Ocan, a design director, contacted us about a high-street property on West Green Road in South Tottenham. His client needed a measured survey and existing drawings as a base for design and planning.
From the outset he was clear about one key requirement:
“Will you be providing the drawings in CAD format?”
He wanted to be sure that, after the survey, he’d receive editable DWG files, not just PDFs, so his team could move straight into design work without redrawing anything.
Once we confirmed that our deliverables would include DWG plus PDFs, and that we would provide a draft pack for review before final issue, the client gave us the green light.
Defining the scope – exactly what we would and wouldn’t capture
Over email we agreed the scope in simple, practical terms:
- External measurements
- Front elevation
- Rear elevation
- Internal measurements
- Floor plans for the required levels, suitable for CAD
The aim was a clean, reliable “existing” base model rather than a full topographical survey. We also clarified that the drawing process starts the day after the survey, once the raw data has been downloaded, organised and checked.
With the scope agreed, we:
- Issued an initial invoice to secure the slot
- Set an internal drawing turnaround expectation of around 4–5 working days after the site visit
- Drafted our internal brief so the surveyor knew exactly what the architect needed from the files
Site logistics – key collection and access coordination
This job involved a bit of extra coordination around access:
- The keys were held off-site by a contact on West Green Road.
- The client was travelling and couldn’t be on site in person.
- He asked us to collect the keys from a named contact (Mr Ben) at another address nearby.
We:
- Confirmed the survey date and arrival slot (Wednesday, 10:00–10:30 am)
- Passed the key-holder’s details directly to our surveyor, Ali
- Made sure the client knew we had everything we needed so he didn’t have to be present on the day
This kind of arrangement is fairly common on urban commercial projects, and having it squared away in writing avoids surprises on the morning of the survey.
How we carried out the survey – reliable data for future design
On survey day, Ali completed a measured building survey focused on:
- Internal layout:
- Room sizes, wall thicknesses and structural elements
- Openings, changes in level, and key features relevant to fit-out or refurbishment
- External envelope:
- Front and rear elevations measured from the street and rear access
- Checks between internal and external dimensions to keep the elevations tight
As usual, he captured:
- Primary dimensions using a laser distance meter
- Cross-checks and control dimensions to minimise cumulative errors
- A full internal and external photo set to assist the CAD team with details and context
From survey to drawings – managing deadlines and QA
Shortly after the survey, the client checked in:
“To my understanding, it was between 4–5 working days from the date of survey. When do you think it will be ready?”
We replied to explain:
- Our drawing work starts the day after the survey, once the raw files are organised.
- The project was already in our internal QA phase, where another team member reviews the model and sheets before anything leaves the office.
- The draft PDFs would be sent the next day for his review.
We then issued:
- A draft PDF pack showing the plans and elevations
- A final invoice, with a clear note that DWG files and photographs would follow once payment was received
The client settled the invoice the same day and asked us to release the DWG so he could start his design work that week. We confirmed receipt and issued the final pack, including:
- DWG file(s) of the existing layout and elevations
- Final PDFs, ready to share with his own client or the local authority
- Access to the photo set to support later detailing
Final outcome – a ready-to-use CAD base for an urban project
By the end of the project, Ocan had exactly what he needed:
- A measured survey and existing drawings tailored to his scope (internal plans and external elevations)
- Properly structured DWG files so his team could design directly on top of our work
- A clear record of timescales and processes he can reuse on future projects with us
From our side, this South Tottenham project highlighted a few things we try to do consistently:
- Clarify CAD deliverables early so there’s no doubt about receiving DWGs.
- Tie access and key-collection details down in writing, especially when clients are travelling.
- Communicate around deadlines and QA, so “4–5 working days” is a real expectation, not a guess.
The result was a smooth, repeatable workflow: measured once, drawn properly, and ready for the architect to move straight into design without redrawing a single line.
Project Details
| Service Type | Measured survey & existing drawings (plans and elevations) |
| Time Taken | 1 week |
| Budget | £500–£650 |
| Location | West Green Road, South Tottenham, North London |
