troubleshooting
• Mass haul and phasing computations
• Volumes from DTM surfaces and cross-sections
• Residential, commercial, and industrial site design
• Estimating and material takeoff for contract bidding
• Design adjustment during construction
• Plan set and as-built survey records
• Stakeout data preparation—points, alignments, surfaces,
grids, design models
• Heavy highway and road engineering
• Groundworks and earthworks designs and analysis
• Landfill design and waste cell construction
• Machine control data preparation and grade checking
• Design and build
• Project visualization and data verification
• Construction GIS

SURVEY
The Terramodel software is ideal for a range of survey work, including the processing of (conventional
or GPS) topographic surveys and control networks, as well as CAD editing and digital terrain modeling.
The benefits of Terramodel’s unique real-time database for the surveyor are enormous. Creating a
project is simple and straightforward—raw survey data is automatically reduced to points and lines
contained in a single project file. The final drafting is a reflection of your actual survey data. For more
information about how Terramodel can be used for survey applications, see the Terramodel Software for
Surveying Technical Notes.

DESIGN
Terramodel also gives civil engineers a complete tool set for design that enhances capabilities and
productivity from the initial survey to final construction. Terramodel supports the design of roads,
bridges, railways, sewers, surfaces, commercial or residential sites, and new infrastructure with advanced
design concepts. Projects are modeled using plan, profile, and cross-section views. Terramodel manages
large jobs easily as the software handles hundreds of thousands of points and seamlessly integrates survey
and construction data in a single project file.

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 INTRODUCTION
The Terramodel software belongs to Trimble’s range of
products that help you to save time and money on all types of
construction projects. The many features in the Terramodel
software are built on years of experience in the construction
industry.

B I D E S T I M AT I N G
Terramodel provides the ideal tools for estimating during the
bid phases of a project. You can do material takeoffs from
plans and cross-sections, and enter design data to engineering
precision, so that when you win the contract, you are ready to
start work right away. Terramodel also allows you to calculate
volumes for different phases of a project, so that you can Terramodel makes it easy to export points and alignments to a
accurately plan and measure the materials you data collector by allowing you to graphically select the data
move at each stage. you want to export.

TE FOR
ESTIMA 24767
3 D M A C H I N E C O N T R O L D ATA P R E PA R AT I O N
P
JOB #R
For stakeless machine control applications Terramodel allows
Adjusted
For
Adjusted
Total Co
st
Trimble
3D
Total
you to import or key in data, and it provides tools for
Unit Price
ntrol
Quantity Machine
Co

0
obtaining design data from plans and digitized drawings. For
Bid Item 31,570.0

0
31,570.0
0
9,120.00
machine control you can export TIN DTMs, grid DTMs, or
31,570.0
LS
1.60
9,120.00
-40,000.00
10,000.0
0
3D design model files.
0 5
Mobiliza
tion 5,700.00 50,000.0 13,999.7
5
Silt Fenc
e 13,999.7 389,130
.00
126.58 -19,620.00
Survey St
aking 110.60 408,750
.00
220,362
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1.25 -3,612.5
0
bing
and Grub 327,000
.00 223,975
.00
226,678
.00
Clearing 15.50 0
-3,333.5
cavation 14,450.0
0
230,011
.50
Mass Ex ial 17.25 .25
se Mater 900,860
Roadba
gregate 13,334.0
0 -66,566.00
Install Ag .25
967,426
ing
Fine Grad

tals
Project To

With Terramodel you can get all the data you need for
stakeout, machine control, and estimating from one software
package, so you’re saving money all the way.

S TA K E O U T D ATA P R E PA R AT I O N
Terramodel provides you with tools for preparing data for The Road Engineering module gives you advanced tools for
stakeout and for resolving problems with imported data automating the creation of 3D models, including the
(especially CAD graphics data). These tools save you time and computation of daylight lines in cut and fill.
reduce the errors before you leave the office. When you
import CAD data, Terramodel automatically creates points at TERRAIN MODELS AND SECTIONS
polyline nodes (for example, house corners and pile cap Create cross and long sections through multiple surfaces—
locations), to help you create stakeout data. You can also create Terramodel automatically creates cross-section views and a
a 3D surface from a 2D CAD drawing with elevation text or sheeted layout of multiple cross-section drawings, complete
contours. with full annotation. (Cross-sections are created against a
horizontal alignment and cross-section locations placed at
You can add standard shapes (for example, building pads) to critical points and regular intervals along the alignments.)
your drawing and rotate them to the correct positions. Points
are then created at the node points.

3

Cross-sectional areas and volumes can then be easily
computed. The cross-section editor and the template editor in
the Roadway module provide dynamic solutions that update
when changes are made to the surfaces.
V O L U M E A N A LY S I S
The Site Design module computes earthwork and material
quantities and mass haul diagrams, and applies simple or
complex multi-phasing on any project.
In addition to computing volumes by cross-sections using
average end area methods, Terramodel also calculates volumes
using highly accurate surface-to-surface methods. You can
calculate volumes for a specified area and create reports where
you can define the depth and elevation ranges.
During the computations, points and break lines are created to
model the differences between the existing and the proposed
surface. Cut and fill points are color coded for easy
4
identification. This depth surface can be interactively
visualized for analysis and confirmation. It can also be
contoured for a more detailed review.
Having this detailed and accurate analysis of the design
enables you to minimize construction cost and maximize
profits. Terramodel’s amazing speed computes volumes from
hundreds of thousands of points in seconds, enabling you to
handle complex jobs with ease.
D ATA C O M PAT I B I L I T Y
Transferring data between Terramodel and Trimble
instruments is easy, and all types of data can be shared.
In addition, you can import from and export to a wide range
of data from third-party packages, including the following:
• Raw data
• Coordinate data
• Road geometry data (MicroStation Inroads, GeoPak, Caice,
and Department of Transport data)
• ASCII data
• Graphical exchange files (DXF, DWG, DGN)
• MOSS files
• HecRas files, and many more.
REPORTING
Terramodel provides you with all the reporting tools you need
to maintain quality. Standard reports include:
• control computations
• detail reduction
• coordinate listings
• geometry reports
• COGO—areas, distances, and bearings
• QA checks
• stakeout control GRADE CHECKING
• cut sheet reports In addition, the Terramodel Visualizer allows you to compare
• volume reports—reports can be pasted on to drawings two DTMs and produce a grade check report as well as a
where required DTM surface to check that you have achieved the design
grades.
TEMPORARY WORKS
Terramodel’s surface-design features for borrow pits, lagoons,
embankments, berms, bunds, benches, haul, and access roads
make it the product of choice for facilitating construction
infrastructure and temporary works.

DESIGN ADJUSTMENTS
When you receive design changes from the engineer,
Terramodel makes it easy for you to adjust the design so you
can get back to work with minimal delay. Terramodel also
allows you to view and calculate the volume changes that
result from design changes.

3 D I N T E R A C T I V E V I S U A L I Z AT I O N
Using the Terramodel Visualizer you can view your DTM
interactively from any position and distance. Surface color is
controlled by point color—features can be colored differently
resulting in realistic visualizations of the survey. Even more
T E R R A M O D E L S O L U T I O N PA K S
realistic 3D views can be created using surface rendering
Terramodel is a software system comprising multiple modules
techniques and the placement of 3D objects in the scene.
that can be purchased individually or as Solution Paks
Alternatively, aerial photography can be draped over the model
combining several modules. Adding modules to an existing
as shown.
system is easy, just use the form in Terramodel to email/fax
your order.

Trimble will provide you with the upgrade codes to activate

the modules you need—it’s that simple.

The following table shows the modules and recommended

Solution Paks for construction.
Recommended Solution Paks
Modules Road
Site Construction Construction
Design Engineering
Field Data Module1 • • •
CAD Module • • •
Contour Module • • •

Terramodel Visualizer allows you to visualize and analyze the COGO Module • • •

finished site before you put a blade in the ground, Site Design Module • • •

streamlining the planning and approval process. Road Design Module • •

ASAP Module •
(Automated Sheet Assembly
and Production)
Terramodel Visualizer Module
1
The Terramodel Field Data Module is provided as standard with all Trimble conventional total stations.

5
R E L AT E D T R I M B L E P R O D U C T S
The Terramodel software can be used in conjunction with
these Trimble products to give you more flexibility and to
open up new areas of work:
• The 5700 GPS Total Station® and 5600 Total Station
systems both use Terramodel data in the field for fast,
accurate, single-person stakeout work. Field data
(conventional and RTK GPS) from these systems can be
downloaded into Terramodel.
• BladePro® 3D is a 3D machine control solution using
GPS or ATS total station technology. The Control Box
software reads Terramodel project files and interactively
displays data in a format suited to machine operators. The
machine position is used in combination with the
Terramodel database to control the machine blade in terms
of lift and tilt. Updates of up to 10 times per second
provide a grade control system capable of millimeter
precision.
• Design data from Terramodel can be used by the
SiteVision® GPS machine control system and the Trimble
Survey Controller™ software for construction applications.
CONCLUSION
Terramodel provides you with a complete solution for all
parts of the construction process—from bid estimating to
grade checking, and as-built records. Terramodel automates
many of the tasks so you can save time and money.
The flexibility of being able to add modules when you need
them gives you the ability to carry out all types of
construction work without having to learn how to use
multiple software packages. The single software system also
means that you eliminate the data loss that is typically
associated with transferring information between software
packages.
There are fewer steps. There are fewer opportunities for
mistakes. There is but one company for all your construction
needs.
MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
Terramodel will run on:
• Any Pentium-based computer
• Windows 95, 98, ME, NT 4.0, 2000 or later
• 800 x 600 resolution and 256 colors

Computer-aided design and visualization are extremely

demanding on a computer’s processor, memory, and graphics
adapter. For huge data sets, Trimble recommends the fastest
processor, the maximum amount of memory, and fastest
graphics adapter available.

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Construction Division Am Prime Parc 11 Australia PTY Limited
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+1-937-233-8921 Phone
+1-937-233-9004 Fax YOUR LOCAL TRIMBLE OFFICE OR REPRESENTATIVE
www.trimble.com

© 2002, Trimble Navigation Limited. All rights reserved. The Globe & Triangle logo, Trimble,and Trimble Survey Controller are trademarks of Trimble Navigation Limited. BladePro, GPS Total
Station, SiteVision, and Terramodel are trademarks of Trimble Navigation Limited registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office. All other trademarks are the property of their respective
owners. Reorder PN022484-038 (01/02)